Dalbo Dog

Dalbo Dog

He is not recognized by the F.C.I.

Origin

Translation

En français, cette race se dit

Diese Norm ist in deutscher Sprache sichtbar

En español, esta raza se dice

In het Nederlands, wordt dit ras gezegd

This breed is also known as

Dalbohund
Dalsland Mastiff

Icelandic sagas suggest that the Vikings acquired large dogs—used for herding, protection, or warfare—during their invasions of Great Britain. In *Njál's Saga*, the Viking Gunnar of Hlidarendi receives a large Irish Wolfhound as a gift. The *Saga of Olaf Tryggvason* (in the *Heimskringla*) mentions the king's dog, which appears to have been a very large sheepdog. A large brown Dalbo dog pelt has been preserved in Hindås, Sweden; it clearly displays characteristics typical of livestock guardian dogs. There are a few photographs and paintings that may depict this breed. A taxidermied dog on display at the Stockholm Museum of Natural History, once believed to be a Dalbo dog, turned out to be an English Mastiff.

The first written mention of the breed appears in the work *Dalia* by Gunno Brynolphi Blutherus (1609–1657), published in 1632. The breed's name reappears in 1843, when Axel Emanuel Holmberg (1817–1861) published his book *Bohusläns Historia och Beskrifning* (History and Description of Bohuslän). Oral tradition regarding this breed dates back to around the year 1700.

Surviving accounts describe a legendary giant dog capable of killing wolves, confronting prowling brown bears, and protecting young children lost in the deep Swedish forests. It is also said that Dalbo dogs fought to the death to save humans from wolf packs. In 1833, a local priest noted in his diary that his Dalbo dog had "the bite of a crocodile".

The Dalbo dog was a large, massive animal with a long, thick coat. The males reportedly reached a height of 80 cm at the withers. Their coats were brown or dark, though some individuals displayed large white patches reminiscent of the Saint Bernard. Some have claimed that the Dalbo dog closely resembled an extant Portuguese breed, the *Cão da Serra da Estrela*. Others maintain that it was more closely related to modern breeds such as the Leonberger, the Hovawart, or the English Mastiff. The Dalbo dog was renowned for its courage and fearlessness.

This dog was primarily used to protect free-ranging livestock—including cattle, sheep, horses, and goats—from wolves, brown bears, and rustlers. It also served in herding, guarding, and protection roles. The breed went extinct around 1870; no individuals were recorded during a survey conducted in 1913. Although never widespread in Sweden, the breed was found in the Swedish provinces of Västergötland, Bohuslän, Dalsland, and Värmland, as well as in the Norwegian county of Østfold. The disappearance of the Dalbo dog is linked to the near-total eradication of wolves and bears in Scandinavia by around 1890. At that time, keeping large dogs that no longer seemed to serve a specific purpose was considered too costly. A devastating rabies epidemic in 1854 may have contributed to the breed's decline. The Great Swedish Famine of 1867–1868 could also have been a factor.