The Viking Dog

It is believed that the Swedish Vallhund is indigenous to Sweden and has been traced back more than 1000 years to the days of the Vikings. At this time the Swedish Vallhund was known as the 'Vikingarnas Hund', the 'Viking Dog'. The Swedish Vallhund originally herded cattle on farms and ranches for which its short stature was very suitable, enabling the dogs to nip at the hocks of the animals they are herding. 'Vallhund' actually translates to 'herding dog'.Historians state that during the eighth or ninth century the Swedish Vallhund was either brought to Wales, or the Welsh Corgi was brought to Sweden and the two interbred. This explains the similarities of the two breeds today. Historian Clifford Hubbard believes the Swedish Vallhund to be the older of the two breeds.

The Restoration of the Breed

The Swedish Vallhund continued to work on farms for many centuries. However, as with many other European breeds, the Second World War greatly affected its numbers. By 1942, the breed had almost reached extinction. Fortunately, a member of the Swedish Kennel Club, Count Bjorn Von Rosen, became involved and worked hard to save the Swedish Vallhund.Bjorn Von Rosen sought out a few of the old Swedish Vallhunds and began a breeding program. In 1948, the Swedish Kennel Club accepted the breed standard and recognized the Swedish Vallhund as the 'Svenska Vallhund'. In 1964 the standard was revised, and the breed was given another name, 'Vastgotaspets'. This referred to the Swedish province Vastergotland, in which the revived breeding occurred.In 1974 the first Swedish Vallhund was brought to England, to the Ryslip Kennels. In 1978 the Swedish Vallhund Society was formed and this received approval from The Kennel Club in 1980.The breed first arrived in the U.S. in early 1985, but was not bred at this time. Marilyn Thell of Rhode Island, being of Swedish descent, was interested in the Swedish Vallhund and brought two specimens back to America from England in July 1985 and the first litter of Swedish Vallhunds was whelped in 1986.

Popular for All the Right Reasons

In 1999 the American Kennel Club accepted the Swedish Vallhund into its Foundation Stock Service registry and into the Miscellaneous Class in 2005. The breed is now fully recognized by the American Rare Breed Association and a number of registries in other countries.The breed is most commonly found herding in Sweden, Britain, Finland, Norway, Netherlands, Canada, Australia and New Zealand and is becoming better known in the U.S. The Swedish Vallhund has more recently become a popular companion dog and family pet.