Additonal Breeds Starting
With Letter:
Pet Sites
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COUNTRY:
USSR
WEIGHT:
25-30 pounds
HEIGHT:
15-19 inches
COAT:
Dense, moderately short, stand-off
COLOR:
Fawn in various shades, lighter tones on
the undersides are allowed
GROUP:
Northern Dog
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The Karelo-Finnish Laika is very similar to the Finnish Spitz. Nordic hunting
breeds developed long before current national boundaries. The red hunting
dog fostered in Finland took on the name Finnish Spitz, and the same general
type promoted in European Russia was named Kare-lo-Finnish for the area
from which it came. The area called Karelia is actually a part of northwestern
Russia, just east of Finland and south of the Barents seaport of Murmansk.
The Russian term laika means barker or barking dog, similar to the
term applied to his Finnish counterpart. All of the Nordic-type dogs from
Russia are called laika, describing
their distinctive hunting style. The actual Karelo-Finnish Laika is unknown
outside of Russia, but at home he is very popular with hunters; in fact
he is the most numerous of all the Russian laikas, due to his fine abilities
and small size.
Maturing very
early, he finds employment for various types of bird hunting—grouse, pheasant
and duck—as well as squirrels. Many Soviet fur hunters also find this
breed useful for trailing and entering fox, marten or raccoon burrows,
and he is even brave enough to dance face to face with a bear. This energetic,
small, quick dog is the least likely of the laikas to bog down and suffocate
in the deep snow drifts.
In temperament,
the Karelo-Finnish is high-strung and excitable. He is willing to please
and cannot stand rudeness, punishment or unfair treatment. Russians say
"everything about this dog, its eyes, ears, and tail, express joy
and cheerfulness." But if ill-treated, the bond between Laika and
hunter is broken, and the hunt will lose its joy.
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