The Purpose of Beagles, Cocker Spaniels, Chis, and Cairns?

I know the Cocker Spaniel was used for bird hunting, specifically woodcock, which is how they got the name "Cocker".

 Beagles were (are!) hunting dogs. They used to be used mainly for rabbits.

A "cairn" is a pile of rocks.  Cairn terriers were used to remover vermin from the farms.  Often they would dig in the cairns to go after the rats, weasels, etc. to get them out.

Chihuahuas, to my knowledge, have always been companion animals. 

Beagles were originally bred in England for hunting HARE....here in the USA they typically hunt Rabbit. The two are very different game.

Cairns are named for the burial mounds made of rock which were common on the Brit Isles back in the day. They were I believe bred small to fit into the many cavities in said mounds to rid them of vermin.

Chihuahua's I am not sure of their purpose originally...sometimes to due with royality in ancestral/tribal Mexico.

Beagles are a scent hound, meaning they hunt game mainly by scent. Like all hounds, there was not a lot of training by the human to do their job, it is instinctive. So historically, hounds were not selectively bred for obedience. If you want to go into obedience training, you can do it with a hound but it will be more challenging. (of course that would eventually make you a fantastic trainer, if you didn't crack up first) Scent hounds are also easily distracted by their noses. If they start following a scent, they will keep going so they need a good fence.

Cocker spaniels were originally used as hunting dogs by people with guns. They needed to stay within a certain range and follow directions from the hunter so they are more easily trained than a hound. American cockers have not been used for hunting for a long time, they have been just companions.

Chihuahuas were just bred for companions, as far as I know.

Cairns were bred to go after vermin. So they often have a strong prey drive and are quite tenacious. They often have a bit of spark or attitude to them. Like most terriers they can be quite strong willed.

Cocker Spaniels-Sporting/Hunting

Chis-Sacraficed to the mayan gods, rat hunters, and nowadays companions.

Cairns- Rodent Hunting

Hi there,

 beagles were originally used as pack dogs for rabbit hunting. As for cockers, they get their name from the Woodcock, the bird they were most commonly used to hunt.  Chihuahuas, as far as i know, were bred for companionship and a novelty. cairn terriers were bred to rid vermin from the rock piles (called cairns) of their homeland. 

Hope I helped !

Mechanical Angel

I’ve heard that different breeds of dogs were originally bred for a specific purpose. Can you tell me what Beagles, Cocker Spaniels, Chis, and Cairns were bred for?

HoundMusic

Mechanical Angel

I’ve heard that different breeds of dogs were originally bred for a specific purpose. Can you tell me what Beagles, Cocker Spaniels, Chis, and Cairns were bred for?

     Beagles ARE (not were) rabbit/hare hunting dogs.

     Cockers are/were/should still be bird hunting dogs. 

    Cairins were fox & weasel hunters.      

    Chihuahuas are a Mexican breed sometimes used for food, if I'm not mistaken. They were originally bred for companionship and were once considered sacred.

i think i read somewhere that Chihuahuas were ORIGINALLY sight hounds..... like they're related to the Xolo (aka Mexican Hairless) but i'm not sure if thats a fact or just someone's romantic notion... after all, i did read it on the internet several months ago. 

and yeah Beagles are hare/rabbit dogs, but everyone i know with beagles hunt deer with them. they're VERY popular in my region as deer hounds. dont know about other places. so i guess, short as they are, they can really boogie when they want to!