Murray River Curly Coated Retriever

Murray River Curly Coated Retriever Association - www.mrccr.org

The Murray River Curly Coated Retriever (MRCCR) is a breed of dog endemic to South East Australia. It appears to be have been developed as a working duck dog in the 19th century. It takes its name from the Murray River, the major river in South Eastern Australia where it originated from.

The Murray was popular as a retriever and a duck dog in Victoria, southern NSW and SA. Its popularity wained when duck shooting and the need for meat dogs became less popular. Today it can be found in all states of Australia.

The Murray Curly is often confused with the standard Curly Coated Retriever. The Curly Coated Retriever Association of Australia points this out.^[1] The Murray Curly has been labelled a designer dog...which is a recent label. Soft Maple Kennels from Canada have an excellent page of types of curlies.^[2] Then P Mathis in his knowledgeable articles about curlies around the world acknowledges a smaller type curly sometimes called a river curly but believed they came from the Murray River in New Zealand.^[3] While there may be some Murray River Curlies in NZ their origin is Australia.

The Murray Curly is generally a smaller type of retriever with weights being within 5 kg of 25 kg. It is always liver coloured and some have white markings on their chests. The Murray's curls are looser than a standard curly but range from wavy to tight. Their ears seem longer or more spaniel like than most retrievers. Older types in the breed tend to be shorter in the leg.

Up until 2006 with no breed club or breed standard or recognition. To address this matter a Yahoo group for owners and supporters of the Murray Curly Coated Retriever was established. http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/MRCCR/ ^[4] It currently has over 180 members. In June 2010 the Murray River Curly Coated Retriever Association was established. Their mission is 'To Preserve and Promote the Murray River Curly Coated Retriever'. www.mrccr.org. The Association is establishing a 4 part open register. Dogs currently alive can be registered. This will allow breeders to continue traditional breeding and ensure that owners know which dogs are related. The Association is not interested in the show ring and the pressures that this puts on a breed to meet some ideal "standard". The MRCCR has a number of general 'types' which are described in this page. There are also 3 Facebook groups and a twitter site.

The Murray has many devoted owners who believe the Murray to be the most loyal, biddable and best companion dog they have ever owned. They can be protective but generally only of their owner and owner's property. Murrays and horses generally seem to get along well and many members also have equestrian interests.

The Murray rightfully deserves to be recognised as an Australian dog and its only Australian developed retriever.

History

Very little is known about the origins of the Murray River Curly Coated Retriever. Murrays were developed around the mid-19th century by duck hunters in the Murray River region of Australia. A special type of dog was needed to retrieve ducks during duck hunting. The dog needed to be a good retriever, able to cope with loud noises, intelligent, able to swim well, have large amounts of stamina and work from duck punts. There is confusion as to the dog breeds used to create the Murray . Some sources suggest the Flat Coated Retriever and a particular type of Spaniel were bred to produce a dog with the required characteristics. Apparently the Flat Coated Retriever chosen was one with a wavy coat rather than a purely flat coat. Other sources suggest it was due to breeding between Curly Coated Retrievers and Irish Water Spaniels. A recent source that came to light believes that the Murray was descended from dogs, perhaps American Water Spaniels, brought here by American captains employed on the Murray River steamers in the 19th century. The AWS and Murray do appear around the same time and have parallel developments. Another theory is that the Murray represents what was a popular form of retriever in the United Kingdom in the early 19th century. It was the retriever of the common people. Somehow it was brought to Australia and North America where it survived and developed into the AWS and Murray.There are reports of brown curly dogs in Hobart in the 1840s. Elsewhere this type of retriever became extinct. Whatever the origin, the Murray River Curly Coated Retriever is now a breed unto itself in Australia.

Description

Murray River Curly Coated Retrievers have a brown or liver curly coat. The colour helps them blend with their environment and the curls aid in waterproofing the dog. They do not have a second undercoat as some breeds do so they do feel the cold if left wet and inactive in a cold environment. The Murray will moult for summer in various amounts. Murrays, as they are often called, are used to a hot, dry environment. The Murray River region often experiences temperatures in the high 30s to low 40 degrees C during the summer. Whilst the dog can cope with this weather they do appreciate a swim to cool themselves down. During summer, the tips of the dog's coat may begin to turn an golden or appear lighter in colour. This is just the coat being bleached with the sun and it may be removed by a trim or a comb to remove dead hair if you wish.

The MRCCR is only available in one colour, 'liver'. Their eyes are always a golden yellow colour. They often have a small white patch on their chest. Curl can vary in length and tightness.

The breed has webbed feet allowing them to swim better. Webbed feet unique trait of water breeds of dogs. They often have large paws, probably slightly larger than their other proportions would suggest.

MRCCRs are a medium size dog breeding genrally being within 5 kg of 25 kg but some variation. Their legs should be shorter than most retrievers, they tend to be stocky and they have a deep chest. They were bred as a working dog and tend to have a muscled body to match.

Murrays have large floppy lips. This is so as not to bruise the bird when hunting. Murrays have a great personality. From the moment the puppy first sees you he will fall in love with you. They are loyal and will protect their owners and property, get along quite well with other dogs even cats providing they have been well socialised from a young age. The Murray will chase birds as this is what they were bred for. They make a great family dog and are very good with children. They love to play and be part of the 'pack'.

Temperament

They are very energetic and need reasonable amounts of exercise. They have a great deal of stamina and so long as there is something to play with they will keep going. A dog may bring back as many as 120 ducks in one day during shooting.

As with most dogs, the better trained they are from a young age the better behaved they will be. Take your dog to puppy training of some sort to get them used to other dogs and people - to socialise them well. If this is not done, the Murray or any dog can be fearful of strangers. This can result in 'fear snapping', meaning the dog may snap at strangers if the stranger pushes themselves on the dog. It does not mean the dog will bite strangers just possibly snap in the air at them. Murrays tend to be an intelligent breed and are trained easily. The Murray Rivers that existed in the past tended to be used as working dogs.

Health and care

Grooming maintenance

Contrary to appearances they require little grooming. The coat will moult for summer. In general, they are a short coated dog provided the dead hair is removed. The best form of grooming is to let the dogs swim.Any loose, dead hair tends to come out of the coat during swimming. If this is not possible they can be brushed however the curls tend to 'fuzz' and the dog needs a spray with water or a bath to return the curl.Some dogs do require clipping but most only need a trim as the hair on and behind their ears and tail can grow a little longer than their body and the curls turn into waves or matts.

As with any dog their nails may need trimming if they are not worn down on a hard surface. It is best to get them used to this from an early age so as not to traumatise the dog.

If the dog is allowed to swim regularly, it will not need a bath very often. They do not tend to smell and swimming cleans them up anyway.

Health issues

In the past some Murrays were reputed to have personality problems, this can happen to any breed of dog that is not socialized and where the breeding pool has not been large. Hopefully any such dogs are not bred from. As with all floppy eared dog breeds, they are prone to ear infections. It may be difficult for the ears to dry out after swimming and hence get infected. The best way to avoid this is to either use a drying solution in their ears after every swim or to tie their ears back so they can dry out. Regular cleaning of the ears is recommended.

Due to their weight, they are actually considered a large breed of dog. As with all larger dogs they tend to grow quickly which can cause joint problems. Diseases such as hip or elbow dysplasia may occur. Currently this breed is not screened for these diseases however a vet could examine any dog you are considering purchasing.^[5]

Notes

1. ^ "Curly Coated Retrievers-Breed Information". Curly Coated Retriever Association. http://www.curlycoatedretriever.com.au/?page=148. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
2. ^ "When is a Curly not a Curly". C. Lewandowski. Archived from the original on 2007-12-07. http://web.archive.org/web/20071207171110/http://www.geocities.com/ccrhearts/Notcurly.html. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
3. ^ "Curly Coated Retriever, The Curly in Australia and New Zealand". P.Mathis. http://www.landaracurl.com/Origin.html. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
4. ^ "MRCCR - Murray River Curly Coated Retriever". Yahoo Pet Groups. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MRCCR/. 
5. ^ "Murray River Curly Coated Retriever". J.Schahinger. http://members.optusnet.com.au/~schahingerlane/. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 

^ "Curly Coated Retrievers-Breed Information". Curly Coated Retriever Association. http://www.curlycoatedretriever.com.au/?page=148. Retrieved 2008-06-23. ^ "When is a Curly not a Curly". C. Lewandowski. http://web.archive.org/web/20091026195137/http://www.geocities.com/ccrhearts/Notcurly.html. Retrieved 2008-06-23. ^ "Curly Coated Retriever, The Curly in Australia and New Zealand". P.Mathis. http://www.landaracurl.com/Origin.html. Retrieved 2008-06-23. ^ " Murray River Curly Coated Retrier". http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MRCCR/ ^ "Murray River Curly Coated Retriever". J.Schahinger. http://members.optusnet.com.au/~schahingerlane/. Retrieved 2008-06-23.

References

• "Curly Coated Retrievers-Breed Information". Curly Coated Retriever Association. http://www.curlycoatedretriever.com.au/?page=148. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
• "When is a Curly not a Curly". C. Lewandowski. Archived from the original on 2007-12-07. http://web.archive.org/web/20071207171110/http://www.geocities.com/ccrhearts/Notcurly.html. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
• "Curly Coated Retriever, The Curly in Australia and New Zealand". P.Mathis. http://www.landaracurl.com/Origin.html. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 
• "Murray River Curly Coated Retriever". J.Schahinger. http://members.optusnet.com.au/~schahingerlane/. Retrieved 2008-06-23. 

External links

• http://www.mrccr.org/
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