It’s not a topknot, per se, but the presence of a distinctive curly or wavy tousle of head coat gives the Epagneul Pont-Audemer a very distinctive appearance, if not a comical one. Once you learn that this fun loving dog’s nickname is “Le petit clown des marais” or “little clown of the marshes,” it suits the dog!

Affectionately called the “Ponto,” the breed developed in France in the 19th century was named after the small city of Pont-Audemer in Normandy, the location of Vernier Marsh, a huge peat bog and one of the richest hunting grounds in the country. Hunters wanted a “marsh” specialist, and the Ponto was that dog.

It is one several pointing spaniels of France, and at one time, was fairly common in the northwestern part of the country. Two world wars, however, wreaked havoc on the breed. Indeed, after the second World War, the breed club decided to allow cross-breeding with other breeds (the Irish Water Spaniel, Poodle and Barbet) to increase genetic diversity.  In the 1960’s, breed numbers were still on the wrong trajectory, and by 1980, there weren’t enough puppies being born each year for the breed club to retain its official status within the French kennel club. It was amalgamated with the Picardy Spaniel club where it remains to this day. Even now, some worry that with only 30-50 puppies born annually in the entire world, the breed is a risk, and it’s thought that there are only about 400 left in the entire world.

The Epagneul de Pont-Audemer was recognized by the United Kennel Club in 1996.

Image: Epagneul Pont-Audemer/DreamsPhoto