Dogs in pre-historic times in the Southwest

[Julie L]

For those of you interested in the history of the SW, and dogs, here's an article for you! http://www.cdarc.org/pdf/arch-sw-v22-no3.pdf

From the article: "More than mere witnesses to human history, however, dogs have served many purposes—as guards, hunting guides, draft animals, babysitters, bed warmers, cleanup crew, and food and fiber resources, to name a few."

It's interesting to read about and see photos or representations of the breeds that used to live here 100s of years ago too.

[William E. Hill III]

Fascinating article, Julie. I read quite a bit of history but have never seen anything like this, or much detail about dogs in historic Indian life. I find it really curious that there were so many breeds, even in one tribe. There must be a lot more research written about this. How in the world did so many different breeds happen to be in one area?

[Julie L]

I thought the same thing. How did breeds migrate so much. I'd expect the dogs to look the same for the most part but that's not the case at all. They are different sizes too, very small to very large. One author, Toby I think, lives in or near Santa Fe and I heard from an archaeologist I work with that she may be interested in doing a lecture in town if she were asked. Seems it could be a fund raising opportunity, or a good way to get dog lovers together. I mentioned it to Nina with Espanola AS. I should ask around some more to see if there's an interest.