The Alaunts

In medieval Europe, the alaunt was classified into three distinct types; The alaunt gentil, a light greyhound type; the alaunt de bucherie, the traditional alaunt type used with livestock; and the alaunt vautre (veantre), an aggressive hunting type. "So, the original war dog was turned into the essential brave hunting dog." Dr. Dieter Fleig The alaunt de bucherie was the progenitor of the mastiff and bull breeds, though they modern mastiffs and bull breeds no longer resemble the alaunt. 'The former, alaunt vautre, were par force hounds, used in the chase...In France, the word 'vuatre' was eventually used exclusively for boarhounds. Cotgrave defines the 'vaultre' as a 'mogrell betweene a hound and a mastiffe...fit for the chase or hunting or wild Bears and Boares.' " Col. David Hancock meat Ironically, modern bull breeds such as the American Bulldog are today no longer being bred true to the form or function of their predecessors; the alaunt of the butchers that worked and protected livestock. They are now being bred as 'hog-dogs' for the hunt, taking on the role and overall character of the alaunt veantre. The tragic consequence to this is the ultimate loss of form and function of the alaunt de bucherie, the modern bull-breed's predecessor. The modern 'bull' breed bred and used for hog hunting is no longer really even a bulldog; a name given to describe it's use. Rather they are hog dogs or boar hounds, ( alaunt vautre), and should be classified as such. 'It is extremely unwise to group types of dog together merely because of a breed title bestowed by a kennel club without any real research and without a legitimate reason.' Col. David Hancock

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