How They Did It - Pet Dogs in Ancient Rome

welcome to how they did it a show where we take a look at the daily lives of our ancestors now typically we focus on how humans have experienced the rollercoaster of history but today I figured we'd include a special guest who's been with us through thick and thin over the years man's best friend for millennia dogs have watched as we curiously change tongue and appearance but whatever the situation they've always been by our sides ready for adventures or napping today we'll be taking a look at the lives of pet dogs in ancient Rome when we peer back into antiquity we can find all kinds of dogs appearing in literature mythology and artwork just as today they came in many shapes sizes and colors though these would have seemed familiar to us it's important to remember that there were indeed differences as many of the modern breeds we commonly interact with today only date back a few centuries dog breeds in the past can be categorized by the various roles they filled these included prominent types such as hunting dogs guard dogs house dogs and lap dogs the list goes on to include a wide range of other roles such as herders workers entertainers and fighters the Roman raider Gradius provides some interesting details on what we might expect on this front quote dogs belong to a thousand lands and they each have characteristics to Rive from their origin the Midian dog though undisciplined is a great fighter and great glory exalts the far-distant Celtic dogs those of the Golani on the other hand shirkuh combat and dislike fighting but they have wise instincts the Persian is quick in both respects some rear mastiff dogs a breed of unmanageable ferocity but the like Ionians on the other hand are easy tempered and big in land the hurricane Ian dog however is not content with all the energy belonging to his stock the females of their own kind will seek unions with wild beasts in the woods and what if you visit the straits of the Marini tide swept by a wayward Sea and choose to penetrate even among Britten's oh how great your reward how great your gain beyond any outlays if you are not bent on looks and deceptive graces at any rate when serious work has come when bravery must be shown in the impetuous war god calls in the utmost hazard then you could not admire the renowned malossi in so much apparently one of the most popular breeds was a militant this was a small fluffy lapdog with the Fox like pointed nose upright triangular ears and a tail curled up over its back similar to modern-day miniature Spitz types dogs though cute and cuddly we hear several authors complained that such spoiled toy dogs could be badly behaved and quite yappy when it came to raising one of the available breeds your average Roman would go through many of the same steps as we do today one of the most important first steps would be to name a new puppy for context we can turn to the writings of the famous Greek historian Xenophon he maintains that the best names were short just one or two syllables so that the dog can easily be called as suitable names he lists 46 which includes such popular choices as lurcher whitey Blacky tawny blue blossom keeper fencer butcher spoiler hasty hurry stubborn Yelp tracker - happy jolly trooper or active growler fury riot Lance pell-mell plucky killer crafty Swift and dagger some others mentioned by the poet Ovid include Barker whirlwind storm bear greedy deer slayer shaggy and spot once the dog was named it would be trained many basic commands were likely taught such as sit stay come and heal additional skills were then taught based on the dog specific role hunting dogs for instance would be trained to work as a team and return small prey undamaged guard dogs would be trained to bark and growl at intruders and lap dogs would be trained to perform a wide range of amusing tricks for entertainment whatever the training it was recommended that dogs be rewarded either in the form of food or praise the historian Aryan states that one should pat one's dog caress its head by pulling gently on the ears and speak its name along with a hearty word or two good boy good girl but of course these activities were just a small part of a dog's life much of their time was spent doing things we'd be familiar with today going for walks chasing animals begging for food getting in trouble playing fetch cuddling and taking long naps really things haven't changed so much since then just as today people and dogs form close bonds that lasted a lifetime the passing of a pet could take quite the toll and we have many records of individuals grieving for the loss of their companion what I find particularly touching are the tombs and epitaphs left in remembrance of these loved ones I'll read you a selection that I find quite touching to Halina foster child sole without comparison and deserving of praise mia never barked without reason but now he is silent my eyes were wet with tears our little dog when I bore you to the grave so Patrick is never again shall you give me a thousand kisses never can you be contentedly in my lap in sadness have I buried you and you deserve it Anna resting place of marble I've put you for all time by the side of my shade in your qualities you were sagacious as a human being me what a love companion we have lost here the stone says it holds the white dog from Malita the most faithful guardian of Eumelus bull they called him while he was yet alive but now his voice is imprisoned in the silent pathways of the night you who passed by if you see this monument laugh not I pray though it is a dog's grave tears fell for me and dust was heaped above me by a master's hand I am in tears while carrying you to your last resting place as much as I rejoiced when bringing you home in my own hands fifteen years ago I'll admit reading these passages for the first time brought tears to my eyes I lost a dog of my own not too long ago and I can viscerally feel the sorrow carved into each and every word but at the same time I have to appreciate that this shared loss puts me in touch with someone from thousands of years ago to a degree that is really impossible any other way I think we all too often see the past as cold remote and even inhuman I hope that in this video I've been able to shed some light on the universality of the human experience and in particular celebrate a friendship that transcends time I'd like to thank our supporters on patreon who made this video possible and our artist Bev Johnson for her fantastic illustrations please consider contributing to fund future content if you found this topic interesting check out these related videos about our fascinating past be sure to LIKE and subscribe for more history and check out our description for ways to support the channel thanks for watching

Channel: Invicta

Views: 1,287,156

Keywords: how they did it, pets in ancient rome, pet dogs in ancient rome, history of dogs, roman dogs of war, roman history, everyday moments in history, roman documentary, ancient rome documentary, ancient greece documentary, ancient greece for kids, roman history for kids, history for kids, dog breeds, top 10 dogs, ancient dog names, ted ed dogs, history dogs, dogs history facts, dogs 101, how they did it pet dogs, ancient pets, pets in history, pet history

Id: Vxlci1d2rOg

Length: 7min 59sec (479 seconds)

Published: Wed Sep 12 2018