The Swiss Sennenhund
The Entlebucher Sennenhund is the smallest and rarest of the four Sennenhund breeds. The Entlebucher originated in the valleys of the Entlen Mountains along the greater and lesser Emme river in the cantons of Berne and Lucerne. They were also known as Schärligs after the valley of the Schärlibach, a valley at the tributary of the greater Emme.
Since medieval times, the Sennenhunde has been of great use to the farmers of Switzerland, Southern Germany, and Austria. The primary duty of the Swiss Sennenhund has always been to care for the farm, to protect its inhabitants, and to recognize any kind of danger. He was expected to announce strangers and to keep any wild animals such as wolves, bears, and swine off the farms. The dogs which were used for these purposes were the smaller breed of dogs now known as the Swiss Sennenhund; the Appenzeller and the Entlebucher. The Bernese and the Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs were too large and awkward to work in the Alps.
These smaller dogs worked for the Senn, the cattle herder of the Alpine pastures. The Senn is the herdsman who moves from the valleys to the Alps with his herd of cows. His herd was usually composed of cows belonging to many different farmers who remained in the valley in order to take care of their farms. The Senn was responsible for keeping track of the cows, as well as taking them twice a day to the Alphutte (the barn which housed the Senn and the cows) to milk them and to produce cheese. Then when the summer was over and the grass on the highest Alp was gone, the Senn, his cows, and his dogs all went back down again reaching the valley floor by the end of September. The cows were then returned to their farms, and the cheese (or the cash value) was distributed to the farmers according to the number of cows each contributed.
The Sennenhund had to help the Senn drive the cattle up the Alps which, sometimes, could be more than twenty miles a day. It has been recorded that herds were regularly driven to northern Italy and even as far away as Lyon and Paris. Driving cattle is a somewhat easy job for these dogs, since cows have a pretty good sense of direction. Cows have a very good memory of the paths and places where they had been before. The lead cow, often decorated with flowers, remembers exactly which way she needs to go to get to the Alps. The task of the Sennenhund, therefore, consisted primarily of keeping the herd together and keeping them moving. The dogs accomplished herding by barking, and they learned pretty quickly that barking will cause the cows to move and to, eventually, go home. If barking was not successful, the dogs would then nip at the hooves of the cows to move them. If all else failed the dog would then become airborne and slam the cow with his shoulder. The Sennenhund was relentless in attaining his goal and for the need for praise and rewards from the Senn. Today, many Sennenhund still retain these traits. Since there are few cows at their disposal, these traits manifest themselves by circling and 'herding' their family and by 'driving' their people by nipping at their heels. The beautiful tri-color which is held in such high regard nowadays was not considered a priority in the past. These dogs had to earn their living. The selection based on health, strength, and perseverance took precedence. However, no one cared about breeds the way we do today. What was of primary importance was that the dog was good at his job.
The construction and introduction of the railroads in Europe between the years of 1850 and 1900 brought an end to Alpine cattle herding and the inherent job of the Sennenhund. The railroads afforded the opportunity to transport cattle within a matter of hours rather than the days or weeks it took the Senn and his dogs. The Senn and his dogs no longer had a real purpose and had become, for the most part, on the verge of extinction.
The first description of the Entlebucher, still under the name 'Entlebucherhund', originated around 1889 from E. Bauer and was listed in the "Central Book for Hunting and Dog Lovers" (Zentrallblatt für Jagd und Hundeliebhaber). It was not, however, until 1913 that the Entlebucher made its first public appearance. That year, at a local dog exhibition, Franz Schertenleib brought four members of the breed to Professor Heim to be judged at that show. Due to Dr. Heim's report at this exhibition, the Entlebucher was registered as the fourth Sennenhund breed and some years later, in 1927, the first breed standard was written. Dr. Kobler and Franz Schertenleib von der Rothöhe were untiring in the search throughout Switzerland for the typical and pure bred Entlebucher. Franz Schertenlieb gave the first breeding female, Babeli v.d. Rothöhe, to Dr. Kobler who searched Switzerland for one of the few remaining stud males. It is from Babeli's first litter of five puppies from which all modern Entlebuchers originated. We owe a debt of gratitude to Dr. Kobler and Franz Schertenlieb, as well as to Professor Heim, for their tireless efforts which permitted the breed to survive.
