The dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. The dog was the first species to be domesticated by humans, over 14,000 years ago and before the development of agriculture. Due to their long association with humans, dogs have gained the ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canids.
Dogs have been bred for desired behaviors, sensory capabilities, and physical attributes. Dog breeds vary widely in shape, size, and color. They have the same number of bones (with the exception of the tail), powerful jaws that house around 42 teeth, and well-developed senses of smell, hearing, and sight. Compared to humans, dogs possess a superior sense of smell and hearing, but inferior visual acuity. Dogs perform many roles for humans, such as hunting, herding, pulling loads, protection, companionship, therapy, aiding disabled people, and assisting police and the military.
Communication in dogs includes eye gaze, facial expression, vocalization, body posture (including movements of bodies and limbs), and gustatory communication (scents, pheromones, and taste). They mark their territories by urinating on them, which is more likely when entering a new environment. Over the millennia, dogs have uniquely adapted to human behavior; this adaptation includes being able to understand and communicate with humans. As such, the human–canine bond has been a topic of frequent study, and dogs' influence on human society has given them the sobriquet of "man's best friend". (Full article...)
The Beagle is a small breed of scent hound, similar in appearance to the much larger foxhound. The beagle was developed primarily for hunting rabbit or hare, known as beagling. Possessing a great sense of smell and superior tracking instincts, the beagle is the primary breed used as a detection dog for prohibited agricultural imports and foodstuffs in quarantine around the world. The beagle is a popular pet due to its size and amiable temperament.
The modern breed was developed in Great Britain around the 1830s from several breeds, including the Talbot Hound, the North Country Beagle, the Southern Hound, and possibly the Harrier. Beagles have been depicted in popular culture since Elizabethan times in literature and paintings and more recently in film, television, and comic books. (Full article...)
A team of fourteen mixed-breed dogs mushing. Mushing is a general term for a sport or transport method powered by dogs, and includes carting, sled dog racing, skijoring, freighting, and weight pulling. More specifically, it implies the use of one or more dogs to pull a sled on snow. The term is thought to come from the French word marche, or go, run, the command to the team to commence pulling. "Mush!" is rarely used in modern parlance, however; "Hike!" is more common in English.
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- † = Descended from and closely related to livestock guardian dogs, but traditionally used in other roles
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The Polynesian Dog refers to a few extinct varieties of domesticated dogs from the islands of Polynesia. These dogs were used for both companionship and food and were introduced alongside poultry and pigs to various islands. They became extinct as a result of the crossbreeding that occurred after European breeds of dogs were introduced. Modern studies done on the DNA of the Polynesian dogs indicate that they descended from the domesticated dogs of Southeast Asia and may have shared a remote ancestor with the dingo. (Full article...)
The following are images from various dog-related articles on Wikipedia.
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Image 1Montage showing the morphological variation of the dog. (from Dog breed)
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Image 2Two Shih Tzu puppies (from Puppy)
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Image 3Tesem, an ancient Egyptian sight-hound (from Dog breed)
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Image 4Bloodhound puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 5A dog's teeth (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 6Petroglyph depicting two dogs hunting – Tassili n'Ajjer, Algeria (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 7Sled dog types, sketched in 1833 (from Dog breed)
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Image 9President Lyndon B. Johnson with a basket of puppies in 1966 (from Puppy)
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Image 10German Spitz puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 11A drawing by Konrad Lorenz showing facial expressions of a dog - a communication behavior. X-axis is aggression, y-axis is fear. (from Dog behavior)
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Image 12Golden Retriever puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 13The nose of a dog (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 15An extinct Turnspit dog, 1800 (from Dog type)
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Image 16Lateral view of a dog skull, jaw opened (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 17Chihuahua puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 18Bison surrounded by grey wolf pack (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 20A wolf mandible diagram showing the names and positions of the teeth (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 21The dog's retina shows the optic disc and the eye's vasculature. (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 22A little mongrel puppy on the shore, on Halong Bay (from Puppy)
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Image 23Cart dogs, c. 1900; different in appearance but doing the same work (from Dog type)
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Image 24NASA astronaut Leland D. Melvin with his dogs Jake and Scout (from Dog behavior)
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Image 26Example of a dog making prolonged eye contact with a human (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 27A labradoodle puppy and a Golden Retriever puppy playing together (from Puppy)
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Image 28Mandible of the oldest recognised dog discovered in Bonn-Oberkassel, Germany, and dated 14,200 years old (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 29Sled dogs, 1833 (from Dog type)
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Image 30The dog diverged from a now-extinct population of wolves 27,000–40,000 years ago, before or during the Last Glacial Maximum, when much of the mammoth steppe was cold and dry. (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 31Reduction in size under selective breeding – grey wolf and chihuahua skulls (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 32Cavapoo puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 33Lateral view of a dog skeleton (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 34Lateral view of a dog skull, jaw closed (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 35The difference in overall body size between a Cane Corso (Italian mastiff) and a Yorkshire terrier is over 30-fold, yet both are members of the same species. (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 36A cavapoo and maltipoo running back while playing fetch (from Dog behavior)
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Image 37Chihuahua mix and purebred Great Dane (from Dog breed)
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Image 38A mongrel puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 39Montage showing the coat variation of dogs. (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 40The difference in body size between a Cane Corso (Italian mastiff) and a Yorkshire Terrier is over 30-fold; both are members of the same species. (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 41Watercolor tracing made by archaeologist Henri Breuil from a cave painting of a wolf-like canid, Font-de-Gaume, France, dated 19,000 years ago (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 42Skeleton of a dog: 1. Cranium 2. Maxilla 3. Mandible 4. Atlas 5. Axis 6. Scapula 7. Spine of scapula 8. Humerus 9. Radius 10. Ulna 11. Phalanges 12. Metacarpal bones 13. Carpal bones 14. Sternum 15. Cartilaginous part of the rib 16. Ribs 17. Phalanges 18. Metatarsal bones 19. Tarsal Bones 20. Calcaneus 21. Fibula 22. Tibia 23. Patella 24. Femur 25. Ischium 26. Pelvis (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 43Diagram of a wolf skull with key features labelled (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 44St. Bernard puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 45A dog's whiskers (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 47The Greenland dog carries 3.5% genetic material inherited from a 35,000-year-old wolf from the Taymyr Peninsula, Arctic Siberia. (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 48Mammoth bone dwelling, Mezhirich site, Ukraine (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 49Frontal view of a dog skull (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 50Map depicting possible phylogeographic origins of dingoes, New Guinea singing dogs, and Island Southeast Asian and Oceanian dogs, based on recent genetic evidence (Fillios & Taçon, 2016) (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 51External anatomy (topography) of a typical dog: 1. Head 2. Muzzle 3. Dewlap (throat, neck skin) 4. Shoulder 5. Elbow 6. Forefeet 7. Croup (rump) 8. Leg (thigh and hip) 9. Hock 10. Hind feet 11. Withers 12. Stifle 13. Paws 14. Tail (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 52Schematic anatomy of the ear. In dogs, the ear canal has a "L" shape, with the vertical canal (first half) and the horizontal canal (deeper half, ending with the eardrum) (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 53"Five different types of dogs", c. 1547. (from Dog breed)
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Image 54Dog knee (from Dog anatomy)
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Image 55Basenji puppy (from Puppy)
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Image 56Newborn Basenji puppies (from Puppy)
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Image 58An 1897 illustration showing a range of European dog breeds (from Dog breed)
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Image 59Sled dog types, sketched in 1833 (from Domestication of the dog)
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Image 60Puggle puppy (from Puppy)
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List articles
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- Stubs : Aksaray Malaklisi, Alopekis, Argentine pila dog, Armant (dog), Banjara Hound, Barbado da Terceira, Braque Dupuy, Bruno Jura Hound, Bulgarian Scenthound, Cane Lupino del Gigante, Cane Paratore, Cantabrian Water Dog, Barrocal Algarvio, Český fousek, Faroese Sheepdog, Georgian Shepherd, German Spitz Mittel, Gończy Polski, Grand Griffon Vendéen, Himalayan Sheepdog, Hygen Hound, Indian Spitz, Japanese Terrier, Kaikadi (dog), Koyun dog, Kumaon Mastiff, Levriero Italiano, Mahratta Hound, Majorca Ratter, Montenegrin Mountain Hound, Northern Inuit Dog, Phu Quoc Ridgeback, Plummer Terrier, Porcelaine, Pyrenean Mastiff, Rampur Greyhound, Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog, Romanian Raven Shepherd Dog, Saint Miguel Cattle Dog, Sapsali, Sarabi dog, Sardinian Shepherd Dog, Schweizer Laufhund, Segugio Italiano, Segugio Maremmano, Segugio dell'Appennino, Sinhala Hound, Slovak Cuvac, South Russian Ovcharka, St. Hubert Jura Hound, Stichelhaar, Taigan, Tazy, Telomian, Treeing Cur, Vikhan, Villano de las Encartaciones, Villanuco de Las Encartaciones, White Shepherd, White Swiss Shepherd Dog, Xiasi Dog More stubs...
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