A Canine Chronology

PRESENTED BY THE DOMESDAY BOOK OF DOGS A Canine Chronology 55 - 54 BC   Julius Caesar was impressed by the size and ferocity of the mastiff-like war dogs used by the Celtic tribesmen to disrupt his legionaries' ranks in his two failed sorties against The British.   c. 1 AD Gratius's Cynegeticon,  a poem on hunting and animal husbandry, lists twenty-two dog 'breeds' from the Roman world.   c. 200 AD   Oppian of Apamea, Cynegetica, describes a small dog 'breed' with an excellent scenting ability used by the ancient Britons called the Agassian /Agasseus. (Mair, 1928).   c. 200 - 220   Remains of an unusually smal l breed of dog that would have stood about 8 ins at the shoulder were uncovered by archaeologists in 2023 at Wittenham Clumps in Oxfordshire. An artists impression shows a dog slightly smaller than a standard dachshund. 200 - 400   Dog remains discovered at the Vindolanda fort include the bones of hunting dogs, stock dogs and companion dogs...