Dalmatian

Comes from Dalmatia, coastal region of Croatia

Even if his origins are very controversial, many Dalmatians can be found in 12th century paintings, which leads us to believe that this breed is very old.

In 1792, Thomas Bewick published a work including a drawing of a white haired dog spotted with black circles. Bewick refers to this dog, or Dalmatian, in his work as an animal used to pave the way for coaches and stagecoaches carrying mail of the time.

This is the first officially known publication about Dalmatians. Later, around 1882, the first standard of the breed was written by Vero Shaw, another Englishman of the time. In 1890, the standard was made official.

Originally, the Dalmatian was used as a crew dog. He got his nickname of "tick dog" from the fact that he ran behind horse-drawn carriages. Later, around the 18th century, he followed in the footsteps of the horse hauling the truck used by the firemen.

He quickly became the mascot of firefighters, mainly Americans, who used him to keep people and animals away from the fires. He warned them and managed to bark them away.

His name comes from Dalmatia, a region of Croatia where he was used by the English as war messenger. He carried messages in a backpack to recipients while crossing enemy lines.

The real popularity of the Dalmatian began in England. The Dalmatian escorted aristocrats and owning such a dog was a sign of great wealth.

His popularity continued to grow after 1959, when Walt Disney chose the Dalmatian as the main subject of his big hit film "The 101 Dalmatians".

Walt Disney's famous film was beneficial to the popularity of the breed and it is certain that he is now known by a large majority of the world's inhabitants.

However, the flip side of the coin also caused a lot of damage to this breed. Due to the excessive demand for puppies, an overproduction took place. Everybody wanted a Dalmatian.

Many birthday or Christmas gifts, bought on a whim, unfortunately ended up at the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals).

Even after the new non-animated version was released in 1997, many puppies were still adopted and discarded shortly afterwards.

Any popularity unfortunately has a price and the Dalmatian's was heavy.