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The Natural History of Dogs; Canidae or Genus Canis of Authors ; Including Also the Genera Hyaena and Proteles
The Natural History of Dogs Canidae or Genus Canis of Authors Including Also the Genera Hyaena and Proteles Author:Charles Hamilton Smith General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1840 Original Publisher: W.H. Lizars Subjects: Dogs Canidae Hyenas Juvenile Nonfiction / Animals / Dogs Juvenile Fiction / Animals / Dogs Nature / Mammals Pets / Dogs / General Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustration... more »s and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. SUB-GENUS CANIS, Ob THE DOGS, PROPERLY SO CALLED. In the preceding volume we have endeavoured to point out the reasons for considering domestic dogs to be descended, not solely from a species of wolves or of jackals, but from genuine wild dogs of morethan one homogeneous species. Separate descriptions have already shown this result, and enabled us to deny that dog-like wild canines are unquestionably alienated domestic dogs. That there are races of feral dogs will he shown in the sequel; but the existence of these animals, and the appearances they exhibit, are in themselves reasons for not admitting the general inference, where the indications which should guide us are found wanting. With regard to the probability of the intermixture of the wolf with the dog, the facts are known and admitted; and it may be also assumed, that if a genuine species of the last mentioned should not be parent of any race of dogs, still the crossing often repeated, which, in the earlier states of society, when men and dogs lived more with the wilder species of the creation, must have been much more frequent, and consequently a very considerable proportion of the blood of the wolf may be infused in some races, at least of the domestic species; and that proportion, together with other circumstances of climate, food, and education, must have contributed to modify their characters and powers. The same views are applicable to t...« less