History
The origins of the Kooikerhondje (Dutch Decoy Dog) from the Netherlands can be found as far back as the 1500's to 1600's. Kooikers were originally developed and used by Dutch hunters to lure ducks into traps. When duck season was over, the Kooikerhondjes would hunt through crops, storage areas and fields destroying rats, mice and moles. They were also a much loved family pet. It is even said that the decoy dog owned by Willem van Oranje (William of Orange) saved his life by warning him of a Spanish assassination attempt.
In many 16th and 17th century dutch paintings the Kooikerhondje is depicted as a loved family pet. Many of the Dutch Masters painted family portraits that depict a small decoy type dog. It is believed that this dog originated from the Spioen or spaniel. The destruction during the Second World War almost caused the extinction of the breed. The diminishing wild duck stock aggravated the situation even further.
Baroness Van Hardenbroek Van Ammerstol
In 1939, there were believed to be only 25 Kooikerhondjes in existence. Luckily the Baroness Van Hardenbroek van Ammerstol took an interest in the Kooikerhondje breed. She gave a picture of the type of decoy dog she was looking for to a pedlar and asked him to look out for dogs matching this description. At a farm in the province of Friesland the pedlar found a bitch now well known as Tommie. Though the farmer did not want to part with Tommie, he let the Baroness breed with her. Tommie became the founding bitch of the Kooikerhondjes. She was mated with Bobbie and they produced their first litter in 1942. The only surviving pup was named Bernard van Walhalla. Tommie was mated with another dog in 1943, Bennie, and produced four bitches that were named after the princesses of the Netherlands and Tommie herself: Margrietje, Irene, Trix and Tommie 2. (This was quite audacious of the Baroness, since in 1943 the Netherlands was occupied by Nazi-Germany and any reference to the royal family was absolutely forbidden.) The Baroness, as before, searched for suitable males to breed to these females and found them mostly on small farms and with private families. Tommie was returned to the farm in Friesland when she became too old to have another litter.
Tommie, 1942
Eventually, other people became interested in breeding the Kooikerhondje. Using Tommie's offspring, dogs who fit the description as well as two dogs of decoyman Bosma they created their perfect dog. In 1966 the Raad van Beheer, (the Dutch institute that decides whether a breed can become officially recognized or not), decided that a provisional register could be installed. The dogs that passed the judging could be admitted to the register. Nico, great grandson of Margrietje, was the first Kooikerhondje to be admitted to the provisional register and can be found in almost every modern Kooikerhondje's pedigree. By December 20, 1971, when the Kooikerhondje received its final recognition, a sufficient gene pool had been established. From that moment on, no unregistered dogs were allowed to participate in the breeding program. The breed is still quite rare, but is gaining recognition throughout North America.
Information on the history of the Kooikerhondje was found at the Dutch Kooikerhondje club, Vereniging "Het Nederlandse Kooikerhondje", as well as FCI Kooikerhondje Standard.
PUBLICATION OF THE OFFICIAL VALID STANDARD:
UTILIZATION: Sporting and Companion Dog used for duck decoy.
FCI-CLASSIFICATION: Group 8 Retrievers – Flushing Dogs – Water Dogs. Section 2 Flushing Dogs. Without working trial. BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY: In 1942, during the Second World War, the Baroness Van Hardenbroek van Ammerstol began to recreate the Kooikerhondje. She gave a picture of the type of dog she was looking for to a pedlar and asked him to look out for such dogs. At a farm in the province of Friesland he found the bitch now well known as Tommy. She became the founding bitch of the Kooikerhondje. In 1966 the Raad van Beheer adopted the interim breed and in 1971 the breed was officially recognized. The Kooikerhondje was and still is used in the duck decoys. His task is still to lure the ducks into the decoy with his gaily waving tail; he does not hunt the ducks. He calmly moves between the decoyscreens in order to provoke the ducks curiosity and lure them further down the decoy pipe where the ducks are captured in a trap. They are either killed for the table or ringed for ornithological research.
GENERAL APPEARANCE: The Kooikerhondje is a harmoniously built orange-red parti-coloured small sporting dog of almost square body proportions. FCI-St. N° 314 / 19.01.2011 3 He moves with his head held high; in action the well-feathered waving tail is carried level with, or above the topline. The ears have black hair at the tip, the so-called earrings. The dog is presented with a natural, untrimmed coat. IMPORTANT PROPORTIONS: The length of the body from the point of the shoulder (at the scapula/humerus) to the point of the buttocks may be slightly longer than the height at the withers. Skull and muzzle are of about equal length.
BEHAVIOUR AND TEMPERAMENT: Lively and agile, self-confident and with sufficient perseverance and stamina, good natured and alert, however not noisy. The breed is faithful, easy-going and friendly. Outside the hunting season the dog is expected to find and kill vermin, hence he needs to be keen, swift and tough. He is a true sporting dog, being attentive and energetic and having a zest for working and with a cheerful character.
HEAD The head is of moderate length, fitting in with the general appearance, clean-cut, with flowing lines.
CRANIAL REGION: Skull: Sufficiently broad, moderately rounded. Stop: Seen in profile clearly visible but not too deep.
FACIAL REGION: Nose: Black and well developed. Muzzle: Seen from the side not too deep and slightly wedge-shaped; seen from above not tapering too much and well-filled under the eyes. Lips: Preferably well-pigmented, close-fitting and not overhanging. Jaws / Teeth: Scissor bite; complete dentition is desirable. Pincer bite is accepted but less desirable. Eyes: Almond-shaped, dark brown with a friendly, alert expression. FCI-St. N° 314 / 19.01.2011 4 Ears: Moderately large, set on just above the line from the point of the nose to the corner of the eye. The ears are carried close to the cheeks without a fold. Well feathered; black hair tips (“earrings”) are highly desirable.
NECK: Strongly muscled, of sufficient length and clean-cut.
BODY: Topline: Smooth line from the withers to the tail. Back: Strong and straight, rather short. Loin: Of sufficient length and width, strongly muscled. Croup: Slightly sloping and sufficiently broad; the length of the croup should be 1.5 times the width. Chest: Reaching to the elbows with sufficient spring of ribs. Sufficiently developed forechest. Underline and belly: Slight tuck-up towards the loin. TAIL: Set on so as to follow the topline of the body, carried level with the topline or almost straight up (gaily). Well-feathered with a white plume. The last vertebra should reach the hock joint.
LIMBS FOREQUARTERS: Shoulder: Shoulder sufficiently sloping in order to create a flowing line from neck to back. Upper arm: Well-angulated towards shoulder blade that is of equal length. Elbow: Close to the body. Forearm: Straight and parallel, strong bone of sufficient density and length. Metacarpus (Pastern): Strong and slightly oblique. Forefeet: Small, slightly oval, compact with well-knit toes pointing forward. FCI-St. N° 314 / 19.01.2011 5
HINDQUARTERS: General appearance: Well angulated, straight and parallel seen from the rear. Strong bone. Thigh: Well muscled. Lower thigh: Length equal to thigh. Hock joint: Well let down. Hind feet: As forefeet.
GAIT / MOVEMENT: Should be flowing and springy, well extended, with good drive. Limbs parallel.
COAT: Hair: Of medium length, slightly wavy or straight and close lying. Soft hair. Well-developed undercoat. Front legs should have moderate feathering reaching to the pastern joints. Hind legs should have fairly long feathered breeches; no feathering below the hock joints. The coat on the head, the front part of the legs and the feet should be short. Sufficiently feathered on the underside of the tail. Longer hair on throat and forechest. Earrings (long feathered black hairtips) are highly desirable. Colour: Distinct patches of clear orange-red colour on pure white although a few small spots on the legs are accepted. The orange-red colour should be predominant. Some black hair intermingling with the orange-red colour and a slight form of ticking are accepted but less desirable. Colouring on the head: A clearly visible blaze running down to the nose. There should be colouring on the cheeks and around the eyes. A blaze that is too narrow or too wide or only partly coloured cheeks is less desirable. A black tail ring where the colour changes from orange-red to white is permitted.
SIZE: Ideal height at the withers: Males: 40 cms. Females: 38 cms. Tolerance: 2 cms over or 3 cms under the ideal heights are permitted. FCI-St. N° 314 / 19.01.2011 6
FAULTS: Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and the functional health and welfare of the dog and on its ability to perform its traditional work. • Ears too small. • Ears half-erect, “flying ears”. • Tail that is curled. • Hackney gait. • Curly or silky hair. • Colour that is heavily interspersed with black hairs in the orangered patches. • Too much ticking. • Over maximum size or under minimum size.
SEVERE FAULTS: • Anxious behaviour. • Distinctly low on legs, out of proportion. • Wall eye. • Undershot or overshot bite. • Tail too short, not reaching hock-joint. • White colour on ears, partly or completely. • White hair around eyes, one or both.
DISQUALIFYING FAULTS: • Aggressive or overly shy. • Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioural abnormalities shall be disqualified. • Colour that is black and white or tricolour. N.B.: • Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum. • Only functionally and clinically healthy dogs, with breed typical conformation should be used for breeding.
BRON: FCI.be
TRANSLATION: Lydia K. M. Erhart. Revised by Renée SporreWilles / Original version : (EN). ORIGIN: The Netherlands.