A gracious good day to you! Marvellous to see you. Glad you had time to click by for a coffee and a savoury treat. Try one of those doughnuts with the vanilla icing and dark sprinkles all over them . Y’know how I like to write about animals every once in a while, huh? Well, I was reading about Dalmatians and it’s interesting how they came to be known as the ‘firehouse’ dog.
It started more than a hundred years ago in the era of the horse and carriage. In the case of firefighters, it was horse and fire wagon. Dalmatians were not initially owned by the firemen but they seemed to like to run beside the fire wagons. In fact, the dogs would even stop other dogs or animals from attacking the horses when they were racing towards a fire. Dalmatians often ran in pairs, with one on either side of the coach, or close behind the horses. (The Gentry also picked up on this and quite a number of aristocrats had Dalmatians running alongside their coaches. The more dogs you had, the higher their perceived status).
When a fire alarm sounded, the Dalmatians would run out of the firehouse, barking to let bystanders know that they should get out of the way because the firefighters' wagon would soon come roaring by. Once the wagon was out on the street, the Dalmatians would run beside it.
Horses are afraid of fire. At the scene, horses often shied away. The presence of the Dalmatians' would comfort the horses as they pulled the wagon closer to a blaze. The Dogs also stood guard near the wagon to ensure that no one stole the firefighter's belongings, equipment or horses.
Even today, many fire stations keep up the tradition and enjoy having the dogs around as friendly companions. Dalmatians continue to keep watch over firefighters' equipment, but instead of running alongside fire trucks, now they usually ride inside. They are also very good at keeping the firehouses rat-free.
So now you know…
See ya!
Bob
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