The dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of wolves. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. Dogs and the modern gray wolf share a common ancestor. Dogs were the first species to be domesticated over 14,000 years ago, before the development of agriculture, though genetic studies suggest the domestication process may have begun over 25,000 years ago. 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 chemical 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 Canadian Eskimo Dog or Canadian Inuit Dog is a breed of working dog from the Arctic. Other names include qimmiq or qimmit (Inuit language word for "dog"). The Greenland Dog is considered the same breed as the Canadian Eskimo Dog since they have not yet diverged enough genetically to be considered separate breeds, despite their geographic isolation.
The breed is threatened with extinction, with a 2008 estimate of only 300 purebred dogs. Although once used as the preferred method of transportation by Inuit in the Canadian Arctic, by the 1960s traditional working dog teams became increasingly rare in the North. Contributing factors to the breed's decline include the increasing popularity of snowmobiles for transportation and the spread of infectious canine diseases. Controversy surrounds the intentional killings of a debated number of Inuit sled dogs between 1950 and 1970 by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as well as recent efforts to increase the breed's population. (Full article...)
The American Water Spaniel is a gundogbreed of dog developed in the market hunting days of America's history. Hunters needed a dog that could function on land as well as in the marsh and that could easily fit into a canoe or skiff without taking up much room. An American original, this flushing spaniel also doubles as a competent retriever.
Didier Moggia was the first musher to start the 2008 Yukon Quest in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The Yukon Quest, formally the Yukon Quest 1,000-mile International Sled Dog Race, is a sled dog race scheduled every February since 1984 between Fairbanks, Alaska, and Whitehorse, Yukon, switching directions each year. Because of the harsh winter conditions, difficult trail, and the limited support that competitors are allowed, it is considered "the most difficult sled dog race in the world", or even "the toughest race in the world"—"even tougher, more selective and less attention-seeking than the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race." The originator envisioned it as "a race so rugged that only purists would participate."
In the competition, first run in 1984, a dog team leader (called a musher) and a team of 6 to 14dogs race for 10 to 20days. The course follows the route of the historic 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, mail delivery, and transportation routes between Fairbanks, Dawson City, and Whitehorse. Mushers pack up to 250 pounds (113kg) of equipment and provisions for themselves and their dogs to survive between checkpoints. Each musher must rely on a single sled for the entire run, versus three in the Iditarod. (Full article...)
The following are images from various dog-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1The 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 20A 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 49Schematic 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 50"Five different types of dogs", c. 1547. (from Dog breed)
... that Ripken wore a GoPro on his back while retrieving used bats and tees at major sporting events?
... that Šediváčkův long is considered one of Europe's most challenging dog sled races, with teams climbing more than 7,500 metres (24,600 feet) during the event?
... that eccentric YorkshirewomanCamberley Kate is estimated to have cared for more than 600 dogs in her lifetime?
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