#darina legacy

[simphonyoflife]

the night before christmas 🎄💫

[aina-niclochlainn]

My ancestors (Hogwarts Legacy)

Let me introduce you my ancestor. My great great aunt and her Brother, holders of Ancient Magic. They saved Hogwarts from another Goblins' riot and Silver Morrow's madness.

They come down history books as those who defeated Rannrok and prevented him from overtaking the Wizarding world as well.

Unfortunately, Auntie Darina passed away before I was born. Uncle Ithis still cries about her sometimes but I am here for him. All of our family is here for him.

Darina NicLochlainn

21/12/1872 - 1972

Pure-blood

1.60m (5'2)

58kg (127,8 lbs)

Ravenclaw

Wand :

Elder

27cm (10"7')

Classical Black

Phœnix feather

Celestial Blue

She was a very pure, kind and very brave witch. According to uncle Ithis, she was like a kitten, tiny, soft, but watch out, she was fearless and fiercely strong in duel. She became later a great Auror.

Her love story was a mess and the worst choice of her life (according to Uncle Ithis, but I disagree), married with five children to Sebastian Sallow, a Curse-Breaker for Gringotts banks.

They were happily married until the end. He died soon after Auntie, probably hurried to the grave by his unbearable grief.

Ithis Tanaka

Born : 10/10/1872 - 2004

Half-blood

1.83m (6'0)

85kg (187,4 lbs)

Slytherin

Wand :

Aspen

33cm (12" 9')

Natural light gray

Dragon core

Bottanical Silver leaves

Ithis is a tall Half-Japanese and half-Britanic wizard. The best duellist of his generation, World Champion to be precise. He was married with a professor of Hogwarts. Althought he and his husband both suffered from their homosexuality, their love stood strong and, together along with the support of their friends and families, they stopped hiding and began to live a fully exposed and proud wedding life soon after Ithis left the school. They adopted two sons, Uncle Guren and Uncle Ruka.

When uncle Ithis talks about his late husband he starts to cry. No matter how many years pass the void he left behind will never filled.

Uncle Ithis always says :

"Living as old as I do is both a curse to see all your loved one leave one after the other without being able to do anything about it, as it is a blessing to be able to watch over the ones they left behind, and to see the newer generations grow. "

Ithis belongs to @mistressyuu

[lynnsartsworld]

The Sweeting-Miller Actors

Hello, this is probably the first time that I’ve drawn something kind of related to Hogwarts Legacy for a while because I’ve been having problems with Poppy & April. I love them, my "lovebirds". Anyway, I decided to change it up a little bit. You guys have probably seen my stories of the Sweeting-Miller family. Interestingly enough, I made them into actors and actresses, so they’re basically separated from the characters they play in my scripts. I hope this makes sense; it's quite a lot to take in.

Here's the picture of Jimmy McKenna, Sydney Yearwood, and Alice Whitlock. Jimmy McKenna is portrayed as Arn Sweeting-Miller, Sydney Yearwood as Summer Sweeting-Miller, and Alice Whitlock as Mandy Sweeting-Miller.

There’s more to come to almost forgot next time I am going to draw April and Poppy Cunningham is portrayed as Poppy Sweeting and April Miller in my stories. @kerimcberry and @darch7995. Thanks to Darina recent video that she interviews Sebastian as if he was an actor of her stories I had the same idea with my calendar, so I really do thank you. I hope you don’t mind. Almost forgot, there are two other people that I want to draw as well: the author, Iris Cassidy, and her partner, the pianist, Sarah Alegria.

[tempchefs]

How to become a Chef Ireland?

Chef Ireland has witnessed a remarkable evolution in its culinary scene in recent years, with renowned chefs and food festivals playing a pivotal role in promoting Irish cuisine both domestically and internationally. From the rich history of Irish food to the contemporary culinary trends, there is much to explore. In this response, I will discuss the rise of modern Irish food, highlight some of Ireland's greatest chefs, and shed light on their contributions to Irish cuisine.

The rise of modern Irish food has been a captivating journey, shaped by a combination of historical factors and contemporary influences. Chef JP McMahon, a Michelin-starred chef and the founder of Food on the Edge, has been instrumental in bringing global attention to Irish food. Food on the Edge, an annual festival held in Galway and Dublin, serves as a platform for leading culinary figures to discuss and debate the future of food. The festival has played a significant role in challenging the perception and reality of modern Irish cuisine. McMahon emphasizes that Irish food culture is integrated, honest, politically engaged, forward-looking, inventive, and modest [1]. Organizations such as Good Food Ireland and events like Taste the Island, hosted by Fáilte Ireland, are also contributing to the changing perception of Irish food.

To delve deeper into the world of Irish chefs, it is worth exploring the insights provided by chef Mark Moriarty, who has been highlighting the incredible food and the stories of determination and resilience behind Ireland's culinary talents. Through the television series "Beyond the Menu," Moriarty aims to showcase the chefs as people, sharing their experiences and creative journeys. By humanizing the chefs and presenting their dedication and passion, the series provides a glimpse into the vibrant culinary landscape of Ireland. The show not only celebrates the exceptional kitchens but also inspires the next generation of chefs.

In Ireland's culinary history, certain chefs have made significant contributions that have shaped the country's cuisine and promoted its unique flavors. Darina Allen, a prominent Irish chef and advocate of Irish food culture, has played a pivotal role in preserving traditional recipes and promoting the use of local, sustainable ingredients. Allen established the Ballymaloe Cooking School in County Cork, which has trained numerous Irish chefs and emphasizes the importance of fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Her cookbooks, such as "Irish Traditional Cooking" and "Forgotten Skills of Cooking," have become essential references in Irish kitchens, ensuring the legacy of traditional Irish dishes for future generations. Allen's work as a chef, cookbook author, and advocate for Irish food has elevated the country's culinary reputation both at home and abroad.

Another notable figure in Irish cuisine is Kevin Dundon, an accomplished chef, TV host, and author. Born and raised in County Wexford, Dundon hails from a family with a strong culinary background. After gaining experience in renowned kitchens worldwide, he returned to his hometown and opened Dunbrody Country House Hotel and Restaurant. Dundon's expertise, combined with his passion for Irish cuisine, has contributed to the revitalization of traditional dishes and the integration of contemporary flavors and techniques. Through his television appearances and bestselling cookbooks, Dundon has inspired aspiring chefs and food enthusiasts to explore and appreciate Irish cuisine.

In conclusion, the world of Irish cuisine has experienced a remarkable transformation, thanks to the efforts of visionary chefs, food festivals, and organizations dedicated to promoting the richness of Irish food culture. The rise of modern Irish food has challenged preconceived notions, highlighting the integration, inventiveness, and modesty of the Irish culinary scene. Chefs like JP McMahon, Darina Allen, and Kevin Dundon have been at the forefront, driving this culinary renaissance. By emphasizing the use of local ingredients, preserving traditional recipes, and showcasing the talent and creativity of Irish chefs, they have made significant contributions to Irish cuisine and elevated its global reputation.

[blackfyrematriarch]

A Family Portrait

The Matriarch, Countess Rene Elizabeth Blackfyre and her husband Count Unwine Abel Seabright of Saltcliffe:

The Firstborn, Viscountess Darina Mercy Blackfyre and her husband Viscount Laurence Christian Tyndall of Saltcliffe:

The Twins, Lady Ferina and Lord Telford Blackfyre, Heirs to Saltcliffe:

And, as a bonus, Lord Cyrus Phineas Whitaker, a.k.a. Lord ‘Wit’, the Matriarch’s advisor:

(( relevant  / family / etc.: @legacy-of-blackfyre @from-the-serpents-mouth @warlund-blackfyre @eveshadows @elena-blackfyre @kimberlyducayne @farahblackfyre @salomeblackfyre @leonareede @baronofborhswald goodness, there’s a lot of us! ))

[from-the-serpents-mouth]

Homecoming

Part I

Rene sat in her high-backed chair, across from Darina and Laurence on the sofa. Laurence was saying very little, looking contemplative at best, but Darina looked a mess.

“Mother... you cannot be serious. Taking the word of that lunatic to heart!” One glance from Rene, and Darina hung her head, though her boldness had not ended just yet, “What were these ramblings he went on about, then?”

“There’s no need to attack your mother, my dear,” Lord Wit’s voice floated from a corner as the man strolled into the light from the fireplace, “There’s something bigger in play here, and I think it wise we all are prepared for it. In a sense, Warlund is right. The House must continue to exist. To grow.”

“And what exactly does that entail? Forcing my children to do what my own mother managed to somehow avoid? What I managed to avoid?” Her hand found Laurence’s, squeezing for the strength she could not find. Rene sighed.

“I am not making them marry someone of my choosing, Darina. But they are more than old enough to start actively courting.” Her tone was absolute, left no room for rebuttal. “Regardless, the twins have a huge responsibility to Saltcliffe. As the heirs, they both will need to find strong matches to ensure our hold here remains firm. Otherwise I’ve a feeling we’ll be seeing a good deal more of the rest of the House,” she waved in an annoyed gesture to one side, “and I can assure you that even I do not want that.”

Darina let out a scoff and sat back, to which Laurence straightened to console his troubled wife. “They are strong, my love. I guarantee you we’ve raised them well. Finding them matches should not be too hard.”

“Your husband is right of course, my dear,” Cyrus lifted a glass of bourbon to his lips, sipping and inhaling once sharply, appraising the liquor, “With Lady Tayela passed, they are the eldest of the single Blackfyre’s. A number of eyes will remain on them to set the standard.”

Before another word could be uttered, a one of the castle’s mages came bursting in, “Lord Telford and Lady Ferina have arrived from Stormwind. They are headed from the stables now.”

And so, with bated breath, everyone waited to deliver the news to the eligible bachelor and bachelorette of Saltcliffe castle.

(( mentions / allusions: @blackfyrematriarch @legacy-of-blackfyre @warlund-blackfyre @eveshadows @salomeblackfyre @elena-blackfyre @kimberlyducayne @leonareede @farahblackfyre ))

[buynewsoul]

Where Do Dogs Come From?

From the tall Great Dane to the tiny Chihuahua, us humans are used to being around dogs of all shapes and sizes. We’re so used to it, in fact, that we forget that humans more-or-less created dogs…. And how we did it is a question that still stumps scientists to this day. So, where do dogs come from? Let’s take a look.

Before we answer the question, “where do dogs come from,” let’s look at what dogs are

We bet you’ve wondered: “Where do dogs come from, in the first place?” Photography ©Aimes Element | Thinkstock.

While scientists don’t know exactly how and when and where dogs came from, we do know what dogs are. They are the species Canis lupus familiaris, a member or subspecies of the family Canis lupus. Other species in the Canis lupus include wolves, coyotes and dingoes, and they all share a common wolf-like ancestor.

Here is where things get tricky. Scientists aren’t sure exactly where the wolf-like ancestor that formed the modern dog came from. The general consensus is they came from Europe, but there has been recent evidence to suggest that dogs may also have originated in Asia, too. However, scientists largely agree on one thing: Around 9,000 to 34,000 years ago, our human ancestors met our dogs’ wolf-like ancestors, and started a relationship between our species that continues to this day. Even though that wolf-like ancestor is long extinct, its legacy lives on in the dogs we know today.

The evolution of dogs

Scientists are still trying to figure out where our dogs’ wolf-like ancestor originated from (either Europe or Asia, or both), but a recent study shows that all modern dogs might come from 23 ancestral dog clades. Over time, through interbreeding between the groups, dogs developed into the breeds we see today.

Science Magazine reports that, “The clades […] bring together dogs with similar traits: Thus, Boxers, Bulldogs, and Boston Terriers — all bred for strength — fall into one clade; whereas herders like Sheepdogs, Corgis and Collies fall into another; and hunters like Retrievers, Spaniels and Setters fall into a third.” Later on, the piece adds, “The data [shows] how some breeds helped create others, as they share DNA with multiple clades.”

In conclusion, according to Science Magazine, “The grouping of different breeds that share particular jobs suggests that ancient breeders likely bred dogs for specific purposes, choosing to care for those that were best at guarding or herding. Then, in the past 200 years, people subdivided those larger groups into breeds.”

What breeds were ancient dogs?

The Alaskan Malamute is an ancient dog breed. Photography by Darina Matasova/Shutterstock.

So, what were the first dog breeds? Research varies, according to the Dogster article, Extinct, Primitive or Ancient: Which Are the Oldest Dog Breeds? The general consensus is that the following are the most ancient dog breeds:

Afghan Hound, a breed that originated in the Middle East

Akita, a breed that originated in Japan

Alaskan Malamute, a breed that originated in North America

Basenji, a breed that originated in ancient Egypt

Chinese Shar-Pei, a breed that originated in southern China

Chow Chow, a breed that originated in northern China

Saluki, a breed that originated in Egypt, and may be the oldest dog breed

Samoyed, a breed that originated in Siberia

Siberian Husky, a breed that originated in northeast Asia

The most popular dog breeds today

Given that we’ve had dogs around for 9,000 to 30,000 years, is it safe to say that they’ve always been the most popular pets? While popular pets have changed over the millennia, nowadays, there are always top contenders for the most popular dog breeds. The American Kennel Club (AKC) releases the most popular dog breed rankings every year, with Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherd Dogs taking the top slots.

In the United Kingdom, Labrador Retrievers and Cocker Spaniels are the most popular dogs, followed closely by French Bulldogs. In China, according to eChinaSites.com, Siberian Huskies and Labrador Retrievers top the list.

While there are no official stats from other countries, in 2014, an app called Klooff did a survey of the top dogs around the world, based on posts from their users. They created an infographic, which Business Insider reported on.

No matter where dogs come from, they’re a unique species 

Dogs are a unique species, and the traits that make them unique may be the direct result of their relationship with humans. It cannot be overstated how much mankind’s influence shaped the dogs we know and love today, and made them so different from other canines and other animals.

Here are the many ways dogs are unique:

1. Domestication:

Earlier, I said that we created dogs, which is an oversimplification of a complex process that scientists are still trying to figure out. Without a doubt though, we had an impact on where dogs came from and their evolution through a process called domestication. The theory is that a group of friendly wolves started interacting with our ancestors — though whether those ancestors were hunter-gatherers or the first agrarian people is still up for debate.

Either way, these wolves self-domesticated themselves by starting to interact with us and then we did the rest by breeding for the traits we liked best. That produced various breeds of dogs, some that still exist today largely unchanged, some that went extinct and some that we started to domesticate but didn’t fully complete the process, for example, dingoes. (More on dingoes later.) We’re still creating new breeds of dogs even to this day — in fact, four new breeds were just recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC).

2. Hypersociabilty:

It’s sometimes hard to believe that all the dogs we know and love today came from one or two populations of friendly wolves. But what made the wolf-like ancestor of our dogs so friendly to us? A recent study suggests that they might have had a variant in their genome that causes Williams-Beuren Syndrome (WBS) in humans.

WBS in people makes them hypersociable — for example, they are extremely friendly, outgoing and trusting. In dogs, this genetic variation might have led to the behaviors we associate with dogs today: overall friendliness, the way they love to interact with us and the fact that they make eye contact with us.

3. Using Facial Expressions to Communicate: 

Humans are somewhat unique in that we use facial expressions to communicate, along with language. Most animals don’t, and any expressions they make are involuntary and inactive means of communication.

Except for dogs, of course, according to a recent study. Dogs actively use facial expressions to communicate with us, too. In a press release, lead researcher Dr. Juliane Kaminski of the University of Portsmouth says, “The findings appear to support evidence [that] dogs are sensitive to humans’ attentions and that expressions are potentially active attempts to communicate, not simple emotional displays.”

4. Eye Contact:

No other canine likes making eye contact with us quite like dogs. And dogs do it to the extreme: Not only do they look to us for directions and information, but they also seem to just like staring into our eyes. This is another aspect of the gene variant that causes WBS in humans that was found in dogs. In fact, dogs evolving to regularly make eye contact with us may provide the most clues on how we domesticated dogs.

Can dingoes provide more clues to the question, “where do dogs come from?”

How and when we domesticated dogs is still largely unknown, but a recent study of dingoes might provide some more insight. As mentioned above, dingoes are a species of canine we started to domesticate, but when they were introduced to Australia, domestication stopped.

However, because ancient humans started to domesticate dingoes, it gives us a snapshot into the early domestication of dogs, according to Angie Johnston, Ph.D. student in Psychology at Yale University and lead researcher of the study, “Uncovering the origins of dog —human eye contact: dingoes establish eye contact more than wolves, but less than dogs.” The study revealed that dingoes do something that wolves don’t really do and dogs do all the time: Make eye contact.

“Previous work shows us that when you compare dogs and wolves, dogs are more likely to make eye contact with people,” Dr. Johnston says. “Eye contact is important for two species communicating with each other, but also for bonding and attachment. With dingoes, we found that they are more likely to make eye contact with humans than wolves were.”

According to the researchers, these findings suggest that dogs may have developed the motivation to make eye contact with people early in their domestication, but only developed the desire to maintain this contact later in their evolution.

“It might have been beneficial for the wolf-like ancestor of dogs and dingoes to make eye contact with humans in order to get food or similar,” Dr. Johnston says. Whatever the reason, this made such an impact on dog evolution that dingoes haven’t stopped making eye contact with humans, even after thousands of years as wild dogs. Because of that, dingoes might be the missing link in how wolves became dogs.

“Dingoes represent the kind of intermediate point of domestication,” Dr. Johnston says. “By comparing dogs and dingoes, it shows us what might have been influencing the changes we see over domestication.”

Thumbnail: Photography by Sergieiev/Shutterstock.

Read more about dogs in history on Dogster.com:

5 Dog Breeds With Fun and Historical Nicknames

All the President’s Pups: Meet FDR’s Dog, Fala

5 Dog Breeds Named — and in Some Cases Bred — for Their Color

The post Where Do Dogs Come From? appeared first on Dogster.

[daddyslittlejuliet]

Where Do Dogs Come From?

From the tall Great Dane to the tiny Chihuahua, us humans are used to being around dogs of all shapes and sizes. We’re so used to it, in fact, that we forget that humans more-or-less created dogs…. And how we did it is a question that still stumps scientists to this day. So, where do dogs come from? Let’s take a look.

Before we answer the question, “where do dogs come from,” let’s look at what dogs are

We bet you’ve wondered: “Where do dogs come from, in the first place?” Photography ©Aimes Element | Thinkstock.

While scientists don’t know exactly how and when and where dogs came from, we do know what dogs are. They are the species Canis lupus familiaris, a member or subspecies of the family Canis lupus. Other species in the Canis lupus include wolves, coyotes and dingoes, and they all share a common wolf-like ancestor.

Here is where things get tricky. Scientists aren’t sure exactly where the wolf-like ancestor that formed the modern dog came from. The general consensus is they came from Europe, but there has been recent evidence to suggest that dogs may also have originated in Asia, too. However, scientists largely agree on one thing: Around 9,000 to 34,000 years ago, our human ancestors met our dogs’ wolf-like ancestors, and started a relationship between our species that continues to this day. Even though that wolf-like ancestor is long extinct, its legacy lives on in the dogs we know today.

The evolution of dogs

Scientists are still trying to figure out where our dogs’ wolf-like ancestor originated from (either Europe or Asia, or both), but a recent study shows that all modern dogs might come from 23 ancestral dog clades. Over time, through interbreeding between the groups, dogs developed into the breeds we see today.

Science Magazine reports that, “The clades […] bring together dogs with similar traits: Thus, Boxers, Bulldogs, and Boston Terriers — all bred for strength — fall into one clade; whereas herders like Sheepdogs, Corgis and Collies fall into another; and hunters like Retrievers, Spaniels and Setters fall into a third.” Later on, the piece adds, “The data [shows] how some breeds helped create others, as they share DNA with multiple clades.”

In conclusion, according to Science Magazine, “The grouping of different breeds that share particular jobs suggests that ancient breeders likely bred dogs for specific purposes, choosing to care for those that were best at guarding or herding. Then, in the past 200 years, people subdivided those larger groups into breeds.”

What breeds were ancient dogs?

The Alaskan Malamute is an ancient dog breed. Photography by Darina Matasova/Shutterstock.

So, what were the first dog breeds? Research varies, according to the Dogster article, Extinct, Primitive or Ancient: Which Are the Oldest Dog Breeds? The general consensus is that the following are the most ancient dog breeds:

Afghan Hound, a breed that originated in the Middle East

Akita, a breed that originated in Japan

Alaskan Malamute, a breed that originated in North America

Basenji, a breed that originated in ancient Egypt

Chinese Shar-Pei, a breed that originated in southern China

Chow Chow, a breed that originated in northern China

Saluki, a breed that originated in Egypt, and may be the oldest dog breed

Samoyed, a breed that originated in Siberia

Siberian Husky, a breed that originated in northeast Asia

The most popular dog breeds today

Given that we’ve had dogs around for 9,000 to 30,000 years, is it safe to say that they’ve always been the most popular pets? While popular pets have changed over the millennia, nowadays, there are always top contenders for the most popular dog breeds. The American Kennel Club (AKC) releases the most popular dog breed rankings every year, with Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherd Dogs taking the top slots.

In the United Kingdom, Labrador Retrievers and Cocker Spaniels are the most popular dogs, followed closely by French Bulldogs. In China, according to eChinaSites.com, Siberian Huskies and Labrador Retrievers top the list.

While there are no official stats from other countries, in 2014, an app called Klooff did a survey of the top dogs around the world, based on posts from their users. They created an infographic, which Business Insider reported on.

No matter where dogs come from, they’re a unique species 

Dogs are a unique species, and the traits that make them unique may be the direct result of their relationship with humans. It cannot be overstated how much mankind’s influence shaped the dogs we know and love today, and made them so different from other canines and other animals.

Here are the many ways dogs are unique:

1. Domestication:

Earlier, I said that we created dogs, which is an oversimplification of a complex process that scientists are still trying to figure out. Without a doubt though, we had an impact on where dogs came from and their evolution through a process called domestication. The theory is that a group of friendly wolves started interacting with our ancestors — though whether those ancestors were hunter-gatherers or the first agrarian people is still up for debate.

Either way, these wolves self-domesticated themselves by starting to interact with us and then we did the rest by breeding for the traits we liked best. That produced various breeds of dogs, some that still exist today largely unchanged, some that went extinct and some that we started to domesticate but didn’t fully complete the process, for example, dingoes. (More on dingoes later.) We’re still creating new breeds of dogs even to this day — in fact, four new breeds were just recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC).

2. Hypersociabilty:

It’s sometimes hard to believe that all the dogs we know and love today came from one or two populations of friendly wolves. But what made the wolf-like ancestor of our dogs so friendly to us? A recent study suggests that they might have had a variant in their genome that causes Williams-Beuren Syndrome (WBS) in humans.

WBS in people makes them hypersociable — for example, they are extremely friendly, outgoing and trusting. In dogs, this genetic variation might have led to the behaviors we associate with dogs today: overall friendliness, the way they love to interact with us and the fact that they make eye contact with us.

3. Using Facial Expressions to Communicate: 

Humans are somewhat unique in that we use facial expressions to communicate, along with language. Most animals don’t, and any expressions they make are involuntary and inactive means of communication.

Except for dogs, of course, according to a recent study. Dogs actively use facial expressions to communicate with us, too. In a press release, lead researcher Dr. Juliane Kaminski of the University of Portsmouth says, “The findings appear to support evidence [that] dogs are sensitive to humans’ attentions and that expressions are potentially active attempts to communicate, not simple emotional displays.”

4. Eye Contact:

No other canine likes making eye contact with us quite like dogs. And dogs do it to the extreme: Not only do they look to us for directions and information, but they also seem to just like staring into our eyes. This is another aspect of the gene variant that causes WBS in humans that was found in dogs. In fact, dogs evolving to regularly make eye contact with us may provide the most clues on how we domesticated dogs.

Can dingoes provide more clues to the question, “where do dogs come from?”

How and when we domesticated dogs is still largely unknown, but a recent study of dingoes might provide some more insight. As mentioned above, dingoes are a species of canine we started to domesticate, but when they were introduced to Australia, domestication stopped.

However, because ancient humans started to domesticate dingoes, it gives us a snapshot into the early domestication of dogs, according to Angie Johnston, Ph.D. student in Psychology at Yale University and lead researcher of the study, “Uncovering the origins of dog —human eye contact: dingoes establish eye contact more than wolves, but less than dogs.” The study revealed that dingoes do something that wolves don’t really do and dogs do all the time: Make eye contact.

“Previous work shows us that when you compare dogs and wolves, dogs are more likely to make eye contact with people,” Dr. Johnston says. “Eye contact is important for two species communicating with each other, but also for bonding and attachment. With dingoes, we found that they are more likely to make eye contact with humans than wolves were.”

According to the researchers, these findings suggest that dogs may have developed the motivation to make eye contact with people early in their domestication, but only developed the desire to maintain this contact later in their evolution.

“It might have been beneficial for the wolf-like ancestor of dogs and dingoes to make eye contact with humans in order to get food or similar,” Dr. Johnston says. Whatever the reason, this made such an impact on dog evolution that dingoes haven’t stopped making eye contact with humans, even after thousands of years as wild dogs. Because of that, dingoes might be the missing link in how wolves became dogs.

“Dingoes represent the kind of intermediate point of domestication,” Dr. Johnston says. “By comparing dogs and dingoes, it shows us what might have been influencing the changes we see over domestication.”

Thumbnail: Photography by Sergieiev/Shutterstock.

Read more about dogs in history on Dogster.com:

5 Dog Breeds With Fun and Historical Nicknames

All the President’s Pups: Meet FDR’s Dog, Fala

5 Dog Breeds Named — and in Some Cases Bred — for Their Color

The post Where Do Dogs Come From? appeared first on Dogster.

[jeffreyrwelch]

Where Do Dogs Come From?

From the tall Great Dane to the tiny Chihuahua, us humans are used to being around dogs of all shapes and sizes. We’re so used to it, in fact, that we forget that humans more-or-less created dogs…. And how we did it is a question that still stumps scientists to this day. So, where do dogs come from? Let’s take a look.

Before we answer the question, “where do dogs come from,” let’s look at what dogs are

We bet you’ve wondered: “Where do dogs come from, in the first place?” Photography ©Aimes Element | Thinkstock.

While scientists don’t know exactly how and when and where dogs came from, we do know what dogs are. They are the species Canis lupus familiaris, a member or subspecies of the family Canis lupus. Other species in the Canis lupus include wolves, coyotes and dingoes, and they all share a common wolf-like ancestor.

Here is where things get tricky. Scientists aren’t sure exactly where the wolf-like ancestor that formed the modern dog came from. The general consensus is they came from Europe, but there has been recent evidence to suggest that dogs may also have originated in Asia, too. However, scientists largely agree on one thing: Around 9,000 to 34,000 years ago, our human ancestors met our dogs’ wolf-like ancestors, and started a relationship between our species that continues to this day. Even though that wolf-like ancestor is long extinct, its legacy lives on in the dogs we know today.

The evolution of dogs

Scientists are still trying to figure out where our dogs’ wolf-like ancestor originated from (either Europe or Asia, or both), but a recent study shows that all modern dogs might come from 23 ancestral dog clades. Over time, through interbreeding between the groups, dogs developed into the breeds we see today.

Science Magazine reports that, “The clades […] bring together dogs with similar traits: Thus, Boxers, Bulldogs, and Boston Terriers — all bred for strength — fall into one clade; whereas herders like Sheepdogs, Corgis and Collies fall into another; and hunters like Retrievers, Spaniels and Setters fall into a third.” Later on, the piece adds, “The data [shows] how some breeds helped create others, as they share DNA with multiple clades.”

In conclusion, according to Science Magazine, “The grouping of different breeds that share particular jobs suggests that ancient breeders likely bred dogs for specific purposes, choosing to care for those that were best at guarding or herding. Then, in the past 200 years, people subdivided those larger groups into breeds.”

What breeds were ancient dogs?

The Alaskan Malamute is an ancient dog breed. Photography by Darina Matasova/Shutterstock.

So, what were the first dog breeds? Research varies, according to the Dogster article, Extinct, Primitive or Ancient: Which Are the Oldest Dog Breeds? The general consensus is that the following are the most ancient dog breeds:

Afghan Hound, a breed that originated in the Middle East

Akita, a breed that originated in Japan

Alaskan Malamute, a breed that originated in North America

Basenji, a breed that originated in ancient Egypt

Chinese Shar-Pei, a breed that originated in southern China

Chow Chow, a breed that originated in northern China

Saluki, a breed that originated in Egypt, and may be the oldest dog breed

Samoyed, a breed that originated in Siberia

Siberian Husky, a breed that originated in northeast Asia

The most popular dog breeds today

Given that we’ve had dogs around for 9,000 to 30,000 years, is it safe to say that they’ve always been the most popular pets? While popular pets have changed over the millennia, nowadays, there are always top contenders for the most popular dog breeds. The American Kennel Club (AKC) releases the most popular dog breed rankings every year, with Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherd Dogs taking the top slots.

In the United Kingdom, Labrador Retrievers and Cocker Spaniels are the most popular dogs, followed closely by French Bulldogs. In China, according to eChinaSites.com, Siberian Huskies and Labrador Retrievers top the list.

While there are no official stats from other countries, in 2014, an app called Klooff did a survey of the top dogs around the world, based on posts from their users. They created an infographic, which Business Insider reported on.

No matter where dogs come from, they’re a unique species 

Dogs are a unique species, and the traits that make them unique may be the direct result of their relationship with humans. It cannot be overstated how much mankind’s influence shaped the dogs we know and love today, and made them so different from other canines and other animals.

Here are the many ways dogs are unique:

1. Domestication:

Earlier, I said that we created dogs, which is an oversimplification of a complex process that scientists are still trying to figure out. Without a doubt though, we had an impact on where dogs came from and their evolution through a process called domestication. The theory is that a group of friendly wolves started interacting with our ancestors — though whether those ancestors were hunter-gatherers or the first agrarian people is still up for debate.

Either way, these wolves self-domesticated themselves by starting to interact with us and then we did the rest by breeding for the traits we liked best. That produced various breeds of dogs, some that still exist today largely unchanged, some that went extinct and some that we started to domesticate but didn’t fully complete the process, for example, dingoes. (More on dingoes later.) We’re still creating new breeds of dogs even to this day — in fact, four new breeds were just recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC).

2. Hypersociabilty:

It’s sometimes hard to believe that all the dogs we know and love today came from one or two populations of friendly wolves. But what made the wolf-like ancestor of our dogs so friendly to us? A recent study suggests that they might have had a variant in their genome that causes Williams-Beuren Syndrome (WBS) in humans.

WBS in people makes them hypersociable — for example, they are extremely friendly, outgoing and trusting. In dogs, this genetic variation might have led to the behaviors we associate with dogs today: overall friendliness, the way they love to interact with us and the fact that they make eye contact with us.

3. Using Facial Expressions to Communicate: 

Humans are somewhat unique in that we use facial expressions to communicate, along with language. Most animals don’t, and any expressions they make are involuntary and inactive means of communication.

Except for dogs, of course, according to a recent study. Dogs actively use facial expressions to communicate with us, too. In a press release, lead researcher Dr. Juliane Kaminski of the University of Portsmouth says, “The findings appear to support evidence [that] dogs are sensitive to humans’ attentions and that expressions are potentially active attempts to communicate, not simple emotional displays.”

4. Eye Contact:

No other canine likes making eye contact with us quite like dogs. And dogs do it to the extreme: Not only do they look to us for directions and information, but they also seem to just like staring into our eyes. This is another aspect of the gene variant that causes WBS in humans that was found in dogs. In fact, dogs evolving to regularly make eye contact with us may provide the most clues on how we domesticated dogs.

Can dingoes provide more clues to the question, “where do dogs come from?”

How and when we domesticated dogs is still largely unknown, but a recent study of dingoes might provide some more insight. As mentioned above, dingoes are a species of canine we started to domesticate, but when they were introduced to Australia, domestication stopped.

However, because ancient humans started to domesticate dingoes, it gives us a snapshot into the early domestication of dogs, according to Angie Johnston, Ph.D. student in Psychology at Yale University and lead researcher of the study, “Uncovering the origins of dog —human eye contact: dingoes establish eye contact more than wolves, but less than dogs.” The study revealed that dingoes do something that wolves don’t really do and dogs do all the time: Make eye contact.

“Previous work shows us that when you compare dogs and wolves, dogs are more likely to make eye contact with people,” Dr. Johnston says. “Eye contact is important for two species communicating with each other, but also for bonding and attachment. With dingoes, we found that they are more likely to make eye contact with humans than wolves were.”

According to the researchers, these findings suggest that dogs may have developed the motivation to make eye contact with people early in their domestication, but only developed the desire to maintain this contact later in their evolution.

“It might have been beneficial for the wolf-like ancestor of dogs and dingoes to make eye contact with humans in order to get food or similar,” Dr. Johnston says. Whatever the reason, this made such an impact on dog evolution that dingoes haven’t stopped making eye contact with humans, even after thousands of years as wild dogs. Because of that, dingoes might be the missing link in how wolves became dogs.

“Dingoes represent the kind of intermediate point of domestication,” Dr. Johnston says. “By comparing dogs and dingoes, it shows us what might have been influencing the changes we see over domestication.”

Thumbnail: Photography by Sergieiev/Shutterstock.

Read more about dogs in history on Dogster.com:

5 Dog Breeds With Fun and Historical Nicknames

All the President’s Pups: Meet FDR’s Dog, Fala

5 Dog Breeds Named — and in Some Cases Bred — for Their Color

The post Where Do Dogs Come From? appeared first on Dogster.

[simphonyoflife]

many kilometers from Oasis Springs, Gwendolyn celebrated her birthday. Her grandparents had passed away and she lived alone with her uncle Leander. She was a happy child until this birthday, which changed everything…

[stiles-wtf]

Where Do Dogs Come From?

From the tall Great Dane to the tiny Chihuahua, us humans are used to being around dogs of all shapes and sizes. We’re so used to it, in fact, that we forget that humans more-or-less created dogs…. And how we did it is a question that still stumps scientists to this day. So, where do dogs come from? Let’s take a look.

Before we answer the question, “where do dogs come from,” let’s look at what dogs are

We bet you’ve wondered: “Where do dogs come from, in the first place?” Photography ©Aimes Element | Thinkstock.

While scientists don’t know exactly how and when and where dogs came from, we do know what dogs are. They are the species Canis lupus familiaris, a member or subspecies of the family Canis lupus. Other species in the Canis lupus include wolves, coyotes and dingoes, and they all share a common wolf-like ancestor.

Here is where things get tricky. Scientists aren’t sure exactly where the wolf-like ancestor that formed the modern dog came from. The general consensus is they came from Europe, but there has been recent evidence to suggest that dogs may also have originated in Asia, too. However, scientists largely agree on one thing: Around 9,000 to 34,000 years ago, our human ancestors met our dogs’ wolf-like ancestors, and started a relationship between our species that continues to this day. Even though that wolf-like ancestor is long extinct, its legacy lives on in the dogs we know today.

The evolution of dogs

Scientists are still trying to figure out where our dogs’ wolf-like ancestor originated from (either Europe or Asia, or both), but a recent study shows that all modern dogs might come from 23 ancestral dog clades. Over time, through interbreeding between the groups, dogs developed into the breeds we see today.

Science Magazine reports that, “The clades […] bring together dogs with similar traits: Thus, Boxers, Bulldogs, and Boston Terriers — all bred for strength — fall into one clade; whereas herders like Sheepdogs, Corgis and Collies fall into another; and hunters like Retrievers, Spaniels and Setters fall into a third.” Later on, the piece adds, “The data [shows] how some breeds helped create others, as they share DNA with multiple clades.”

In conclusion, according to Science Magazine, “The grouping of different breeds that share particular jobs suggests that ancient breeders likely bred dogs for specific purposes, choosing to care for those that were best at guarding or herding. Then, in the past 200 years, people subdivided those larger groups into breeds.”

What breeds were ancient dogs?

The Alaskan Malamute is an ancient dog breed. Photography by Darina Matasova/Shutterstock.

So, what were the first dog breeds? Research varies, according to the Dogster article, Extinct, Primitive or Ancient: Which Are the Oldest Dog Breeds? The general consensus is that the following are the most ancient dog breeds:

Afghan Hound, a breed that originated in the Middle East

Akita, a breed that originated in Japan

Alaskan Malamute, a breed that originated in North America

Basenji, a breed that originated in ancient Egypt

Chinese Shar-Pei, a breed that originated in southern China

Chow Chow, a breed that originated in northern China

Saluki, a breed that originated in Egypt, and may be the oldest dog breed

Samoyed, a breed that originated in Siberia

Siberian Husky, a breed that originated in northeast Asia

The most popular dog breeds today

Given that we’ve had dogs around for 9,000 to 30,000 years, is it safe to say that they’ve always been the most popular pets? While popular pets have changed over the millennia, nowadays, there are always top contenders for the most popular dog breeds. The American Kennel Club (AKC) releases the most popular dog breed rankings every year, with Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherd Dogs taking the top slots.

In the United Kingdom, Labrador Retrievers and Cocker Spaniels are the most popular dogs, followed closely by French Bulldogs. In China, according to eChinaSites.com, Siberian Huskies and Labrador Retrievers top the list.

While there are no official stats from other countries, in 2014, an app called Klooff did a survey of the top dogs around the world, based on posts from their users. They created an infographic, which Business Insider reported on.

No matter where dogs come from, they’re a unique species 

Dogs are a unique species, and the traits that make them unique may be the direct result of their relationship with humans. It cannot be overstated how much mankind’s influence shaped the dogs we know and love today, and made them so different from other canines and other animals.

Here are the many ways dogs are unique:

1. Domestication:

Earlier, I said that we created dogs, which is an oversimplification of a complex process that scientists are still trying to figure out. Without a doubt though, we had an impact on where dogs came from and their evolution through a process called domestication. The theory is that a group of friendly wolves started interacting with our ancestors — though whether those ancestors were hunter-gatherers or the first agrarian people is still up for debate.

Either way, these wolves self-domesticated themselves by starting to interact with us and then we did the rest by breeding for the traits we liked best. That produced various breeds of dogs, some that still exist today largely unchanged, some that went extinct and some that we started to domesticate but didn’t fully complete the process, for example, dingoes. (More on dingoes later.) We’re still creating new breeds of dogs even to this day — in fact, four new breeds were just recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC).

2. Hypersociabilty:

It’s sometimes hard to believe that all the dogs we know and love today came from one or two populations of friendly wolves. But what made the wolf-like ancestor of our dogs so friendly to us? A recent study suggests that they might have had a variant in their genome that causes Williams-Beuren Syndrome (WBS) in humans.

WBS in people makes them hypersociable — for example, they are extremely friendly, outgoing and trusting. In dogs, this genetic variation might have led to the behaviors we associate with dogs today: overall friendliness, the way they love to interact with us and the fact that they make eye contact with us.

3. Using Facial Expressions to Communicate: 

Humans are somewhat unique in that we use facial expressions to communicate, along with language. Most animals don’t, and any expressions they make are involuntary and inactive means of communication.

Except for dogs, of course, according to a recent study. Dogs actively use facial expressions to communicate with us, too. In a press release, lead researcher Dr. Juliane Kaminski of the University of Portsmouth says, “The findings appear to support evidence [that] dogs are sensitive to humans’ attentions and that expressions are potentially active attempts to communicate, not simple emotional displays.”

4. Eye Contact:

No other canine likes making eye contact with us quite like dogs. And dogs do it to the extreme: Not only do they look to us for directions and information, but they also seem to just like staring into our eyes. This is another aspect of the gene variant that causes WBS in humans that was found in dogs. In fact, dogs evolving to regularly make eye contact with us may provide the most clues on how we domesticated dogs.

Can dingoes provide more clues to the question, “where do dogs come from?”

How and when we domesticated dogs is still largely unknown, but a recent study of dingoes might provide some more insight. As mentioned above, dingoes are a species of canine we started to domesticate, but when they were introduced to Australia, domestication stopped.

However, because ancient humans started to domesticate dingoes, it gives us a snapshot into the early domestication of dogs, according to Angie Johnston, Ph.D. student in Psychology at Yale University and lead researcher of the study, “Uncovering the origins of dog —human eye contact: dingoes establish eye contact more than wolves, but less than dogs.” The study revealed that dingoes do something that wolves don’t really do and dogs do all the time: Make eye contact.

“Previous work shows us that when you compare dogs and wolves, dogs are more likely to make eye contact with people,” Dr. Johnston says. “Eye contact is important for two species communicating with each other, but also for bonding and attachment. With dingoes, we found that they are more likely to make eye contact with humans than wolves were.”

According to the researchers, these findings suggest that dogs may have developed the motivation to make eye contact with people early in their domestication, but only developed the desire to maintain this contact later in their evolution.

“It might have been beneficial for the wolf-like ancestor of dogs and dingoes to make eye contact with humans in order to get food or similar,” Dr. Johnston says. Whatever the reason, this made such an impact on dog evolution that dingoes haven’t stopped making eye contact with humans, even after thousands of years as wild dogs. Because of that, dingoes might be the missing link in how wolves became dogs.

“Dingoes represent the kind of intermediate point of domestication,” Dr. Johnston says. “By comparing dogs and dingoes, it shows us what might have been influencing the changes we see over domestication.”

Thumbnail: Photography by Sergieiev/Shutterstock.

Read more about dogs in history on Dogster.com:

5 Dog Breeds With Fun and Historical Nicknames

All the President’s Pups: Meet FDR’s Dog, Fala

5 Dog Breeds Named — and in Some Cases Bred — for Their Color

The post Where Do Dogs Come From? appeared first on Dogster.

[grublypetcare]

Where Do Dogs Come From?

From the tall Great Dane to the tiny Chihuahua, us humans are used to being around dogs of all shapes and sizes. We’re so used to it, in fact, that we forget that humans more-or-less created dogs…. And how we did it is a question that still stumps scientists to this day. So, where do dogs come from? Let’s take a look.

Before we answer the question, “where do dogs come from,” let’s look at what dogs are

We bet you’ve wondered: “Where do dogs come from, in the first place?” Photography ©Aimes Element | Thinkstock.

While scientists don’t know exactly how and when and where dogs came from, we do know what dogs are. They are the species Canis lupus familiaris, a member or subspecies of the family Canis lupus. Other species in the Canis lupus include wolves, coyotes and dingoes, and they all share a common wolf-like ancestor.

Here is where things get tricky. Scientists aren’t sure exactly where the wolf-like ancestor that formed the modern dog came from. The general consensus is they came from Europe, but there has been recent evidence to suggest that dogs may also have originated in Asia, too. However, scientists largely agree on one thing: Around 9,000 to 34,000 years ago, our human ancestors met our dogs’ wolf-like ancestors, and started a relationship between our species that continues to this day. Even though that wolf-like ancestor is long extinct, its legacy lives on in the dogs we know today.

The evolution of dogs

Scientists are still trying to figure out where our dogs’ wolf-like ancestor originated from (either Europe or Asia, or both), but a recent study shows that all modern dogs might come from 23 ancestral dog clades. Over time, through interbreeding between the groups, dogs developed into the breeds we see today.

Science Magazine reports that, “The clades […] bring together dogs with similar traits: Thus, Boxers, Bulldogs, and Boston Terriers — all bred for strength — fall into one clade; whereas herders like Sheepdogs, Corgis and Collies fall into another; and hunters like Retrievers, Spaniels and Setters fall into a third.” Later on, the piece adds, “The data [shows] how some breeds helped create others, as they share DNA with multiple clades.”

In conclusion, according to Science Magazine, “The grouping of different breeds that share particular jobs suggests that ancient breeders likely bred dogs for specific purposes, choosing to care for those that were best at guarding or herding. Then, in the past 200 years, people subdivided those larger groups into breeds.” 

What breeds were ancient dogs?

The Alaskan Malamute is an ancient dog breed. Photography by Darina Matasova/Shutterstock.

So, what were the first dog breeds? Research varies, according to the Dogster article, Extinct, Primitive or Ancient: Which Are the Oldest Dog Breeds? The general consensus is that the following are the most ancient dog breeds:

Afghan Hound, a breed that originated in the Middle East

Akita, a breed that originated in Japan

Alaskan Malamute, a breed that originated in North America

Basenji, a breed that originated in ancient Egypt

Chinese Shar-Pei, a breed that originated in southern China

Chow Chow, a breed that originated in northern China

Saluki, a breed that originated in Egypt, and may be the oldest dog breed

Samoyed, a breed that originated in Siberia

Siberian Husky, a breed that originated in northeast Asia

The most popular dog breeds today

Given that we’ve had dogs around for 9,000 to 30,000 years, is it safe to say that they’ve always been the most popular pets? While popular pets have changed over the millennia, nowadays, there are always top contenders for the most popular dog breeds. The American Kennel Club (AKC) releases the most popular dog breed rankings every year, with Labrador Retrievers and German Shepherd Dogs taking the top slots.

In the United Kingdom, Labrador Retrievers and Cocker Spaniels are the most popular dogs, followed closely by French Bulldogs. In China, according to eChinaSites.com, Siberian Huskies and Labrador Retrievers top the list.

While there are no official stats from other countries, in 2014, an app called Klooff did a survey of the top dogs around the world, based on posts from their users. They created an infographic, which Business Insider reported on.

No matter where dogs come from, they’re a unique species 

Dogs are a unique species, and the traits that make them unique may be the direct result of their relationship with humans. It cannot be overstated how much mankind’s influence shaped the dogs we know and love today, and made them so different from other canines and other animals.

Here are the many ways dogs are unique:

1. Domestication:

Earlier, I said that we created dogs, which is an oversimplification of a complex process that scientists are still trying to figure out. Without a doubt though, we had an impact on where dogs came from and their evolution through a process called domestication. The theory is that a group of friendly wolves started interacting with our ancestors — though whether those ancestors were hunter-gatherers or the first agrarian people is still up for debate.

Either way, these wolves self-domesticated themselves by starting to interact with us and then we did the rest by breeding for the traits we liked best. That produced various breeds of dogs, some that still exist today largely unchanged, some that went extinct and some that we started to domesticate but didn’t fully complete the process, for example, dingoes. (More on dingoes later.) We’re still creating new breeds of dogs even to this day — in fact, four new breeds were just recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC). 

2. Hypersociabilty:

It’s sometimes hard to believe that all the dogs we know and love today came from one or two populations of friendly wolves. But what made the wolf-like ancestor of our dogs so friendly to us? A recent study suggests that they might have had a variant in their genome that causes Williams-Beuren Syndrome (WBS) in humans.

WBS in people makes them hypersociable — for example, they are extremely friendly, outgoing and trusting. In dogs, this genetic variation might have led to the behaviors we associate with dogs today: overall friendliness, the way they love to interact with us and the fact that they make eye contact with us.

3. Using Facial Expressions to Communicate: 

Humans are somewhat unique in that we use facial expressions to communicate, along with language. Most animals don’t, and any expressions they make are involuntary and inactive means of communication.

Except for dogs, of course, according to a recent study. Dogs actively use facial expressions to communicate with us, too. In a press release, lead researcher Dr. Juliane Kaminski of the University of Portsmouth says, “The findings appear to support evidence [that] dogs are sensitive to humans’ attentions and that expressions are potentially active attempts to communicate, not simple emotional displays.”

4. Eye Contact: 

No other canine likes making eye contact with us quite like dogs. And dogs do it to the extreme: Not only do they look to us for directions and information, but they also seem to just like staring into our eyes. This is another aspect of the gene variant that causes WBS in humans that was found in dogs. In fact, dogs evolving to regularly make eye contact with us may provide the most clues on how we domesticated dogs.

Can dingoes provide more clues to the question, “where do dogs come from?”

How and when we domesticated dogs is still largely unknown, but a recent study of dingoes might provide some more insight. As mentioned above, dingoes are a species of canine we started to domesticate, but when they were introduced to Australia, domestication stopped.

However, because ancient humans started to domesticate dingoes, it gives us a snapshot into the early domestication of dogs, according to Angie Johnston, Ph.D. student in Psychology at Yale University and lead researcher of the study, “Uncovering the origins of dog —human eye contact: dingoes establish eye contact more than wolves, but less than dogs.” The study revealed that dingoes do something that wolves don’t really do and dogs do all the time: Make eye contact.

“Previous work shows us that when you compare dogs and wolves, dogs are more likely to make eye contact with people,” Dr. Johnston says. “Eye contact is important for two species communicating with each other, but also for bonding and attachment. With dingoes, we found that they are more likely to make eye contact with humans than wolves were.”

According to the researchers, these findings suggest that dogs may have developed the motivation to make eye contact with people early in their domestication, but only developed the desire to maintain this contact later in their evolution.

“It might have been beneficial for the wolf-like ancestor of dogs and dingoes to make eye contact with humans in order to get food or similar,” Dr. Johnston says. Whatever the reason, this made such an impact on dog evolution that dingoes haven’t stopped making eye contact with humans, even after thousands of years as wild dogs. Because of that, dingoes might be the missing link in how wolves became dogs.

“Dingoes represent the kind of intermediate point of domestication,” Dr. Johnston says. “By comparing dogs and dingoes, it shows us what might have been influencing the changes we see over domestication.”

Thumbnail: Photography by Sergieiev/Shutterstock.

Read more about dogs in history on Dogster.com:

5 Dog Breeds With Fun and Historical Nicknames

All the President’s Pups: Meet FDR’s Dog, Fala

5 Dog Breeds Named — and in Some Cases Bred — for Their Color

The post Where Do Dogs Come From? appeared first on Dogster.

[simphonyoflife]

Louana appeared at Ryder and Darina's from time to time. Not that she trusted him, but he seemed to be good for her daughter and she accepted that Darina needed her freedom. Ryder kept her up to date, including about the pregnancy. Unfortunately, no one could have guessed that one day Louana would no longer come to visit…

[simphonyoflife]

In the weeks that followed, Darina became increasingly unwell. She had initially believed that it was the emotional stress that was taking its toll on her. But when her period stopped and she took a test, she knew that the reason for the queasy feeling in her stomach was something else… She was pregnant again.

[simphonyoflife]

There wasn't really an excuse for what Darina had done, and probably an apology was inappropriate if you didn't intend to change your behavior. One thing was clear, Darina was now at university, living in student accommodation. She wasn't able to look after a baby. Louana made her disappointment clear, but in the end it came down to Gwen staying with Louana. And Gwen didn't seem too positive about Darina either, and she could hardly know who Darina was…

[simphonyoflife]

coffee and kisses