Portal:Dogs

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

The Dogs Portal

The dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from extinct gray wolves, and the gray wolf is the dog's closest living relative. The dog was the first species to be domesticated by humans. Experts estimate that hunter-gatherers domesticated dogs more than 15,000 years ago, which was before the development of agriculture. Due to their long association with humans, dogs have expanded to a large number of domestic individuals and gained the ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canids.

The dog has been selectively bred over millennia for various behaviors, sensory capabilities, and physical attributes. Dog breeds vary widely in shape, size, and color. They perform many roles for humans, such as hunting, herding, pulling loads, protection, assisting police and the military, companionship, therapy, and aiding disabled people. Over the millennia, dogs became uniquely adapted to human behavior, and the human–canine bond has been a topic of frequent study. This influence on human society has given them the sobriquet of "man's best friend". (Full article...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Selected breed - show another

The Chesapeake Bay Retriever is a large breed of dog belonging to the retriever, gundog, and sporting breed groups. The breed was developed in the United States Chesapeake Bay area during the 19th century. Historically used by local market hunters to retrieve waterfowl, pull fishing nets, and rescue fishermen, it is today primarily a family pet and hunting companion, known for a bright and happy disposition; courage; willingness to work; alertness; intelligence; love of water; and hunting capabilities. The Chesapeake is a medium- to large-sized dog similar in appearance to the Labrador Retriever, but with a wavy coat. (Full article...)

List of selected breeds

Selected image

Credit: Robert Southworth
A Featured picture of the day.

The American Eskimo Dog is a breed of companion dog originating in the United States (probably in New York City) in the twentieth century. It is derived from the German Spitz, the Finnish Spitz, and almost certainly the Pomeranian and Keeshond. The spitz family of Nordic dogs is one of the least altered by human husbandry and reflects most nearly the prototypical dog, from which stock all others have been derived. Archeology suggests that Neolithic dogs living with humans would today pass for spitzes.

More selected pictures

Gallery

Read more...

Topics

Selected article - show another

A drawing of Barry, preserved at the Natural History Museum of Bern prior to the modifications conducted in 1923.

Barry der Menschenretter (1800–1814), also known as Barry, was a dog of a breed which was later called the St. Bernard that worked as a mountain rescue dog in Switzerland and Italy for the Great St Bernard Hospice. He predates the modern St. Bernard, and was lighter built than the modern breed. He has been described as the most famous St. Bernard, as he was credited with saving more than 40 lives during his lifetime, hence his byname Menschenretter meaning "people rescuer" in German.

The legend surrounding him was that he was killed while attempting a rescue; however, this is untrue. Barry retired to Bern, Switzerland and after his death his body was passed into the care of the Natural History Museum of Bern. His skin has been preserved through taxidermy although his skull was modified in 1923 to match the Saint Bernard of that time period. His story and name have been used in literary works, and a monument to him stands in the Cimetière des Chiens near Paris. At the hospice, one dog has always been named Barry in his honor; and since 2004, the Fondation Barry du Grand Saint Bernard has been set up to take over the responsibility for breeding dogs from the hospice. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

General images - load new batch

The following are images from various dog-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Lateral view of a dog skull, jaw closed (from Dog anatomy)
Image 2Reduction in size under selective breeding – grey wolf and chihuahua skulls (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 3The 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)
Image 4Cavapoo puppy (from Puppy)
Image 5St. Bernard puppy (from Puppy)
Image 6A labradoodle puppy and a Golden Retriever puppy playing together. (from Puppy)
Image 7"Five different types of dogs", c. 1547. (from Dog breed)
Image 8Basset Hound (from Puppy)
Image 9Bison surrounded by grey wolf pack (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 10The dog diverged from a now-extinct population of wolves 27,000–40,000 years ago immediately before the Last Glacial Maximum, when much of the mammoth steppe was cold and dry. (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 11External 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)
Image 12Montage showing the coat variation of dogs. (from Dog anatomy)
Image 13Tesem, an ancient Egyptian sight-hound (from Dog breed)
Image 14Sled dog types, sketched in 1833 (from Dog breed)
Image 15Bloodhound puppy (from Puppy)
Image 16Two Shih Tzu puppies (from Puppy)
Image 17Chihuahua mix and purebred Great Dane (from Dog breed)
Image 18Cave wolf skull, Natural History Museum, Berlin (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 19Schematic 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)
Image 20The nose of a dog (from Dog anatomy)
Image 21Jack Russell Terrier puppy (from Puppy)
Image 22Sled dogs, 1833 (from Dog type)
Image 23Montage showing the morphological variation of the dog. (from Dog breed)
Image 24An 1897 illustration showing a range of European dog breeds (from Dog breed)
Image 25A little mongrel puppy on the shore, on Halong Bay (from Puppy)
Image 26Mandible of the oldest recognised dog discovered in Bonn-Oberkassel, Germany, and dated 14,200 years old (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 27A wolf mandible diagram showing the names and positions of the teeth (from Dog anatomy)
Image 28Watercolor 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)
Image 29NASA astronaut Leland D. Melvin with his dogs Jake and Scout (from Dog behavior)
Image 30Lateral view of a dog skeleton (from Dog anatomy)
Image 31German Spitz puppy (from Puppy)
Image 32Frontal view of a dog skull (from Dog anatomy)
Image 33A dog's teeth (from Dog anatomy)
Image 34The 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)
Image 35Petroglyph depicting two dogs hunting – Tassili n'Ajjer, Algeria (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 36Dog knee (from Dog anatomy)
Image 37Cart dogs, c. 1900; different in appearance but doing the same work (from Dog type)
Image 38An extinct Turnspit dog, 1800 (from Dog type)
Image 39Scent-rolling (from Dog behavior)
Image 40Chihuahua puppy (from Puppy)
Image 41Sled dog types, sketched in 1833 (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 42West Highland White Terrier puppies (from Puppy)
Image 43Skeleton 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)
Image 44A drawing by Konrad Lorenz showing facial expressions of a dog - a communication behavior. X-axis is aggression, y-axis is fear. (from Dog behavior)
Image 45Newborn Welsh Springer Spaniels (from Puppy)
Image 46Golden Retriever puppy (from Puppy)
Image 47President Lyndon B. Johnson with a basket of puppies in 1966 (from Puppy)
Image 48The 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)
Image 49Mammoth bone dwelling, Mezhirich site, Ukraine (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 50A mongrel puppy (from Puppy)
Image 51Diagram of a wolf skull with key features labelled (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 52Australian Cattle Dog puppy (from Puppy)
Image 53Newborn Basenji puppies (from Puppy)
Image 54Puggle puppy (from Puppy)
Image 55Example of a dog making prolonged eye contact with a human (from Domestication of the dog)
Image 56A dog's whiskers (from Dog anatomy)
Image 57Lateral view of a dog skull, jaw opened (from Dog anatomy)
Image 58Basenji puppy (from Puppy)
Image 59The dog's retina shows the optic disc and the eye's vasculature. (from Dog anatomy)

Did you know (auto-generated) - show different entries

... that the parasitic fly Hippobosca longipennis has been found inside dog corpses from ancient Greece and on an ancient Egyptian mummified dog?
... that ancient Roman gynecologists believed that menstrual blood could be used to drive dogs insane?
... that Rock Demers was spurred to make The Dog Who Stopped the War after reading an article on youth suicide?
... that Calvin Harris's 2022 album Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 features nearly 20 collaborators, including Justin Timberlake, Snoop Dogg, and Busta Rhymes?
... that Ethan Loch, a blind pianist, was inspired by Rowlf the Dog?
... that philosopher George Pitcher adopted a stray dog and her puppy that he took everywhere, including on a trip to France aboard the Queen Elizabeth 2?

More did you know... - show different entries

...that Buster, the dog of British Labour politician Roy Hattersley, earned his owner a criminal record after killing a goose in St. James's Park, London?
...that the appearance of a dog in a Hutch ad campaign doubled sales of pugs in India in 2003?
...that Bamse was a St. Bernard dog that became the heroic mascot of the Free Norwegian Forces during the Second World War?

...that Snuppy the Afghan Hound is the world's first cloned dog?
...that 217 Dalmatians were used in the filming of 101 Dalmatians?
...that former Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King owned several Irish Terriers (all named Pat), and had séances to "communicate" with the dogs after their death?
...that the Labrador Retriever is the most popular dog breed in the USA, with the Yorkshire Terrier and German Shepherd Dog being second and third?

More did you know facts

List articles

Subcategories

Category puzzle

Select [►] to view subcategories

Related portals

edit

Things you can do

Here are some tasks awaiting attention:

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, 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, 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 Sheepdog, Villano de las Encartaciones, Villanuco de Las Encartaciones, White Shepherd, White Swiss Shepherd Dog, Xiasi Dog More stubs...
Other : Tag and assess "dog" articles with {{WikiProject Dogs}} banner. See also Dog breeds WikiProject to do list.

edit

Recognized content

This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Dogs}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.