Tosa Inu - Geschichte

Tosa Inu is one of the breeds that are designated as combat. This designation is unfortunately very misleading and gives the uninformed persons negative emotions. U Tosa would have been more correct to say that it is a dog wrestling. Tosa is a sumo wrestler in the canine kingdom. Before we look into its history, we will record straight, as it actually matches with those TOSA is.

It should be quite clear that when matches were never used females. Females are intended to preserve the family and serve as watch dogs.
Japanese wrestling matches Tosa are solely between dogs and are essentially completely bloodless. Our ideas are greatly influenced by the western concept of dog fighting, in which the maximum value dog that can injure your opponent quickly as possible to screen out of the fight. Dog’s exercises on western style matches were trained to an adversary tore into places most vulnerable to him severely injured or even killed.
For Japanese matches Tosa is it completely different. Like the sumo matches is also in this match dogs purpose only lead the opponent off balance and knock him to the ground. It evaluates the efforts of what it must have been devoted to his opponent „got on his back.“ Dogs, of course, mutual benchmarking liked forces, but we find in them no trace of blood lust. Dogs catch only the skin and trying to get his opponent to the ground. If there is an injury to one dog, the match ends immediately. Both opponents thus leaving the vast majority of matches completely unharmed.
The defeat, which leads to immediate disqualification, shall be considered if
– Dog intentionally grabs after his opponent, trying to bite him and barks
– Dog barks or whines fears
– Dog loses his fighting spirit and pass on more than three steps

On his wrestling career with dog preparing a long and carefully matches and can participate only dogs older than one year. When matches are divided into three categories – light, medium and heavy weight. Lightweight reaches shoulder height to 62 inches long and weighing up to 42 kilograms. Dogs Mid exceed these values and dogs tend to have heavy weights over 70 pounds. The ideal weight is considered to be about 55 pounds.
The two-day tournament dog fights in Japan until today and are as popular as sumo wrestling. The dog during a two-day tournament attended by several matches and evaluates its overall result. And like in sumo dog can gradually carve titles, ranging from complete novice „Maegashira“ to the highest wrestling title – „meiken yokozuna“. However, the title does not acquire a dog permanently. As soon as the title of his wrestling career is over, must defend the title and every win means to him loss assessment. Winning dog in the ceremony ornaments and such dog enjoys great admiration.
As you can see, the struggles in Japan have nothing to do with the bloody theater of dog fighting Western style, Tosa and therefore are not nearly as bloodthirsty as they are based on these ideas quite questionable attributes. The fact that the Tosa in a number of countries classified as so-called fighting breeds (which itself is absolutely absurd notion) is at Tosa sad misunderstandings that may negatively affect their future.
The history of this type of dog fights in Japan reportedly dates back to the fourteenth century; the history of the breed is not long. Gained more popularity in the samurai caste practically in the first half of the nineteenth century. At the end of the nineteenth century with the struggles of dogs practiced primarily in certain administrative districts on the island of Shikoku and Tohoku. The most common were in the administrative district of Tosa on Shikoku.
We have to mention that in the early days was Tosa dog of medium size, largely resembled the former, average weight slightly in excess of 30 kg, Tosa had erect ears and tail curved over the back.
In 1854 changed Japanese foreign policy, were canceled existing strict rules on the movement of foreigners, along with foreign visitors to the country received more foreign dogs.

Lovers of dog fighting in Tosa were disappointed with dwarfism and their dogs are constantly compared with large foreign breeds. Within a few days, lovers Tosa enthusiastically embarked crossing dogs, whose main objective was to ennoble the overall appearance of the local breed.
During these breeding efforts probably used a St. Bernard, Mastiff, German mastiff, and blood hound, English Pointer, German Pointer, Bulldog and Bull Terrier.
Around 1900 the dogs brought into all corners of Japan and matches dogs have gained great popularity throughout the country.
The Second World War brought the Tosa – as well as many other large breeds – on the brink of extinction. There were only a few adult males and two females in the administrative area of Tohoku and a couple of dogs on the island of Kyushu. And based on these surviving dogs was due to the huge efforts of breeders, a new breed Tosa Inu.
Today he lives in all of Japan about three thousand Tosa Inu.