But most dogs rarely have to deal with complex tasks and are unlikely to learn relatively complicated activities (such as opening doors) unaided. Dogs are descended from wolves, and are also pack animals, making them easier than other animals to train because dogs' instincts are to obey. For example, Border Collies are noted for their ability to learn commands, while other breeds may not be so motivated towards obedience, but instead show their cleverness in devising ways to steal food or escape from a yard. This intelligence is expressed differently with different breeds and individuals, however. Many terms are used for dogs that are not purebred.Īmong dog lovers, dogs are generally valued for their intelligence, and both anecdotal evidence and scientific research suggest that dogs have a reasonably high intelligence. Offspring are generally called pups or puppies until they are about a year old. In breeding circles, a male canine is referred to as a dog, while a female canine is called a bitch. Hound itself derives from the Proto-Indo-European *kwn,to-, an extended zero-grade form of the root *kwon-, which is the direct root of the Greek κυων (kuōn) and the indirect root of the Latin canis through the variant form *kani. The English word hound is a cognate of the German Hund and Dutch hond which, though referring to a specific breed in English, means 'dog' in general in German and Dutch.

The French dogue and Spanish dogo as in dogo Argentino are borrowings from English. The English word dog might derive from the Old English docga, a 'powerful breed of canine'. The constellations Canes Venatici, Canis Major and Canis Minor are named from the Latin word for 'dog,' for their perceived resemblance to dogs. Some members of the family have 'dog' in their common names, such as the African Wild Dog. 'Dog' is sometimes used to refer collectively to any mammal belonging to the family Canidae (as in 'the dog family'), such as wolves, foxes, and coyotes. In 1993, dogs were reclassified as a subspecies of the gray wolf, Canis lupus, by the Smithsonian Institution and the American Society of Mammalogists. The species was originally classified as Canis familiaris by Linnaeus in 1758. The English word dog, in common usage, refers to the domestic pet dog, Canis lupus familiaris. In many places, consumption of dog meat is discouraged by social convention or cultural taboo. In some parts of the world, dogs are raised as livestock to produce dog meat for human consumption. Dogs have lived with and worked with humans in so many roles that their loyalty has earned them the unique sobriquet 'man's best friend' Conversely, some cultures consider dogs to be unclean. In many countries, the most common and perhaps most important role of dogs is as companions. For dogs that do not have traditional jobs, a wide range of dog sports provide the opportunity to exhibit their natural skills. Dogs fill a variety of roles in human society and are often trained as working dogs. Conversely, dogs seem to view their human companions as members of their pack, and make few, if any, distinctions between their owners and fellow dogs. The loyalty and devotion that dogs demonstrate as part of their natural instincts as pack animals closely mimics the human idea of love and friendship, leading many dog owners to view their pets as full-fledged family members. This similarity has earned dogs a unique position in the realm of interspecies relationships. For example, heights at the withers range from just a few inches (such as the Chihuahua) to roughly three feet (such as the Irish Wolfhound), and colors range from white to black, with reds, grays (usually called blue), and browns occurring in a tremendous variation of patterns.ĭogs, like humans, are highly social animals and this similarity in their overall behavioural pattern accounts for their trainability, playfulness, and ability to fit into human households and social situations. Over time, the dog has developed into hundreds of breeds with a great degree of variation. Because many of the 14 breeds are associated with China and Japan, the theory that the dog originated in Asia seems to be likely. Genetic research has identified 14 ancient dog breeds, with the oldest being the Chow Chow, Shar Pei, Akita Inu, Shiba Inu and Basenji. New evidence suggests that dogs were first domesticated in East Asia, possibly China, and the first peoples to enter North America took dogs with them from Asia. Dogs were domesticated from wolves as recently as 15,000 years, ago or perhaps as early as 100,000 years ago based upon recent genetic fossil and DNA evidence. The dog is a mammal in the order Carnivora.

Domesticated dog simulator