‘Unusual’ creature found in Brazil is world’s first known fox-dog hybrid, study says
In the Disney movie, “The Fox and the Hound,” the two eponymous animals become unlikely friends. It turns out, the pairing may not have been so far-fetched.
A dog-fox hybrid was recently discovered in Brazil, and it is believed to be the first-known crossbreed between the two creatures.
The strange-looking canine was found after it was run over by a car in 2021. It was rushed to a hospital in Rio Grande do Sul, the country’s southernmost state, where it stumped veterinarians who did not know what to make of it.
“She had eyes resembling a domestic dog, and long ears resembling a pampas fox, although she had a dark coat and barked like a dog,” Rafael Kretschmer, a professor of genetics at the Federal University of Pelotas, told McClatchy News over email. “She did not accept food that was commonly offered to dogs, so (we) offered to her small rats, and she accepted.”
The black, pointy-eared animal also displayed peculiar behavioral characteristics, appearing neither fully wild nor fully domestic.
“It was not as docile as a dog, but it also lacked the aggressiveness expected of a wild canid when handled,” Flávia Ferrari, a veterinarian at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, told McClatchy News.
“She had a shy and cautious personality, generally preferring to stay away from people,” Ferrari said. “Over the time she was hospitalized for treatment, I believe she started to feel safer and despite the fear she felt of humans, she began to allow some people to approach, if it was done with caution and calmly.”
Intrigued by the puzzling creature, researchers ran a series of tests in order to identify the animal’s genetic makeup.
They determined it was a hybrid between a pampas fox — a fox native to South America — and a domestic dog, according to a study published on Aug. 3 in the journal Animals.
“To our knowledge, this represents the first documented case of hybridization between these two species,” researchers said. “This discovery implies that, although these species diverged about 6.7 million years ago and belong to different genera, they might still produce viable hybrids.”
The hybrid has been called a “dogxim,” a combination of “dog” and “graxaim-do-campo,” the Portuguese name for the pampas fox, according to the Telegraph.
The animal died earlier this year of unknown causes, Kretschmer said.
Hybrid animals are created both through human coercion and natural pairings in the wild, according to a 2021 study published in the journal Annals of Animal Science. About 10% of animal species interbreed with other species — typically ones that are closely related.
Mules, a cross between donkeys and horses, and ligers, a mix between lions and tigers, are two examples of hybrids created by humans, according to the study. In the wild, deer and elk species are known to interbreed.
The creation of hybrids can have a negative impact on wild populations, including by transmitting various diseases across species, researchers said. However, most man-made hybrids are infertile.
This story was originally published September 15, 2023 at 8:08 AM with the headline "‘Unusual’ creature found in Brazil is world’s first known fox-dog hybrid, study says."