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Writer's pictureJennifer Eileen

Lundehund--the Ancient Breed Wins Recognition

Updated: Feb 3




We applaud the milestone for the Lundehunds that Dagney is recognized as the "Best of Breed" in her class as deemed by the Kennel Club of Philadelphia in 2023. She then competed in the Non-Sporting Group in the 2023 National Dog Show, bringing the spotlight to the Lundehunds.


Watch in Virginia on Fairfax Public Access Channel 10 in February:02/03/2024 5:30pm

02/04/2024 1:00pm

02/05/2024 12:30am

02/06/2024 9:30pm

02/07/2024 6:30am

02/09/2024 5:30pm

02/10/2024 3:30pm

02/11/2024 2:00am

02/13/2024 6:00am

02/13/2024 9:30pm

02/14/2024 12:00am

02/16/2024 2:30pm

02/17/2024 6:30am

02/17/2024 9:30pm

02/19/2024 5:30am

02/19/2024 10:00pm

02/21/2024 5:30pm

02/22/2024 4:00am

02/24/2024 6:30am

02/24/2024 9:30am

02/26/2024 12:30am

02/26/2024 12:30pm

02/27/2024 12:00am

02/27/2024 6:30pm

02/29/2024 7:00am

02/29/2024 4:30pm


Lundehund translated means Puffin Dog. Found only on the Lofoton Islands of Norway, the Lundehunds had declined to six, perhaps ten. Considered to be in the category of the Spitz dogs, they are yet unto themselves alike with several special and not replicable characteristics. These include six working toes on each foot, demonstrated in their environment to climb and descend rocky sandy shale cliffs. Their limbs are unusually flexible, in fact, a Lundehund can hug you because she extends her legs fully to the side. In addition, they can fold up like a pretzel and turn their heads completely backwards to see behind them in narrow caves, where the Puffins can be found, Their ears are like fortune cookies and rotate or close to keep out water. They have fewer teeth, ideal for carrying eggs.


Dagney performed in the 2023 National Dog Show as broadcast on NBC/Peacock. Link to Dagny’s national TV debut


It is maintained by some that the Corgi, beloved by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, is an offspring of the Lundehund and Swedish Valhund.


More Lundehund Information and Links:

Lundehund

Average sizes and life expectancy of the breed.

HEIGHT

13-15 inches (male)

12-14 inches (female)


WEIGHT

15-18 lbs (male)

12-15 lbs (female)


LIFE EXPECTANCY

12-15 years

For centuries Lundehunds were bred on Vaeroy, a remote and rocky island off the Norwegian coast. Puffins nest in crevices in the island's cliff walls. Islanders depended on pickled puffin meat to sustain them through long Arctic winters, and the strong, flexible Lundehund was the only way to reach them. These compact puffin dogs would climb the sheer rock walls, worm their way into tiny passages, and snatch the birds. Then they'd skid down the cliffs, with the squawking, flapping prize in their mouth.


They are now being used at an airport in northern Norway where bird strikes, or avian collisions with aircrafts, are becoming an increasing problem. The Lundehunds find the seagull nests and remove the eggs, just as they did with their puffin counterparts for centuries.


Lundehund has extra digits on all four. Each of the Lundehund’s feet has at least six fully developed toes "Dewclaws"— compared to the five on the front feet (including the dewclaw) and the four on the back in most other breeds – giving them a kind of snowshoe appearance. This uniquely shaped foot helped the vertically oriented dogs grip the slippery cliffs and aided in digging in sea caves to locate puffin nests.



Norwegian Lundehund Association of America




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