Data revealed that the earliest dogs in North America arrived here already domesticated more than 10,000 years ago with man as he migrated to North America from Asia across the Bering Strait. The dogs were raised, bred and trained to hunt, herd, haul and protect families. In some tribes, families could have up to 30 dogs.
When European settlers arrived in the "new" world, the native dogs soon vanished - sometime after the 15th century. It is believed that their demise was likely due to a mix of disease, cultural persecution and biological changes. "It is fascinating that a population of dogs that inhabited many parts of the Americas for thousands of years, and that was an integral part of so many Native American cultures, could have disappeared so rapidly," said Laurent Frantz, an evolutionary geneticist.
According to researchers, "native dogs left little to no genetic trace of their existence on the modern dog population." A similar relationship between the native dogs and modern Eurasian Arctic dogs like the Siberian husky were found, but none appear to be direct descendants. "We still have some Neanderthal in us. But modern dogs don't have that ancient American dog DNA left in them," said Angela Perri, a zoo archaeologist.
