Dog

A dog is a domesticated mammal, Canis lupus familiaris, descended from the grey wolf. It is kept worldwide as a companion, working and assistance animal. Every breed, from a Chihuahua to a Great Dane, is the same species. The IUCN Red List does not assess dogs for extinction risk because they are domesticated.

Linnaeus named the form in 1758. Modern genetics treats the dog as a subspecies of the grey wolf (Canis lupus), not a separate wild species awaiting a Red List category. Welfare and humane population management are the relevant concerns, not extinction status.

This page is the species encyclopaedia. Named breeds are under dog. Free-roaming dogs are at street dog. Side-by-side traits with the wolf are at dog vs wolf.

The related appeal explains potential support and the current funding status; this guide does not confirm a WARN grant. It does not rehome pets in Britain and is not a UK kennel.

Yes. Every recognised breed and landrace belongs to one species, Canis lupus familiaris. A 1.5 kg Chihuahua and an 80 kg Mastiff can interbreed. Breed registries describe type, not a biological split. That is why mixed-breed dogs are not a different species either.

The Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) lists well over 300 breeds. National kennel clubs add and drop names. Worldwide there are more than 400 breeds and landraces. All of them remain dogs.

Breed is a rough guide to size, coat, energy and health risks — not a guarantee of temperament. Flat-faced breeds such as the French Bulldog and Pug are prone to breathing and heat-tolerance problems. That is husbandry, not taxonomy.

Browse the breed library on this page, lists at dog breeds, or the grouping map at types of dogs. Street dogs and village dogs are the same species as a pedigree pet.

Dogs were the first domesticated animal. Genetic and fossil evidence points to a split from an extinct grey-wolf population somewhere between about 15,000 and 40,000 years ago in Eurasia, possibly more than once. The honest answer is a range, not a single year.

The leading hypothesis is that less-fearful wolves scavenged around human camps and were favoured for tameness over generations. People then bred dogs for hunting, herding, guarding, hauling and companionship. Most of today's named breeds are only a few centuries old, products of intensive 18th- and 19th-century breeding.

That history explains starch digestion, twice-yearly seasons and the ability to read human gestures — traits that differ from a wild wolf even though the ancestor is shared. See dog vs wolf.

Domestication does not make a street dog a wild species. It remains Canis lupus familiaris, which is why CNVR and rabies vaccination are public-health tools, not conservation translocations.

Most dogs live about 10–13 years. Smaller breeds often reach 14–16 years or more. Giant breeds such as Great Danes typically live only 8–10 years. Body size is the strongest pattern in that spread; it is not a promise for any individual dog.

Veterinary care, weight, dental disease and breed-specific conditions move the range. Brachycephalic (flat-faced) types often have shorter, more medical lives because of airway and heat-tolerance problems. Mixed-breed dogs are not automatically healthier, but they avoid some closed-registry bottlenecks.

Puppies are born blind and deaf, open their eyes at around two weeks, and are usually weaned by six to eight weeks. A baby dog is called a puppy. A group of dogs is most commonly a pack; siblings from one birth are a litter.

Lifespan is a species fact. It is not an IUCN generation length for a threatened wild animal. Dogs are Not Evaluated because they are domesticated.

Canine gestation lasts about 63 days from conception, typically 58–68 days, and is remarkably consistent across breeds. Litter size varies from one to three puppies in toy breeds to ten or more in large breeds. Females usually come into season about twice a year.

That calendar is one reason unplanned breeding scales so fast in free-roaming populations. A village dog that is not neutered can produce several litters across a short life. Shelter intake cannot absorb that arithmetic on its own.

CNVR — catch, neuter, vaccinate, return — is the evidence-based response for street dogs. Programme detail is at street dog and newsroom briefing, not on this species page.

If you searched "how long are dogs pregnant" because you have a pet, speak to a veterinary surgeon. This guide does not replace clinical advice.

Dogs are omnivorous with a carnivore lean. Unlike cats, they digest starches reasonably well — an adaptation to living alongside farming humans. They still need a complete diet with adequate protein, fat and micronutrients; table scraps and bones are not a feeding plan.

Commercial complete diets exist because dogs share our kitchens. Wolves hunt large prey and do not share that starch adaptation in the same way. That split is in the comparison table below and at dog vs wolf.

Street dogs scavenge. Rubbish, market waste and community feeding keep many of the world's free-roaming dogs alive. Feeding without neutering can increase the local population. Pair food with CNVR, not food alone.

Do not post dog food from Britain to a partner clinic unless that partner has asked for a named item in writing. Money at Karachi street-dog appeal buys supplies locally.

Dogs can bite, and in rabies-endemic countries they are the main source of human rabies deaths. They are not wild predators in the wolf sense: they live with people. Honest risk is husbandry, vaccination and public health — not a myth that pet dogs are harmless or that street dogs must be culled.

The World Health Organization attributes the large majority of human rabies deaths to dog bites, and up to 99% of transmission in many settings. Mass dog vaccination and CNVR cut that risk. Culling does not. See street dog and WHO's rabies fact sheet in the sources.

In Britain, responsible ownership, training and veterinary care manage bite risk. Breed-specific scare stories are a poor substitute for behaviour and context. This page will not rank breeds as safe or unsafe.

If you asked "are dogs dangerous" because of a street-dog encounter abroad, the programme answer is vaccination coverage, not a one-off clinic day. help street dogs abroad covers that case.

The domestic dog is a tamed subspecies of the grey wolf. Dogs live with people, digest starch better, and can breed up to twice a year. Wolves generally avoid people, hunt large prey, and breed once a season. Gestation is about 63 days in both. Typical pet lifespan is longer than a wild wolf's.

Scientific names: Canis lupus familiaris versus Canis lupus. The grey wolf is listed Least Concern globally. The dog is Not Evaluated because it is domesticated. Those are different IUCN jobs, not a ranking of which animal "needs saving" more.

A wolf is not a large husky. Keeping a wolf or wolf-dog hybrid as a pet is a specialist, often licensed, welfare problem — not a breed choice on this page.

Full comparison: dog vs wolf. Grey wolf biology: grey wolf.

There are more than 400 recognised dog breeds and landraces worldwide. The FCI formally recognises over 340. National registries such as the Kennel Club (UK) and the AKC list overlapping but not identical sets. Counts move when a club splits or merges a type.

All of those names sit on one species. A breed standard is a written description for showing and breeding, not a biological fence. Village dogs and mixed-breed pets are still dogs.

This site publishes 50 of the most-searched breed guides under dog, with lists at dog breeds and the grouping map at types of dogs. Use those pages for temperament, care sketches and kennel-club types. Use this page for the species.

Buying a puppy to "try a breed" fuels poorly bred and trafficked litters. Rescue mixed-breeds are widely available through registered UK charities. WARN does not place dogs in UK homes.

Choose the dog that matches your space, time and budget — not a marketing story. Pedigree type predicts size, coat and some health risks. It does not guarantee temperament. Mixed-breed and rescue dogs are the same species and are widely available through registered UK rescues.

High-energy herding and working types need daily work. Many companion types need less. Flat-faced breeds are popular and medically expensive. Read a breed page on this hub before you pay a breeder.

WARN does not rehome pets in Britain. If the search was "adopt a dog" meaning a household pet, contact a local registered rescue. If the search was symbolic adoption for street dogs abroad, use adopt a dog symbolically or adopt a dog.

Fuelling unlicensed puppy sales is the option to skip. Match the legal form to the job, then give time, money or both.

Yes. Street dogs, village dogs, community dogs and pedigree pets are all Canis lupus familiaris. Free-roaming dogs are not a wild species and are not IUCN-listed. Roughly 200 million dogs live free-roaming lives; they are a large share of the global dog population, especially across South Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America.

The crisis is welfare and rabies, not extinction. WHO-endorsed mass vaccination and CNVR stabilise populations. Culling does not. WARN's street-dog guide and help street dogs abroad exist so this species page does not pretend to be a CNVR manual.

Karachi CNVR is the flagship appeal at Karachi street-dog appeal. Symbolic dog sponsorship is at sponsor a dog. Those URLs fund partner clinics. This URL explains the animal.

Do not fly street dogs to Britain as a population strategy. Rehoming cannot absorb city-scale free-roaming dogs.

Fund partner-led CNVR and rabies vaccination rather than posting parcels or volunteering untrained. Give at Karachi street-dog appeal or sponsor a dog.

A gift of £25 helps vaccinate street dogs against rabies. £75 is the working figure for one complete catch-neuter-vaccinate-return, reviewed 17 July 2026 on the Karachi appeal. Figures are illustrations, not a named-dog invoice. Entry-tier monthly gifts pool; they do not buy one CNVR each month.

Read street dog, help street dogs abroad and donate to dog rescue before you pay. US donors: WARN is not a 501(c)(3). See donate to dog rescue us.

If you want a UK pet, stop here and call a local rescue. If you want international field programmes, stay on the appeal and rescue URLs, not on this facts page alone.