Although associated with Hungary, the Puli’s origin can be traced farther east. Similarities between the Puli and the Tibetan Terrier, shown here, are evident.

      Tribes of nomadic horsemen who ranged across Asia had been known to the ancient Chinese since around 1200 BC. They called them the Puli Hou or the Destroyer Hun. Traveling farther west, by the fifth century AD they had spread as far as Europe by way of the Danube River. These invaders rode with their herds and their unruly semi-wild dogs. In AD 453, after their leader Attila died, they retreated to Asia.

      Hungary had experienced other invaders, and in AD 567 came the Avars, who eventually divided into tribes. One of the groups settled down and merged with the tribes of northern India while others moved westward on beyond the Aral Sea and invaded the Carpathian Basin. They were called White Huns, as well as Avars, and were thought to know the term “Puli.” The word puli, which commonly refers to a drover, can still be heard in parts of India and other areas through which the Avars traveled. The Magyars lived for quite a while in the Don and Dnieper River basins where these nomadic horsemen adapted to hunting, fishing and trading. In time, they gradually spread into Transylvania, over the Carpathian Mountains, where they were recorded around AD 895 or 896. They took with them large herds of cattle and flocks of sheep. The sheep, related to the Ovis Ammon Polh, were known as Argali. This horned breed spread as far as Bokhara and into China. Longhaired sheepskins dating back to 500 and 400 BC were found in the frozen wastelands of the Altai region.

      The Magyars were a wild, hardy and rather fierce people who effectively drove out the earlier inhabitants of the wide Danube Valley where they then settled with their dogs. Although the Puli was in Hungary by AD 899, there remained very similar dogs in the northern Himalayas.

       THE PLURAL OF PULI

      In Hungary, the plural of Puli is “Pulix,” while in English-speaking countries the plural is “Pulik,” though “Pulis” is also used.

      Through the years, attacks were made by invaders on the settling Magyars, with the most serious onslaught by the Mongols, under Genghis Khan, in the 13th century. Having been successful over most of Asia, they tried to conquer parts of Europe, too. To them, the term puli or buri meant “destroyer.” The native Hungarian population was quite depleted, and Germans later settled where the worst battles had taken place.

      Inevitably, other animals were brought into Hungary, including Merino sheep and some herding dogs similar to the French Briard and Beauceron. In relief carvings of the 12th and 14th centuries, varying types of dogs were depicted. Some had prick ears and curled tails, while others had no tails and dropped ears.

      Although the earliest verifiable recording of a Puli occurred in 1751 in a description of various hunting dogs, the Hungarians called the Puli and another native breed, the Pumi, “Juhasz-Kutyak” (shepherds’ dogs). The Puli, as we know it today, came about by breeding to French and German shepherding breeds. In 1815, the Puli and the Pumi were scientifically classified as Canis familiaris pomeranius. In 1901 the Puli was renamed Canis familiaris domesticus hungaricus. It was around that period that many countries decided to ensure the preservation of their native breeds. In the 20th century, with the separation of the Puli and Pumi, sometimes an odd pup or two in a Puli litter can resemble a Pumi or even a Mudi, another similar herding dog of Hungary, showing the comparatively recent split.

       PUMI

      Another herding dog of Hungary is called the Pumi. Crosses to the Puli contributed to the Pumi’s development. This medium-sized dog possesses unique upright ears and a curly coat, which, although long and thick, does not have a tendency to cord. The Pumi is a cattle drover and excels as a watchdog. In Hungary, the Pumi is the dog seen around town, while the Puli is seen more in the country and plains.

      In the beginning of the 20th century, judges at dog shows were so uncertain of what they were seeking as the ideal at exhibitions that sometimes completely differing types were awarded prizes—prick-ears, short coats or pointed heads! Variations in size were also quite common in the first 30 or 40 years, as the early breed standard spoke of the Puli as “a mediumsized sheepdog.” Prior to World War II, pictures showed the breed with quite long legs, coats often not in the now-familiar cords and with tails that were sometimes carried lower and not always over the back.

       A modern English-bred champion Puli from the Loakespark kennel.

      Though recorded in some detail as show dogs at early shows in Budapest, both the Puli and Pumi were termed as “Juhasz-Kutyak.” To the shepherd, they were known as two distinct breeds and given their own titles. In his book Working Dogs of the World (1947), Clifford Hubbard (affectionately known to all canine enthusiasts in Britain as “Doggy” Hubbard) noted that the Puli was starting to become quite well known outside Hungary. Before World War II, Pulik were being bred in Austria, Germany and Italy, and American fanciers began to take an interest in the breed.

      In Hungary, the organization formed to safeguard native sheepdog breeds had a very long name and became known by its initials: MEOE (Magyar Ebtenyéstok Országos Egyesülete). Set up in 1899, the MEOE kept all early records of breeding and standards for the breeds encompassed. The veterinarian attached to the Budapest Zoo, Dr. Emil Raitsits, was influential in many ways, and the first Puli breed standard was eventually published in 1915. It was improved in 1924, when it was accepted by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), which is the “umbrella”

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