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Dog. The dog ( Canis familiaris [4] [5] or Canis lupus familiaris [5]) is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from extinct gray wolves, [6] [7] and the gray wolf is the dog's closest living relative. [8] The dog was the first species to be domesticated [9] [8] by humans.
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Today, some dogs are used as pets, and others are used to...
- Dog (Disambiguation)
Animals. Species in the family Canidae called "dogs" as a...
- Dog Breed
Montage showing the morphological variation of the dog. A...
- Doggy (Disambiguation)
People and characters. Doggie (artist) (born 1966), Danish...
- Dogs in Warfare
A U.S. Air Force Belgian Malinois, on a M2A3 Bradley...
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Dogs portal; This article is within the scope of WikiProject...
- Dog Meat
Dog meat is the flesh and other edible parts derived from...
- Lists of Dogs
List of individual dogs. List of Best in Show winners of...
- Domestication of The Dog
The dog diverged from a now-extinct population of wolves...
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Types of diets. Nutrients and supplements. Chart. Dangers. In popular culture. See also. References. External links. Dog food. Dry dog food in a bowl. Dog food is specifically formulated and intended for consumption by dogs and other related canines. Dogs are considered to be omnivores with a carnivorous bias.
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A dog is a domestic mammal of the family Canidae and the order Carnivora. Its scientific name is Canis lupus familiaris. Dogs are a subspecies of the gray wolf, and they are also related to foxes and jackals. Dogs are one of the two most ubiquitous and most popular domestic animals in the world. (Cats are the other.)
Why do dogs bark?
Barking is a way for dogs to communicate with other dogs and with humans. Fierce barking or growling often signals that dogs are being territorial, feel threatened, or simply want to be left alone. However, dogs also bark when they are bored and want attention from other dogs or from humans.
Why do dogs sniff other dogs’ rear ends?
A dog may sniff other dogs’ rear ends to gather chemical information that helps the sniffer identify them as individuals. Gland-lined sacs, housed internally on either side of a dog’s anus, produce a scent that contributes to each dog’s unique odour profile. That profile may also indicate genetic makeup, reproductive status, diet, and emotional state. Learn more.
How are dog years calculated?
Paleontologists and archaeologists have determined that about 60 million years ago a small mammal, rather like a weasel, lived in the environs of what are now parts of Asia. It is called Miacis, the genus that became the ancestor of the animals known today as canids: dogs, jackals, wolves, and foxes. Miacis did not leave direct descendants, but doglike canids evolved from it. By about 30 to 40 million years ago Miacis had evolved into the first true dog—namely, Cynodictis. This was a medium-size animal, longer than it was tall, with a long tail and a fairly brushy coat. Over the millennia Cynodictis gave rise to two branches, one in Africa and the other in Eurasia. The Eurasian branch was called Tomarctus and is the progenitor of wolves, dogs, and foxes.
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Genetic evidence suggests that dogs descended directly from wolves (Canis) and that the now-extinct wolf lineages that produced dogs branched off from the line that produced modern living wolves sometime between 27,000 and 40,000 years ago. The timing and location of dog domestication is a matter of debate. There is strong genetic evidence, however, that the first domestication events occurred somewhere in northern Eurasia between 14,000 and 29,000 years ago. In this region wolves likely facilitated their own domestication by trailing nomadic people in northern Eurasia and consuming the remains of game animals that hunters left behind.
Most studies agree that domestication was not a single discrete event. It was a process that unfolded over thousands of years—likely involving dog populations that appeared in different parts of Eurasia at different times, with dogs and wild wolves continuing to interbreed with one another and with early dog populations being replaced by later ones. Some genetic studies have documented evidence of early domestication events in specific regions. One study contends that wolves were domesticated 16,300 years ago to serve as livestock in China, whereas another reports that early dogs dating from about 12,000 to 14,000 years ago came from a small strain of gray wolf that inhabited India. Genetic evidence also reveals that dogs did not accompany the first humans to the New World more than 15,000 years ago, suggesting instead that dogs came to the Americas only some 10,000 years ago. One study even suggested that some dogs have descended not from the wolf but rather from the jackal. These dogs, found in Africa, might have given rise to some of the present native African breeds.
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Sep 18, 2022 · Therapy dogs are used to support and calm people with autism, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and other conditions. There are even squads of good-natured dogs roaming airports ...
Jun 2, 2016 · The Origin of Dogs: When, Where, and How Many Times Were They Domesticated? - The Atlantic. Katie Salvi. Science. A New Origin Story for Dogs. The first domesticated animals may have been...
