Mdthbs

Hiker's Cabin Mystery | Pt. VI

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What dog breeds survive the apocalypse for generations?

The amazing time-capsule. What does it mean?Only the Swiss Are Left - Can They Survive?How well could a dog pick out the scent of a single person in a pool of carnage?What kind of Apocalypse might make a planet unrecognizable within a few centuries?What could cause a post-apocalyptic, rapid desertification of vast areas of the world, similar to the land in Mad Max: Fury Road?How much time would you have to build cities underground after a gamma ray burst?What supplies would be needed to build a modernish town/city in the post apocalypse?Humans are Gone: Do the Chickens Make It?Why might a robot's memory be unreliable after the Apocalypse?Does this apocalypse and the following events make sense?

1

$begingroup$

There was an apocalypse. Humans left cities in swathes, leaving their canine companions behind in the ruined cities. My question is, which types of dogs survive?

Criteria
-The dogs are going to be left up to their own devices for the next few generations.
-The general ecosystem is the same as it was before the war

post-apocalypse fauna

share|improve this question

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

$endgroup$

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  $begingroup$
  @kleer001's answer brings up a useful clarifying question - when you say "next few generations", are you referring to dog generations, or human generations?
  $endgroup$
  – jdunlop
  2 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

1

$begingroup$

There was an apocalypse. Humans left cities in swathes, leaving their canine companions behind in the ruined cities. My question is, which types of dogs survive?

Criteria
-The dogs are going to be left up to their own devices for the next few generations.
-The general ecosystem is the same as it was before the war

post-apocalypse fauna

share|improve this question

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

$endgroup$

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  $begingroup$
  @kleer001's answer brings up a useful clarifying question - when you say "next few generations", are you referring to dog generations, or human generations?
  $endgroup$
  – jdunlop
  2 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

$begingroup$

There was an apocalypse. Humans left cities in swathes, leaving their canine companions behind in the ruined cities. My question is, which types of dogs survive?

Criteria
-The dogs are going to be left up to their own devices for the next few generations.
-The general ecosystem is the same as it was before the war

post-apocalypse fauna

share|improve this question

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

$endgroup$

share|improve this question

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

share|improve this question

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

asked 4 hours ago

DT CooperDT Cooper

2,47371850

3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

5

$begingroup$

Dogs are dogs. Barring some of the more physically-incapacitated dogs, as long as they have a means of escaping their homes, there is unlikely to be any particularly advantageous breed.

• A feral dog lost as a puppy easily sustained itself off hunting.


• Millions of dogs live on the streets in Mexico


• The St. John's water dog lived as a feral breed for decades or centuries in Newfoundland


• 
  Chihuahuas are surprisingly vicious, and do well in warm climates as feral dogs.

That last one does offer some insight - the dogs that would do best in any given city would be the dogs who are best suited for the local climate. A husky or eskimo dog, used to air-conditioning in South Carolina, would probably fare poorly if suddenly left to the elements. A chihuahua or doberman, with velvety-thin fur, would probably do badly without humans to put their coats on in a Chicago winter.

But when it comes to being able to hunt for their food - dogs are dogs. They're generally pretty good at it.

---

Edit: It's worth noting that most responsible dog owners will spay or neuter their pets, so after a decade or so, the number of dogs will be drastically reduced. This will presumably rebound after an interval, but most pets will die without reproducing, because they cannot.

share|improve this answer

edited 2 hours ago

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

2

$begingroup$

None.

Dog breeds are a human invention. Eventually they will breed out to look more and more like wolves as they bred with wolves (because they are a subspecies of wolves). In fact the more 'bred' a dog is the less survivable it becomes. Think of the contemporary pug with their squished faces, or this: http://blog.vetdepot.com/top-10-dog-breeds-with-the-most-health-issues

also for more discussion:

https://www.quora.com/How-many-generations-would-it-take-for-dogs-to-revert-to-wolves-if-a-wide-cross-section-of-modern-breeds-were-left-to-breed-freely

share|improve this answer

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

2

$begingroup$

Mongrels

There is no reason to think that left to themselves, dogs will remain in breeds. They will cross breed. In a few generations, there won't be any separate breeds. All dogs will be mongrels.

There may be some specialist types. For example, smaller dogs may specialize in hunting in tunnels (e.g. rabbit warrens). The largest dogs will likely become smaller, as large dogs are subject to back and joint problems. Long-haired dogs may appear most often towards the poles and short-haired may tend towards the equator.

Mongrels exhibit hybrid vigor and are healthier than purebred dogs. If dogs are left to themselves, mongrels will take over the world.

share|improve this answer

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

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5

$begingroup$

Dogs are dogs. Barring some of the more physically-incapacitated dogs, as long as they have a means of escaping their homes, there is unlikely to be any particularly advantageous breed.

• A feral dog lost as a puppy easily sustained itself off hunting.


• Millions of dogs live on the streets in Mexico


• The St. John's water dog lived as a feral breed for decades or centuries in Newfoundland


• 
  Chihuahuas are surprisingly vicious, and do well in warm climates as feral dogs.

That last one does offer some insight - the dogs that would do best in any given city would be the dogs who are best suited for the local climate. A husky or eskimo dog, used to air-conditioning in South Carolina, would probably fare poorly if suddenly left to the elements. A chihuahua or doberman, with velvety-thin fur, would probably do badly without humans to put their coats on in a Chicago winter.

But when it comes to being able to hunt for their food - dogs are dogs. They're generally pretty good at it.

---

Edit: It's worth noting that most responsible dog owners will spay or neuter their pets, so after a decade or so, the number of dogs will be drastically reduced. This will presumably rebound after an interval, but most pets will die without reproducing, because they cannot.

share|improve this answer

edited 2 hours ago

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

5

$begingroup$

Dogs are dogs. Barring some of the more physically-incapacitated dogs, as long as they have a means of escaping their homes, there is unlikely to be any particularly advantageous breed.

• A feral dog lost as a puppy easily sustained itself off hunting.


• Millions of dogs live on the streets in Mexico


• The St. John's water dog lived as a feral breed for decades or centuries in Newfoundland


• 
  Chihuahuas are surprisingly vicious, and do well in warm climates as feral dogs.

That last one does offer some insight - the dogs that would do best in any given city would be the dogs who are best suited for the local climate. A husky or eskimo dog, used to air-conditioning in South Carolina, would probably fare poorly if suddenly left to the elements. A chihuahua or doberman, with velvety-thin fur, would probably do badly without humans to put their coats on in a Chicago winter.

But when it comes to being able to hunt for their food - dogs are dogs. They're generally pretty good at it.

---

Edit: It's worth noting that most responsible dog owners will spay or neuter their pets, so after a decade or so, the number of dogs will be drastically reduced. This will presumably rebound after an interval, but most pets will die without reproducing, because they cannot.

share|improve this answer

edited 2 hours ago

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

$begingroup$

Dogs are dogs. Barring some of the more physically-incapacitated dogs, as long as they have a means of escaping their homes, there is unlikely to be any particularly advantageous breed.

• A feral dog lost as a puppy easily sustained itself off hunting.


• Millions of dogs live on the streets in Mexico


• The St. John's water dog lived as a feral breed for decades or centuries in Newfoundland


• 
  Chihuahuas are surprisingly vicious, and do well in warm climates as feral dogs.

That last one does offer some insight - the dogs that would do best in any given city would be the dogs who are best suited for the local climate. A husky or eskimo dog, used to air-conditioning in South Carolina, would probably fare poorly if suddenly left to the elements. A chihuahua or doberman, with velvety-thin fur, would probably do badly without humans to put their coats on in a Chicago winter.

But when it comes to being able to hunt for their food - dogs are dogs. They're generally pretty good at it.

---

Edit: It's worth noting that most responsible dog owners will spay or neuter their pets, so after a decade or so, the number of dogs will be drastically reduced. This will presumably rebound after an interval, but most pets will die without reproducing, because they cannot.

share|improve this answer

edited 2 hours ago

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

$endgroup$

share|improve this answer

edited 2 hours ago

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

answered 4 hours ago

jdunlopjdunlop

8,34711947

2

$begingroup$

None.

Dog breeds are a human invention. Eventually they will breed out to look more and more like wolves as they bred with wolves (because they are a subspecies of wolves). In fact the more 'bred' a dog is the less survivable it becomes. Think of the contemporary pug with their squished faces, or this: http://blog.vetdepot.com/top-10-dog-breeds-with-the-most-health-issues

also for more discussion:

https://www.quora.com/How-many-generations-would-it-take-for-dogs-to-revert-to-wolves-if-a-wide-cross-section-of-modern-breeds-were-left-to-breed-freely

share|improve this answer

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

2

$begingroup$

None.

Dog breeds are a human invention. Eventually they will breed out to look more and more like wolves as they bred with wolves (because they are a subspecies of wolves). In fact the more 'bred' a dog is the less survivable it becomes. Think of the contemporary pug with their squished faces, or this: http://blog.vetdepot.com/top-10-dog-breeds-with-the-most-health-issues

also for more discussion:

https://www.quora.com/How-many-generations-would-it-take-for-dogs-to-revert-to-wolves-if-a-wide-cross-section-of-modern-breeds-were-left-to-breed-freely

share|improve this answer

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

$begingroup$

None.

Dog breeds are a human invention. Eventually they will breed out to look more and more like wolves as they bred with wolves (because they are a subspecies of wolves). In fact the more 'bred' a dog is the less survivable it becomes. Think of the contemporary pug with their squished faces, or this: http://blog.vetdepot.com/top-10-dog-breeds-with-the-most-health-issues

also for more discussion:

https://www.quora.com/How-many-generations-would-it-take-for-dogs-to-revert-to-wolves-if-a-wide-cross-section-of-modern-breeds-were-left-to-breed-freely

share|improve this answer

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

$endgroup$

share|improve this answer

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

answered 3 hours ago

kleer001kleer001

3815

2

$begingroup$

Mongrels

There is no reason to think that left to themselves, dogs will remain in breeds. They will cross breed. In a few generations, there won't be any separate breeds. All dogs will be mongrels.

There may be some specialist types. For example, smaller dogs may specialize in hunting in tunnels (e.g. rabbit warrens). The largest dogs will likely become smaller, as large dogs are subject to back and joint problems. Long-haired dogs may appear most often towards the poles and short-haired may tend towards the equator.

Mongrels exhibit hybrid vigor and are healthier than purebred dogs. If dogs are left to themselves, mongrels will take over the world.

share|improve this answer

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

2

$begingroup$

Mongrels

There is no reason to think that left to themselves, dogs will remain in breeds. They will cross breed. In a few generations, there won't be any separate breeds. All dogs will be mongrels.

There may be some specialist types. For example, smaller dogs may specialize in hunting in tunnels (e.g. rabbit warrens). The largest dogs will likely become smaller, as large dogs are subject to back and joint problems. Long-haired dogs may appear most often towards the poles and short-haired may tend towards the equator.

Mongrels exhibit hybrid vigor and are healthier than purebred dogs. If dogs are left to themselves, mongrels will take over the world.

share|improve this answer

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287

$endgroup$

add a comment | 

$begingroup$

Mongrels

There is no reason to think that left to themselves, dogs will remain in breeds. They will cross breed. In a few generations, there won't be any separate breeds. All dogs will be mongrels.

There may be some specialist types. For example, smaller dogs may specialize in hunting in tunnels (e.g. rabbit warrens). The largest dogs will likely become smaller, as large dogs are subject to back and joint problems. Long-haired dogs may appear most often towards the poles and short-haired may tend towards the equator.

Mongrels exhibit hybrid vigor and are healthier than purebred dogs. If dogs are left to themselves, mongrels will take over the world.

share|improve this answer

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287

$endgroup$

share|improve this answer

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287

answered 2 hours ago

BrythanBrythan

21.4k74287