Cahill Vizslas - The site is named after the Cahill Mountain in Northeastern Pennsylvania's Endless Mountains, a place frequented by Roger Hatch, the site owner.
Vizsla History - The Vizsla has a long history in its native Hungary and the rest of Europe. Written accounts and drawings depicting and mentioning the Vizsla by name date back to the 12th and 13th century (Boggs 1982). Other accounts describe the Vizsla history beginning around the 9th century when the warring Magyar tribes migrated from the Steppes of Asia (Gottlieb 1999). These nomadic tribes and their hunting dogs settled in the Carpathian basin in what is now known as Hungary. For centuries the breed was owned by the sporting nobility of Hungary who used their dogs to scent and search for birds, which were either netted or caught by falcons.
Until 1946 Hungary was a feudal state and a distinctive feature of the rural economy was the large number of estates owned by feudal lords. The Vizsla was often kept in private kennels of these powerful barons. These estates provided a varied set of hunting conditions for fur and feather so the versatile nature of the Vizsla began to take hold. To say the Vizsla was one of the first sporting dogs is an understatement.
The Vizsla survived the many political upheavals of the region over the next several hundred years. However, the breed was nearly wiped out when political rivals attempted to overthrow the rural aristocratic way of life. Many of the landed gentry escaped with their beloved Vizslas.
The breed was admitted in the AKC Stud Book in 1960. Today it's not uncommon to see a field scarred Vizsla in the show ring, or a conformation champion locked on point in a Field Trial or Hunt Test. The versatile nature is further exemplified by the fact that the only dog with five AKC championships is a Vizsla. |