Buffon's Natural History. Volume 05 (of 10): Containing a Theory of the Earth, a General History of Man, of the Brute Creation, and of Vegetables, Minerals, &c. &cBuffon, Georges Louis Leclerc, comte de
History
Buffon's Natural History. Volume 05 (of 10): Containing a Theory of the Earth, a General History of Man, of the Brute Creation, and of Vegetables, Minerals, &c. &c
Buffon, Georges Louis Leclerc, comte de
Natural history
that the wild dogs of St. Domingo are not real greyhounds is the latter
being so scarce in France, that they are brought for the king from
Constantinople, and other parts of the Levant, and because I never
knew of any being brought from St. Domingo, or any of our American
colonies. Besides, in searching what travellers have said of dogs of
different colonies, we find that the dogs of cold climates have long
muzzles and erect ears; that those of Lapland are small, have erect
ears, and pointed muzzles; that the Siberian, or wolf dogs, are bigger
than those of Lapland, but they also have erect ears, coarse hair, and
sharp muzzles; and that those of Iceland have a strong resemblance
to the Siberian dogs; and, in the same manner, the native dogs of
the Cape of Good Hope and other warm countries, have sharp muzzles,
erect ears, long trailing tails, longhair, but shining and rough: that
these dogs are excellent for guarding of flocks, and consequently not
only resemble in figure but even in instinct our shepherd's dogs.
In climates still warmer, such as Madagascar, Madura, Calicut, and
Malabar, the native dogs have all sharp muzzles, erect ears, and in
almost every respect resemble our shepherd's dogs; nay, that even when
mastiffs, spaniels, water-dogs, bull-dogs, beagles, blood-hounds, &c.
have been transported thither they degenerated at the second or third
generation. In countries extremely hot, like Guinea, the degeneration
is still more quick, since by the end of three or four years they lose
their voice, can no longer bark, but only make an howling noise, and
their immediate offspring have erect ears like foxes. The native dogs
of these regions are very ugly; they have sharp muzzles, long erect
ears, and long pointed tails; they have no hair on their bodies, their
skin is usually spotted, though sometimes it is of an uniform colour;
in short they are disagreeable to the eye and still more to the touch.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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