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• To identify any dog that performs any task on a regular basis to assist people. In this context, a dog who helps a rancher manage cattle or who performs tricks for a trainer who receives pay for its acts is a working dog, as is an assistance dog. This might be in comparison to a companion dog, whose purpose is primarily as a pet.

• To distinguish between show dogs that are bred primarily for their appearance in an attempt to match a breed club's detailed description of what such a breed should look like, and working dogs that are bred primarily for their ability to perform a task. For example, a Border Collie that is a champion show dog is not necessarily good at herding sheep; a Border Collie that is a champion at sheepdog trials might be laughed out of the show ring for its nonstandard appearance.

For some breeds, there are separate registries for tracking the ancestry of working dogs and that of show dogs. For example, in Australia, there are separate registries for working and show Australian KelpieThe Kelpie is an Australian breed of sheep dog that has proven very successful at herding sheep in the mountainous areas of New Zealand. They are medium-sized dogs and come in a variety of colours, including red and black with white tips. They are clever,s; the working registry encourages the breeding of any Kelpies with a strong instinct to herd, no matter their appearance or coat color; the show registry encourages breeding only among Kelpies whose ancestors were registered as show dogs and who have only solid-colored coats.

• As a catch-all for dog breeds whose original purpose was to perform tasks that do not fit into a more specific category of work. For example, the American Kennel ClubThe American Kennel Club (or AKC is one of the largest registries of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. Beyond maintaining its pedigree registry, it also promotes events for purebred dogs, including the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Sh uses Working Dogs to describe breeds who were originally bred for jobs other than herding or hunting. Such jobs might include pulling carts, guarding, and so on. See Working Dog Group .

1 Jobs performed by dogs

Although most modern dogs are kept as pets, there are still a tremendous number of ways in which dogs can and do assist humans, and more uses are found for them every year. The following list provides an idea of the versatility of dogs:

• Service dogA service dog a type of assistance dog is a dog that is specially trained to help people who have disabilities with everyday tasks. According to , "The three types of Assistance Dogs are guide dogs for the blind and the visually impaired , hearing dogs fos assist people who are physically unable to do everything that they need to do. This includes guide dogLabrador Retriever guide dogs resting. Guide dogs are assistance dogs especially trained to lead blind or visually impaired people around obstacles. These dogs spend their early lives in foster homes where they are socialized through exposure to loving ats for the blindBlind can refer to: The state of blindness being unable to see A window blind a covering for a window A hide used to conceal the observer when watching or hunting birds or other animals is sometimes called a hunting blind ., hearing dogs for the deafTo be deaf is commonly understood to mean to be unable to hear, or to affiliate oneself with Deaf culture. Deaf versus deaf Main article: Deaf culture The word deaf is used and understood in two ways. First, there is the medical, pathological and audiolog, and others.
• Therapy dogTherapy Dog refers to a dog trained to provide affection and comfort to people in hospitals, retirement homes, nursing homes, mental institutions, schools, and stressful situations such as disaster areas. The concept of a therapy dog is often attributed ts visit people who are incapacitated or prevented in some way from having freedom of movement; these dogs provide cheer and entertainment for the elderly in retirement facilities, the ill and injured in hospitals, and so on.
• Hunting dogA hunting dog refers to any dog who assists humans in hunting, or whose breed was originally developed to do so. There are several categories of hunting dogs; see each category for a list of breeds: See also List of dog topics. Dog types Working dogs Hunts assist hunters in finding, tracking, and retrieving game, or in routing vermin.
• Tracking dogs help find lost people and animals or track down possible criminals.
• Cadaver dogs use their scenting ability to discover bodies at the scenes of disasters or crimes.
• Rescue dogs assist people who are in difficult situations, such as in the water after a boat disaster, lost in the mountains, covered in snow avalanches and so on.
• Detection dog s of a wide variety help to detect termites in homes, illegal substances in luggage, and many other uses.
• Police dogs usually are trained to immobilize possible criminals while assisting officers in making arrests or investigating the scene of a crime.
• Herding dogs are still invaluable to shepherds and cattle herders around the world for managing their flocks; different breeds are used for the different jobs involved in herding, and for guarding the flocks and herds. Modern herding dogs help to control wild geese in parks or goats used for weed control. A good dog can adapt to control any sort of domestic and many wild animals.
• Guard dogs and watch dogs help to protect private property.
• Sled dogs, although today primarily used in sporting events, still can assist in transporting people and supplies in rugged, snowy terrain.