{"data":{"slug":"red-decoy-dog","name":"Red Decoy Dog","url":"https://techtools.cz/tools/dog-atlas/red-decoy-dog","api_url":"https://techtools.cz/dog-atlas-api/v1/breeds/red-decoy-dog","also_known_as":["Decoy Dog"],"kind":"breed","extinct":true,"group":{"key":"retriever","label":"Retriever \u0026 Water Dog","fci_group":8,"fci_group_name":"Retrievers, Flushing Dogs and Water Dogs"},"size":"Medium","origin":"England","countries":["England"],"height_cm":null,"weight_kg":null,"life_expectancy_years":null,"temperament":["Inquisitive","Bright","Agile","Playful"],"exercise_level":"Medium","wikipedia_views_60d":856,"summary":"The Red Decoy Dog was an extinct English fox-red dog that lured wildfowl into netted tunnels. It is believed to be an ancestor of the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever.","photo":{"url":"https://techtools.cz/tools/dog-atlas/photos/red-decoy-dog-a6e835ca80-1280.webp","small_url":"https://techtools.cz/tools/dog-atlas/photos/red-decoy-dog-a6e835ca80-640.webp","width":580,"height":386,"author":"Sir Ralph Frankland-Payne-Gallwey, 3rd Baronet (1848-1916)","license":"Public domain","license_url":null,"source_url":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Decoy_in_action.png"},"updated_at":"2026-10-15T14:47:08Z","ratings":{"energy":4,"exercise":3,"grooming":2,"shedding":3,"trainability":4,"barking":2,"kids":4,"other_dogs":4},"coat":"Medium-length, with a bushy tail","colors":["Fox-red","Tawny","Yellow"],"fun_fact":"These dogs were deliberately bred to look like foxes, because curious ducks were seen to follow a fox behaving erratically.","sections":{"overview":"The Red Decoy Dog was an extinct English breed used to entice ducks into large netted traps. It was small, fox-coloured and collie-like, with a bushy tail.\n\nIt is thought to be the forerunner of the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever and was found mainly in the Fens.","history":"Before firearms spread, ducks were often caught in long hooped, netted tunnels. Along with trained live decoy ducks, dogs were used to lure wild ducks, since curious birds would follow a fox-like animal behaving oddly.\n\nThrough consistent breeding the dogs became a distinct breed. It is not known when it died out, but it likely faded as wildfowlers replaced nets with shotguns. Settlers took such dogs to Nova Scotia, where they are believed to have given rise to the Tolling Retriever, and some believe they also contributed to the Golden Retriever.","appearance":"It was small, about a third smaller than a fox, with a fox-red, tawny or yellow coat. It looked collie-like and had a long, bushy, ideally curly tail.\n\nSir Ralph Payne-Gallwey described a good decoy dog as a bright little fellow with a curly bushy tail.","personality":"It was a bright, curious and agile little dog, skilled at playing and darting along the water's edge to draw the attention of ducks."},"recognition":{"fci_number":null,"fci_standard_url":null,"akc_url":null},"sources":{"wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Decoy_Dog","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q11349773","wikipedia_revision":1368158091},"profile":{"written_by":"AI model (Claude Sonnet) from the sources above","written_at":"2026-10-15T13:59:38Z"}}}