canid

/ˈkænəd/

Other forms: canids

Canids are a family of mammals that include wolves, foxes, and jackals. Even if a pet Chihuahua is small enough to fit in a tote bag, it's still a canid.

The word canid is just a scientific way to say "dog." All dog-like animals fall into this category, and every canid can be traced back to a common ancestor — from dingoes and coyotes to the goofy Golden retriever that sneaks onto your bed every night. Canid is from the Modern Latin Canidae and a root word meaning "dog."

Definitions of canid

1. noun

   any of various fissiped mammals with nonretractile claws and typically long muzzles
   synonyms: canine

   types:

   bitch

   female of any member of the dog family

   Canis familiaris, dog, domestic dog

   a member of the genus Canis (probably descended from the common wolf) that has been domesticated by man since prehistoric times; occurs in many breeds

   wolf

   any of various predatory carnivorous canine mammals of North America and Eurasia that usually hunt in packs

   Canis aureus, jackal

   Old World nocturnal canine mammal closely related to the dog; smaller than a wolf; sometimes hunts in a pack but usually singly or as a member of a pair

   wild dog

   any of various undomesticated mammals of the family Canidae that are thought to resemble domestic dogs as distinguished from jackals or wolves

   hyaena, hyena

   doglike nocturnal mammal of Africa and southern Asia that feeds chiefly on carrion

   fox

   alert omnivorous mammal with pointed muzzle and ears and a bushy tail; most are predators that do not hunt in packs

   wolf cub, wolf pup

   a young wolf

   puppy

   a young dog

   brood bitch

   a bitch used for breeding

   barker, bow-wow, doggie, doggy, pooch

   informal terms for dogs

   cur, mongrel, mutt

   an inferior dog or one of mixed breed

   lapdog

   a dog small and tame enough to be held in the lap

   toy, toy dog

   any of several breeds of very small dogs kept purely as pets

   hunting dog

   a dog used in hunting game

   working dog

   any of several breeds of usually large powerful dogs bred to work as draft animals and guard and guide dogs

   Dalmatian, carriage dog, coach dog, dalmatian

   one of a breed of medium to large dogs with a smooth, white coat and black or brown spots

   basenji

   small smooth-haired breed of African origin having a tightly curled tail and the inability to bark

   pug, pug-dog

   a small, short-haired breed of dog with a tightly curled tail and flat, wrinkled muzzle; first bred in China

   Leonberg

   a large dog (usually with a golden coat) produced by crossing a St Bernard and a Newfoundland

   Newfoundland, Newfoundland dog

   a breed of very large heavy dogs with a thick coarse usually black coat; highly intelligent dogs and vigorous swimmers; developed in Newfoundland

   Great Pyrenees

   a very large, fluffy, white-coated dog originally bred for guarding livestock

   spitz

   any of various stocky heavy-coated breeds of dogs native to northern regions having pointed muzzles and erect ears with a curled furry tail

   Belgian griffon, Brussels griffon, griffon

   breed of various very small compact wiry-coated dogs of Belgian origin having a short bearded muzzle

   Welsh corgi, corgi

   either of two Welsh breeds of long-bodied short-legged dogs with erect ears and a fox-like head

   poodle, poodle dog

   an intelligent dog with a heavy curly solid-colored coat that is usually clipped; an old breed sometimes trained as sporting dogs or as performing dogs

   Mexican hairless

   any of an old breed of small nearly hairless dogs of Mexico

   Canis lupus, gray wolf, grey wolf, timber wolf

   a wolf with a brindled grey coat living in forested northern regions of North America

   Arctic wolf, Canis lupus tundrarum, white wolf

   wolf of Arctic North America having white fur and a black-tipped tail

   Canis niger, Canis rufus, maned wolf, red wolf

   reddish-grey wolf of southwestern North America

   Canis latrans, brush wolf, coyote, prairie wolf

   small wolf native to western North America

   Canis dingo, dingo, warragal, warrigal

   wolflike yellowish-brown wild dog of Australia

   Cuon alpinus, dhole

   fierce wild dog of the forests of central and southeast Asia that hunts in packs

   Dusicyon cancrivorus, crab-eating dog, crab-eating fox

   wild dog of northern South America

   Nyctereutes procyonides, raccoon dog

   small wild dog of eastern Asia having facial markings like those of a raccoon

   African hunting dog, Cape hunting dog, Lycaon pictus, hyena dog

   a powerful doglike mammal of southern and eastern Africa that hunts in large packs; now rare in settled area

   Hyaena hyaena, striped hyena

   of northern Africa and Arabia and India

   Hyaena brunnea, brown hyena, strand wolf

   of southern Africa

   Crocuta crocuta, laughing hyena, spotted hyena

   African hyena noted for its distinctive howl

   Proteles cristata, aardwolf

   striped hyena of southeast Africa that feeds chiefly on insects

   vixen

   a female fox

   Reynard

   a conventional name for a fox used in tales following usage in the old epic `Reynard the Fox'

   Vulpes vulpes, red fox

   the common Old World fox; having reddish-brown fur; commonly considered a single circumpolar species

   Vulpes fulva, red fox

   New World fox; often considered the same species as the Old World fox

   Vulpes velox, kit fox, prairie fox

   small grey fox of the plains of western North America

   Vulpes macrotis, kit fox

   small grey fox of southwestern United States; may be a subspecies of Vulpes velox

   Alopex lagopus, Arctic fox, white fox

   thickly-furred fox of Arctic regions; brownish in summer and white in winter

   Urocyon cinereoargenteus, gray fox, grey fox

   dark grey American fox; from Central America through southern United States

   type of:

   carnivore

   a terrestrial or aquatic flesh-eating mammal