Page Title

BOERBOEL
HISTORY

GERANEN
BOERBOELS

The following history was written by Lukas Van Vuuren of
Spitsvuur Boerboele. As a man who has lived the history of
the Boerboel from childhood, Lukas brings his personal
studies and knowledge to the writing of this article. Thank
you Lukas for allowing me to print this on my site.
Denise Geranen

History and selection of the Boerboel.
History.
Many articles have been written about the history of the Boerboel breed. This article is a not a duplication
existing history, it is history told from the viewpoint of a farmer. It intends to explain some of the
developments that took place in the development of the Boerboel, developments that may be unclear to
people that had no part in an entire process.

Early history
It is generally accepted that about 2700 years ago there were massively sized dogs being bred in the area
of the present day middle east. Of course none of us experienced that time! These dogs were big enough
to fight lions and elephants. Apparently some of these dogs found their way to Africa and we know that in
the southern part of Ethiopia, dogs known as the Indian dogs were found that met the description of the
Albanian or Assyrian dog from which the Canis Molossus were bred. In Ethiopia these dogs were even
milked, and from there the name Cynomolgi, or dog milkers. The Cynomolgi dogs were also used to hunt
game and keep the"Wildebeests" from their huts during the annual migration. It could be accepted that
these Cynomolgi dogs moved south with the people of Africa and that these dogs also played a large role
in the foundation stock of the Boerboel.

When Jan van Riebeeck and his entourage arrived in Cape Town in 1652 from Holland they brought with
them dogs that were referred to as Bullenbijters. Later they were joined by other Mastiff type dogs from
France and Germany. Still later certain working English Mastiffs came to South Africa that also possibly
had a role to play in the formation of the Boerboel.

In the years between 1652 and 1838 (when the great Trek northwards started) there was a steady
expansion of the agricultural activities and contact with the African dog owner increased proportionally.
After 1838 the influence of the African ancestors of the Cynomolgi dogs on the Boerboel foundation stock
would have been much bigger. This influence of the African dog might be the explanation for the fact that
the Boerboel is structurally much better than the other Mastiff type dogs. It is important to note that the
African dog owner, especially those that use their dogs for herding cattle, is a very dedicated master to his
dogs. Because he lives in the veld with the dogs and an 'assegai' as protection for the cattle and sheep
against predators, he selects his dogs with care. He also knows his dogs very well and knows exactly
what to expect from each one when danger looms. Because he knows his dogs very well he could make
an informed decision concerning selection for the next generation.

This then was the genes that were available to the "Boere" to breed their famous Boerboels.

Selection:
Early Boerboel selection is very hard to understand for people that did not experience the type of frontier life
the "Boers," or people that bred the Boerboel, led. The lifestyle of the Boers or farmers in South Africa could
be compared to the lifestyle of the pioneers of the Wild West in the United States.

Farmers left the 'civilization' of that time and went into the wilderness with an ox wagon, cattle, horses and
his dogs. He took his family members with him and groups of people were traveling together in what they
called a "trek". When they reached an unpopulated area where they wanted to stay, everybody went to their
own farm. Because they found themselves in a harsh and dry land the farms had to be big, to provide
enough grazing for the animals. This resulted in a sparsely populated area where gangs of marauding
men and various beasts could find adequate shelter to attack anything at any time that suited them. The
best solution to this problem was to keep a horde of dogs, strong enough to ward off the dangers by night,
and agile enough to do the farm work by day.

The only people that could tolerate this constant threat of the wilderness were hard, fearless people,
willing to take on whatever dangers come their way. It is difficult to describe to modern civilized people
what type of person could live under those circumstances, because they differed so totally from the
modern concept of what is acceptable. As far as the breeding of Boerboels are concerned it is only
necessary to focus on their attitude towards their dogs.

In the first place the frontiers people of South Africa showed extremely little emotion, whether it is towards
dogs or people. Many of the old 'Boere' (farmers) would spend the whole day with his dog, and to an
outsider it will seem that no sign of affection passed between dog and man except the occasional touch or
words that were mostly orders. Dog and man will seldom be further apart than a few yards, but it will
always seem as if they did not plan it that way. When danger looms, the Boerboel will take his place next to
his master in an unobtrusive way. He will seldom be noisy except when the situation requires it. The dog
will act as calm and collected as the master and although it will seem as if they pay no attention to the
other, when one senses something strange the other will know it immediately and react to it in the
appropriate way.

This very noticeable characteristic of the Boerboel; to be seemingly disinterested in people and
occurrences that his master approve of, has been selected into the Boerboel by the 'Boere' that do not
want a dog that is a nuisance. More important though is the ability of the Boerboel to react when his master
want him to. The dog with his sharper senses will pick up an approaching danger like a leopard or buffalo
and react quickly and violently to kill or distract the danger. Word of a Boerboel with a temperament that
suits the frontiersman traveled far and wide, and resulted in the widespread use of his progeny or services
in the Boerboel gene pool of the time.

Although it might have seemed that the 'Boer' did not give his dog a lot of love or affection, in reality there
was a very deep bond between them. Naturally the Boerboel will give his life for his master; and that
happened frequently. From the master's side the same could be said. That self same hard and non
affectionate 'Boer', will walk for miles with an injured or killed Boerboel in his arms, just to make sure he is
protected from predators in his helpless state or spare the dog the agony of walking with a painful leg. Man
and dog shared their water and food on a regular basis. For the 'Boer' only the best was good enough for
his dog, although on the surface it would appear not to be the case. He knew if the Boerboel was allowed
to sleep in the house it would be unaccustomed to the wild and when he had to negotiate the dangers of
the night, he would not be able to cope. He would also not protect his Boerboel from dangers such as
snakes and lion, so that the dog can become acquainted to those dangers and learn how to handle them.
It was not uncommon to hear the remark that this or that Boerboel was too brave and he died because he
was not cautious. Even in the selection for braveness there are checks and balances that the Boerboel
was subjected to.

The 'Boere' also gave his dog the best preparation for his life. He taught him how to track, how to hunt, how
to avoid the weapons of men, etc. He also exposed him to the dangerous hunts (lion, leopard, porcupine,
wild boar, etc.) in the company of experienced hunting dogs. That taught him to react with caution at the
appropriate times.

Something that must be remembered is that the pioneers kept large numbers of dogs. Reports could be
found where tales are told of a single farmer with ten to fifteen watch dogs (or more) to keep vermin like
Hyena from their sheep. A large hyena with its strong jaw (stronger than a lion) is a formidable opponent
and could kill a few dogs before he himself is killed. The reports states that the Boerboel is very well
adapted to this task and add "it would be difficult to find more resolute and courageous dogs than this
breed"

A fact that reflects not very positively on the writers' own people ("Boere") are the culling they used. The
children usually herded the cattle, and they started this from a very young age. The Boerboels that
accompanied the children to the veld was to a very large extent their protection. If one of those Boerboels
showed an inclination to growl at a child, he was shot. If he was unreliable and strayed from the children,
he got shot as well. If he ran away from danger he was also shot. Today, 200 years later, it is very difficult to
understand those very harsh actions, but it must be remembered that the "Boer" did not dare keep a
Boerboel that will react wrongly in a crisis situation and lead to the death of his family or himself. One of
the biggest assets in the development of the Boerboel breed was the deep rooted belief of the "Boere" that
there was only one cure for a bad dog and that was culling. I only understood this better when I realized
that in cattle, sheep and pig farming, there was a great tolerance of bad animals, because their faults
could be corrected by breeding while the animal still had a commercial value. Dogs at that time had no
monetary value. There was a saying amongst the Afrikaner "Boere" that you do not buy women, dogs or
("groenmielies") corn on the cob. Because the unwanted dogs could not be sold they were culled. This
strict culling resulted in a very quick improvement of the overall quality of the Boerboel.

As the reader will note, all of the traits mentioned so far concerned the dog's temperament or character.
The Boerboel was therefore selected for function, mainly on the basis of his temperament. The Boerboel
breed as such was built on a wide basis of dogs with the ability to satisfy the farmer's needs for a dog that
could live and work in close cooperation with the whole family. The most important traits that decided the
inclusion of a dog in the early Boerboel gene pool was reliability, intelligence, faithfulness, fearlessness,
devotion to his master, calmness, self assuredness, alertness, protectiveness, prey drive and
carefulness. In fact, without anybody knowing it, the dogs that would play a role in the formation of the
breed was selected on the strength of their temperament without any thought to breed conformation,
uniformity or breed standards of any kind. The binding factor or common denominator was their
temperament.

Early photos and remaining specimens give an indication that, included in this Boerboel gene pool, were
some poor examples of the modern Boerboel. What is clear however is that the "Boere" has reached their
main aim and that was to get a dog with the desired psyche. Farmers (Boere) in different areas had
different physical requirements of their dogs. Dogs in the grassy plains of the high veld differed in physical
appearances from dogs in the low veld that is mainly bushveldt. The Boerboels developed in the high veld
were more agile, taller and leaner muscled than those in the bushveldt. Because the Boerboel played
such an important role in the farming operations of that time, the "Boere" was willing to go to great lengths
to improve the quality of their dogs. When they heard of an outstanding dog, it was not too much trouble to
take his bitch to such a dog for mating. The resulting progeny were spread far and wide and in this way the
different bloodlines were formed.

Guarding, working livestock, hunting
Although the personality of the dog was always the most important criterion for selection, physical ability
would also have played a role in the selection that shaped the Boerboel breed. The main functions of the
Boerboel was guarding, working cattle and sheep and hunting.

The Boerboel had to guard people, animals and property. In order to do that he had to be physically
imposing with the ability to fight. Of cause he had to have all the psychological attributes already discussed
as well. In order to ward off large predators like hyena, leopard and lion, the Boerboel must be big with a
big head. He must also be extremely strong to take on those animals in a stand up fight. The old "Boere"
set great store by the ability of their dogs to fight other dogs, because that is an indication of their ability to
fight predators. In an open range type of farming like they had then, there were no fences or kennels and
fights amongst dogs were very common in order to determine the rank of all the dogs in the area. Large
predators were mostly tackled by a group of dogs, although certain dogs were able to kill something like a
leopard on his own. Dogs bred for guard duty was bigger, better muscled and with heavier bone than the
other dogs.

During the day, most of the Boerboels were used as working dogs on the farm. Only a few stayed at home
as watch and guard dogs, and then it were mainly the old, sick or pregnant ones, with the young dogs.
Some of the dogs went with the herds of cattle or sheep to guard them, others worked the cattle while
another group each had its own team of working oxen that he stayed with. The 'preferred one' usually
accompanied his master on his day to day tasks, like visiting all the activities on the farm, when the
expansion demanded that type of management. The dogs 'working' the herds were usually smaller and
slightly built for mobility sake. The herd guards and general farm dog was usually heavier.

What people often find interesting is the work for the dogs accompanying the ox teams. When it was time
to plough the land the oxen were rounded up in the morning at about 3am and then they were hitched to
the yoke. The dog helped with the rounding up of the oxen and then when they were ordered to stand in a
row, side by side, with the word "Hoi", he would intimidate the oxen, so that they stand still and present
their heads to be fastened. If an ox decided to run, the dog would round him up immediately and would in
the extreme cases grab him by the nose, and bring him in. Sometimes he will just give the ox a nip to
remind him of his wicked ways. A few oxen together were loosely tied by rawhide to the yoke or chain, to
keep them controlled, while the other oxen are handled. The Boerboel then comes and sit or stand just in
front of the oxen's eyes and keep them quiet by either growling or just by his presence. Some handlers
used to put the rawhides by which the oxen were tied in mouth of the dog in order to control the oxen.

Boerboels capable of intimidating a whole team of world wise oxen, was usually big, self assured and
intimidating to the degree that a small boy could watch them perform for hours. The team usually tries out
a new dog by snorting, throwing the horns in the air and mock charging. Very few dogs could stand that,
but the 'King of dogs', the Boerboel, calmly stand his ground, growl a deep menacing growl, bite one or two
lips just slightly, and restore order without losing his cool. Most other dogs in that situation either panic or
become so agitated that they lose the plot completely and the oxen would scatter.

Most of the dogs will walk with the team until they are put out to pasture at about 10 am, and he will then
stay with the implement and yoke's until about 3.30 pm when the whole process starts again.

About 50 years ago, when farming was much easier than in the pioneer days, young boys usually slipped
away between 10 am and 3 pm to do some hunting with the dogs. It is generally believed that in the
Boerboel breed the dogs that developed as the hunting dogs were later registered as the Rhodesian
Ridge back. The heavier Boerboel with the shorter wider muzzle and heavier bone with more muscle is not
the traditional hunting dog, but more the fighter in the hunting process. It sometimes happens that the fast
greyhound type of dog overrun a jackal and then the jackal stops to make a fight of it. A jackal can put up a
show that convinces the greyhounds he is able to kill a lion. Often the fast dogs sit down to discuss the
whole matter with the jackal, and the slower Boerboel comes storming into the circle, scoops up the jackal
and by the time he comes to a halt, the jackal can do no more talking.

It is sometimes said that a Boerboel must be able to catch a rabbit and kill a lion. Under normal
circumstances the Boerboel can do neither. Rabbits are usually too agile for one Boerboel to catch on his
own. A pack of Boerboels might succeed and many rabbits were caught by Boerboels under
circumstances that favored the dog, but Boerboels were not bred to catch rabbits. The Boerboel capable of
catching a rabbit will also differ greatly from a Boerboel 'able' to kill a lion. The first one will be a sprinter
and the second one will be a fighter. The sprinter will be lean, sparingly muscled, agile dog with a narrow,
long face, while the fighter will be the body builder with a wide body, lots of muscle and a wide short face. It
is told by a reliable source, that years ago a particular zoo obtained stray dogs that they put into the lion
camp as prey for the lions to keep up their hunting skills. A Boerboel bitch felt that her time had not yet
come and she somehow got hold of the lion's throat and killed him. It was probably great news at the time
and she was used for breeding after that.

The biggest hunting function of the Boerboel lies in fighting predators. Stories of Boerboels killing leopard
in South Africa are very common. If the Boerboel survives he seldom does so without serious wounds.
This one story, heard from a reliable source, will illustrate the seriousness of the "Boer's" views towards
cowardliness:

"A young boy went hunting with his fathers Boerboel and a .22 gun. In his inexperience he shot at a leopard
and wounded him, probably only a light flesh wound. The dog followed the leopard to his den and refused
to fight when the child ordered him to. The boy then ordered the dog to keep the Leopard in his den and he
went back home where he found his father and a neighbor. The neighbor offered to bring his two big dogs
of a different breed to get the leopard out because they were trained leopard dogs. When they reached the
den, the father called back his Boerboel and the other two dogs were sent in. When they met the leopard
he gave the front dog a smack with his paw and the dog fled the scene with his tail between his legs. The
father then ordered his Boerboel to attack the leopard, which he did because his own master ordered him
to do it, and he killed the leopard. When they got back to the pick-up that was parked nearby, the frightened
dog was hiding under it. The owner shot that dog there."
Porcupines are very dangerous animals in that they run into their attacker and the quills are impossible for
the dog to get out, it is extremely painful and without exception, the wound becomes septic. Lions that
knows porcupine will never tackle them. Porcupine however is a very destructive animal in the maize fields
and does a lot of harm to a crop, and therefore farmers hunt them to keep their numbers down. Dogs
could do nothing to them unless they are able to come in under the quills and reach the soft head of the
porcupine. Boerboels have proven themselves time and time again as excellent hunters of porcupine
because they stay calm in the most tense moments and wait for the appropriate time to attack. They also
have that inborn sense of awareness to stay away from the most dangerous situations, or postpone their
attack until circumstances favors them. Boerboels are often used as protection against snakes such as
the formidable hunter, the black mamba. When a Boerboel knows how to kill a mamba, he abides his
time, and just as the snake starts to get up the tree, the Boerboel attacks.

Development of the Boerboel
The rapid breed improvement that the Boerboel breed experienced could be ascribed to a few factors:

Selection for function alone.
Large numbers of breeding stock in the hands of
Experienced breeders (Boere) that were used to breed improvement in other species.
Selection under sub-optimum feeding conditions. The dogs were mainly fed maize porridge and milk with
sometimes the entrails of the slaughtered sheep or buck.
Strict culling of all unwanted individuals.
These 5 points could now be discussed in little more detail.

1) Selection for function alone
The "Boere" selected for function alone and breed improvement were not hampered by fancy points such
as ears, color, or something like an under bite. A few words on the under bit might be appropriate. A dog
with a short muzzle has got a strong bite, just as is the case with the lion. That usually leads to an under
bite, where the lower jaw is slightly longer than the upper jaw. This is sometimes seen in lions as well. Off
course a normal scissor bite will be preferred to an under bite, but an occasional slight under bite will have
no negative effect apart from the fact that the mother is sometimes not able to bite the umbilical cord off,
and therefore she pulls it out of the puppy and that might lead to a hernia that heals with time.
Over-selection against under bite might lead to long, narrow muzzles in the Boerboel breed. That could
already be seen in some of the kennels where there is strong discrimination against under bite.

2) Large numbers of breeding stock
Large numbers of dogs were always required on farms to perform the necessary tasks. That supplied the
necessary numbers for the selection that is the cornerstone of breed improvement. The "Boer" knew what
he was aiming at in his breeding. It was very important to him to get the right dogs, for his life depended on
the quality of the dogs. A lot of puppies were available each year from which to select the best individuals
to be the parents of the next generation.

3) Experienced breeders
"Boere" were breeders for their livelihood. They knew what breeding was about, they did it every day with
cattle, horses and sheep, and they knew what could be achieved and what must be avoided. They have
learned their lessons well and paid their school fees with the mistakes they made with other species, and
as breeders they were professionals. Compare that with the backyard breeder of today: The dogs never
work, so they could not be evaluated; they have never bred any other animals commercially; they have
never worked with the product of their breeding for a long time in close proximity; they have three or four
breeding dogs; they keep on breeding from the same individuals and do not shorten the generation
interval; etc. etc.

4) Selection through Feeding conditions
Selection under sub-optimum feeding conditions quickly identified the dog that must be selected, for it led
to the situation where a feeble individual was not protected by good feeding. Poor feeding brought about a
large and very discernible difference between the strong, healthy, powerful and virile dog, and the
weakling. The result was a Boerboel breed that is very healthy, well adapted to harsh conditions, robust
and able to thrive under different climatic conditions.

5) Strict Culling
Strict selection (culling of unwanted individuals as opposed to selling them) was already mentioned, but it
must be emphasized that the role that natural selection played could not be ignored. Scores of dogs died
in fights with snakes, porcupine, lion, leopard, hyena, etc. Those Boerboels that survived sired the next
generation.

Build for functionality

The 'Boere" lived close to nature and they were very quick to pick up the lessons of nature. In the wild the
lion is what the Boerboels is in civilization: The lion, as the "king of the animals", is awe inspiring in
appearance. He intimidates with his size, large head that is enhanced by mane, he has got a strong voice
and is strong above our imagination. Although the lion is from the cat family, the 'Boere" used him as the
blueprint for the Boerboel conformation in later years. The idea was always expressed that "nature does
not tolerate extremes." When looking at the lion (in South Africa there is ample opportunity to do that on the
lion farms) the wisdom of that saying is clearly seen. Although the lion has a large head it is still in
proportion to the body. Although he is well muscled it could still be said that he is lean, agile and fast.
Although he is strong, his chest is only moderately wide and his legs are only moderately heavy in
comparison to his body. The heaviest part of the lion is his head, neck, shoulders and chest. While his
hindquarters are strong, well muscled and formed, it is rather light in comparison with the front quarters.
The most obvious difference with the majority of modern Boerboels is the fact that his rump is not as
droopy as that of some dogs. The old working dogs resembled the lion to a large extent. Some of the
modern dogs tend to have less head and more backside, and be so wide in the chest that agility and
endurance is lost. In the old Boerboels the extreme muscling, that resembles a body builder on steroids,
was also absent.

In conclusion a word of warning might be appropriate. When looking at the photo of the working bull mastiff
one realizes that a lot could be lost by over-selection for muscularity. We all want the well muscled
Boerboel that is impressive and looks strong and imposing. Mother nature and the history of other breeds
have taught us that that we must avoid the extremes. Every sincere breeder of Boerboels must now decide
for himself what is the optimum thickness or muscularity for the breed and stick to that regardless of the
opinions of uninformed people. Breeders like to show the animals they have bred. History has taught us
that there are very few things more detrimental to the well being of a breed than too much emphasis on
show results. If we want to retain the soundness of the Boerboel, we must make our selection decisions
on the working ability of the dog and not on show results or conformational scores. Show results and
scores are good tools to be used in the selection process, but they are not as important as the functionality
of the dog. Let us always remember what brought about the greatness of the Boerboel. Only by applying
the self same principles will we be able to maintain breed improvement in our dogs.

We inherited the wonderful Boerboel breed, that was created in a difficult process of hardship and survival
of the fittest, to present us with a breed that surpass all else in the fields it was meant for. It is our
responsibility to determine how we must guide this breed towards the future, in order to ensure that we will
be able to pass on the Boerboel as a functionally efficient breed, when our time comes to bow out.