Kates Dog

The dog in the picture is Kate's dog, named Annie! Annie is a black Miniature Schnauzer! She is very playful and likes to chew on everything. Annie can also be seen as a Jigsaw Puzzle in our games section.

The Dog is a meat eating animal that has been living with people for at least 14,000 years. Some new evidence leads scientists to think dogs may have been living with people for 150,000 years. During this time dogs have developed into hundreds of breeds which seem very different from each other. For example, some dogs such as the Chihuahua are only a few inches tall while other dogs such as the Irish Wolfhound are nearly three feet. Colors range from white to black and brown, gray, and yellow with many combinations of colors. Like people, dogs are very social animals and pack hunters. Kate's dog Annie thinks she is part of the family.

While Annie gets to play and just be part of the family, many dogs have to work. The first dogs that came to live with people probably helped by barking and protecting their "adopted" pack of people. When people started keeping animals such as sheep and cattle, dogs were trained to keep the animals together and protect them and some breeds became expert at herding. Other dogs were used for hunting. Today dogs may use their noses to help find lost people or help police identify and find contraband (illegal drugs, plants, and other objects). Seeing eye dogs help blind people travel by being their "eyes". Dogs have also been trained to help disabled people. One of dog's most important jobs is to be a friend and companion which has earned dogs the reputation of being man's best friend - just don't tell your cat.