Canine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A canine may refer to:
- A canine tooth.
- Any animal belonging to the Canidae family. (Sometimes foxes are excluded.)
- In common usage, a synonym for dog or an adjective meaning of or resembling a dog (for example, "canine companion" usually refers to a dog).
- Ralph J. Canine, first director of the National Security Agency.
 |
This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. |
Dogs belong to the genus Canine. While canines are similar to both mammals and reptiles, dogs occupy their own place within the animal kingdom. Canines are separated from mammals by their distinct diet, skeletal features, presence of multiple nursing glands for their young, and their inability to sweat (canines pant to release heat and cool their bodies as opposed to sweating). Canines are a rare subset within the animal kingdom in that they are not primates, reptiles, birds, fish, insects, or chickens. Dogs are their own distinct type of animal. Not only are they man’s best friend, they are also cat’s worst enemy. Canines are slightly envious of humans and other mammals for their possession of “canine” teeth even though humans are technically not canines. Dogs often wonder why humans are allowed to possess canine teeth while dogs are not allowed to possess “human” or “primate” or “lizard” or “woodpecker” teeth. This is a shocking double standard within the dental framework of all living creatures and an extreme injustice that should be remedied if canines are ever to be included within the mammal subset.
- David Bertling, Amateur Animal Kingdom Expert
