Belonging in the herding group, the Border Collie originated in the border country between Scotland and England. Formerly called the “Scotch Sheep Dog”, the Border Collie helped sheep herders organise and lead a large herd of sheep. Like most herding breeds the Border Collie descended from the Persian Sheepdog. In the second half of the […]

Border Terrier originally came from the border country between England and Scotland and was first spotted in the 18th century. It was bred as a farm dog to product livestock from predators. The breed is fast enough to follow a horse but small enough to chase a fox to the ground. The Border Terrier is […]

The Borzoi originated from Russia where they were bred to hunt wolves for the Russian aristocrats. As a favourite of the Tsar family, the breed was not widely traded and were only given as gifts from the Tsar family. The most popular Borzoi breeder was Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia who bred numerous Borzoi […]

The Boston Terrier originated from Boston, Massachussets, USA. In 1870 an American man called Robert C. Hooper imported a dog said to be the ancestor of Boston Terrier, a breed created from crossing the White English Terrier and the English Bulldog. Further cross breeding with the French Bulldog finally gave way to the breed we […]

This breed, Bouvier des Flandres, was originally bred by monks in Flanders. The monks cross-bred foreign dogs like Irish Wolfhounds with local farm dogs until the breed came into its own. Because of their size, strength, and patient nature, this breed naturally lent itself to work. Their thick double coats also allowed them to stand […]

Boxers were first bred in Germany in the late 1800’s. They descend from Bullenbeisers (which are now extinct) and Bulldogs. The larger Bullenbeisers were hunting dogs, bred to grab hold of injured game until their masters arrived to claim it. A smaller kind of Bullenbeiser was bred in Belgium, which opened the doors for the […]

The Beauceron is a French herding breed whose oldest records date back to the late 1500s. Pierre Megnin, in 1863, established two types of sheepdogs, one with a long coat, which became known as the Briard, and the other with a short coat, which became the Beauceron. In 1889, the breed name and standard were […]

The Bearded Collie is a herding dog from the Scottish Highlands. The modern day breed is traced back by a bloodline to the end of World War 11 when Mrs. G.O. Willison, owner of the Bothkennar Kennels began to breed them for show purposes and pushed the establishment of the Bearded Collie Club in Britain […]

Beagles have been a recognised breed in England since the 1830s and came about from breeding a number of breeds including the Talbot Hound, the North Country Beagle, the Southern Hound, and possibly the Harrier. Before then the name Beagle was used as a generic term to describe several small hound breeds. Reverend Phillip Honeywood […]

The Basset Hound is a short legged breed of the hound family. Originating in France it was bred from the bloodhound to hunt rabbits. The name Basset is derived from the French word bas, meaning “low”, with the attenuating suffix -et, together meaning “rather low”. In France, basset hounds rose to the height of popularity […]