Archaeologists working at an ancient Wari Empire burial site in Peru have uncovered the 1,200-year-old remains of the country's famous hairless dogs, including remarkably preserved mummies and puppies interred alongside humans. The find offers an unusually detailed window into how an Andean civilization more than a millennium ago cared for, bred and, in some cases, discarded its canine companions.
The discovery centers on the Peruvian hairless dog, a breed long associated with the region and recognizable by its lack of fur. At the Wari site, researchers recovered both adult and juvenile animals, some of them mummified well enough to preserve soft tissue and other organic material that rarely survives in the archaeological record. The puppies, buried together with people, suggest that dogs held a place in Wari funerary practice and daily life that went beyond simple utility.
Investigators say the animals' teeth and diets are among the most revealing lines of evidence. Dental remains can indicate what the dogs were fed, how they were kept and whether breeding practices shaped their physical development. The burial arrangements add a further layer: some animals appear to have been carefully placed with human remains, while others may have been disposed of in ways that point to changing or uneven treatment of dogs within Wari society.
The Wari Empire flourished in the Andes before the rise of the Inca, and its settlements and burial grounds have become important sources of information about pre-Columbian urban life, ritual and animal management. The new dog remains add to a growing body of research on the relationship between people and animals in the ancient Andes, where dogs served as companions, guardians and, in some contexts, ritual participants.
Researchers describe the preservation of the mummies as exceptional. Mummified animals can retain skin, hair and other tissues that allow scientists to study genetics, diet and disease in ways skeletal remains alone cannot. The puppies are particularly valuable because they offer a snapshot of early development and of how young animals were treated at the site.
The find also raises questions about the breed's deep history. The Peruvian hairless dog is today a recognized national symbol, and the discovery of 1,200-year-old specimens helps anchor its lineage in the archaeological record. The unusual teeth observed in the remains may reflect selective breeding or dietary adaptations, and researchers say further analysis could clarify how the animals were managed across generations.
Excavations at Wari burial sites have previously yielded human remains, ceramics and other artifacts that illuminate the empire's social organization. The dog burials fit into that broader picture, showing that animals were part of the ritual and domestic landscape of Wari communities. The presence of puppies alongside humans is especially notable, since it suggests that dogs were not merely working animals but were incorporated into the emotional and symbolic life of the household.
Scientists plan to continue studying the remains, including the teeth and preserved tissues, to reconstruct the animals' diets and health. Such work could reveal whether the dogs were fed by people, scavenged for food or were provisioned in specific ways, and whether their care differed between adults and puppies. The burial context will also be examined for clues about ritual treatment and the social status of the people with whom the dogs were interred.
The discovery adds to a wider effort to understand animal domestication and human-animal relationships in the ancient Americas. In Peru, hairless dogs have long been part of local tradition, and the new evidence pushes their documented history back more than a millennium, linking modern breed identity to the practices of an empire that vanished centuries before European contact.
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