The Pug is a breed of dog with a wrinkly, short-muzzled face and curled tail. The breed has a fine, glossy coat that comes in a variety of colours, most often fawn or black, and a compact square body with well-developed muscles.
Pugs were brought from China to Europe in the sixteenth century and were popularized in Western Europe by the House of Orangeof the Netherlands, and the House of Stuart. In the United Kingdom in the nineteenth century Queen Victoria developed a passion for Pugs which she passed on to other members of the Royal family.
Pugs are known for being sociable and gentle companion dogs. The breed remains popular into the twenty-first century, with some famous celebrity owners. A Pug was judged Best in Show at the World Dog Show in 2004.
The Great Dane is a large German breed of domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris) known for its enormous body and great height. The German name of the breed is Deutsche Dogge, or German Mastiff. The French name is Dogue Allemand.
The Great Dane is one of the world's tallest dog breeds. The world record holder for tallest dog was a Great Dane called Zeus (died September 2014; aged 5), who measured 112 cm (44 in) from paw to shoulder. Great Danes are known for seeking physical affection from their owners.
Extremely large boarhounds resembling the Great Dane appear in ancient Greece; in frescoes from Tiryns dating back to 14th–13th century BC. These large boarhounds or Molossian hounds continue to appear throughout ancient Greece in subsequent centuries right up to the Hellenistic era.The Molossian hound, Suliot dog and specific imports from Greece were used in the 18th century to increase the stature of the boarhounds in Austria and Germany and the wolfhounds in Ireland.
Bigger dogs are depicted on numerous runestones in Scandinavia, on coinage in Denmark from the 5th century AD and in the collection of Old Norse poems, known in English as Poetic Edda. The University of Copenhagen Zoological Museum holds at least seven skeletons of very large hunting dogs, dating from the 5th century BC going forward through to the year 1000 AD.
The Greyhound is a very old breed of dog, a sighthound which has been historically bred for coursing game and latterlyGreyhound racing. Since the rise in large scale adoption of retired racing Greyhounds, particularly in North America from the end of the 20th century, it has seen a resurgence in popularity as a family pet.
According to Merriam-Webster, a Greyhound is "any of a breed of tall slender graceful smooth-coated dogs characterized by swiftness and keen sight...of several related dogs."
It is a gentle and intelligent breed whose combination of long, powerful legs, deep chest, flexible spine and slim build allows it to reach average race speeds in excess of 64 kilometres per hour (40 mph). The Greyhound can reach a full speed of 70 kilometres per hour (43 mph) within 30 metres or six strides from the boxes, traveling at almost 20 metres per second for the first 250 metres of a race. There are a few mammals that can accelerate faster over a short distance, such as the cheetah, which can reach speeds of 109 kilometres per hour (68 mph) over 3-4 strides from a standing start, and pronghorn with an alleged top speed of 93 kilometres per hour (58 mph)
The Doberman Pinscher (German pronunciation:[ˈdoːbɐman ˈpɪnʃɐ], or Dobermann, or Doberman, is a medium-large breed of domestic dog originally developed around 1890 by Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann, a tax collector from Germany.
The Doberman is a mixture of breeds that include the Great Dane, the Greyhound, the German Shorthaired Pointer and theRottweiler.
Except in the albino color, in which it is extremely difficult to see, each purebred Doberman has markings on the chest, paws/legs, muzzle, above the eyes, and underneath the tail. They are powerful in the hindquarters and can sometimes be top-heavy because of their deep chest (see Appearance below). Nevertheless, the Doberman is traditionally a very athletic breed and many excel in agility and obedience trials. The muzzle is long, and so affords the leverage for an extremely strong bite. The Doberman stands on its toes (not the pads) and is not usually heavy-footed. Ideally, they have an even and graceful gait. Traditionally, the ears are cropped and posted, and the tail is docked. However, in some countries it is illegal to do so.
Doberman Pinschers are well known as intelligent, alert, and tenaciously loyal companions and guard dogs. Personality varies a great deal between each Doberman, but if taken care of and trained properly they tend to be loving and devoted companions. The Doberman is driven, strong, and sometimes stubborn. Owning one requires commitment and care, but if trained well, they can be wonderful family dogs. Unlike some breeds (such as the German Shepherd), Dobermans are eager to please only after their place is established in their pack and that place is not as an alpha. With a consistent approach they can be easy to train and will learn very quickly. As with all dogs, if properly trained, they can be excellent with children. Dobermans adapt quickly, though they take their cue from their leader and value attention.
The exact origins of spitz dogs are not known, though most of the spitz seen today originate from the Arctic region or Siberia.The type was described as Canis pomeranus by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revision of Systema Naturae in 1788 (printed in English in 1792.)
There is no archaeological evidence showing transition stages between the wolf and the often-similar spitz dogs. Skeletal remains up to 5,000 years old suggest it is far more likely that the ancestors of spitz types mated with wolves. In recent genetic testing of dog breeds, many spitz were found to be in the group closest to wolves, presumed to be the oldest type of dogs.
The Pomeranian (often known as a Pom or Pom Pom) is a breed of dog of the Spitz type, named for the Pomerania region in Central Europe (today part of northern Poland and eastern Germany). Classed as a toy dog breed because of its small size, the Pomeranian is descended from the larger Spitz type dogs, specifically the German Spitz. It has been determined by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale to be part of the German Spitz breed; and in many countries, they are known as the Zwergspitz("Dwarf-Spitz").
The breed has been made popular by a number of royal owners since the 18th century. Queen Victoria owned a particularly small Pomeranian and consequently the smaller variety became universally popular. During Queen Victoria's lifetime alone, the size of the breed decreased by 50%. Overall, the Pomeranian is a sturdy, healthy dog. The most common health issue is luxating patella.Tracheal collapse can also be an issue. More rarely, the breed can suffer from a skin condition colloquially known as "black skin disease", or Alopecia X. This is a genetic disease which causes the dog's skin to turn black and lose all or most of its hair. As at 2013, in terms of registration figures, since at least 1998, the breed has ranked among the top twenty most popular breeds in the USA, and the current fashion for small dogs has increased their popularity worldwide.
The Rottweiler is a medium/large size breed of domestic dog. The dogs were known as "Rottweil butchers' dogs" (German: Rottweiler Metzgerhund) because they were used to herd livestock and pull carts laden with butchered meat and other products to market.
The Rottweiler was employed in its traditional roles until the mid-19th century when railways replaced droving for herding livestock to market. While still used in herding, Rottweilers are now used as search and rescue dogs, as guide dogs for the blind, as guard dogs or police dogs, and in other roles.
The German Shepherd is a breed of medium to large-sized working dog which was originated in Germany. The breed's officially recognized name is German Shepherd Dog in the English language, sometimes abbreviated as GSD and was also formerly known as the Alsatian in Britain. The German Shepherd is a relatively new breed of dog, with their origin dating to 1899. As part of the Herding Group, German Shepherds are working dogs developed originally for herding sheep. Since that time, however, because of their strength, intelligence, trainability and obedience, German Shepherds around the world are often the preferred breed for many types of work, including disability assistance, search-and-rescue, police and military roles, and even acting. The German Shepherd is the second-most popular breed of dog in the United States and fourth-most popular in the United Kingdom.
The Labrador Retriever, also known as simply Labrador or Lab, is one of several kinds of retrievers, a type of gun dog. Labradors are expert in run, love to play, and the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Denmark, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States (since 1994).
A favourite disability assistance breed in many countries, Labradors are time to time trained to aid people who are blind, who have autism, to act as a therapy dog and perform screening and detection work for law enforcement and other official agencies. They get prized as sporting and hunting dogs. A few kennels breeding their ancestors, the St. John's water dog, were in England; at the same time a combination of sheep protection policy (Newfoundland) and rabies quarantine (England) led to their gradual demise in Canada, their country of origin.
In the 1830s, the 10th Earl of Home and his nephews the 5th Duke of Buccleuch and Lord John Scott,imported progenitors of the breed from Newfoundland to Europe for use as gundogs. Another early advocate of these Newfoundland dogs, or Labrador Retrievers as they later became known, was the 2nd Earl of Malmesbury who bred them for their acknowledged expertise in waterfowling.
During the 1880s, the 3rd Earl of Malmesbury, the 6th Duke of Buccleuch and the 12th Earl of Home collaborated to develop and establish the modern Labrador breed. The dogs Buccleuch Avon and Buccleuch Ned, given by Malmesbury to Buccleuch, were mated with bitches carrying blood from those originally imported by the 5th Duke and the 10th Earl of Home. The offspring are considered to be the ancestors of modern Labradors.
The Golden Retriever is a large-sized breed of dog. Golden Retriever were named 'retriever' because of their ability to retrieve shot game undamaged. Golden Retrievers love water, and are easy to train to basic or advanced obedience standards. They are a long-coated breed, with a dense inner coat that gives them with adequate warmth in the outdoors, and an outer coat that lies flat against their bodies and repels water. Golden Retrievers are well suited to residency in suburban or country environments. Although they need substantial outdoor exercise, they should be housed in a fenced area because of their instinctual tendency. They shed copiously, particularly at the change of seasons, and require fairly regular grooming.
The breed is a good participant in dog shows for trained show quality breed. The Golden Retriever is popular as a disability assistance dog such as being a guide dog for the blind and a hearing dog for the deaf. In addition, they are trained to be a hunting dog, a detection dog, and a search and rescue participant. The breed's friendly, gentle temperament means it is unsuited to being a professional guard dog, but its temperament has also made it the third-most popular family dog breed (by registration) in the United States,the fifth-most popular in Australia, and the eighth-most popular in the United Kingdom. Golden Retrievers are rarely choosy eaters, but require ample exercise (of two or more hours a day).The breed is found as highly trainable.
