Kooikerhondje: Nutrition, character, training and much more about the Kooikerhondje

Introductory

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he best friend of man does not bear his name for nothing. Many people can no longer do without their beloved four-legged friend, but the acquisition of a dog usually does not go smoothly. Few owners understand how much time and love must be invested in an animal. In addition, different breeds of dogs require different assistance. Therefore, before acquiring a dog, extensive research should be done to find out which dog breed and dog character suit the owner, because not every breed is suitable as a family dog.

The purpose of this book is to introduce the Nederlandse Kooikerhondje. It is a very favored breed that can be used both as a family dog and as a working dog such as in hunting or life saving.

He fits in with most families and is quick to forgive when his urge to move cannot be met. It is a dog with a lot of energy, which adapts to its owner. He is therefore well suited as an assistance dog, but he also feels very comfortable with sportsmen. Due to its rather small size, it can be kept very well in the apartment and behaves particularly gently when dealing with children. Nevertheless, his actual breeding base is frighteningly small. This book will explain why the Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes are almost extinct. A maximum of 500 new puppies are born every year. As a comparison, it can be said that the popular Golden Retrievers have 2000 to 2,500 puppies annually. Nevertheless, the Kooikerhondjes are clear favorites, which are easy to raise. At the same time this means nevertheless that there are only few breeders and now and then long car journeys must be taken over, in order to find a suitable and respectable offerer. Thus it must be considered that the acquisition of a purebred and above all healthy Kooiker puppy is not without four-digit costs.

Whoever nevertheless wants to take in a Nederlandse Kooikerhondje will quickly be able to form an intimate bond with him. Due to his balanced and loyal nature, he feels very comfortable around people and especially the daily playing inspires the little dog very much.

But even the most balanced breed can bring problems, especially when adopting an older dog, which comes to a new home with a history. This book will therefore not only explain what makes the Kooikerhondje so unique and popular, but it is also a guide to general upbringing and training. Thus, the Kooikerhondje does not have to remain a family dog, but from its history it can be learned that it is an excellent hunting dog without game sharpness. This can be taken advantage of.

By the way, the Nederlandse Kooikerhondje is especially popular with younger generations, because of its pretty appearance in the social media. Already in the 16th and 17th centuries artists made oil paintings, such as the famous artist Rembrandt van Rijn or Jan Steen.

The Nederlandse Kooikerhondje

The history of the Kooikerhondje - Where does he come from?

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he history of this small spaniel goes back to the 16th century. The Nederlandse Kooikerhondje is thus one of the oldest dog breeds. Kooikerhondjes were first sighted in the Netherlands, where their great potential was discovered in duck hunting. The duck hunting differs from other hunts, because here is worked with so-called Koois. These are special duck traps into which the ducks must be lured. The Kooikerhondjes turned out to be the front runners, as they were particularly friendly to humans, but equally good at driving ducks, which is why the Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes today belong to the bird dogs.

Bird dogs are better known today as pointing dogs. Within hunting, pointing dogs represent dogs that do not perform only one task, but are all-rounders and therefore can perform many tasks. They represent the most popular companions of the hunter, because a good bond can be formed with them. Most pointing dogs can take on all aspects of a hunt. This means that a pointing dog can track and push or drive a game before the shot is fired and after the game is released and killed, it can be tracked and retrieved. Due to some breed characteristics, not every dog can perform all of these tasks. Some dogs are simply too large to be used in launching, others are too small or not fast enough to actively drive. Nevertheless, most dogs can be used as pointing dogs because they are high flyers that do not differ directly based on breed characteristics, but are subject to the preference of the hunter. This means that the character of the animal plays a major role. Nevertheless, it can be said in principle that a shoulder height of 47 centimeters to 70 centimeters is favored by hunters. Also, the hair should not be too long.  Popular pointing dogs include the Deutsch Drahthaar, the Deutsch Stichelhaar and the Deutsch Kurzhaar, large and also small Münsterländer, the English representatives of the English Setter, Gordon Setter and Irish Red Setter as well as the English Pointer and the Pudelpointer, the French dog breeds Griffon, Braque Francais and Epagneul Breton as well as the old German Weimaraner and the Hungarian favorite Magyar Vizsla.

Through the profile, which will be explained in the breed portrait, it is noticeable that the shoulder height of the Kooikerhondje is somewhat small for a pointing dog. However, as explained, it depends on the character. Thus, a calm and friendly Kooikerhondje will not do well against red or elk game, but within duck hunting it makes a great pointing dog.

Not always it was called pointing dog. This is a relatively new term of today's hunting dog. In the past, these dogs were called bird dogs. The reason is simple: they were used in bird hunting. Nevertheless, in detail it is a little more complex. In the 16th century it was so that a single hunter went hunting with several dogs, which all pursued a different task. The Stöberhunde took up the trace, the Bracken and/or the today's welding dogs went after the sweat and thus the blood of a game, if it was already shot, and the retrieving dogs brought the shot game back to the hunter. All these steps were necessary to get by with the limited methods available at the time. Only bird hunting required only one dog that could do all the tasks the hunter demanded. One bird dog was talent-wise ahead of the other dogs.

Especially the Nederlandse Kooikerhondje was thus in particular demand 500 years ago, which led to the fact that the Kooikerhondjes almost died out in the 20th century. Their excellent hunting qualities were not sufficient for the Second World War, which is why there were only a few specimens left in good health around 1939. Animal lover and Baroness van Hardenbroek van Ammerstol then established a breeding program with the twenty or so remaining specimens she could find within the country. This new breeding had a difficult start and it took many years before the first boys were bred. The bitch Tommie is said to have given birth to the first puppies that consolidated the breeding. Recognized by the Raad van Beheer in 1971, today she is known as the ancestral mother of all Kooikerhondjes.

In 1990 followed the next recognition for the dog breed: It came to the classification of the FCI. Since then, the Nederlandse Kooikerhondje is classified in the so-called group 8 Retrievers - Water Dogs - Water Dogs within the second section Retrievers.

Even though the small spaniel almost became extinct less than 100 years ago, today 500 new puppies are registered every year. They are considered joyful family dogs and have only a medium urge to move, which is why they are especially popular with shelters and breeding stations.

The Dutch waterfowl dog:

Duck hunting favorite

Even today, the Nederlandse Kooikerhondje is considered a favorite in duck hunting, however, there is no question that duck hunting has changed greatly over the centuries. In order to understand all aspects of the small spaniel, the different duck hunting styles will be explained here.

Around 1500, so-called duck kooies were used. Here you can already see where today's family dog gets its name. The Kooi represents thereby a channel, around which large fences were built, which even covered the channel. It almost looked like a particularly large and long cage, which prevented the ducks that bobbed on the canal from flying away. Said channel ended in a trap where the actual hunters could now catch the ducks with ease, although it took a bit of dexterity to be able to catch the ducks flapping around. To keep the ducks from turning around and swimming back out of the cage, dogs were used to herd the ducks toward the hunters. The channels were usually not particularly deep in the process, so a dog could easily run after them, which was a much easier task with four legs than if a human were trying to do so, and in rare cases the dog also paddled after them.

The Nederlandse Kooikerhondjes very quickly proved to be a favorite, as they were not only particularly quick to learn, but also friendly and playful. Since this form of hunting was not about the dog killing a duck, but only driving it, there was no need for a sweat dog - an expression for a dog with a particularly fine nose, which follows the sweat (blood) of the shot animal and tracks it down - and also no pointing dog - usually used for the killing of an animal, should a single shot not have been enough - but a simple stalking dog was enough.

Today, flushing dogs are used both before the shot and after the shot. In the 16th century, however, flushing dogs were only used before the shot. This means that they were always used when tracking a wild animal. In duck hunting, this meant that the Kooikerhondjes were only used before the hunt. Neither did they shoot the game nor did they bite into the plumage to hold it. Only the small spaniel was used for herding, the actual hunting was done by the humans, positioning themselves at the end of the kooi and letting the startled ducks come to them.

Today, this outdated and, in the eyes of today's experts, cruel method is no longer used. Today's hunting regulations, to which every hunter must adhere, are based on the welfare of the animal. Hunting can never be gentle and every hunter must be aware that an animal's life is being taken, but the right conditions can ensure that the animal's last moments are neither painful nor stressful. This could not be the case with the method of duck hunting used at the time. Even from a distance, the animals could spot the hunters, who were just waiting for the ducks to come within grabbing distance. They were aware minutes before that there was no escape. Today this is considered cruel, which is why this method is no longer used, instead today's duck hunting looks different.

Today, attention must be paid above all to which swimming and diving ducks may be hunted in Germany, because not all are released for hunting. The period of hunting has also changed. Whereas in the past hunting was allowed throughout the year, today's time window is quite small, as ducks may only be hunted when they are in migration. During their breeding season, they are protected. Varying from duck species to duck species, the hunting season begins on September 1 or October 1; regardless of duck hunting, the season ends on January 15.

Why is hunting taking place today during the migration of the animals? This is because many species of ducks are threatened with extinction and are on the red list. During the breeding season, the animals are left alone to reproduce so that biodiversity can continue. Hunting of young animals is also prohibited.

Since the ducks are in migration at the time of hunting, they can no longer be captured in a canal that is fenced on all sides. They are on the move and therefore do not swim much on canals, lakes or ponds. Instead, today's hunting methods focus on hunting them as they forage for food. This means that duck hunting takes place in corn stubble fields or cornfields. Classically, however, hunting still takes place near bodies of water.

In today's duck hunting can be four different methods. It comes to the stalk, to the duck stroke, to the Treibjagd and to the Kirrung. The Kirrung and the duck line are not to be discussed here further, since here no dogs are taken along as assistants. This happens only with the Treibjagd and with the stalk.

In contrast to driven hunting, driven hunting describes a method in which as much stress as possible is briefly exerted on a hunted game so that the hunt can be over as quickly as possible. Drift hunting is suitable for open terrain in meadows or fields. It needs a wide field of vision, which is why duck hunting is one of the few movements, along with hare hunting, where drift hunting can be well used. The important thing to remember about drift hunting is that you can only shoot at what is called a definitive sight - that's what the dogs are for. Ducks are particularly good hiders. They have adapted to life in the flora and fauna and not infrequently have plumage that is difficult to distinguish from the environment. In addition, the plumage of ducks becomes darker during migration and thus after the breeding season, it adapts to the color of the bare fields. The human eye is often not enough to sight a duck