And this is Vanta.

牠是 Vanta。

Vanta's a graceful 7 month old, female Formosan Mountain Dog.

Vanta 是一隻七個月大的母台灣土犬。

Well, actually she's a Taiwan Dog with a lot of Formosan blood in her, but she's as close to a Formosan as we can get.

事實上，牠不是純種台灣土犬，但已經是現今所能找到與台灣土犬血緣最相近的狗了。

Nobody knows if there are any pure-blood Formosans left.

沒人知道這世界上到底還有沒有純種台灣土犬。

Unfortunately, her breed has been cross-bred, harvested for food, not cared about and, there have even been military orders to exterminate the breed.

因為很不幸地，經過多次雜交，加上早期多用來協助狩獵，甚至有軍方命令集體撲殺，而使得純正血統的台灣土犬消失殆盡。

Today, we will share with you the long, and fascinating, and often tragic history of the Formosan Mountain Dog.

今天，我們想和大家分享關於台灣土犬的悲劇歷史。

We will also let you know all the characteristics that make up this sleek, fast hunting dog.

同時也會介紹一下這種優秀狩獵犬的特性。

The Formosan Mountain Dog is one of the oldest dog breeds in the world.

台灣土犬是世界上最古老的犬種之一。

Humans introduced ancient hunting dogs to Taiwan 10,000 to 20,000 years ago when the island of Taiwan was still attached to mainland China.

在一兩萬年前，當台灣仍和中國土地相連的時候，古人就把台灣犬引進台灣。

As the sea levels rose, and Taiwan became an island, the dogs were cut off from the mainland and evolved into a breed perfectly adapted to hunting the harsh terrain of of ancient Taiwan.

後來台灣和中國土地因海平面上升而分離，台灣犬便漸漸演化成能夠適應台灣早期險惡環境的特有種。

In the early 1600s, when the Dutch colonized Taiwan, they valued the fur of the native deer on the island.

十七世紀初期，當荷蘭人統治台灣時，他們視梅花鹿皮為珍寶。

The Dutch brought their own hunting dogs with them to hunt the deer, which are believed to have been Greyhounds or Pointers.

因此，荷蘭人引進格雷伊獵犬和指示犬來獵殺梅花鹿。

The Dutch didn't like to compete with the indigenous tribes for the deer pelts, so they slaughtered many Formosans and forbade the indigenous Taiwanese from owning dogs.

由於荷蘭人不想和原住民競相爭奪鹿皮，他們便大量屠殺台灣土犬，並且禁止原住民飼養犬隻。

During this period, the Dutch dogs bred with the Formosans and introduced their genes to the Formosan line.

在這時期，荷蘭犬與台灣土犬的基因開始互相混雜。

China eventually sent troops to the island to expel the Dutch and claim the island as their own.

後來，中國派遣軍隊到台灣並趕走荷蘭人，宣稱台灣是他們的領地。

The Chinese not only brought their own breeds that mixed with the Formosans, they introduced the concept of dog meat as food.

中國人帶來的外來犬開始和台灣土犬混種，除此之外，他們還將吃狗肉的觀念引進台灣。

Apparently the black dogs are the tastiest.

對他們來說，黑狗是最美味的。

During World War II, Japan occupied Taiwan, and they too brought their own hunting dogs.

日本在二戰時佔領台灣，並且也引進他們的獵狗。

The Taiwanese would sometimes attack the Japanese and use Formosans to hunt, attack, and kill the Japanese military dogs.

當時，台灣人會運用台灣土犬去攻擊日本人和他們的軍事犬。

This upset the Japanese soldiers who were ordered to kill all Formosan Mountain Dogs they encountered, wild or trained.

而這件事惹怒了日本人，所有出現在他們視線內的台灣土犬都會被殺掉。

As Taiwan's economy grew, they imported many new breeds of dogs, but there was no effort to keep the Formosan breed intact.

隨著台灣經濟蓬勃發展，日本人引進更多的外來犬，加上他們沒有任何保護台灣土犬血統的措施...

So the introduced breeds widely bred with and changed the Formosan breed forever.

導致外來犬種和台灣土犬的血統相互混雜，進而讓台灣土犬血統雜化。

In the late 70s, Dr. Sung Yung-Yi realized the Formosan breed was on the edge of extinction, and organized a campaign to go deep into the Taiwan mountains to see if there were any pure blood Formosans left.

在 1970 年代晚期，宋永義教授意識到台灣土犬將面臨滅絕的危機，於是便組織小隊進入台灣深山中尋找純種台灣土犬的蹤跡。

He managed to find around 160 dogs that ranked as pure.

當時，宋教授認定找到了一百六十隻純種台灣土犬。

But when he approached the government with a request to breed and protect the Formosan Mountain Dog, he was met with an unsympathetic culture in Taiwan that wasn't interested in this incredible breed that evolved on their island.

而當他要求政府協助保育純種台灣土犬的時候，卻遭到駁回，當時的社會對於特有種保育議題相當不重視。

So no rehabilitation program was launched, and today there is debate about whether pure blood Formosans still exist or not.

因此，台灣土犬復育的計畫就此告終，導致今日見不到純種台灣土犬的身影。

But there are a small handful of breeders in Taiwan who are attempting to bring the breed back through a closed breeding program.

不過，有部分飼養人員仍致力於透過培育與台灣土犬相近的犬種來復育台灣土犬。

But good luck trying to get one of their pups. The breeders will only sell their dogs to other qualified Formosan breeders.

想要飼養這些與台灣土犬血緣相近的犬隻並不容易，你必須是經過認證的合格飼養者。

Perhaps in the future when the breed is stable and established, you will be able to get a pure bred Formosan Dog.

或許當台灣土犬的復育較穩定後，你就有機會飼養台灣土犬了。

So we've given you a very brief overview of the Formosan Mountain Dog history.

介紹完台灣土犬的簡略歷史後...

Now let's go over the characteristics that make up this fascinating dog.

接著，我們要介紹台灣土犬的迷人特點。

These guys here are all Taiwan Dogs, which are all descendants and similar to Formosans.

這些都是和台灣土犬血緣相近的台灣狗。

But they are not pure blood Formosans as they are incredibly rare, so please accept any discrepancies with the characteristics we mention.

他們不是純種台灣土犬，所以他們的特點可能會有些許差異，還請見諒。

The Formosan is a small to medium sized dog. They range in height from 16 - 21 inches or 43 - 52 centimeters.

台灣土犬屬於中小型犬，平均身高為 16 到 21 英吋，等同於 43 到 52 公分。

They can vary in weight with a small female weighing 26 pounds to a large male weighing 40 pounds or 12 - 18 kilograms.

他們的體重有很大差別，小型母狗體重約 26 磅而大型公狗可重達 40 磅，也就是12 到 18 公斤的體重範圍。

Formosans are usually black, white, fawn, brindle, or combinations of these colors.

台灣土犬通常是黑色、白色、淡黃褐色、虎斑色或是其混合體。

Their coat is short and stiff which is great because it doesn't stick to clothing or furniture, and it sweeps up easily.

牠們的短剛毛不易附著於衣物或家俱上，清掃起來也較方便。

The Formosan is an exceptionally agile, fast, and intelligent dog, which makes them great hunting dogs.

相較於其他犬種，台灣土犬特別敏捷聰穎，因此適合作為狩獵狗。

Several dogs would be used to run down a deer or a boar.

台灣土犬曾被用來獵殺鹿隻和野豬。

But instead of attacking the animal, the Formosans would use their agility and speed to run in, take a fast bite of the animal, then quickly jump away before they could be injured.

牠們並不是採取直接的致命攻擊，而是運用出色的奔跑能力，快速地咬獵物一口再馬上逃開。

Four to five Formosans could easily wear down their prey until the hunters could catch up and dispatch the exhausted animal with their spear.

四、五隻台灣土犬可以將獵物體力消耗殆盡，獵人再趁機用茅刺殺已疲憊不堪的獵物。

Formosans are intelligent and can easily pick up new commands, but they aren't eager to learn.

台灣土犬相當聰明，可以快速學會新指令，但是牠們對於「學習」這件事並不熱衷。

They require a fair amount of repetitive training and treats to convince them to listen to you.

需要反覆的訓練以及食物等獎勵品，牠們才會願意聽從指令。

As far as energy levels go, the Formosans love their sleep, but they do need a good run each day, and you can expect them to be the fastest dog at the dog park.

每天都需要大量運動的牠們絕對可以成為公園裡跑得最快的狗，不過也需要充足的睡眠來補充體力。

Formosans will also excel at agility and rally training.

台灣土犬擅長敏捷度和集合訓練。

With a short coat, these dogs require little grooming. They are medium to light shedders.

還有，牠們會自動定期換毛以保持適當長度的毛髮。

But their short stiff fur is easy to wipe off clothing and sweep up.

不過，牠們的短剛毛非常容易從衣物上清除也方便清理。

These dogs can handle hot and cold temperatures but don't do well in the extremes of either.

除此之外，牠們的冷熱適應力也很好，除了太過極端的溫度。

The black Formosans will heat up much faster in hot and sunny environments.

黑色的台灣土犬在大太陽底下因吸熱能力好，體溫上升較快。

When it comes to health issues, the original Formosan had the benefit of natural selection to ensure only the most capable of them bred the next generation.

台灣土犬的祖先都是由物競天擇的機制下所存留下來最優秀的基因，以確保後保後代得以適應環境。

Even with the introduction of new breeds, the Formosan's lifestyle only allowed the genes that would benefit them to become part of the Formosan breed.

即使血緣已和外來犬種相互混雜，但只有利於其生存的基因才會存留下來。

They are very healthy dogs.

牠們是非常健壯的犬種。

Formosans can be very well trained dogs, but they need dedication and work from the owner.

只要飼主付出足夠的心血和努力，台灣土犬可以成為相當優秀的訓練狗

With their intelligence and energy levels, these dogs should only be taken on by first time dog owners who are willing to give them plenty of obedience training and give them the stimulation they need.

必須要願意給予牠們訓練和足夠的激勵鼓舞才有辦法飼養體力好又聰穎的台灣土犬。

An owner who puts in the work will be rewarded with a very devoted companion.

作為一個用心的飼主必定會獲得同等回報。

A well-socialized Formosan is great with kids and other pets, but even a socialized Formosan can be wary of strangers.

一隻受過訓練的台灣土犬可以是孩童或其他寵物的好保母，也可以是提防陌生人的保衛者。

Formosans evolved to be pack animals, and they are most comfortable when they are around their pack.

台灣土犬為群居動物，因此和同伴聚在一起時最讓牠們感到自在開心。

They don't like to be left alone, but they can adjust if started slowly while they are young.

牠們並不喜歡孤獨的生活，不過若從小慢慢訓練，這個特點是可以被改變的。

An untrained Formosan will bark at everything, but with a little training, they learn to only bark when there is a significant reason.

一隻沒受過訓練的台灣土犬會對任何東西吠叫，不過只要經過一些訓練，牠們就會在適當時機時吠叫。

The Formosan is a fascinating dog with a rich history.

台灣土犬是一種具有豐富歷史的迷人犬隻。

They make excellent pets for active people and are incredibly loyal.

對於有心的飼主來說，牠們會是最棒也是最忠心的寵物。

There are no breeders outside of Taiwan, but there are a few rescue agencies who bring Formosan dogs to other parts of the world.

國外並無台灣土犬復育者，但有專門的救援機構將台灣土犬送養給世界各地的有心飼主。

And hopefully soon there will be an established Formosan Mountain Dog breed.

希望在不久的將來，台灣土犬的血統可以成功穩定地復育。

Thanks for watching, and be sure to check out our other videos as my Dad and I explore multiple dog breeds.

感謝你的收看，記得觀看其他我和我爸一起介紹其他犬種的影片。

Bye.

再見。

Bye.

掰掰。