Rez dog

{{Short description|Dog living on Indigenous territory in the United States and Canada}}

{{distinguish|Reservation Dogs|Reservoir Dog|Reservoir Dogs}}

{{Infobox animal

| name = Rez dog

| image = Dog in a parking lot, Canyon de Chelly AZ.jpg

| image_upright =

| caption = A rez dog at Canyon de Chelly

| othername = Rez

| species = Dog

| breed =

| resting_place =

| owner =

| gender =

}}

Rez dog (short for reservation dog) is usually a term for outdoor, stray, and feral dogs living on Native reservations in the United States and Indian reserves in Canada.{{Cite book|author=Mary Ludington|title=The Nature of Dogs|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k-cOnkTfjq0C&q=%22rez+dog%22&pg=PA95|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=2007|isbn=978-1-4165-4287-2}} The term has taken on many connotations, and has to some extent become an emblem of and metaphor for reservations/reserves, life on them, and indigenous North Americans in general. For example, a "rez dog" may refer to a resident of indigenous lands.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KvpZ4NSGamAC&q=%22rez+dog%22&pg=RA1-PA344|page=337|title=The Praeger Handbook on Contemporary Issues in Native America: Linguistic, ethnic, and economic revival|author=Bruce Elliott Johansen|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2007|isbn=978-0-275-99139-5}}

The distinction between a rez dog and dogs in general is often seen as emblematic of the difference between indigenous and majority culture ways of life.{{cite news|url=http://www.dailyyonder.com/rez-vignettes-good-life-reservation-dog|publisher=Daily Yonder|title=Rez Vignettes: The Good Life of a Reservation Dog|author=Mary Annette Pember}} Untended dogs roaming indigenous lands cause problems that the communities must deal with.{{cite news|url=http://www.unm.edu/~market/cgi-bin/archives/001363.html|publisher=University of New Mexico|title=UNM-Gallup Professor Copyrights Plans for 'Rez Dog-Proof' Solar Oven|date=2006-08-14|author=Linda Thornton}}{{cite news|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-79285907.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025112850/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-79285907.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-10-25|publisher=Indian Country Today|title=From the editor's desk...No tears for the Rez Dog Maggie|date=2000-02-09|author=Miles Morrisseau}} The dogs are generally thought of as mixed-breed and unsupervised.{{cite news|url=http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org/features/2003/02/06_horwichj_indianradio/|publisher=Minnesota Public Radio|date=2003-02-06|title=Cultural broadcasting: Radio show a rare outlet for Indigenous voices and music|author=Jeff Horwich}}