A surprising new study has revealed that 64% of modern dog breeds have wolves among their ancestors. The findings were published on Monday, 24th November in the journal 'Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences'.
According to the study, domestic dogs and wolves have likely interbred over the past few millennia.
A surprising discovery
This interbreeding is thought to have influenced everything from their size and sense of smell to their very personality.
Up to 40% DNA
More surprisingly, even the smallest dogs like Chihuahuas are included. The breed contains 0.2% wolf DNA. In contrast, the Czechoslovakian Wolfdog and the Saarloos Wolfdog, which result from crossbreeding with wolves, have up to 40% wolf DNA.
"Before this study, the consensus seemed to suggest that for a dog to be a dog, it couldn't have much, if any, wolf DNA," explained Audrey Lin, a researcher at the American Museum of Natural History and the study's lead author, in a statement.
