A recent study has found that Native American Dogs that were thought to be extinct are actually thriving and have an Asian origin.
Previously, scientists were under the assumption that native American dogs had become extinct after the arrival of Europeans in America. However, Peter Savolainen, a researcher in evolutionary genetics at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm was surprised to find that native American dog breeds have been completely preserved.
In the course of the study, Savolainen also discovered the ancient Asian origin of these American dog breeds. He revealed that almost 30 percent of these native breeds have now been replaced by European dogs.
"Our results confirm that American dogs are a remaining part of the indigenous American culture, which underscores the importance of preserving these populations," he said in a press statement. "It was especially exciting to find that the Mexican breed, Chihuahua, shared a DNA type uniquely with Mexican pre-Columbian samples. This gives conclusive evidence for the Mexican ancestry of the Chihuahua."
For the study, the researchers compared mitochondrial DNA from Asian and European dogs, ancient American archaeological samples, and American dog breeds, including Chihuahuas, Peruvian hairless dogs and Arctic sled dogs. They were able to trace East Asian origin and found direct relations between ancient American dogs and modern breeds.
After analyzing some stray dogs, researchers found they were runaway European dogs and Savolainen suggested that the Carolina Dog, a stray dog population in the U.S., may have an indigenous American origin.
The earliest archaeological evidence for dogs in the Americas dates to around 10,000 years ago, long before the dawn of transoceanic travel in the 15th century that saw the arrival of Columbus and other Europeans.
