Breed
Information
Early breeders jealously guarded their brood bitches,
such was the performance of these hardy little dogs. A few did find their way into the larger world, where Colonel
Cyril Colwel, of Halifax, is credited with achieving Canadian Kennel Club
recognition. Toller breeders and clubs in Canada are working on making the
Toller Canada’s National Dog.
The Toller was bred
to resemble the fox, the fox will spot a clutch of ducks and will proceed to
play on the shore by picking up sticks and throwing them into to the air and
catching them, the ducks will watch
and eventually approach the land.
The
idea of breeding a dog to resemble the fox came from the relationship between
the fox and ducks. The tolling dog
will make no sound, does not try to catch the ducks or go into the water, but
will play on the shore at the direction of his master who will be hiding in the
bush. The hunter will then stand up
to startle the birds and then shoot on the wing, after which the Toller will
perform its retrieving duties.
Tollers can be described as the ultimate back yard sized gundog. They are relatively small with a big gundog outlook on life, and are courageous and tenacious retrievers.
More standoffish than the Golden or Labrador Retriever, they are non the less wonderful family dogs. They are extremely agile and will go swimming or follow through dense bush with no difficulty from a young age.
The Toller is an ideal family pet, who get on well with people of all ages, they give love, loyalty and enjoyment to their owners. The Toller is by nature a playful dog and are quite up to inventing games of their own if no-one else will play.
Like many of the gundogs, the Toller can suffer from Hip Dysplasia and Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA), which causes progressive blindness. For this reason all adult dogs should be screened before breeding, to ensure that this breed of gundogs remain sound and healthy.