La bellezza estetica nel pensier

The aesthetic beauty on the thought of a

Nobel Prize Winner

Translation by Vanda & Carlo from N.Y.

From the book:

“E l’uomo incontrò il cane” (And Man Met Dog)

By Konrad Lorenz

Italian Adelphi Edition

A book that every dog lover should have in his library.

We recommend it.

In the past, when the dog was still a “working” animal and fashion had not yet reached the importance it has today, there was no danger that the choice of breeds and their psychic qualities would be neglected.

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This becomes truly a serious matter when the omnipotent tyranny of fashion, the most foolish among the foolish females, demands to dictate to the poor dog what his look should be.

Not one breed of dog still exists whose excellent original psyche was not completely destroyed as soon as that breed became “fashionable”. This deterioration could have been avoided if only the dog in question could be bred as a “normal” animal sheltered from “fashion”.

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If, for a breed that becomes fashionable there is no proper breeding practice that knows how to give the necessary support for the temperamental qualities, their end is approaching! Even honest breeders that would sooner die than let their dog breed with one that was not of the best pedigree, will find nothing immoral in breeding dogs with splendid appearance that can be psychologically lacking.

Dog loving readers, for whom I write this book, believe me: the joy of owning a dog that represents almost the perfection of his breed, will slowly fade, but what will not fade is the discomfort created by the dog’s psychological defects such as excessive irritability, moodiness , apathy and lack of courage. Time does not immunize against so wasting defects, on the contrary it makes us more sensitive toward them.

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As I have said, it could be possible to come to a compromise between the psychological and physical qualities if “fashion” had not interfered. Most dog breeds, if maintained pure, will retain their best attributes. However, even the organizations for dog shows and competitions can hide a certain danger: in a dog show, the very fact of competing can lead automatically exasperate the specific attributes of the breed.

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And now I pose a question to the breeders, from whom one would expect they knew what is a dog, “ Would it not be better to try, at least once, to breed one of those dogs that are intelligent, loyal and exceptionally courageous even if one runs the risk that the scoring of the proportions be less than those of the perfect specimens that have come out from the hands of an expensive dog groomer?

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If the ancient images are observed, for which some English canine breeds go back as far as the Middle Ages, and are compared with images of the contemporary examples of the same breed, the latter will seem like grotesque caricatures of the earlier noble dogs.

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Up to about 1920 the Chow were really “natural” dogs, very close to their original wild form: the nose…etc….etc. Today in breeding the Chow the goal is to accentuate the characteristics that gives him a teddy bear look, the nose is……even his characteristic of a predator that appears to be still breathing the air of the endless wild, has become an over pomaded stuffed toy bear. …….Except, naturally, the ones I breed. But according to the principles of the breeding associations, my Chows must be looked down upon because they still have a one hundred twenty eight of Shepard.

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………. and now? I feel both anger and pity when I encounter in our Vienna, where there are so many and are so loved, the demeanor of that breed. (Note; he is speaking of Scotch-Terriers) Of course my bristling Ali, with her crooked ear due to a scar, would have no possibility of success at a dog show competing against those beribboned beauties. But the beauties , on the other hand , would lower their heads even in front of some dogs that would have run away with loud yelps when seeing Ali.

But we are still in time. Even here there are some Scotch-Terriers that ……etc…..etc. Unfortunately Scotch-Terriers like these are rare, it is certainly useless to look for them among the champions of dog shows.

Konrad Lorenz:

Born in Vienna in 1903. Graduated in Medicine and Biology, studied Zoology and Philosophy and taught Comparative Psychology at the University of Konisberg. Immediately after the war he was appointed as Director at the Institute of Comparative ETOLOGIA in Vienna. From 1973 at the Gronau Research Centre he conducted his studies and observations on the behaviour of animals for which he was awarded the

Nobel Prize

Among his other works:

· King Salomon’s ring

· The other side of the mirror

· The eight capital sins of our civilization