Shiba Inu

Japan's smallest native hunting breed turns up near the root of the tree in both the 2004 and 2012 genetic surveys. The modern dog is also a rescue story: distemper and wartime losses nearly wiped the Shiba out, and it was rebuilt after 1945 from the surviving Mino, San'in and Shinshu types. Its designation as a Japanese Natural Monument in 1936 anchors a record that needs no embellishment.