May 11, 2013

An Alphabetical List of Dog Breeds and Dog Breed Evolution Chart

At Jet Pet Resort, we adore dogs, and between our team, we’ve seen physically and virtually every type of breed that exists. Since we are the premier dog boarding destination for dogs of all shapes, colours, sizes, and traits, we have decided to put together this unique dog breed resource page in the greater Vancouver and Richmond area.

Below is an informative chart on the evolution of dog breeds. It is remarkable to see the variation of dog breeds that exist! But, before we do so, let’s review their ancestors.
Where do dogs come from?

According to UCLA scholars, it’s believed that dogs first originated from the middle east and have genomes similar to wolves.

“Dogs seem to share more genetic similarity with Middle Eastern gray wolves than with any other wolf population worldwide”- Robert Wayne, UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology.

Plus, it’s thought that the modern gray wolf that graces the planet today is the closest relative a dog has. While there’s still no concrete evidence to support the ancestral claims, there’s a lot of theories surrounding this. One of which is that hunter-gatherers kept wolf puppies as pets and domesticated them over time.

It’s believed that this occurred around the same time as the proliferation in agriculture, around 10

,000 years back.

However, according to Smithsonian Magazine, it’s believed that there are several scientific studies that seem to believe that dogs became domestic a lot earlier.

Brian Hare at Duke University Canine Cognition Center believes that dogs experienced gradual changes to their physical appearance, such as curly tails, floppy ears and patterned coats.

It’s thought that they underwent a phase of self-domestication. The term has been given the name of “survival of the friendliest” instead of “survival of the fittest.” It’s thought that friendliness helps contribute to these changes in their physical appearance.

Unique, right?

Alongside their physical appearance, you might even notice your own dog having similar characteristics to wolves! Your dog might be howling into music or strange sounds all of a sudden. Plus, when you’re out, you might find it digging a lot to find something or chasing after animals like squirrels! It’s all to do with their wolf instinct.

While there are many dogs evolving, to our knowledge, there are over 340 dog breeds. You might be asking, what are the 340 dog breeds? Well, we’ve listed down some of them below for your benefit, all the dog breeds that we are familiar with today.

How many are you familiar with? Can you find yours? Can you imagine your pup a descendant of a wolf?

Chart showing the evolution of dog breeds [Infographic credit: Sciencedirect.com]

Affenpinscher	Afghan Hound	Airedale terrier
Alaskan Malamute	American Cocker Spaniel	American Staffordshire Bull Terrier
Anatolian Shepherd Dog	Australian Cattle Dog	Australian Kelpie
Australian Shepherd Dog	Australian Silky Terrier	Australian Terrier
Basenji	Basset Fauve de Bretagne	Basset Hound
Beagle	Bearded Collie	Bedlington Terrier
Belgian Shepherd Dog Groenendael	Belgian Shepherd Dog Laekenois	Belgian Shepherd Dog Malinois
Belgian Shepherd Dog Tervueren	Bernese Mountain Dog	Bichon Frise
Bloodhound	Border Collie	Border Terrier
Borzoi	Boston Terrier	Bouvier des Flandres
Boxer	Bracco Italiano	Briard
Brittany	Bulldog	Bullmastiff
Bull Terrier	Bull Terrier Miniature	Cairn Terrier
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel	Cesky Terrier	Chesapeake Bay Retriever
Chihuahua (Smooth Coat)	Chinese Crested	Chow Chow (Smooth)
Clumber Spaniel	Collie (Rough)	Collie (Smooth)
Curly-Coated Retriever	Dachshund (Miniature Long Haired)	Dachshund (Miniature Smooth)
Dachshund (Miniature Wire Haired)	Dachshund (Smooth Haired)	Dachshund (Wire Haired)
Dalmatian	Dandie Dinmont Terrier	Deerhound
Dobermann	Dogue de Bordeaux	English Cocker Spaniel
English Setter	English Springer Spaniel	English Toy Terrier (Black and Tan)
Field Spaniel	Finnish Lapphund	Finnish Spitz
Flat-Coated Retriever	Foxhound	Fox Terrier Smooth Coat
Fox Terrier Wire Coat	French Bulldog	German Shepherd Dog
German Short-Haired Pointer	German Spitz Klein	German Wire-Haired Pointer
Golden Retriever	Gordon Setter	Great Dane
Greyhound	Harrier Hound	Hungarian Puli
Hungarian Vizsla	Hungarian Wire-Haired Vizsla	Ibizan Hound
Irish Setter	Irish Terrier	Irish Water Spaniel
Irish Wolfhound	Italian Greyhound	Japanese Akita
Japanese Chin	Japanese Spitz	Keeshond
Kerry Blue Terrier	King Charles Spaniel	Labrador Retriever
Lakeland Terrier	Leonberger	Lhasa Apso
Lowchen	Maltese	Manchester Terrier
Maremma Sheepdog	Mastiff	Newfoundland
Norfolk Terrier	Norwich Terrier	Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever
Old English Sheepdog	Papillon	Parson Jack Russell Terrier
Pharaoh Hound	Pinscher-Miniature	Pointer
Pomeranian	Poodle Miniature	Poodle Standard
Poodle Toy	Portuguese Water Dog	Pug
Pyrenean Mountain Dog	Rhodesian Ridgeback	Rottweiler
Saluki	Samoyed	Schipperke
Schnauzer Giant	Schnauzer Miniature	Schnauzer Standard
Scottish Terrier	Shar Pei	Shetland Sheepdog
Shih Tzu	Siberian Husky	Skye Terrier
Sloughi	Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier	Staffordshire Bull Terrier
St Bernard	Sussex Spaniel	Swedish Vallhund
Tenterfield Terrier	Tibetan Mastiff	Tibetan Spaniel
Tibetan Terrier	Weimaraner	Welsh Corgi (Cardigan)
Welsh Corgi (Pembroke)	Welsh Springer Spaniel	Welsh Terrier
West Highland White Terrier	Whippet	Yorkshire Terrier

Which breeds are best for kids?

If you have a house with children and want to bring a new addition into your home but not sure on which canine to adopt or buy? Well, don’t worry, out of the many that exist today, we have you covered. The following breeds are best for kids:

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel: This is a toy breed that is cute and lively to be around. Similarly, it’s very friendly, and it’s rare that it will not get along with anyone. They don’t have an aggressive nature and have a lot of affection to give.

Labrador Retriever: A large crossbreed that can easily bond to adults, kids and other pets in your home. They have high energy and friendly nature.

Pug: Pugs are a toy breed that loves to sleep and eat. When they’re young, they love to play, and most importantly, they love snuggling up to anyone at any age. This means they’re great to have if you have children in your home.

Bichon Frise: The Bichon Frise is a cute white fluffy dog that is deemed as a fantastic allrounder. It’s gentle and very playful and, generally most of the time, great with kids.

Golden Retriever: Golden Retrievers are large and gorgeous golden dogs. Alongside their stunning characteristics, they’re renowned for being fantastic companions for kids, even toddlers and babies. However, due to their size, we recommend you supervising their playtime with children.

Collie: Collie’s are one of the smartest dog breeds and one of the most playful ones too. They’re not aggressive and have lots of love to give to all of the family.

These are just a few dog breeds that are best for kids; there’s a lot more out there. We recommend doing your research and speaking to a breeder first before getting a dog and bringing one home.

What is the smartest dog?

Dogs are highly intelligent animals and can constantly surprise us with their remarkable thought process and behaviours. Many dog breeds are renowned for different traits, however at the moment, the smartest dog in the world today is the Border Collie. The Border Collie originates from the U.K and primarily was a herding and working dog. They’re athletic, full of energy and are highly obedient.

Final thoughts

Dogs are incredibly diverse; they can have different traits, sizes, shapes, appearances and behaviours. They’re beautiful animals that can bring a lot of joy into all of our lives, and there is often a dog for everyone. Similarly, there are different types of dogs that can adapt to different living environments; they’re amazing! Plus they’re also can be your friend for life. What’s your favourite dog? Let us know in the comments down below.

An Alphabetical List of Dog Breeds and Dog Breed Evolution Chart