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| Assyrian Mastiff | |||||||||||||||
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| Origin | Iraq, Iran, Turkey | ||||||||||||||
| Breed status | Not recognized as a breed by any major kennel club. | ||||||||||||||
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| Dog (domestic dog) | |||||||||||||||
The Assyrian Mastiff, is a dog landrace native to Northern Iraq. This dog is often used as a livestock guardian against predators and were bred by the Assyrians and Babylonians for lion and wild horse-hunting.
The name is most likely derived from the images of this type of dog that appear in Assyrian and other Mesopotamian reliefs dating from the 10th to 6th century BCE Neo-Assyrian Empire. It was, and still is, specially prized for its high stamina while fighting external threats, especially wild animals and other dogs. It has a fish-like body, broader at the chest and narrower at the waist, which enables it to twist and turn at high speeds irrespective of its huge frame.
Weight and height
Males weigh between 50 and 92 kilograms (even crossing 100 kg in rare cases), females 45 to 80 kilograms. The height of these dogs at the shoulder is between 75 and 90 centimeters in males and between 70 and 85 in females.
Description
The coats of Assyrian mastiffs can be yellow, white, red, burgundy, blue and black. The breed has loose skin, large dewlaps, and non-cartilaginous (soft and floppy) ears. The breed is longer and stronger than the other Asian mastiffs. Its body length is especially eye-catching, since it has a long and slender body resembling the lion. This breed has a significantly larger amount of endurance comparative to other dog breeds. It also has high body strength and is usually longer than other giant dog breeds.
In the History of The Mastiff - Gathered From Sculpture, Pottery, Carvings, Paintings and Engravings; Also From Various Authors, With Remarks On Same (A Vintage Dog Books Breed Classic), M.B. Wynn describes ancient Assyrian's clay tablet's depictions of the Assyrian Mastiff:
It is also worthy of remark that the Assyrians were always careful to define long hair when it existed, but in this specimen the stern appears free from any roughness, although so minute are the details that the very fraying at the end of the rope is depicted, the loose skin hangs down the face in enormous wrinkles or folds, and the lips were extremely pendulous evidently, although the mouth is marked by a slit or line in the usual conventional form of Assyrian sculpture. The ears are of medium size, chest very deep, and limbs massive, the head short and of great volumn, and muzzle short and truncated. There is a great similarity between this dog and some of our noted English specimens.
Age
The Assyrian mastiff live on average 9 to 13 years. If they are used in combat, their expected lifespan is reduced to 6–8 years.
Image gallery
- Modern Assyrian Mastiff Modern Assyrian Mastiff
- Assyrian Mastiff with Boy Assyrian Mastiff with Boy
See also
See also
References
- ^ Wynn, M.B. (2006). History of The Mastiff - Gathered From Sculpture, Pottery, Carvings, Paintings and Engravings; Also From Various Authors, With Remarks On Same (A Vintage Dog Books Breed Classic). Alcester: Read Books. p. 25. ISBN 9781446548929.
- ^ Darwin, Charles (1998). The variation of animals and plants under domestication (Johns Hopkins paperbacks ed.). Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 17. ISBN 9780801858666.
- Gwatkin, R. D. S. (1 March 1933). "Dogs and human migrations". Journal of the South African Veterinary Association. 4 (3): 154–164. doi:10.10520/AJA00382809_3273.
- Mark, Joshua. "Dogs & Their Collars in Ancient Mesopotamia". World History Encyclopedia.
- "History". American Molosser Association.
- Leighton, Robert (1910). Dogs and All about Them. Cassell, Limited. p. 2.
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