Why Are There So Many Different Breeds Of Dogs?

There are different breeds of dogs due to dog hybrids and cross breeds. A dog hybrid refers to a cross between two dissimilar dogs. It is also known as a mix breed dog. These crosses are also referred to as designer dogs. Labradoodles and Australian Bulldogs, are some of the well known dog hybrids. Some of the most popular crosses are the poodle crosses.

Some of the mixed breed dogs are American Pit Bull Boxer (American Pit Bull Terrier/Boxer), Borderjack (Border Collie/Jack Russell Terrier), Basschshund Dachshund/Basset Hound, Dalmador (Labrador Retriever/Dalmatian), English Bullmatian (English Bulldog/Dalmatian), Bospin (Boston Terrier/Miniature Pinscher), Afghan Retriever (Afghan Hound/Golden Retriever), Germen Chusky (German Shepherd Dog/Husky/Chow Chow), Gerbrador Sheptriever (German Shepherd/Labrador Retriever), Dorgi Dachshund/Welsh Corgi , Shollie German Shepherd Dog/Rough Collie, Yo-Chon (Yorkshire Terrier/Bichon Frise), to mention a few.

Dogs have been domesticated longer than any other animal. During this time, men have developed more than 200 breeds of dogs.
In some cases, dogs were bred for special needs or uses. When dogs were taken into new countries, they tended to mate with the wild dogs of that country, or they would change in order to fit themselves to a new climate Differences in climate is one reason for such dogs as the hairless breeds of Mexico and the heavily coated breeds of the far north.
It is hard to classify breeds, and it is just as hard to trace their ancestry. Today, dogs are generally classified into six groups, according to their use. These are: sporting dogs, which hunt by scent in the air; hounds, which hunt by ground scent; terrier's, which hunt by digging into the earth; working dogs; toy dogs for companions; and miscellaneous, or non-sporting, dogs.
There are some theories about how some of the breeds of dogs started. The pointers are probably descendants of the foxhounds. They "point" at the game. Most hounds are probably descendants of the dog which used to be known in France as "the St. Hubert".
The foxhounds, which are the fastest of the hounds, are thought to be a cross between the keen-scented hounds and the swift coursing hounds. An unusual American breed of dog is the coonhound, which was developed by the pioneers.
Newfoundland dogs seem to be a cross between English retrievers and certain sheep dogs. The St. Bernard has three different types of dogs for its ancestors. The Great Dane is a breed which seems to be a cross between the mastiff and the greyhound. The Pomeranian is related to the chow and was developed in Germany. Bulldogs were bred in the Middle ages and are related to the mastiff.