The Dalbo dog (Dalbohund) or Dalsland Mastiff is an extinct livestock guardian dog breed from Sweden.
History
From the Icelandic Sagas, there are indications to suggest that the Vikings had acquired large cattle/guard/war dogs from their invasion of Britain. In Njals Saga, the Viking "Gunnar from Hlidarende" is given a large Irish Wolfhound as a gift. In Olaf Tryggvasson's Saga "Heimskringla", there is a mention of his dog, and it seems to have been a very large herding dog. There is a preserved large brown skin of a Dalbo dog in Hindås, Sweden. The skin clearly shows livestock guardian-type characteristics. There are some photos and paintings that might show the breed. A stuffed dog at the Natural History Museum in Stockholm was thought to have been a Dalbo dog, but it proved in fact to be an English Mastiff.The first time the breed is mentioned is in Gunno Brynolphi Blutherus' (*1609-+1657) book Dalia printed in 1632 AD. The breed got its name in print again in 1843 AD, when Axel Emanuel Holmberg (*1817-+1861) published his book "Bohusläns Historia och Beskrifning", or "Bohuslän's History and Description...
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