How to identify a dog breed: different breeding grounds

For all the time that dogs serve people, many of their breeds have been bred. It is difficult to say how many of them there are at the present time. According to some reports - from 350 to 400. And these lists are changing: there are new ones, the disappeared are deleted. The question arises: "And how to determine the breed of a dog, if there are so many of them, what do you need to know for this?"

Directory of breeds of dogs

If you have wondered about how to determine the breed of a dog, then, in principle, you can use a specially published guide. In it, every animal is described in sufficient detail, there are also photographs.

However, in such sources it is not always possible to find complete information. And the dog found can look so that it does not fit any description. In these cases it is generally difficult to judge the breed. Do not forget about the existence of Métis, then the task is generally more complicated.

To facilitate identification, interactive programs are now created, and, in addition, you can consult with dog handlers or veterinarians.

When it becomes necessary to define the breed

There may be several different situations when there is a need to define the breed. In each separate case it is necessary to use various means. Let's look at the most common situations.

Suppose that you have found an adult dog or a puppy on the street. You can judge his breed only in appearance. As they say, ears, paws, tail - that's the "passport" of the animal. Only on them it is possible to define the breed.

The dog is not to blame, if not very good hosts kicked her out. An animal has the right to find a new home. In this case, you can consult dog handlers and breeders about the breed. Still, they have some experience, and perhaps they will be able to tell how much the animal is purebred.

But it may be that the dog was simply lost, which means that it would not hurt to post ads with photos. And before taking a picture of an animal, it will need to be put in order, as home dogs on the street quickly lose their gloss.

Is it possible to determine the breed when buying a puppy

Another case where it is important to understand how to determine the breed of a dog is buying a puppy from your hands. For example, you found a baby on the street or saw a pretty "fuzzy" on the market and you wanted to take it yourself. If the puppy is a month, then it's extremely difficult to judge his breed. Very often, such babies look more like domestic dogs or, conversely, they can look pedigree, but then an ordinary mongrel will grow up. In these cases, the probability of acquiring a mestizo is high, and the breed of a puppy can be determined only by an experienced cynologist.

Sometimes it becomes necessary to find relatives of a pretty, but not very thoroughbred dog. Perhaps your pet is a mixture of several breeds, then finding its relatives will be more difficult. However, if you find them, it will be easier for you to understand the characteristics of care. In this case, forums can help. They can throw a call for help in determining the breed, perhaps the breeders and help you.

Determine the breed in appearance

The most simple and logical way to determine the breed of a dog is to examine its appearance and navigate it. What to look for? For starters, as already mentioned, should describe in detail the ears, paws, tail, height and weight of your animal, after which the standards look for similar signs.

To determine the breed of a dog by description, it is necessary to perform the following steps:

1. It is necessary to determine the characteristics of the animal. This means that it is necessary to describe the main characteristics by which different breeds are distinguished. Start with the size of the dog. The height at the withers and the weight are measured. You can use roulette to measure growth. The distance between the floor and the withers is measured.
2. The format of the case matters. In fact, this is the ratio of the height of the animal to the length of its torso. Then study the shape of the skull. It can be square, pointed, flattened. Ears are a very important characteristic. They can be: standing, bent, hanging. No less important is the dog's paw and the characteristics of the tail (sticks out or is down, docked, long, short, curved).
3. An important feature is the dog's hair. To navigate, you need to run into her hand and feel the sensations, silky it, hard or soft, not forgetting to note also, long hair or short, curly or straight.
4. The color of dogs is an important nuance in determining the breed. There is spotting or uniformity of color.
5. Character - this is one of the serious features of the breed. It was formed purposefully for each species. For example, hunting breeds are always energetic and vigorous, and decorative species are more lazy and phlegmatic. Of course, it is difficult to determine the species by such a characteristic, but nevertheless it should not be neglected.

All of the above characteristics only in the general mass give an idea of the breed. But no sign by itself will work.

Directory search

Once a complete description is compiled, you can proceed to find a good reference. In printed sources, the most complete description of any breed of dog is usually presented. The list of varieties is large enough. You can search for similar directories on special services. On the pictures placed there, all characteristics should be clearly visible.

Once you have found a photo of an animal that looks something like your pet, study it more closely, especially the description of the standard for this species. As we have already mentioned, the search for non-thoroughbredness greatly complicates, because many different breeds can be mated in mestizo.

If you managed to determine the standard, then you should recheck the result from other information sources.

I would like to note that the standard is a set of the most common signs. It must be understood that small deviations from the rules are always possible. Therefore, on the streets, there are often dogs that did not correspond to the declared description, and therefore they were considered mongrels. To find a relative of the pet, you need to be patient.

How to identify the breed puppy

Sometimes it is difficult to determine the breed of an adult dog, and it is even more difficult to understand with a puppy. If the puppy does not have a chip or documents, then it can not be considered thoroughbred. In this case there is no guarantee that the dog is purebred and there were no other breeds in the genus.

To understand, it is necessary to take the puppy to the veterinarian, it is possible, he will help to solve this problem, and also will make a vaccination. But, most likely, the question should be postponed till that moment when the kid grows up. Then it will be easier to find out his breed, because the standards contain a description of the adults, not the cubs. And puppies often do not look much like their parents.

It should be noted that there is no unambiguously reliable method for determining the breed of a puppy. You can only guess, based on the dog's paw, the shape of the skull, the trunk, the ears and tail. But all this is very relative. And we can not talk about wool at all, since the young ones get it in normal form only after a year.

You can try again to act through the forums, posting a photo of the puppy, maybe someone will recognize the breed. Although whatever breed your baby is, it always needs care and love. Lack of thoroughbredness will not make the dog less good and smart.

General Tips

In any case, to determine the breed, one should rely only on the main features. As already mentioned, standards of breed of dogs will help in this. Unfortunately, the list of all breeds within the framework of the article can not be given, since it is very large.

By definition, in the breed, by the way, psychological tests will also help. With their help you can find out the direction of natural instincts. You can check the dog for the presence of hunting inclinations, security. If active activity is not particularly interested in the dog, then it can be argued that this is purely a decorative breed.

In general, a lot of information can be obtained from a veterinarian or a club of dog breeders. In those cases when it is not possible to establish belonging to a species, it is concluded that the dog belongs to the second generation of domestic servants. In the blood of such animals many breeds are mixed, it is simply impossible to single out them.

The surest way to determine the breed

Now there is a new opportunity to determine the breed of a dog - this is a DNA test. However, such a service, although it is relatively inexpensive, is not everywhere. In addition, so far the database contains only some data.

But in the future such an analysis will greatly simplify the process of determining the variety of the animal.

Instead of an afterword

Of course, knowing what kind of dog the species belongs to will help the owner determine the animal's inclinations to diseases and the characteristics of care. But, even if you find that the dog is a mongrel, do not be discouraged, because from this your friend will not get worse or better. After all, a pet is not just a breed, but a true friend who loves you sincerely and unselfishly.