You asked me about the ideal hunting dog . . I always figured nature uses the hardest selection process and this is what she came up with.
The African Wild dog.
Uses it's leopard/merle coloration as camouflage. Heavy coat to protect from the cold.
Black accented facial features guard against the African sun's dangerous rays.
Long legs and good physique to enable blistering speed for running down antelope and warthogs.
Black nails and pads make for tougher feet that hold up longer in rough terrain.
They need the grit and tenacity to take down dangerous game.
And of course . . all of these attributes would be useless without the abilty to free cast them from horseback or four wheeler, etc.
Using those as a model . . I started with some of this for the muscled frame and long legs . .
Which came with plenty of grit . .
Worked well in the cold . .
Protection from the sun . .
Shaggy coat . .
Black eyes, nose, pads, nails . .
As of two weeks ago, thanks to Jessie Jones and a little accidental inbreeding . . . I finally got the color just right.
Now . . if I can just cross in a little French Bull Dog for the proper ear set and get the young ones to stop milling around under foot . . I'll be good to go!
P.S. . . . I don't have any pictures but Bob and David will testify that my dogs can and will bay up a wad of Zebras.
