The spotlight is on the Prague Ratter / Podjdme se bavit o Prazskem krysarikovi

I have seen these dogs around but I just thought they were Chihuahuas.Well,  I was wrong! As one of you guys informed me (thank you Lydia!) they are called the Prague Ratters and as you might have guessed correctly according to the name, this breed was originated in Czech sometime before the 10th century. Today it is one of  the smallest dog breeds in the world ( 7 t0 9 inches tall and 6 to 9 lbs) and it can also be trained to use a litter box! Check out this cutie-pie’s history:

CZ: Kdyz jsem jeste zila v Cechach, tito pejsci behali vsude. Vzdycky jsem si myslela, ze jsou to cuvavy nebo miniaturni dobrmanci, ale diky jednomu z vas ted vim, ze jsem se mylila! Toto roztomile plemeno se jmenuje Prazsky krysarik a jak si jiz z jmena muzete domyslet, pochazi z Cech. Je to take jeden z nejmensich psich plemen na svete (vazi 6-9 poundu a meri 7-10 inchu), ktere chodi bezne na zachod na pisek pro kocky (litter box).

Prague Ratter History

As the breed is really so old, it is practically impossible to trace its early beginnings. However, Polish chronicler Galla Anonym wrote that Polish King Boleslav II The Brave (1058 -1080) became fond of the Ratter. He had two that came from Bohemia (the Czech lands). The chronicle says: “Not only Polish blood but also purely Slavonic blood, donated blood, circulates in the veins of our dogs”. As the king of Poland valued this gift, we can presume that it was a royal gift from prince Vladislav II. The French historian Jules Michelet mentioned in his work “Histoire de France” three ratting dogs came from the Czech lands. He clearly talks about a living gift, Prague Ratters, which the Czech king Karel IV (who also bore the title of Emperor of Rome) presented to the French king Charles V during his visit to France in the autumn of 1377. In early September of 1380 the dying Charles V bequeathed two of these dogsto his twelve-year- old son Charles VI.

The story goes that King Vaclav IV (1378 – 1419) used to take his favorite Ratter to the “U krale Brabantskeho” pub which he liked to frequent in disguise. In his works Professor Weise cogitates about the past centuries and pays particular attention to the reign of emperor Rudolf II. Quote: “Rudolf II (1576- 1611) always found comfort and clear mind amidst his hounds and ratters. The original four ratters bred and the numbers increased to eighteen. This was an excellent example of his breeding efforts”. The Ratter was often present at royal banquets. This small dog also symbolized the independence of Czech lands (Bohemia) and sovereignty of the Czech nation. From the early history of the Czech lands (Bohemia) the Ratter adorned the courts of Czech princes and kings and was often given as a gift to other European rulers. From the royal palaces it then spread to other strata of society.

The tragic defeat at the battle of the White Mountain resulted in the decline of Czech political, cultural and social life for three centuries. This period in Czech history also meant the departure from glory for the Prague Ratter. The Prague castle (the seat of Czech rulers) started to lose its significance and the Ratter began to leave the confines of the castle walls to live amongst ordinary folk.

The breed has survived to the present day. By a twist of fate the dogs that typified the breed were disqualified at dog shows. They were judged to be ‘atypical’ and too small. The judges were using a standard for miniature pinschers – a similar looking German breed. So once again the krysarí­k was pushed into the background which was detrimental to its further development. Leading canine experts such as Theodor Rotter and Otakar Karlik took an interest in these atypical, smooth-haired pinschers and attempted to set up a breeding programme and gather documentation. They failed because the chosen dogs did not have
the six generation pedigree which was, at that time, a requisite for registration.

At the same time, in neighboring Germany, Adolf Hitler was rising to power and in 1938 he invaded the Czechoslovak Republic. In the 1950s Theodor Rotter lost all his property including all his paperwork relating to the Ratter. The will to revive the breed had also gone. In the 1980s the attempt to revive the breed was repeated and finally succeeded. The Prague Ratter is here to stay.

Source:
www.prazsky- krysarik. cz