Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever

The Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever loves swimming and retrieving. Intelligence toys are essential for this clever canine. The upside: You can train your favourite’s skills even on rainy days.

The Toller enjoys activities that require endurance and brains. This breed excels in dog sports like Agility or Flyball. Training as a rescue dog is also an option.

Taking Breaks is Important

An adult Toller will happily join you on bike rides, jogs, or woodland walks. However, it’s crucial not to turn your dog into an adrenaline junkie that never rests.

From the beginning, value cosy moments. A well-balanced Toller can thoroughly enjoy a lazy afternoon in its bed.

When engaging with this clever athlete, focus on stimulating its mind and nose. This way, the fox-coloured dog can become a great companion for active individuals without necessarily aiming for daily athletic achievements.

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A balanced diet is key to a long and happy dog life. The Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever doesn’t have special dietary needs. 

Choose a high-quality complete food that your dog enjoys. Whether you opt for dry food or wet food is entirely up to you.

Barfing as an Alternative to Traditional Dog Food

Some dog owners swear by “BARFing” – feeding dogs mostly fresh meat based on their ancestral diet.

This includes offal, vegetables and various supplements. Advocates claim that barfing is particularly species-appropriate, as the nutrients are tailored specifically to the dog’s needs.

However, dog owners should thoroughly research this topic. Dogs fed the wrong amount of nutrients can develop dangerous deficiencies. Always consult a vet or dog nutrition expert if uncertain. They can provide advice and support.

Dental Care Snacks and Water

For dental hygiene, specialised dental care snacks that promote chewing are useful. Also, don’t forget to always provide plenty of fresh water for your pet.

The simple long hair needs minimal coat care. Regular brushing (at least once a week) usually suffices. Only the longer hair on the paws and ears occasionally needs detangling.

During seasonal shedding, Tollers lose a lot of hair. Brush your dog more frequently during this period to minimise hair loss in the home.

When it comes to cleanliness, you might need to turn a blind eye with Tollers due to their love of water. Even mud puddles can attract these red elves for a little splash.

How Long Does a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever Live?

A healthy Toller has a life expectancy of around 15 years and is often active into old age.

The breed is generally robust but can be prone to eye diseases. Elbow and hip dysplasia (ED and HD) are also not uncommon.

When buying a Toller, ensure preventative checks with the parents. Modern genetic tests can now identify eye diseases.

SRMA: Possibly Hereditary

Another common illness is SRMA (Meningitis-arteritis). It is suspected to be hereditary. Symptoms include sudden fever and a stiff posture.

Corticosteroid therapy can quickly alleviate symptoms but must be continued for months. SRMA can also become chronic. Critics of the Tollers’ purebred status argue that these hereditary diseases occur due to the breed’s small gene pool.

Controversy: Pure Breeding vs Crossbreeding

Prospective owners should research the debate around “pure breeding vs crossbreeding within the breed”. Some studies show that Tollers have an inbreeding coefficient of 26%, higher than that of full siblings.

While some Toller breeders still insist on pure breeding, there are also critics. They see the mating of dogs with similar genetic material as dangerous for the breed’s health.

Extensive Knowledge Required for Breeding

Some breeders attempt to mitigate this risk by deliberately crossbreeding with other breeds. Pure breeding proponents should always calculate the coefficient of relationship for any mating and be well-versed in the family tree to ensure only genetically distant Tollers are paired. This keeps the degree of relatedness low.

Regardless of which side a Toller breeder takes, genetic knowledge – which every breeder should have – is crucial for this breed.

The breed was popular in Canada and the USA in the 19th century, though its exact origins are unclear.

The goal may have been to breed dogs that, like some foxes, lure ducks by playing along the shore. Indigenous people in Nova Scotia used the red dogs for duck hunting. Immigrants observed this and bred Collies, Spaniels, Setters and red Indian dogs in this direction.

The breed only established itself in Europe in the late 19th century, around 1880 in Denmark and 1884 in Sweden. However, they were known under different names like “Little River Duck Dog”.

Late Recognition

The breed was officially recognised quite recently. It wasn’t until 1946 that the Canadian Kennel Club listed the Toller.

International recognition came in the early 1980s from the FCI, the world’s largest kennel club federation.

In Sweden, the lively dog now has many fans. Today, more Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers live there than in Canada.

Use: The Toller as a Specialised Hunter

The name points to the breed’s origin and use. Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever can be translated as “Nova Scotian, duck-luring retriever”.

Nova Scotia is a peninsula in eastern Canada, where the Toller is honoured as a national dog. The breed’s early uses were specialised.

The hunting Toller had the task of retrieving sticks from the shore. These were thrown by the hunter from a hide. By moving along the shore, the lively dog attracted waterfowl within the hunter’s range.

The hunter would then call the dog back and shoot the ducks. Finally, the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever would live up to its name by retrieving the ducks. This hunting strategy is also known as “Tolling”.