Theory on the Yharnam Dogs

The following was originally written in this thread. All credit for the content of this post goes to The_Captain1998, with only minor changes made to reflect the difference in format.

This post discusses the different breeds of dog used by hunters and what it might imply about their quarry.

via gematsu.com

So I was thinking about two types of dog we encounter in Yharnam (ignoring the hemwick ones and crow headed ones) and I think I came to a conclusion. The Yharnam ones we see bare a striking resemblance to Irish Wolf Hounds, dogs specifically bred to hunt and kill wolves and bears, both large predators. It's clear that hunters and Yharnamites used these dogs to hunt beasts as in-game we see infected Yharnamites and dogs travelling together on various occasions. However, then I thought about the dogs we see in the Hunter's nightmare, being a different breed and one I'm very familiar with. Doberman Pinscher.

Rabid Yharnam Hound

Hunter's Nightmare Hound

Now I was also thinking what the lore implications of this could be and I think I narrowed it down. When the curse started, beasts were relatively humanoids and therefore Doberman were used. For those not familiar with the dog breed, they are primarily used as guard dogs and police dogs to take down humans. However, as beasts became more animalistic, somewhere along the lines they must have scrapped the doberman for the larger Irish Wolf Hound, a dog specifically bred for hunting and killing wolves and bears.

In conclusion the old hunters bred dogs for humanoid beasts and humans infected by the scourge, while the current day people bred Irish Wolf Hounds to tackle bigger beasts.

Just a neat idea I had that I thought I might share.