A few years ago, the folk singer Tom Rush released an album that included some disparaging comments about the Chinese crested dog. The researchers found several breeds that shared large chunks of DNA not found in other breeds: the Chihuahua, Chinese crested dog, rat terrier, toy fox terrier, American hairless terrier, Mexican hairless (or Xoloitzcuintli) and Peruvian hairless. The Chinese crested dog, despite its name, seems not to have come from Asia at all. The study shows how recent human movements affected dog breeds. As for Mr. Rush’s dogs, they were not plain old Chinese crested dogs.

Source: New York Times April 25, 2017 15:56 UTC