Dingo - Everything you should know about this strange dog breed

In Australia there is a rather unclassifiable canid called Dingo. Zoologists have been arguing for years about whether it is a wolf, a wild dog or a domestic one without agreeing.

Right now is a vulnerable species, since it is hybridizing with dogs and is even sold as a pet, which will put this animal in danger in the coming years if things do not change.

Size: Up to 59 cm the males.
Weight: Its average weight is up to 32 kilos
Hair type: It is usually earthy, with tones such as yellow, red and you can see mixtures of both. If the animal is pure, it will have white hair in areas such as the tip of the tail, the legs and the chest. Its length is medium.
Character: It looks a lot like that of the wolf, and males can become very aggressive at the time of zeal.
Health: Good, because in theory it is a wild animal.
Life expectancy: Around 12-15 years.

What is a Dyngo or Canis Lupus Dingo?

Today it is not well known what a dingo is and there are eternal discussions among experts For many decades. One of the opinions is that it is a dog, an old lineage that arrived in Australia at some point and there it developed apart from the domestic dogs.

Others say that it is a domestic dog as such, that it is the same as those we have at home for thousands of years, while there are those who opt because it is a dog or wolf subspecies that sinks its origins in the Asian wolf.

Finally, other specialists say that it is nothing of the above and that it is a separate species, so confusion continues despite the fact that you have news of it since the nineteenth century.

Perhaps, one of the best definitions that have given themselves from this animal belongs to the anthropologist Pat Shipman, who tells us that the Dingo is a wolf that was going to become a dog, but that the process never completed.

It is increasingly difficult to distinguish it from dogs, since it has been hybridizing with these for a long time and that is endangering the survival of this animal, which may disappear in the coming decades.

Dingo history

It seems that the origin of the dingos can be in New Guinea, since it is very close to the singing dog of New Guinea or the wild dog of the highlands of New Guinea.

Thanks to genetics we know when Australia arrived for the first time, something that did about 8,000 years ago, finding fossils dating from about 3,500.

It is known that a human population had to bring it that came sailing to what is today Australia, but it is not known which one and did not carry out any type of selection, because thanks to the fossils we are aware that during those more than three millennia the Dingo has not changed its appearance.

Around 1788, the first British settlers who arrived in Australia commented that there were some dogs that accompanied the Australian indigenous people, so that it seems that they had them domesticated and a relationship of symbiosis between them was established.

The coexistence with the settlers was not good, because as they began to carry cattle, the Dyngo saw in the cows and the sheep to easy dams and did not take them to attack them, so that measures were taken in order to control their number, which have never been very efficient.

In fact, the populations of Dingo rose as they did that of the settlers, since they introduced new species in Australia such as sheep or rabbit, which served as food to the Dingo.

With the sheep there were more problems, but with the rabbit none, because I could hunt them in the field without disturbing the people, who left him alone if he did not approach the cattle.

Right now it is recognized as a Australian native animal, so it enjoys protection in some areas of the country, although it seems that hybridization can end it.

It does not usually appear represented in cave paintings, which is rare due to its age and that it is a very prominent animal in the stories of the dream time of Australian aborigines.

Dingo characteristics

At the moment we see them what happens before our eyes is a dog, which when it is an adult can measure 50 to 59 cm and weigh between 23 and 32 kilos, although some animals have been seen that have exceeded 50, which is very exceptional.

As in most dog breeds, males are larger than females, and this size is also given inside males depending on where they live, since those in southern Australia are almost always smaller than those of the north or west.

If we have time to look at them calmly, we can realize that compared to a similar dog the dipe has a larger snout and longer incisors, although perhaps this can only be seen by the specialists.

The skeleton is where the dogs are most distinguished, since the bones are more flat and the neck area is greater.

His hair has colors destined not to highlight in the Australian desert environment, so it is possible to see different tones of yellow and red, seeing exceptional albino specimens.

The fur may be of a different color, which means that this specimen is not a pure daughter, which also have white spots on the legs and in the chest, in addition to the tip of the tail.

They usually live alone, although everyone belongs to herds that do not spend 24 hours together, but they meet once every few days and are formed by up to 12 animals, provided there is reduced human activity in the area.

Within the herds they establish different hierarchies for males and females, and only the dominant couple is reproduced, something that is simple, since the female remains in heat two months in a row a year, always in the same season.

The rest of the herd components are dedicated to raising the puppies, so that the population of these animals has not grown in an unfortunate way, more taking into account that they have been controlling and killing since the first white man set foot in Australia.

As soon as it bricks and it has like the wolves, having three basic howls that serve in order to attract the members of the group or to notice the presence of intruders.

A single pack can have a huge territory of more than 200 km square, which depends a lot on how their prey is dispersed, which in a continent of this type can mean a large amount of km to be covered.

In fact, animals have been studied that have moved up to 250 km from their birthplace, so they are able to travel huge distances.

Feeding

The dingos eat everything and are not delicate when choosing their diet, since in Australia It is known that more than 170 species are included in its diet, with very diverse sizes ranging from small insects to huge water buffalo.

Depending on the region where they live, the dingos are more specialized in one or other animals when hunting, and those who live in the north capture the Urraca goose, the dusty rat and even the Uualabí, which is like a miniature kangaroo.

There are also dingos in Asia and here your diet changes, because due to overpopulation of the continent they are closer to humans.

Thus, while in Australia they are carnivores, in Asia they are omnivorous and do not disgust foods such as rice or fruit that humans give them.

Its way of hunting varies depending on the size of the dam that will be stalked. Thus, if they are small animals like a rabbit they do it alone, but they go for the kangaroos create groups as well as the wolves.

We must not forget that cattle is also a part of their diet, although it is true that only in those times in which species that usually capture are scarce.

Where do they live?

At present, its main habitat is in Australia, although there are several areas where there are hardly any population of these animals, such as southeast of Tasmania and a part of the southwest of the island.

Besides, It has a presence in Southeast Asia, where it seems that it is originally, in countries such as Indonesia, Thailand or the Philippines, although there are no populations as large as Australians, perhaps because humans's pressure is greater in this area

THE DINGO AS MACTA

Is it possible to have a dipe as a pet? The answer is affirmative, but only if we live in Australia, since there is considered a vulnerable species and cannot be taken out of the country.

It is fashionable to have these animals as if they were dogs, and in fact it seems that there are even growers specialized in them, although they do not always keep them in the best conditions, and therefore it is recommended to adopt one if possible.

You should never take any adult on the street, because they are still wild canids, which can be very aggressive when they are locked in a house or in a garden, at which time they get to attack.

Among their virtues are being very independent, which do not smell and bark, although they do.

Being so independent allows you to have a kind of dog less attached to its owner, which is what some people look in rural areas where these animals usually live in semi -liberty conditions.

Of course, you never have to forget that they are not really domesticated, so you always have to be careful with them, especially during the breeding time in which the males will try to escape using the means at their disposal.

Educating it is not easy, so training it to pay attention to our orders can be almost impossible, something that must be willing to assume with these animals.

In fact, it would be convenient to possess some kind of previous training before I get home, because if we are going to have it like any other dog, you must learn rules that will not be simple to teach you.

Keeping as a pet will not need to visit the veterinarian, because having selected in nature is very resistant to all diseases.

As for food, they do not put problems, but if we have them as pets, the simplest is to give them a quality feed, suitable for the size they have, that taking it to the dogs would be the medium, similar to that of a German shepherd.

If you are given a premium meal, you will live better and will have an iron health, although you can also be fed with meat, any of the one in the market at low price at that time.

It is convenient for the meat to be cooked, because that will avoid parasitic diseases that can affect the Dipgo in the same way as any other dog or the wolf.

How much does a Dingo cost?

Within the Australian territory you can buy a Dipgo by a price that is around 500 and $ 1000, a reasonable amount if we take into account the standard of living of the area, so it can be said that it is even cheap.

There are specialized hatcheries who are legal there, so that living in Australia we can have our own Dingo.

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