Grifón de Bruselas"Corot como Landseer"

Breed with three varieties. Small, engaging dogs with a monkey-like face, energetic and affectionate, in Belgium they are the object of distinctive breeding.

It’s strange, but true, that the delightful little Griffon Belge, Griffon Bruxellois and Griffon Brabançon,which seem ideal companion dogs for a lady, are only really appreciated by a privileged few who know of their attractions and charm. This small but well-made dog, lively and vibrant, long haired or short, active and robust with a great intelligence that does not need the degree of attention that some breeds do, deserves to be better known and appreciated. Even more so now that it is the national dog, the most characteristic of our excellent friends and allies, the Belgians.

Origins
As with most breeds, it is difficult to ascertain with certainty the origins. Its fame has given rise to envy. So it is no surprise that more than one country claims to be the origin of the breed. The Dutch claim that it comes from the Smooshond and the Dutch Terrier, a cousin of the Irish Terrier. The Germans assure us that the Griffon Bruxellois is in fact nothing more than an Affenpinscher. A notable English writer says that it has been manufactured from the Yorkshire Terrier, the Ruby Spaniel and the Irish Terrier. If this be the case, how is it that in none of these countries, with their wealth of all that is necessary, have never bred a Griffon Bruxellois, yet the cock a snook at the Belgian breeders? As the name indicates, or the three names, as there are three varieties so closely intertwined, this tiny companion is essentially a product of the Belgian capital. Here, from the remotest times there has always been and always been bred little, red, rough-haired dogs that were similar to the Barbet and the Griffon that inhabited the stables. On these dogs worked the good will of the Belgian for the general breeding, having as their goal the present type with a short, upturned nose and a monkey-like aspect. The dogs , in the early days, had a very good constructed body, a very red, rough coat, that could be more difficult to find today. But the head wasn´t as what we are used to see today, which is the breed’s main attraction. The head was smaller and less rounded the nose was longer and the jaw less prominent. The breeders concentrated in produce dogs with a shorter nose and more prominent forehead until reaching the current type. Even today the selection of dogs for breeding follows largely the same criteria. The earliest starting point we know of goes back to a show in Brussels in 1880 where a small, red, rough-coated dog appears belonging to a gendarme by the name of “Gendarme Dog”. It won a prize and was sold to the Englishman Mr. Murchison. Before leaving for England, M. Limboch (one of the judges) crossed the dog with his Barbet bitch. The result was the birth of Fox (LOSH 156), who finished in the hands of a coachman named Noterman. For many years Fox was known as the coachman’s dog and was the family breadwinner. Due to his use as a stud, Fox is in the pedigrees of the greater part of the first Grifons Bruxelloise and it is from this point that the evolution and value of the breed starts. It must be noted that at this time and in the first volume of the book of origins Saint Hubert (1883) the Griffon Bruxellois is called “little terrier”, rough coated. The date of inscription would indicate that the breed is just as old as the Pekingese lines or the others small dogs that are in fashion today.

Current state of the breed
Only a privileged few appreciate and seek this extraordinary dog. The breeding has only ever been practiced by modest breeders, where the lack of commercial spirit have unable them to form a group equipped to compete with the big breeders of other breeds. It is supposed that, before the war, Brussels had 2500 breeding bitches distributed among the 2000 homes of working people and those of modest means. But the war was especially cruel to these wretched people they known only hardship during the 52 months of German occupation and a terrible blow was dealt to the reproduction of the Griffon If this dog is particularly robust, alert and lively once he has fully developed he needs, on the other hand much care during his early days and even before birth. The whelp of these dogs “all head”, bigger than the body, needs much practice and greater prudence. During the 52 months of occupation the lack of coal, the impossibilty of finding milk, the astronomic price of meet, eggs and food in general made breeding almost impossible in Brussels. The usual buyers were absent and exports vanished. So the number of dogs was drastically reduced to a very few. The pre-war breed bitches after so many years, were no longer suitable for breeding, the younger dogs were weak and were in no condition to restart the breed as before. To reach the levels that we see today would take a great effort of willpower and constancy. The Belgian Club of the Griffon Bruxelloise has contributed much through far-sighted lovers of the breed, who have sacrificed much and taken little in exchange, but unfortunately they have been few in number. The timid nature and natural reserve of these breeders, who have almost a monopoly on the breed, together with a lack of knowledge of modern methods makes them hard to contact and so it is hard to find good puppies. The constant want of money and the fear of losing the pups leads them to sell them when still very young at 6 to 8 weeks old, when a normal buyer would not usually buy and a practiced buyer would not risk an opinion about the quality. The situation is rather different for other breeds that we know, where any fan of the breeds can buy, as he wishes, the dog he desires. The merit of these hardy fans of the breed who manage to find and breed such fine specimens is even greater, then. It is this class of passionate lovers of the breed that are the greatest assurance of its future.

Principal characteristics
There are three varieties of Griffon Belge: The Griffon Bruxellois, the Griffon Belge as such and the Petit Brabançon. The characteristics of the three are the same, the only differences being the coat type and colour.