Guide to Choosing
a Dog

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Dog Type Directory.

Pedigree Dog Breeds in their Kennel Club defined Group Types
The number of dog breeds worldwide is difficult to establish but it is estimated that there are in excess of 500 different recognisable dog breeds.This will include a great number of hybrid dog breeds.

The Kennel Club is the primary registry body for purebred dog pedigrees in the UK
In America it is The American Kennel Club (or AKC)

In Canada it is The Canadian Kennel Club (or CKC)

There are 209 dog breeds currently eligible for registration with the Kennel Club and some 300,000 pedigree dogs are registered each year.

The American Kennel Club officially recognises 150 different breeds of dogs
According to the AKC a pedigree dog means, "the sire and dam of a dog are members of a recognised breed and that the ancestry of a dog consists of the same breed over many generations"

The Canadian Kennel Club currently recognises 174 dog breeds.

Pedigree Dogs (particularly those recognised by the various Kennel Clubs) are a result of mans interference in the dogs natural breeding habits which has taken place over thousands of years. Man involvement started when he found a requirement to breed a certain type of dog for a specific use for him..
This to some extent still exists today, it can be seen from the Dog Groups that many dog breeds have very specific uses and these are often honed, through breeding, to produce even better dogs skills; Gundogs, Hounds, Working and Pastoral groups are still bred for their "original purpose". It is only in relatively recent times that dogs have been bred with the aim of winning prizes in the show ring for their perfect looks and physical attributes, thus enhacing the dogs value for further breeding.
What you see is what you get with Pedigree Dogs, puppies from Pedigree Dogs will look the same, have the same temperament and behaviourial characteristics as the parents

Hybrid, Crossbreed Dogs
The word 'Hybrid', when referring to genetics means, the offspring of genetically dissimilar parents or stock, especially the offspring produced by breeding plants or animals of different varieties, species, or races. In general the word means, 'something of mixed origin or composition
Dogs falling into this category are a cross between two pedigree dogs types, they are also referred to as .Cross Breed Dogs and the recently introduced concept of Designer Dogs

Mongrel Dogs
Where does the poor old mongrel dog figure in all this.
A true Mongrel Dog is in theory a mixture of all breeds, in the UK the decline in the number ofstray dogs has made it more difficult to find a true mongrel (if that was ever possible)
The easy definition of a Mongrel Dog is that it is "The result of a Crossbreed bitch mating with a Crossbreed dog".but that denies its history.
Nowadays a mongrel might be described as a dog whose ancestry is generally unknown and has characteristics of two or more types of dog breeds,

Some other areas of interest for anyone contemplating a Pedigree dog as a pet

Wikipedia defines dog breeds as: -
Dog breeds are groups of closely related and visibly similar domestic dogs, which are all of the subspecies Canis lupus familiaris, having characteristic traits that are selected and maintained by humans, bred from a known foundation stock.

The term dog breed may also be used to refer to natural breeds or landraces, which arose through time in response to a particular environment which included humans, with little or no selective breeding by humans. Such breeds are undocumented, and are identified by their appearance and often by a style of working. Ancient dog breeds are some of the modern (documented) descendants of such natural breeds.

Dog breeds are not scientifically defined biological classifications, but rather are dog groupings defined by clubs of hobbyists called breed clubs.

A dog breed is represented by a sufficient number of individuals to stably transfer its specific characteristics over generations. Dogs of the same breed have similar characteristics of appearance and behavior, primarily because they come from a select set of ancestors who had the same characteristics. Dogs of a specific breed will breed true, producing young closely similar to the parents. An individual dog is identified as a member of a breed through proof of ancestry, using genetic analysis or written records of ancestry. Without such proof, identification of a specific breed is not reliable. Such records, called stud books, may be maintained by individuals, clubs, or other organisations.

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