Mongrelism - Regional and Slang Terms

Regional and Slang Terms

There is a profusion of words and phrases used to describe dogs that are not designated as a purebred or pedigreed dog. The words cur, tyke, mutt, and mongrel are used, sometimes in a derogatory manner. There are also regional terms for mixed-breed dogs. In the United Kingdom mongrel is the unique technical word for a mixed-breed dog. North Americans generally prefer the term mix or mixed-breed. Mutt is also commonly used (in the U.S.A and Canada), often in an affectionate manner. Some American registries and dog clubs that accept mixed-breed dogs use the breed description All American

There are also names for mixed-breeds based on geography, behavior, or food. In Hawaii, mixes are referred to as poi dogs, although they are not related to the extinct Hawaiian poi dog. In The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands, the common term is potcake dogs (referring to the table scraps they are fed). In South Africa the tongue-in-cheek expression pavement special is sometimes used as a description for a mixed-breed dog. In the Philippines, mixed-breed street dogs are often called "askals", a Tagalog-derived contraction of "asong kalye" or street dog. In Puerto Rico they are known as Sato dogs, and in Chile and Bolivia, they are called quiltros. In the rural southern United States, a small hunting dog is known as a feist.

Slang terms are also common. Heinz 57, Heinz, or Heinz Hound is often used for dogs of uncertain ancestry, in a playful reference to the "57 Varieties" slogan of the H. J. Heinz Company. In some countries, such as Australia, bitsa (or bitzer) is common, meaning "bits o' this, bits o' that". In Brazil and the Dominican Republic, the name for mixed-breed dogs is vira-lata (trash-can tipper) because of homeless dogs who knock over trash cans to reach discarded food. In Newfoundland, a smaller mixed-breed dog is known as a cracky, hence the colloquial expression "saucy as a cracky" for someone with a sharp tongue.