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Sirius – Canis Maior

The choice of a name for our kennel was not easy. We wanted the name that would show what dogs we breed, the model toward which we strive and commitment we put into education of our dogs and puppies so that by their very nature aroused pride and admiration. Following this track we found the Latin name of the constellation Canis Major or „Canis Maior” which belongs to the family constellations of Orion.
Its brightest star was of great importance for the ancient Egyptians, who called it Sotis. Sirius (lat. Sirius) was considered divine, and worshiped star. The first rising (15 June) announced the annual spate of the Nile. For the population of Egypt it was extremely important information, that ensure the fertility of the regular flooding of the Nile valley lands. The importance of Sirius in Egyptian history was associated with the goddess Isis, sister and wife of Osiris. Symbol of the dog comes from an earlier period when the star was identified with the jackal-headed god – Anubis.
The Greeks learned the earlier stories about Sirius and they identified the constellation with a hunting dog owned by mythological giant Orion, that was accompanying him with the second, small dog in the hunt. According to legend, Orion’s hunting dogs, one large, one small, are chasing forever the Rabbit in the sky. Greek writers Eratosthenes and Hignus thought that Big Dog represented Laelapsa , a dog so fast that his prey was uanble to run away, except of the fox from a mountain calledTeumessos, who was destined never to be caught. Lailapsos was sent in the endless pursuit of fox that was sent by Apollo to destroy residents of the city of Thebes, north of Athens. Zeus ended the chase turning these animals into stones and placed the dog in the sky as the Great Dog, far from the Fox. The Arabs saw in the stars Canis Major and Canis Minor faithful hunting dogs of Orion. This is reflected in the Arabic name of this constellation Al Kalb al Jabbar 'dog Giant’.

How to find a constellation

The brightest star in the constellation, and the brightest star in the night sky – Sirius – makes it easy to find the whole constellation. You can find it using the three stars in Orion’s belt (Mintaka – Delta Orionis, Alnilam – Epsilon Orionis, Alnitak – Zeta Orionis).

Why „Sirius – Canis Maior”

We decided that our breeding will be called from the Latin „Sirius – Canis Maior”. Sirius because of the brightest star that was extremely important to the ancient Egyptians and symbolized the flooding of the Nile that were determinant of fertility. Canis Maior due to the constellation from which the Sirius is. Big Dog is a symbol of the indomitable hunter but also is the gift of Artemis, goddess of hunting for Orion. We want our dogs to be majestic, fast, strong, built like a hound befits but also elegant and set to work with a human family. The basis, however, is the health of our dogs that is most important to us.