Ca Rater Mallorquí
Also known as: Ratonero Mallorquín
Breed at a glance
- Origin
- Spain
- Weight
- Males
- Height
- Males
- Coat
- short
- Colour
- black-and-tan, brown-and-tan, sometimes white patches or tri-colour
- Other names
- Ratonero Mallorquín
Use
The Ca Rater Mallorquí was formerly used to hunt and catch rats in the wetlands and lagoons of the island of Mallorca – the use for which it is named; this was a commercial activity, as rats were sold as food. [ 2 ] : 520 In the twenty-first century it is commonly used to hunt rabbit, particularly in areas covered by thick scrub or vegetation; it may also be used to retrieve small feathered game such as thrushes or doves. [ 2 ] : 520 [ 1 ] It is a good watchdog and a good companion animal . [ 7 ]
intro
The Ca Rater Mallorquí or Spanish : Ratonero mallorquín is a Spanish breed of dog of ratter or warren hound type, found on the island of Mallorca in the Balearic Islands . [ 1 ] [ 2 ] It is recognised by the Govern Illes Balears [ 3 ] : 23307 and by the Spanish national government , [ 1 ] : 13433 but not by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale . [ 4 ]
History
The origins of the Ca Rater Mallorquí are unclear, with no documentary evidence before the second half of the nineteenth century. [ 2 ] : 518 The dogs show considerable similarity to those of the Gos Rater Valencià breed of the autonomous community of Valencia , in mainland Spain. Valencian rice-farmers arrived in Mallorca in 1901 to work in the wetlands of the Albufera de Muro , and some sources cite this as a possible explanation for the similarity. [ 2 ] : 518 [ 5 ] It has also been suggested that there may have been some infusion of English terrier blood in the history of the breed. [ 2 ] : 518 A breed society – the Club Espanyol del Ca Rater Mallorquí – was established in 1990, and registrations were begun. [ 6 ] The Ca Rater was officially recognised by the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in 2002, with the establishment of a stud-book and the publication of the breed standard in the Butlletí Oficial de les Illes Balears , the government gazette of the islands. [ 3 ] [ 6 ] In 2004 it received full national recognition when the breed standard was published in the Boletín Oficial del Estado – the official journal of the government of Spain – and the breed society was authorised to maintain the stud-book. [ 1 ] [ 6 ]
Characteristics
The Ca Rater is small: height at the withers does not reach 40 cm , and is usually in the range 29–33 cm for bitches and 32–36 cm for dogs; body weights vary from 3 to 4 kg and from 3.5 to 5 kg respectively. [ 2 ] : 519 [ 7 ] In dogs, the length of the body is roughly the same as the height at the withers, such that the outline of the body is square; bitches are somewhat longer in the body, but still close to square in outline. [ 2 ] : 519 The coat may be either black-and-tan or brown-and-tan, either with or without white markings; these may be so extensive that the coat is tri-coloured or is white with patches of colour. [ 8 ]