151 



THE DOG. 



The origin of the dog is a difficult question to answer. 

 Some think it is descended from the wolf, and others 

 claim the jackal is its progenitor; but all admit there is 

 no trace to be found of it in a primitive state. Scientists 

 are all agreed however that "the dog is neither a species, 

 nor the descendant of any one species modified by dom- 

 estication, but that dogs of different parts of the world 

 have a correspondingly various ancestry from different 

 wild species of the genus Canis, such as wolves, foxes and 

 jackals." 



"The differences between dogs, and the readiness of 

 most of them to cross with their wild relations, seems to 

 prove the contention that the name Canis-familiaris is a 

 convention rather than a proper zoological designation 

 of the dog as a species." 



It is hard to arrive at a satisfactory classification of 

 domestic dogs ; as those that some naturalists regard as 

 types are held by others to be mongrels. One old classifi- 

 cation divided them into three groups, according to the 

 special qualities they possessed — Celeres, Sagaces and 

 Pugnaces ; but Col. Hamilton Smith groups the domestic 

 dogs into six divisions; (1) Wolf Dogs; such as Siberian, 

 Eskimo. Newfoundland, Great St. Bernard and Sheep 

 Dogs; (2) Watch and Cattle Dogs; like the German Boar 

 Hound, Danish Dog and Dog of the American Indians ; (3) 

 The Greyhounds ; including the Irish Hound, Lurcher and 

 Egyptian Street Dog; (4) Hounds; taking in the Blood 

 Hound, Stag Hound, Fox Hound, Harrier, Beagle, Pointer, 

 Setter, Spaniel, Springer, Cocker, Blenheim Dog and 

 Poodle; (5) The Curs; under which designation are in- 

 cluded the Terrier and all its allies; (6) The Mastiff, 

 Bulldog, Pug-dog, etc. ; but all these varieties soon lose 

 their distinctive characteristics if they are left to inter- 

 breed, and to prevent this tendency to reversion it is 

 necessary that the several strains be kept pure by arti- 

 ficial selection along the lines of desired specialization. 

 The best bred dogs of every form are those furthest 

 removed from an organic or common type of production. 



