It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into dog. (Discuss)

This Chihuahua mix and Great Dane show the wide range of dog breed sizes.

A dog breed is a group of dogs that have very similar or nearly identical characteristics of appearance or behavior or, usually, both, primarily because they come from a select set of ancestors who had the same characteristics. Dogs have been selectively bred for specific characteristics for thousands of years. Initially the selections would have centered on domestication and useful behavior such as hunting ability. Later, dogs were also selected for attractive and distinctive forms, resulting in a vast variety of types. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Trinomial name Canis lupus familiaris The dog (Canis lupus familiaris) is a domestic subspecies of the wolf, a mammal of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. ... Image File history File links IMG013biglittledogFX_wb. ... Image File history File links IMG013biglittledogFX_wb. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A healthy mixed-breed dog shows hybrid vigor. ... The Great Dane is a breed of dog known for its giant size and gentle personality. ... Trinomial name Canis lupus familiaris The dog (Canis lupus familiaris) is a domestic subspecies of the wolf, a mammal of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. ... Selective breeding in domesticated animals is the process of developing a cultivated breed over time. ... Dogs and sheep were among the first animals to be domesticated. ... “Hunter” redirects here. ...

Many traditional dog breeds recognized by the main breed registries are said to be "purebred". Only individuals whose parentage consists only of other purebred examples of the breed are regarded as part of that breed. This concept has caused controversy both because of the difficulty of regulation and because of the possible genetic consequences of a limited population (inbreeding). Recent work has been done to genetically classify the various breeds, with some surprising results regarding the estimated age and interrelations of the breeds. A breed registry, also known as a stud book or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. ... Purebreds, also called purebreeds or pedigreed, are cultivated varieties or cultivars of a species, achieved through the process of selective breeding. ... It has been suggested that inbreeding depression be merged into this article or section. ...

Generally, before a type of dog is recognized as a true breed, it must be shown that mating a pair of that type always produces dogs that have the same characteristics as the parents, usually both in appearance and in behavior. This is known as breeding true. There are many issues concerning what is considered breeding true. For example, Flat-Coated Retrievers must always be black or dark brown; however, yellow coats occur occasionally in some litters. Kennel clubs do not recognize the yellow dogs as legitimate members of the breed; some breeders will kill the puppies rather than risk having the dog grow up, breed, and produce more of the undesired yellow color, perpetuating the undesirable gene; more often, today, such dogs are neutered and placed in homes as pets. As another example, a breeding pair of Belgian Shepherds of the Groenendael variety can produce puppies of the Tervuren (brown) variety; the AKC considers the varieties to be different breeds and, therefore, the brown puppies are invalid and undesirable dogs, whereas the CKC considers them simply to be different color varieties of the same breed. The Flat-Coated Retriever is a gundog breed from Britain. ... Spaying and neutering are the respective processes of female and male animal sterilization, in order to keep them from producing offspring. ... It has been suggested that Residential pets be merged into this article or section. ... Belgian Shepherd Dog (also know as the Belgian Sheepdog or Chien de Berger Belge) can refer to any of four breeds of dog: the Groenendael, the Laekenois, the Tervueren, or the Malinois. ... Country of origin Belgium Classification Breed standards (external links) FCI, AKC, ANKC, CKC, KC(UK), NZKC, UKC The Belgian Shepherd Dog (Groenendael) is the most popular variety of the Belgian Shepherd Dog breeds. ... The Belgian Shepherd Dog Tervuren, less often spelled Tervueren, (IPA pronunciation: ), is a breed of dog, sometimes classified as a variety of the Belgian Shepherd Dog rather than as a separate breed. ... © The American Kennel Club (or AKC) is the largest registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. ... C.K.C. is a three letter acronym that may stand for: Kennel Clubs Canadian Kennel Club Continental Kennel Club Misc Canoe Kayak Canada This page concerning a three-letter acronym or abbreviation is a disambiguation page—a list of articles associated with the same title. ...

See selective breeding for a detailed discussion on open versus closed stud books and some of the issues concerning purebreds. Selective breeding in domesticated animals is the process of developing a cultivated breed over time. ... A closed stud book is a stud book or breed registry that will no longer accept any outside blood for improvement of a particular breed of animal, and the registed animals are the foundation for the breed, with all subsequent offspring tracing back to the foundation stock. ...

See also

• List of dog breeds
• Breed Clubs
• Landrace
• Race

Dogs have been selectively bred for thousands of years, sometimes by inbreeding dogs from the same ancestral lines, sometimes by mixing dogs from very different lines. ... There are many breed clubs in the UK. Most of the 209 breeds have at least one and some more popular breeds have more than 20 nationally. ... Landrace refers to a race of animals or plants ideally suited for the land (environment) in which they live and, in some cases, work; they often develop naturally with minimal assistance or guidance from humans (or from humans using traditional rather than modern breeding methods), hence are usually older, less... For other uses, see Race (disambiguation). ...

External links

• AKC Dog Registration Statistics for 2003 and 2004
• Dogs: Fun Facts and Trivia From AOL Research and Learn Photo Galleries
• Dog Breeds Retrieved from the web. Complete list and information detailing over four hundred breeds of dogs.
• The Online Dog Encyclopedia (worldwide)
• Dog Breed Listing and Dog Breed Photos