Stabyhoun

The Stabyhoun, or Stabijhoun or Stabij (in Frisian), is one of the rarest dog breeds in the world. It hails from the Dutch province of Friesland; its origins lie in the forested region of eastern and southeastern Friesland. The breed has been mentioned in Dutch literature dating back to the early 1800s, but it was not until the 1960s that the breed became known outside its native province; the first Stabyhouns left the Netherlands some decades later, in the 2000s. The name Stabijhoun translates roughly to "stand by [me] dog". The dog is considered a Dutch national treasure. Today, there are only a few thousand Stabyhouns worldwide.

The Stabyhoun is mentioned in the early 19th century Frisian literature of Joost Halbertsma, Waling Dijkstra, and Nynke fan Hichtum. Historically, this breed was used for hunting foxes, small game, and birds. A fixture on Frisian farms, Stabyhouns have proven to be skillful mole-catchers. During the hunting season, it was used as an all-round gun dog. Today, the Stabyhoun remains a competent hunter, although British and German hunting breeds remain more popular. Known for its calm disposition, the Stabij is a soft-mouthed retriever, a fine pointer, excellent tracker, and a good alert dog. It has also been used by dairy farmers as a cart dog.

These dogs used to be found nearly exclusively on farms, whose owners had limited means and needed a general-purpose farm dog capable of working, hunting, and keeping watch, whilst being a faithful and reliable family companion.

The breed's appearance and purpose have not changed. In order to optimise the traits of the working farm dog in earlier days, the Stabyhoun was often mixed with another old and rare Frisian breed, the Wetterhoun, whose rugged coats and huskier physiques made Stabijs more robust.

However, in 1942 the Stabyhoun received official breed recognition, and crossbreeding of the Stabyhoun and Wetterhoun ceased altogether in an effort to prevent the extinction of these increasingly rare breeds.

Today, the Stabyhoun enjoys a small but devoted following amongst Dutch sportsmen and families. Its numbers are increasing slowly but steadily. This breed has caught the attention of dog lovers in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, and North America.

Historically, the Stabyhoun was an all-around working farm dog. Apart from hunting, these dogs were used to guard property and to catch pests such as rats, moles, and polecats. This versatility is still evident in the breed today. Due to the Stabij being a canine jack-of-all-trades, it has not attracted the attention of hobbyists looking to pursue a certain sport or activity.

The Stabyhoun is both a soft-mouthed retriever and pointer with a strong tracking abilities. It works very well in water, not shying away from frigid rivers or lakes, and is easily controlled over greater distances. It retrieves any game alive and undamaged. Despite its more modest build, it is a powerful and sturdy dog, with larger Stabyhouns historically used to pull dog-carts when need arose.