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Issue Date: June 26, 2005
In praise of mutts
Half the dogs in America are mixed breeds. This weekend, as Animal Planet's Annemarie Lucas and J.D. Roth devote a show to them, we revisit the oft-maligned mongrel.
By Steve Dale
Before there were purebred dogs specifically fashioned to chase after game birds (retrievers) or herd sheep (shepherds), there were mutts.
Purebred dogs are a product of human intervention, while mutts are a product of evolution and a higher power. "The very first dogs were mutts," says Raymond Coppinger, an animal behaviorist and co-author (with his wife, Lorna Coppinger) of "Dogs: A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior & Evolution."
Coppinger agrees with recent evidence suggesting that dogs evolved from wolves. The theory posits that about 15,000 years ago, some clever wolves became adjusted to human settlements in the way today's city pigeons are. And -- who knows? -- they may have been considered pests before they were considered pets. But eventually, villagers appreciated the wolves' ability to sound an alarm when danger approached, and instead of leaving the animals to search for scraps, they fed them. The most outgoing and human-oriented animals began to breed at the edge of the villages -- and so the process of wolves becoming dogs began.
Benji creator Joe Camp discovered his latest mongrel star at a shelter in Mississippi.
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Flash forward to today, when mutts come in all sizes, shapes and colors. Some are clearly a mix of several distinct breeds; others look like generic dogs. Some mutts even look downright silly -- well, what can you say about a dog that's part dachshund and part Dalmatian? "At one time, mutts were considered inferior," Coppinger says. "The truth is that most dogs the world over are 'pavement specials' " -- that is, street dogs.
Mutts are clearly on the rise, says Margaret H. Bonham, the author of "The Complete Guide to Mutts." About half of the nation's estimated 74 million dogs are mutts and half purebreds. "At one time, it was a badge of honor to have a purebred," Bonham says. "Today that badge of honor has changed. The reality is that many mutts are rescued from somewhere, and people like that idea."
John Vranicar, a lawyer in Chicago, says his dog, Kate, is part border collie and part who-the-heck-knows-what-else. "There's no other dog like mine anywhere on Earth," Vranicar says. "I have a one-and-only."
"Dogs don't care who is purebred"
Joe Camp, the writer and director of the Benji movies, never considered anything but a mutt to play the scruffy pooch because of his fondness for Disney's "Lady and the Tramp" (the Tramp was a street dog). The most recent Benji, the fourth in the series of these shaggy mongrels, was discovered at the Humane Society of South Mississippi in Gulfport. "One day here's this unkempt, shaggy street dog," Camp says, "and the next day he's about to star in 'Benji Off the Leash.'" Other celebrity mutts range from the dog (appropriately named Scraps) in the 1918 Charlie Chaplin film "A Dog's Life" and Murray on the '90s sitcom "Mad About You."
It's not that Camp has an issue with dogs that boast long, glorious pedigrees; in fact, he has two Australian terriers. Similarly, Annemarie Lucas, supervisory special investigator at the ASPCA, a star of "Animal Precinct" on Animal Planet and a judge on this weekend's show "Nuts for Mutts" (see box, below), has three English bulldogs among her five canines. "A dog is a dog is a dog," Lucas says. "The dogs don't care who is purebred or not." Phoebe, her Yorkie/Shih Tzu mix, has a Benji face with the body of a designer dog. "She looks like an uptown girl who cost thousands," Lucas says. "Truth is, she was a cheap mutt from the Bronx."
"Sometimes it's just more fun when you don't know what it is you have," author Bonham says. And what you see isn't necessarily what you get. A dog that looks like it's part golden retriever and part German shepherd might instead be part Irish setter, part Belgian shepherd and part who-knows-what.
Purebred Newfoundlands are known for worshiping the water; they live to swim. Bonham once had a dog that was part Samoyed and part Newfoundland -- who even had webbed feet, as purebred Newfies do -- and that dog was terrified of water.
They're survivors
The most recent addition to the Lucas home is clearly a mutt of some kind, maybe dachshund and Chihuahua. Regardless of his ancestry, charm is his most conspicuous trait. Lucas says that while visiting a shelter in Corpus Christi, Texas, "he gave me this amazing look, as if he was saying, 'You're not thinking of leaving here without me ...?' I don't know if I'd ever seen a dog wag a tail so fast. This guy was pretty smart to get to me like that. But then again, I think these mutts in shelters are survivors for a reason: They're smart."
In fact, Kate -- a Heinz 57 variety street dog -- could be in Mensa, according to Vranicar. "I've had dogs all my life, but never one who has learned stuff like Kate," he says. With virtually no preparation, Kate breezed through an obedience and temperament test required by a Chicago-based animal-assisted-therapy group called the Chenny Troupe; many dogs don't pass the first time around. Kate's been "working" at La Rabida Children's Hospital in Chicago for two years helping physically and developmentally disabled kids build cognitive skills and motor function.
There is no scientific evidence to document that mutts are any smarter, healthier or more empathetic than purebred dogs, but don't tell that to mutt devotees. It's true that you can't argue their uniqueness. "When you think about it, I'm a mutt, too," Vranicar says. "Many of us come from mixed backgrounds. Mutts aren't any less of a dog than I am less of a person. In fact, I'm all for celebrating their uniqueness. I love mutts!"
Contributing Editor Steve Dale is heard weekly on WGN Radio and on his syndicated radio shows, Steve Dale's "Pet World" and "The Pet Minute." He also writes a syndicated column, "My Pet World."
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GO NUTS FOR MUTTS
Can't get enough of mutts? Catch "Nuts for Mutts" on Animal Planet this weekend. This unique dog show spotlights mixed breeds strutting their stuff before celebrity judges in 30 categories, including "best kisser" and "best dressed." You'll even see mutt Black Jack compete for "fastest eater." The Rottweiler-boxer mix "was a bit overzealous," says USA WEEKEND Magazine staffer Devon White, his partner for the day. "He kept tipping over the bowl!" The event, which took place in April and was hosted by actress Kim Basinger, was a benefit for New Leash on Life Animal Rescue. Animal Planet star Annemarie Lucas was a judge.
TUNE IN:
This Saturday at 8 p.m. ET. Repeats air Saturday at 11 p.m., Sunday at 2 and 10 p.m., and Monday at 1 a.m. J.D. Roth hosts the show.
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CAN A MUTT BECOME A BREED?
The latest trend in the dog world is "designer breeds," mixes such as Cockapoos (cocker spaniel and poodle), right, Labradoodles (Labrador and poodle) and Bagels (beagle and basset hound), all of which can sell for $1,000 or more. "At some point, the line gets murky between what is simply a mix and what is actually a breed," says Margaret H. Bonham, the author of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designer Dogs." "To be a breed, there needs to be an organized breed club or group devoted to the breed. There has to be a written standard and enough successive generations [of breeding]."
"Designer dogs are mixed-breed dogs, when you come down to it," says Lainie Cantrell, the American Kennel Club's director of public relations, "and still without a consistent standard to exactly know what they will look like or what their personalities will be. If these dog groups do fulfill the criteria, eventually they could become breeds, but I suspect we're talking many years from now."
"Like all dogs, designer dogs can land in the pound, too," Bonham says, "and then they're considered mutts, because who would ever know it's an expensive designer combination?"
Cover photograph by Robert Sebree for USA WEEKEND
Hair and makeup by Juanita Lyon, Celestine
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