This is Finland
Suomenpystykorva (Finnish Spitz) is one of the five original finnish dog breeds and the national breed of Finland.
Photo: Outi Heikkilä-Toni
Dog culture
Dogs have always been important to the Finns. We have used dogs for mainly hunting, but also hearding and guarding our homes. Finland was an agricultural country untill the the 1950's, so dogs really played an important role in everyday life of the Finns. Nowadays they have a different, but still a very important role as companion dogs and, as many people say, family members. There are still many hunting dogs as well as working dogs in our country.
It is estimated that there are about 600 000 dogs in Finland, and 450 000 of them are registered as pure-bred dogs. The most common dog in our country is the Finnish Hound, very popular in the countryside. Amongst the top ten breeds there are German Shepherd Dogs, Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, Finnish Lapphunds, Norwegian Elkhounds, Swedish Elkhounds, Miniature Schnauzers, Karelian Bear Dogs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. There are over 300 dog breeds registered in Finland.
The Finns like all kinds of dog sports. Dog shows are very popular, but so are also working trials, obedience tests and agility competitions. There are over 300 dog shows arranged in Finland every year ranging from international shows and all-breed championship shows to shows for some FCI groups and specialty shows.
Finnish show judges are well respected overall the world. Finland as a country is famous for not being a corrupt country and so are Finnish show judges as well as working trial and obedience test judges. You can never take anything for granted from a Finnish judge. They want you to show them good, healthy dogs and sound performances. Anti-doping rules have been in use in dog shows and trials from the beginning of the year 2007.
Most Finnish dog breeders are doing good work and taking their work seriously. Many Finnish breeders breed quality dogs seen in the show rings all around the world. Usually Finnish breeders breed their dogs at home and have no special "kennels" if they do not breed working dogs. Many breeders belong to the Breeder's Club of Finland (SuKoKa), a well-respected organization working for the benefit of breeding quality dogs. recently a lot of weight has been put on breeding healthier dogs, and the Breeder's Club also promotes this aim for example by supporting dna research in Finland.
Many breed organisations and breed clubs have their own breed health schemes and breeder's guidelines. In many breeds health testing is required before ine can use dogs for breeding. Many breeds are tested for hereditary eye deseases, or their hips or knees are being x-rayed. Lots of important information to support breeding has been gathered to the Koiranet database.
There are five original dog breeds in Finland. The Finnish Spitz is the national breed. The other national breeds are Karelian Bear Dog, Finnish Hound, Finnish Lapphund and Lapponian Herder.
Finnish dog people are well organised. The Kennel Club of Finland has 130 000 members. Local Kennel Clubs belong to the Kennel Club organisation. Every breed has a breed organisation or breed club belonging to the Kennel Club of Finland.
The Finnish Kennel Club is the oldest dog organisation in the Nordic countries, it was founded in 1889. The first dog show was held in Finland in 1891 and the first working trial was held in 1893. The magazine of the Finnish Kennel Club, "Koiramme" was founded in 1896. Nowadays the magazine has over 350 000 readers.
The Finnish Kennel Club is a member of the Nordic Kennel Union and the FCI.
