The Basics of the Carolina Dog Breed

An accomplished senior operations executive, Ian Oldaker served as the general manager and chief operating officer of the espionage-based entertainment and education venue SPYSCAPE from 2017 to 2020. This exciting immersive museum, featuring espionage history and skills challenges, debuted in New York, NY in 2018. Outside of the professional environment, Ian Oldaker enjoys spending time with his rescued mixed-breed Carolina dog, Taco.

Experts believe that the origins of the Carolina dog breed are likely as old as the movements of primitive humans from Asia to North America. As these prehistoric populations made their way across the Bering land bridge into modern-day Alaska, they brought along with them a precursor to the modern dog, a domesticated wolf that looked and behaved much like a Carolina dog.

Resembling a wild Australian dingo in many ways, the Carolina dog is physically defined by its pointed ears, vulpine snout, and fishhook-curved tail. Behaviorally, they retain much of the focused pack mentality that made them so successful in prehistoric times. This means that they may be alarmed by the presence of strangers, but they are extremely devoted to the families that own them.