From bassets to slim Weimaraners with smooth and shiny coat: dogs are characterised by an amazing variety when it comes to their bodies. The research by The American Naturalist published in 2010 showed that the difference in skull structure of dogs of different breeds are so distinct as it is in case of different species of mammals. For example, the skull of a Scottish Shepherd differs from the skull of a Pekingeses in the same way the cat’s skull differs from the skull of a walrus.
This very diversity makes dogs such a great species for conducting research on genes. It lets researchers match the genes with certain features, for example folds in Shar-Pei dogs or chunkily built Dachshunds.