The scene for these unlikely pageants was the Belgium capital of Brussels during the 17th and 18th centuries. The city's cobblers were a competitive group, and to promote their craftsmanship, the shoemaker's guild organized contests for them to display the elaborate copper work in their buckles and locks. For models the cobblers decided upon the local herding dogs, whose thick, elegant manes would present the perfect challenge for displaying their craftsmanship. The shoemakers designed beautifully decorated copper collars for the dogs. First prize in the popular Sunday afternoon contests went to the collar with the lock that presented, yet preserved, the glistening protrusion of black neck hair on the schipperke's early ancestors.
Although these pageants represented the glamorous side of life for Belgium's herding dogs, they spent the rest of the week tending flocks. Schipperke is usually translated as "little shepherd." The root of the name is the old Flemish word scheper, meaning "shepherd." Ke is a diminutive suffix, conveying the sense of little in reference to the size of the dog. A 1356 wooden carving located in the Belgian city of Leuven depicts a shepherd dog with all the physical characteristics of a schipperke. At the time, owning large dogs was prohibited for all except the French ruling class, and this carving confirms that Belgium farmers employed smaller, shepherd-type dogs to herd their flocks of goats and geese.
Later, when Spain ruled Belgium, the laws changed, and farmers began breeding larger dogs for herding. By the end of the 1800s, according to breed historians, black shepherd dogs were bred in all sizes to accommodate different tasks. The largest were the Belgian sheepdogs. The smallest - the schipperke - guarded the hen house and killed the ubiquitous rats and mice.
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Straight Story of a Tangled History
Another interpretation of the breed's name is that it was derived from schipper, the Dutch word for "skipper" or "boat captain." Not altogether negating the schipperke's role as a shepherd, the theory behind this interpretation is based on British accounts of seeing schipperkes guarding Dutch canal boats. Although schipperkes might indeed have served aboard these boats as watchdogs and vermin catchers, the truth may be that British observers really witnessed the Keeshond, a small Dutch breed with an equally dense full coat and bristly ruff.
Throughout the late 1800s, English dog fanciers became increasingly fascinated with breeds indigenous to the European continent. In the same way that British archeologists flocked to exotic lands to claim native antiquities, the country's breeders and exhibitors imported foreign dogs, including the Belgian schipperke. The British schipperke club was founded in 1890, with a majority of members' dogs imported from Belgium.
In the United States, schipperkes were first imported in 1889 by Walter Comstock of Providence, Rhode Island, and quickly took on popular fad status. Unfortunately, as is often true, widespread importation did not mean that the best specimens of the breed were introduced into breeding programs. Until the 1920s, American schipperkes were generally below standard in conformation, health and temperament. Breed enthusiast F. Isabel Ormiston rescued the breed from this downward spiral by importing several Belgium dogs throughout the '20s and '30s and introducing this superior breeding stock into American lines. From that point on, the schipperke has retained the quality and character of its heritage.
Schipping Into The 21st Century
In 20th Century Dog, a 1904 book that describes the "up and coming" breeds of the day, the schipperke was described as "smart, clean, obedient, vigilant, plucky and intelligent a dog as any dog-lover could wish to have for a companion ... he is an ideal dog."
Has anything changed? Certainly not according to schipperke fans. If the original dog was bred to herd, guard or hunt, the modern version uses those same skills and instincts in obedience, agility, flyball, therapy and even racing.
Physically the schipperke is a small breed, about a foot high and typically weighing 12 to 16 pounds. A glossy, black coat is the accepted color in American standards, although European standards allow color variations such as brown, blonde and cream. The coat is short in the face, ears, front forelegs and on the hocks; medium on the body; and longer at the ruff, cape (full neck into the shoulders), jabot (chest and between front legs) and at the culottes (rear of thighs). The schipperke is generally a healthy breed - with Legg-Perthes, a skeletal disease causing rear leg lameness, posing a minor concern along with some allergy and eye-related problems. A healthy schipperke enjoys a lifespan of 13 to 15 years.
Though physically small, this breed is a mental giant. In fact, if you put a schipperke with a couple of big dogs, the dog in charge usually will be the schipperke. This little package of dense black fur is fearless but unaggressive, happy to please but not a pushover, a tad stubborn but a complete lovebug. An excellent companion, schipperkes are ideal playmates for children and keen watchdogs for the family home. They've been known to alert the entire household at each arrival - whether human, animal, vegetable or mineral. At the same time, if asked to show interest in or make friends with a complete stranger, they may act aloof or unimpressed.
The schipperke owner has the task of translating those skills and instincts into positive activity. Mary Cox of Shadow Schipperkes, who is also the national rescue coordinator for the Schipperke Club of America, thinks of the breed as a "cross between a two-year-old child and a raccoon, both intelligent and independent. They learn fast, but if what you teach them is not of any interest to them, they may not obey instantly." Consistent training with positive reinforcement helps direct this strong-minded breed toward safer pastures. Cox recommends clicker training and training with treats.
Exposure to lots of things in different environments is healthy and necessary for the curious schipperke who is naturally inclined to check everything out. But at the end of the day, after examining leaves, stones, toy trucks, a marauding squirrel, a pile of clean or dirty laundry and every piece of mail, the loyal and loving schipperke will have plenty of energy left over to spend with each member of the family.
A Tailless Tale
Aside from the schipperke's thick ruff, the most striking feature of the breed is its tail - or lack thereof, since the tail is typically docked. There's no record explaining why or where this practice started, but that hasn't stopped a plethora of legends surrounding the practice, all basically untrue. For example, some of these stories suggest the breed is born tailless or that its lack of tail is a sign of the devil. One fanciful version harkens back to the cobblers' collar contests; after losing yet again, a particularly envious and vengeful shoemaker supposedly cut off the tail of a competing shoemaker's schipperke. How that single whack could affect an entire breed is left unanswered. When left intact, the tail naturally plumes and curves over a schipperke's back. In Europe, a movement to eliminate tail docking is gaining ground, and the practice has been outlawed in many countries.
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