Dog Breeds -- Pure Breed, Cross Breed & Mongrels

Developed over the millions of years the dogs are the man's best friend. Historians and scientists have provided us with enough scopes to look back to the evolution and development of the animal that we love as dog and think to be our best friend. The man-dog relationship was depicted in a manuscript of 18th century and by an ancient art made on a Greek vase during a period, spanning back to about 425 BC.

During this long evolutionary period dogs have changed a lot. From the dogs with no specific origin we have now a wide assortment of pedigree dogs -- Pure breed dogs such as Labrador Retrievers, Pit Bull Terriers, Afghan Hounds, Schnauzers, Gordon Setters, Grey Hounds etc.

• Pedigree Dogs are those dogs that have been bred as the helping hands of mankind and bred actually on the basis of the pre-written standard set forth by any recognized association or a Kennel Club. The wide range of pure bred dogs are divided into seven distinctive groups -- Sporting Breed, Non-Sporting Breed, Terriers, Working Breed, Utility Breed, Hounds and Herding Breed. Until the fag end of 1998 there were only 6 groups. With the beginning of 1999 there was one more group and that was the Pastoral Group.

A pure bred Boston Terrier

• Mixed breed and mongrels are the dogs that do not have a specific origin. Better to define it as the specimen from mixed parentage. Although it's for true that many pure breeds that we find today are the results of planned crossing of two or more different breeds. For instance, Bull Terrier. This particular breed came about by crossing of old fighting dogs carrying Bulldog gene with Terriers (notably the English White Terriers, which are extinct now).

However the mongrels (also termed as a tyke, crossbreed, cur, a bitsa, mutt,or random-bred dog) are as appealing as the dogs of pure breed and may have as much characters as a royal German Shepherd Dog. I have often seen the hybrid vigor of the mongrels often surpasses the beauty and glamor of the purebred or pedigree dogs. If you compare one purebred to one mixed breed, either may come out ahead and you may wonder as to how a mongrel can be a mind blowing pet. I'll come up with a snap of a beautiful specimen -- LIZA (GSD+Labrador) sometimes later. Stay tuned!