History of the Pet Dog
Tuesday, September 13, 2011 by Molly
Where did Pet Dogs Evolve From?
You may have wondered how us pet dogs have evolved and from where we originated from! Well wonder no more, here is all the info you need to know about the history and evolution of “mans best friend”
The domestic dog was originally classified as Canis familiaris and Canis familiarus domesticus by Carolus Linnaeus in 1758, and was reclassified in 1993 as Canis lupus familiaris, a subspecies of the gray wolf Canis lupus, by the Smithsonian Institution and the American Society of Mammalogists. There is overwhelming evidence that led to the contemporary scientific understanding that a single species, the gray wolf, is the common ancestor for all breeds of domestic dogs.
Dogs have become one of the most successful species on the planet, this is largely due to their relationship with humans. There is conclusive evidence that dogs genetically diverged from their wolf ancestors at least 15,000 years ago.
Dogs were Domesticated 15,000 years ago
Some believe domestication may have occurred earlier than 15,000 years ago. It is unknown however whether humans domesticated the wolf to initiate dog’s divergence from its ancestors, or whether dog’s evolutionary path had already taken a different course prior to domestication. For example, it is hypothesized that some wolves gathered around the campsites of paleolithic camps to scavenge refuse, and associated evolutionary pressure developed that favored those who were less frightened by, and keener in approaching, humans. This then led to a breed or sub species of wolf that then became the dog as we know it.
Most experts agree that human interaction played a significant role in shaping the wolf subspecies. Shortly after domestication, dogs became ever-present in human populations, and spread throughout the world.
It is beleived that domestic dogs inherited behaviors from their wolf ancestors, such as being pack hunters with complex body language. These sophisticated forms of social cognition and communication may account for dogs trainability, playfulness, and ability to fit into human households and social situations.
Dogs and Humans Survive Together
Canines, would have derived significant benefits from living in human camps such as safety, more reliable food source, they would have required less calories, and have more chance to breed. Dogs would also have benefited from humans’ for security by having a larger range and vision over which to see potential predators and prey. Camp dogs would also have benefitted from human’s use of tools and weapons to bring down larger prey for food and controlling fire.
Humans would also had enormous benefit from the dogs associated with their camps. Dogs would have improved sanitation by cleaning up food scraps, dogs may have provided warmth, as referred to in the Australian Aboriginal expression “three dog night” (an exceptionally cold night), and they would have alerted the camp to the presence of predators or strangers (guard dogs), using their acute hearing to provide an early warning. Anthropologists believe the most significant benefit would have been the use of dogs’ sensitive sense of smell to assist with the hunting.
The cohabitation of dogs and humans would have greatly improved the chances of survival for early human groups, and the domestication of dogs may have been one of the key forces that led to human success.
The Word is Dog
It is beleived that the word dog cam from Middle English dogge or from Old English docga, a which is a powerful dog breed. The term may have derived from Proto-Germanic “dukkon”, represented in Old English finger-docce or “finger-muscle”. Due to the archaic structure of the word the term dog may ultimately have derived from the earliest layer of Proto-Indo-European vocabulary, reflecting the role of the dog as the earliest domesticated animal.
So there you have it, us dogs are descendants from the mean lean grey wolf, and had it not been for us you humans may not have survived so easily, thus why we are fondly known as “mans (and womans) best friend”
Dogs! where would we be without them?
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