Hawaiian Poi Dog vs French Spaniel - Breed Comparison

French Spaniel is originated from France but Hawaiian Poi Dog is originated from Indonesia. French Spaniel may grow 25 cm / 10 inches higher than Hawaiian Poi Dog. French Spaniel may weigh 7 kg / 16 pounds more than Hawaiian Poi Dog. French Spaniel may live 4 years more than Hawaiian Poi Dog. French Spaniel may have more litter size than Hawaiian Poi Dog. French Spaniel requires Moderate Maintenance. But Hawaiian Poi Dog requires Low Maintenance

Basic Information

Group:
Sporting dog
Companion dog
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France
Indonesia
Height Male:
56 - 63 cm
22 - 25 inches
36 - 38 cm
14 - 15 inches
Height Female:
54 - 60 cm
21 - 24 inches
34 - 36 cm
13 - 15 inches
Weight Male:
10 - 22 kg
22 - 49 pounds
7 - 15 kg
15 - 34 pounds
Weight Female:
8 - 20 kg
17 - 45 pounds
6 - 13 kg
13 - 29 pounds
Life Span:
10 - 12 Years
5 - 8 Years
Litter Size:
4 - 10
3 - 5
Size:
Medium
Small
Other Names:
Epagneul Français French Setter Canadian Setter
Native Hawaiian Dog, and Hawaiian Islanders’ Dog., Poi Dog, Ilio, Hawaiian Dog
Colors Available:
White with brown markings
any color with white markings, brown mostly
Coat:
Straight, or slightly wavy and of medium length.
short and fine
Shedding:
Moderate
Minimal
Temperament:
Affectionate, Courageous, Friendly, Gentle, Intelligent, Loyal, Playful, Social
Affectionate, Playful, Stubborn
Grooming:
Moderate Maintenance
Low Maintenance
Trainability:
Easy
Hard
Hypoallergenic:
No
No
Kids Friendly:
Yes
Yes
New Owners Friendly:
Yes
Yes

History

french spanielDeveloped in France and then in Canada, the French Spaniel is a descendent of 14th century hunting dogs. Originally the breed was very popular with the French royalty and nobility at the Court of Versailles, in the Middle Ages. A French Spaniel named Babe was owned by Catherine I of Russia.

Spaniels were mentioned in Gaston III of Foix-Beams’ The Master of the Game, or Livre de Chasse, in 14th Century France. Most believed that Spaniels had been developed during the 11th century Crusades. By 1650 the French Spaniel was differentiated from the King Charles Spaniel and determined to be its own type of spaniel.

In 1805, they were featured in the Sporting Magazine, hunting mallards. The French Spaniel was crossed with English Setters in the !850’s to develop the French Brittany (Spaniel). But by the end of the 19th century, hunting dogs from other countries were outpacing the French Spaniel so much that it was driven to the brink of extinction. Fortunately, a priest named Father Fournier saved the breed by taking all remaining Spaniels to his kennels at St. Hillarie and developing the lines we see in the breed today. This was followed by the founding of the French Spaniel Club in 1921. The various lines of the Spaniels included the French Spaniel of today, the Brittany of today, the Blue Picardy and the Picardy.

The French Spaniel however has been rare outside of its native country and Canada, where it was imported in the 1970’s to French speaking Quebec. Quebec Canadians fell in love with the breed for hunting grouse and woodcock. In order to ensure that the breed would be continued in line with its French standards, the Club de l’Epagneul Francais du Canada began in 1978. By 1985 the Canadian Kennel Club recognized the French Spaniel. Soon after they were recognized by the United Kennel Club, the Federation Cynoloqique Internationale, the UK Kennel Club and the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association, but not the AKC (American Kennel Club). They are also registered with organizations such as the American Canine Association, the Dog Registry of America and the America’s Pet Registry. They have been included in the AKC Foundation Stock Service as the first step toward AKC recognition.

The Hawaiian Poi Dog was a descendent of the dogs brought to the Islands by the Polynesian. These Polynesian dogs were themselves descendants of the kuri dog of New Zealand. These kuri dogs were originally from Indonesia. The Hawaiian Poi dog is now extinct but at one time was considered the spiritual protector of Hawaiian children and also used as food by hungry Native Hawaiians.

The dog was called poi which was the word for a food staple mad from the root of Taro and used to put weight on the dogs before they were eaten. Meat was not fed to the dogs because it was too scarce. There was no large mammals to hunt and so the breed was never given a standard. The Poi dog seen by European explorers were short legged, pot bellied canines that lived with the hogs in the towns. Because of what they ate, the dogs were not highly intelligent but were stubborn and hard to train. Because the dogs were not suited for much beyond food and a spiritual charm, they became extinct when the traditional religion was no longer practiced and eating dogs was no longer acceptable. The breed pretty much disappeared by the early 20th century. Very few images of the dogs remain except for ancient petroglyphs.

There was an attempt by the Honolulu Zoo in the late 1960’s to redevelop the breed using local dogs to determine a standard. Then the local dogs were bred as close to the standard as possible. In the third generation one dog was born with the traits of a Poi dog. There was not much more success with this and then the Polynesian ship travel between Tahiti and Hawaii was recreated and a dog taken along.

Today’s mixed breed dogs in Hawaii are called Poi dogs but also have the stubbornness, unique appearance and ability to eat anything it is given like the original Poi. The dogs are small, and should not be confused with the original Poi dogs.

Description

french spaniel puppy - descriptionThe French Spaniel is a very tall dog and as such is one of the spaniel breeds two tallest. They are taller than the English Springer Spaniel, have a deep chest and a muscular build. Their legs are very strong, and they have a thick tail that is never docked. It is long, slightly curved and hangs low. He is an elegant dog with dark amber eyes, long feathery ears, and a nose the color of the coat. If the coat is brown the nose is brown. If the coat is black and white the nose is black. Most French Spaniels are white with brown or dark liver or white with black.

As previously mentioned the Poi dog is somewhat unusual in size and shape due to what they ate. They looked somewhat like the native dogs of Polynesia and New Zealand. They have short legs, long bodies, somewhat obese and a very flat head. He had a short smooth coat, in any color or any pattern. They were however mostly brown and they might or might not have white markings.

Characteristics

Children friendliness

french spaniel dog - characteristicsYes, they are very good with children.

Special talents

They are great in filed trials as they can flush, point and retrieve.

Adaptability

The breed is very adaptable and can live in the city or in the country.

Learning ability

The breed is very intelligent and trainable.

Children friendliness

The Hawaiian Poi dog was very friendly and good with children

Special talents

The Poi was considered a good luck charm and a spiritual protector of children

Adaptability

Given what they faced in life, the Poi dog was very adaptable, living anywhere on the islands and eating anything it could find.

Learning ability

Due to their poor diet, the Hawaiian Poi dog was seriously lacking in intelligence and learning ability.

Health Problems

french spaniel puppies - health problemsThe French Spaniel is a healthy breed that adapts well to all types of conditions, especially wet ones. There are some potentially serious health issues that the breed may be susceptible to:

Acral Mutilation and Analgesia

This is a very serious inherited disorder. It is one of many Hereditary Sensory Autonomic Neuropathies (HSN) disorders. This is an agonizing infliction that causes the dogs to have no pain in certain extremities and therefore the ability to self-mutilate their feet, pads, claws and digits. They lick and bite their feet often amputating footpads, claws, and digits without feeling any pain. This leads to infection and most dogs end up being euthanized. The disorder shows up by 3-4 months of age.

Ear Infections

Make sure the dog’s ears are cleaned regularly to remove wax and prevent infections.

Epilepsy

This disease causes seizures but can be treated with medication.

Hip dysplasia

Can cause lameness and arthritis.

Probably due to its diet, the Poi dog had several problems to their health. Their poor diet led to a sluggishness both in movement and intelligence. Its development was hampered by a lack of protein. Malnutrition and serious over inbreeding caused a weakness and poor oral hygiene. Due to this lack of teeth and chewing the bones in the dogs heads became flat. The Poi had breathing issues and overall lethargy.

Caring The Pet

Feed the puppy

french spaniel dogs - caringA high quality dry food made for puppies and if possible for Spaniels. Feed two to three times a day about one fourth of a cup each time

Feed the adult

A high quality adult dry food made for Spaniels if possible. Feed twice a day about one half to three fourths of a cup at each meal.

Points for Good Health

Excellent vision, stamina and speed.

Games and Exercises

These dog love to run and play. They are smart and learn easily. They like to chase balls, swim, play hide and seek, Find It, and go hiking. They can excel at learning tricks, agility, rally and obedience trials.

Feeding the puppy

With meat being rare in Hawaii, none was available for the dogs. They were fed Poi – from the Taro plant roots. Puppies were fed 2-3 times a day.

Feeding the adult

The adult dog was fed once or twice a day the same as Poi puppies were fed.

Points for Good Health

The Hawaiian Poi dog basically has not good health points.

Games and Exercises

The Poi dog did not need and did not get much exercise, leading to its demise.

Comparison with other breeds

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  30. French Spaniel vs West Highland White Terrier - Breed Comparison
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  33. French Spaniel vs Yorkshire Terrier - Breed Comparison
  34. French Spaniel vs Poodle - Breed Comparison
  35. French Spaniel vs Rottweiler - Breed Comparison
  36. French Spaniel vs Boxer - Breed Comparison
  37. French Spaniel vs English Pointer - Breed Comparison
  38. French Spaniel vs Siberian Husky - Breed Comparison
  39. French Spaniel vs Doberman Pinscher - Breed Comparison
  40. French Spaniel vs American Bully - Breed Comparison
  41. French Spaniel vs Abruzzenhund - Breed Comparison
  42. French Spaniel vs Affenpinscher - Breed Comparison
  43. French Spaniel vs Afghan Hound - Breed Comparison
  44. French Spaniel vs Aidi - Breed Comparison
  45. French Spaniel vs Airedale Terrier - Breed Comparison
  46. French Spaniel vs Akbash Dog - Breed Comparison
  47. French Spaniel vs Akita - Breed Comparison
  48. French Spaniel vs Africanis - Breed Comparison
  49. French Spaniel vs Askal - Breed Comparison
  50. French Spaniel vs Atlas Terrier - Breed Comparison