Service dog breeds are certain breeds of dog that excel in assisting their human owners. BUT what IS a service dog? According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a service dog is a dog that has been trained especially and specifically to perform certain tasks for a disabled person, who would otherwise have difficulty […]

The Non Sporting Dog Breeds are hard to categorize or describe. Unlike the other groupings, these dogs don’t seem to fit the normal criteria. Basically, these dog breeds have not been bred for sporting purposes – retrievers for retrieving shot game birds (ie. Labradors), hunters, maybe for cornering lions (ie. Rhodesian Ridgebacks), or as shepherds (ie. White

Livestock Guardian Dogs – From ancient times, shepherds needed help guarding their flocks from wolves, bears, big cats and other roaming dogs. Enter the livestock guardian dog, who can look like a fluffy overgrown puppy with curly tails and thick coats that grow to medium length or longer. Don’t let appearances fool you, though. These dogs

Hybrid dogs, sometimes also known as “designer dogs”, are the result of controlled cross-breeding between 2 dogs that are purebred. The word ‘hybrid’ generally means ‘something of mixed origin or composition’. Hybrid Dogs Hybrid dogs are technically not a ‘dog breed’ but a mixed-breed dog. However unlike the average mixed breed dog (or mutt with uncertain ancestry), a

The Hound Dog Breeds Group is a diverse cluster of dogs that range in size from the small Pocket Beagle who stands less than 13 inches and weighs about 15 pounds, to the Irish Wolfhound, who stands an astonishing 33 to 35 inches high and weighs upwards of 140 pounds. Whether you think of hound dog breeds as

The Herding Dog Group includes dogs that were first used when ancient people began keeping livestock. This is one of the oldest dog groups. In years past, farmers did not depend on fences to keep their herds together, and they didn’t have trucks to transport them to market.  Instead, they relied on their dogs. Want

Ever wonder where all these dog breed groups come from? People like to classify things to put order into their lives, and this skill is learned from a very young age.  Dog Breeds are no exception. Kennel Clubs around the world group dogs by their common characteristics.  Traditionally, these groups were based on the dog’s

There are SIX Coonhound dog breeds officially recognized by the American Kennel Club. They all originated around the 1750’s, and were bred from English Foxhounds and French hounds that were brought to America. The one exception is the Plott Hound, whose ancestors were German Hannover Hounds brought to America by Johannes Plott. Originally used to