Russian Mordashka

The legendary Russian Bulldogge belonged to a group of baiting and fighting dogs that were collectively known under the "mordash" name, which is thought to be a corruption of the word "moloss", and reserved for imported breeds. Baiting spectacles were a common pastime in old Russia and many sport enthusiasts were constantly developing stronger and more tenacious dogs from bulldogs and bull-terriers imported from Britain, Spain and Italy through crossings with the Russian Medelyan, Caucasian Ovtcharka, Central Asian Volkodav and other local mastiffs. From these experiments a few strains of the Russian Bullenbeisser-type population were established, but three main types developed, the taller and leaner Russian Dogge, the shorter and heavier Russian Bulldogge and a smaller Mordasha of the bull-n-terrier type. The Russian Dogge wasn't a successful fighting dog and was reduced to property guarding duties before becoming extinct. On the other hand, the highly driven Russian Bulldogge was a prized baiter of bears, whereas the smallest Mordash Terrier was an impressive fighting dog. However, dog fighting wasn't as popular in Russia as it was in the rest of Europe and the smallest Mordashka quickly disappeared. Only the Bulldogge type caught on and survived the longest. Alongside the Medelyan Mastiff, this Mordashka was also one of the favorite breeds of Ivan the Terrible, who used them for entertaining his guests and protecting his estate.

The Mordashka was a strong-legged and wide-chested Molosser, resembling a heavier old style Bullmastiff-type dog, with somewhat Bloodhound-like features. The head was large and broad, with a powerful muzzle and sometimes a "split nose", loose skin and pendulous ears. The thick coat was short, densely undercoated and flat, usually fawn, tan, yellow, red or blue in color, usually with a black face mask. Average height was around 24 inches. The Russian Mordashka is believed to had existed in limited numbers until the 1917 revolution, when it became extinct. There were some failed re-incarnation efforts during the 20th century, including the post WW2 experiments trying to revive the Old Russian Dogge with the Moscow Mastiff and the attempt to re-create the Mordash Bullterrier with the American Mordashka of the 1980's. Talks of possible revival persist to this day and it's only a matter of time before yet another breeding program takes on the task of reviving this spectacular large Bulldogge.