Comparative analysis of morphological and behavioral characters in the domestic dog and their importance in the reconstruction of phylogenetic relationships in canids

Relationships among 25 dog breeds, classified a priori by their respective ancestral trunks, were studied using data from 29 morphological and 13 behavioral characteristics. Although a certain correlation was found between both types of traits (r = 0.13; P < 0.05), this relationship was not manifested, regarding the level of racial classification, in the obtained dendrograms. The relationships between breeds obtained from morphological data were more congruent than those obtained from behavioral data when compared with phylogenies from other sources of information (mainly electrophoretic analysis). This indicates that the morphological characters could give more and better complementary information than the behavioral ones in the reconstruction of the phylogenetic relationships of canids. The mean character difference (MCD), used as a measure of taxonomic resemblance between breeds, had a value of 0.53 (+ or - 0.12 STD), and was of a magnitude very similar to that obtained in other domestic animal species (cattle, horse, sheep and goats), indicating that a similar degree of morphological differences between breeds of these species exists.

Criterios de homologación entre las cinturas escapular y pélvica y sus estructuras asociadas / Homologation criterion between the scapular and pelvic waists and their associated structures

Habitualmente las cinturas se estudian en forma separada junto al miembro correspondiente. Los músculos asociados a ellas se reunen en base a un criterio exclusivamente topográfico, resultando los siguientes grupos; músculos del dorso, del cuello, del tórax y del miembro pelviano. Para el miembro torácico se los trata como músculos comunes del miembro, sin tener en cuenta su inserción ni su intervación. En este trabajo se establecen los criterios de homotipia entre ambas cinturas y se proponen pautas para homologar los músculos que unen los miembros torácicos y pelvianos con el esqueleto axial. Para ello, se recurre a su clasificación en extrínsecos e intrínsecos, en base a su origen embriológico, inserción e inervación

Some anatomical studies on the biceps femoris muscle in some domestic animals

The biceps femoris muscle is one of the caudal femoral muscles which share in the formation of the calcanceal tendon in all studied animals. The biceps femoris muscle, has an ischiatic head and a vertebral head. The presence of the vertebral head depends upon the mode of the locomotion of the animal. There is no vertebral head in case of the dog. The rabbit has only one vertebral head. The vertebral head fuses with the gluteal muscle to form the gluteobiceps muscle in the ruminats and camel. There are two vertebral heads, in donkey. The biceps femoris is the strongest and heaviest muscle of caudal femoral muscles and is more developed in camel, dog and rabbit. The belly is single and broad sheet in rabbit or divided into two unequal parts which are separated either completely as in donkey or incompletely as in ruminats and camel. In dog, the belly, is divided into three parts [superficial, intermediate and deep heads]. The belly is quadrilateral in outline in all studied animals except in dog which is triangular. The muscle terminates by strong anoneurosis which is short in dog. The cranial part is inserted in the patella, the middle part in the cranial border of the tibia while the caudal one in the calcaneal tendon, through the lateral tarsal tendon

Anatomical studies on some medial femoral muscles of the one humped camel, donkey, cattle, sheep, dog and rabbit

This work included the study of Mm. gracilis, semimembranosus and semitendinosus, in case of camel [walking for long period], donkey, cattle, sheep [long st and ing animals], dog and rabbit [rapid fasting animals]. The muscles which shared in the formation of the calcaneal tendon were the Mm. gracilis and semitendinosus in addition to the M. semimembranosus in donkey and ruminants. The superficial surface of M. gracilis was covered by a well developed aponeurosis area in donkey, ruminants and camel. This layer was not grossly observed in dog and rabbit. It was well developed cranially in donkey and ruminants and caudally in camel, while its distal extension was well developed in donkey followed by ruminants and camel. The calcaneal insertion of M. semimembranosus depends upon its location. When it was superficially located it shared in the formation of the calcaneal tendon as in the donkey, ruminants and camel. In dog and rabbit, it was deeply located so it has no calcaneal insertion. The morphology, origin and insertion of the three muscles were studied in all these animals

study of the gross anatomical features of the gastrocnemius muscle in some domesticated animals according to the mode of the location

The M. gastrocnemius is one of the muscles which shares in the formation of the calcaneal tendon in all studied species. The gastrocnemius muscle is formed of a medial and lateral heads, in addition to an intermediate part in the gastrocnemius M. of the donkey, cattle and dog. In rapid fasting animals, as rabbits, the fibrous tissue of the muscle was scanty and therefore, the muscle was highly muscular and consequently the calcaneal tendon appeared short and ill developed. Such features were also observed in dog, but in this animal, the fibrous tissue was somewhat developed, therefore the intermediate part of the gastrocnemius muscle could be observed. On the contrary, the reverse configuration was in the supporting animals as donkey, in these animals the fibrous tissue was well developed, the intermediate part was well demarcated and the plantaris muscle was entirely fibrous and completely separated from the overlapping lateral head of M. gastrocnemius. Consequently, the calcaneal tendon was long and strong. In ruminants the demarcation of the intermediate part as well as the degree of development of the fibrous tissue within both gastrocnemius and M. plantaris occupied an intermediate position between the highly fibrous one [donkey] and the highly muscular one [rabbits]. In the supporting animal for long time [camel], the muscle showed great similarly to those of the donkey