The ABCs of Dogs

The Akita (秋田犬) is a large breed of dog originating from the mountainous northern regions of Japan. There are two separate varieties of Akita: a Japanese strain, known as the "Akita Inu" ("inu" means "dog" in Japanese) or "Japanese Akita"; and an American strain, known as the "Akita" or "American Akita". (source)

The beagle is a breed of small to medium-sized dog. Beagles are intelligent but single-minded, and popular pets because of their size, even temper, and lack of inherited health problems. They have a great sense of smell and tracking instincts that see them employed as detection dogs for prohibited agricultural imports and foodstuffs in quarantine around the world. (source)

The Chihuahua is the smallest breed of dog and is named after the state of Chihuahua in Mexico. Chihuahuas come in a wide variety of sizes, head shapes, colors, and coat lengths. (source)

The Dalmatian is a breed of large dog, noted for its unique black or liver spotted coat and was mainly used as a carriage dog in its early days. Its roots trace back to Croatia and its historical region of Dalmatia. (source)

The Bulldog is a muscular, heavy dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose. Bulldogs were the 5th most popular purebred in the United States in 2013 according to the American Kennel Club. (source)

The French bulldog is a small breed of domestic dog. "Frenchies" were the result of a cross breeding between bulldog descendants imported from England and local ratters in Paris, France and first appeared in the 1800s. (source)

The golden retriever is a large-sized breed of dog originally bred to retrieve shot waterfowl such as ducks and upland game birds during hunting and shooting parties, hence their name. They were known for their ability to retrieve shot game undamaged. Golden retrievers have an instinctive love of water, and are easy to train to basic or advanced standards of obedience. (source)

The husky (Xаски) is a medium size, dense-coat working dog that originated in north-eastern Siberia. It is recognizable by its thickly furred double coat, erect triangular ears, and distinctive markings. Huskies are a very active, energetic, and resilient breed whose ancestors came from the extremely cold and harsh environment of the Siberian Arctic. (source)

The Irish setter (Irish: sotar rua, literally "red setter"), is a setter, a breed of gundog and family dog. The term Irish setter is commonly used to encompass the show-bred dog recognized by the American Kennel Club as well as the field-bred red setter recognized by the Field Dog Stud Book. (source)

The Jack Russell is a small terrier that was originally bred for fox hunting; it is principally white-bodied and smooth, rough or broken-coated. (source)

The Keeshond is a medium-sized dog with a plush two-layer coat of silver and black fur with a ruff and a curled tail. It originated in Germany, and its closest relatives are the German spitzes such as the Großspitz, Mittelspitz, and Kleinspitz or Pomeranian. Originally called the German Spitz, more specifically the Wolfspitz, the name was officially changed to Keeshond, in 1926 in England, where it had been known as the Dutch Barge Dog. (source)

The Labrador retriever, also known as simply Labrador or Lab, is one of several kinds of retrievers, a type of gun dog. Labradors are athletic, playful, and the most popular breed of dog by registered ownership in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. (source)

The Malinois is a medium breed of dog and the short-haired version of the Belgian Shepherd. Its name is the French word for Mechlinian, which in Dutch is either Mechelse herder or Mechelaar (one from Mechelen). The breed is used as a working dog for tasks including detection of odors such as explosives, accelerants (for arson investigation), and narcotics; tracking of humans for suspect apprehension in police work; and search and rescue missions. The U.S. Secret Service uses the Malinois Dogs to guard the grounds of the White House. (source)

The Newfoundland is a large working dog. Newfoundlands can be black, brown, white and black (called Landseer), or gray. They were originally bred and used as a working dog for fishermen in the Dominion of Newfoundland (which is now part of Canada). Known for their giant size, intelligence, tremendous strength, calm dispositions, and loyalty, Newfoundland dogs excel at water rescue because of their muscular build, thick double coat, webbed feet, and innate swimming abilities. (source)

The Old English sheepdog is a large breed of dog which was developed in England from early types of herding dog. The Old English Sheepdog can grow a very long coat, with fur covering the face and eyes. (source)

The pug is a breed of dog with a wrinkly, short-muzzled face and curled tail. The breed has a fine, glossy coat that comes in a variety of colors, most often fawn or black, and a compact square body with well-developed muscles. Pugs are known for being sociable and gentle companion dogs. (source)

The Queensland heeler, AKA Australian cattle dog, is a breed of herding dog originally developed in Australia for driving cattle over long distances across rough terrain. The Australian cattle dog is a medium-sized, short-coated dog that occurs in two main color forms. It has either brown or black hair distributed fairly evenly through a white coat, which gives the appearance of a "red" or "blue" dog. (source)

The Rottweiler is a medium/large size breed of domestic dog.The dogs were known as "Rottweil butchers' dogs" (German: Rottweiler Metzgerhund) because they were used to herd livestock and pull carts laden with butchered meat and other products to market. While still used in herding, Rottweilers are now used as search and rescue dogs, as guide dogs for the blind, as guard dogs or police dogs, and in other roles. (source)

The St. Bernard is a breed of very large working dogs from the Swiss Alps and northern Italy, originally bred for rescue. St. Bernards have become famous through tales of alpine rescues, as well as for their enormous size. (source)

The Tibetan terrier is a medium-size breed of dog originated in Tibet. Despite its name, it is not a member of the terrier group. The breed was given its name by European travelers who first encountered it, because of its resemblance to known terrier breeds.[2] The Tibetan name for the breed, Tsang Apso, roughly translates to "shaggy or bearded (apso) dog, from the province of Tsang". (source)

The Utonagan, AKA “Northern Inuit Dog”, is a crossbred dog that originated in the late 1980s, satisfying attempts to create a domestic dog breed more closely resembling the wolf. It is currently only recognized by its own independent breed club, but by no other major kennel clubs. The dog originates from crosses between German Shepherd Dogs, Siberian huskies, and a variety of Inuit breeds. Although the original stock is Canadian in origin, the breed was later developed in the UK. (source)

The Vizsla is a dog breed originating in Hungary, which belongs to the Pointer group. Hungarian or Magyar Vizslas are sporting dogs and loyal companions, in addition to being the smallest of the all-round pointer-retriever breeds. The Vizsla's medium size is one of the breed's most appealing characteristics as it makes them agile hunters of fowl and upland game, and through the centuries the Vizsla has held a rare position among sporting breeds – as household companions and family dogs. (source)

The Whippet (also English Whippet or Snap dog) is a dog breed of medium-size. They are a sighthound breed that originated in England, where they descended from greyhounds. Whippets today still strongly resemble the smaller greyhound. Belonging to the Hound group, whippets have relatively few health problems other than arrhythmia. Whippets also participate in dog sports such as lure coursing, agility, and flyball. (source)

The Xoloitzcuintle, or Xolo for short, is a hairless breed of dog, found in toy, miniature and standard sizes. The Xolo also comes in a coated variety and all three sizes can be born to a single litter. It is also known as the Mexican hairless dog in English speaking countries, and is one of several breeds of hairless dog. (source)

The Yorkshire Terrier is a small dog breed of terrier type, developed in the 19th century in the county of Yorkshire, England, to catch rats in clothing mills, also used for rat-baiting. The defining features of the breed are its maximum size of 7 pounds (3.2 kg), but some Yorkies may exceed 7 pounds and grow to be up to 15 pounds. It has a gray, black, and tan coat. (source)

Zuchon or shichon is a hybrid breed dog or a designer dog. It is a cross between Bichon Frisé and Shih Tzu.The Zuchon is a small designer dog with a height of around 12 inches and a weight of 12 to 14 pounds. (source)