Intro to Dogs Flashcards
Domestication
- 1st animal to be domesticated
- Stone Age
- Newer research - Middle East
- May have started 30,000 years ago
- North America - bones from 11,000 years ago
Predator
- Wolf-like
- Not as strict carnivore as cats
Development of Dog Breeds
- Most breeds developed in last 150-200 years
- Knowledge of genetics - desire to have specific breeds
- Changes in human culture
Male (intact), Female, Young
Dog (Stud), Bitch, Pups
Parturition term
Whelping
Altering a female term
Spaying
Cropping and Docking
Doberman pinscher (cut and dock bc of tradition)
Cropping - cutting of the ears
* Cut part of ear off and tape upward so they develop in erect position
Docking - cutting of the tail
* Do this within a few days of birth
Withers location
Highest part of back (by neck)
Sight
- Dichromatic (like red-green color blindness in humans)
- Better in low-light
- Better motion detection
- Breed variation
- Poorer acuity
- Maybe equivalent to 20:50 or 20:100
Hearing
- Can hear higher-pitched sounds
- Maybe hear lower volume sounds
- Mobile ears - locate source of sounds
Smell
- 200+ million receptors
- Compare to about 5 million for humans
- Larger area of sensing tissue
- Brain devoted to smell is larger (40x)
- Dogs can sense odors at concentrations 100 million times lower than humans
Taste
- Humans have 9000 taste buds
- Dogs 1706
- Cats 473
- Closely related to sense of smell
Considerations with dog ownership
Do you have time?
* Exercise, Grooming, Training
Can you afford a dog?
* Startup costs, Normal maintenance costs, Health care costs
* Other costs: Medical, license, good, toys/treats
* Difficult to find a free dog to get
Does housing allow it?
Travel?
Other Pets?
Plans for the next 10-15 years?
Allergies?
Basic Care
Housing
license/identification
spay/neuter
Eventual disposal
Grooming
* Brush your dog to control shedding
* Check for fleas and ticks
* Bathe at least a few times per year
* Clip nails
Choosing a Type of Dog
Mostly personal preference:
* What “look” you like
* What size
* What you want dog to do
* Is breed trainable for what you want to do?
* Does it fit your personality?: Loyalty, friendliness, mellowness, etc
* Apartment allow it?
Purebred: Overall Predictability
- Set by breeding: inbreeding/linebreeding, homozygosity
- Appearance when mature
- Adult size
- Behavior/temperament - selection for behaviors
Purebred vs. Mixed Breed
- Purebreds have predictability
- What do you want to do with the dog?
- Health / temperament: Both sides may be able to claim good health/temperament
Personal opinion considerations:
* Pride of having a pure-bred; personal preference
* Moral reasons - saving a dog from a shelter, etc
AKC Dog Groupings: Sporting
- Most of these selected to hunt birds
- Naturally active and alert
- Group includes pointers, retrievers, setters, spaniels
- Remarkable instincts in water and woods
- Many participate in hunting/field activities
- Require regular, invigorating exercise
- Most of these breeds have a soft mouth - when they retrieve birds they don’t chew it up
- Pointing: when they sense a bird in front of them, they go into a position that “points” at the bird - freeze and lock on bird
AKC Dog Groupings: Hounds
- Very diverse group, used for hunting
- Some use scenting to find prey, others use sight or stamina
- Need exercise
- Dachshund, Greyhound
AKC: Working
- Bred to perform jobs, including guarding property, pulling sleds, water rescue, guarding livestock
- Intelligent, capable, fast learners
- Considerable dimensions and strength
AKC: Terrier
Energetic, and feisty character
Bred to hunt and kill vermin
Require owners with determination
* Training is challenging
* Not a soft mouth
AKC: Toy
- Bred to be pets, companions
- Have longer life-spans
- Great for apartments or small spaces
- Easier to control, cost less, eat less food
AKC: Non-sporting
Vary in size and disposition
Most developed for a specific purpose
AKC: Herding
- Very intelligent and respond well to training
- Control movement of other animals
- Need a lot of exercise, something to herd - outlet for herding
- German Shepherd, Australian Cattle Dog, Pembroke Welsh Corgi
AKC: “Designer Dogs”
- Planned crossbreeding (hybrids)
- Labradoodles, goldendoodles, etc
- Bullnese
- Gointer
- Papichon
Most Popular Breeds (2021)
- Labrador Retriever
- French bulldog
