The origins of your dog's unique look may be older than you think

The origins of your dog's unique look may be older than you think

Nathan Rott

November 26, 2025 / 3:00 am

You don't have to walk by a dog park to know that domestic dogs come in all shapes and sizes. From two-pound Chihuahuas to 150-pound Newfoundlands, chunky Labradors to slender Vizlas, our canine companions are some of the most physically diverse mammals on the planet.

It's commonly believed that this vast range in physical attributes is a product of the Victorian era, when kennel clubs started selectively breeding dogs to produce certain characteristics roughly 200 years ago.

A new analysis of hundreds of prehistoric canine skulls, spanning the last 50,000 years, shows it emerged much earlier.

"By about 10,000 years ago, half of the amount of diversity present in modern dog