Dogs

Used in:

• Mosiah 7:49 [12:2]
• Alma 11:16 [16:10]
• Helaman 3:20 [7:19]
• III Nephi 3:43 [7:8]
• III Nephi 6:18 [14:6]

What does the Book of Mormon state?

• Dogs existed in the new world

At face value - Did dogs exist in the New World?

• Yes

Statement

• At the time of European contact there were many dog breeds, including a rather large, hairless breed that has since become extinct. These breeds were separate from the dogs used as guard dogs, for hunting, or for companionship. The raising of edible breeds was a lucrative profession, and the animals were fed a rich diet of maize and even large quantities of avocado.
• https://www.academia.edu/2525600/The_Food_and_Cuisine_of_Precolumbian_Mesoamerica (page 8)

Assessment

• Dogs are endemic to Mesoamerica

Additional Material

• There were at least five breeds of dog
• Common Mesoamerican dog
• Xoloitzcuintle (Mexican Hairless)
• Tlalchichi (medium size but with short legs - the product of achondroplasic dwarfism)
• Hybrids of wolf and dog
• Other breeds with no specific names yet
• The dog remains in Mexican archaeological sites are always abundant, being 20% of the total identified individuals.
• https://www.vin.com/apputil/content/defaultadv1.aspx?meta=Generic&pId=11196&id=3854294
• Other breeds
• Itzcuintepotzotli
• Aleo
• The Aleo is of the size of a horse, and like him, has been used in the chariot. (Note: This is also a reference that chariots were used in Mesoamerica)
• Present State of the Spanish Colonies; Including a Particular Report of Hispanola, or the Spanish Part of Santo Domingo, William Walton, 1810, p. 109
• https://archive.org/stream/presentstateofsp02walt/presentstateofsp02walt_djvu.txt (page 109)
• Itzcuintepotzotli
• Bred for food, hence the bulky shape (lower left of the page below)