What kind of dogs were the Roman soldiers using in war?

Exploring this topic, I had read a lot of information about the fact that the Romans used dogs directly on the battlefield, where ferocious Molossians attacked the enemy in the first line of legions. You can often find such information on cynological portals and books about the origin of Molossoids (mastiffs, Great Dane, etc.). But is it so impossible to say right now: after the prescription of events, many facts have been lost. But you can turn to the authors of antiquity and see what they write about it.

It has to be noted that in the sources that have been preserved to our day in the description of military operations, there are no references to the use by the Romans of dogs directly in battle. Or at least I didn't find one.

As far as I know, in military affairs, dogs were used by the Romans in functions similar to their common use: object protection and tracking. However, there are very few references to such cases.

Moreover, the Greeks and Romans used for military purposes, not some specially bred dogs, but the same breeds with which they hunted.

More than 150 names of dog breeds have been preserved from antiquity - the number is very significant, actually. At times, only the names of the breeds (which were named after the place of origin) reached us without any specific characteristics.

Lexicographer of the end of the 2nd century Julius Pollux, listing the most noble breeds, names laconic, Arcadian, Argolid, Lokrid, Celtic, Iberian, Karin, Cretan, Molossian, Eretrian, Hyrcanic and Indian dogs. Obviously, this list, like most of his work “Onomasticon '', was compiled from Greek sources of classical and Hellenistic times.

A little later, around 200, the Apamean poet Oppian gave a wider list of dogs that he recommended for hunting: Peonian, Ausonian, Carian, Thracian, Iberian, Arcadian, Argos, Lacedaemon, Tegean, Savromat, Celtic, Cretan, Magnet, Amorg, Egyptian Bootes, Lokrid and Molossian.

Thus, I can join the view that the Romans did not use dogs directly in battle. At the same time, the warriors of the empire obviously used guard dogs to guard essential state facilities and, possibly, to guard the limes. For this, especially vicious guard dogs were chosen.

Most likely, tracker dogs were also used to search for fugitives. This is all I can say about the use of dogs in the military affairs of the Romans, according to ancient sources.