The History Of Dogs

History of Dogs

How they Became Man's Best Friend

How did dogs start from wild wolves, becoming giant 200+ lb. Mastiffs, hairless Chinese Cresteds, or tiny 15 pound Chihuahuas? The differences between today’s dogs are so great, so enormous, they don’t even seem like the same species at all. They usually certainly look nothing like wolves!

About 1.5 million years ago, during the Pliocene and Early Pleistocene era, the first Grey wolf slowly emerged from a small, tree dwelling insectivore. The Earth was a different world then, a harsh battlefield of survival filled with terrifying dangers we can only imagine, unimaginable threats from a history book or science fiction novel.

For over a million years wolves roamed this frightening landscape, relying on social groups and a set of finely tuned hunting senses for survival.

Proto Dog Theory

Some say it happened about 14,000 years ago, while others claim the change began as far back as 40,000 years in the past. It was a small change at first, the tiniest of decisions made.

The largest supported theory points toward a small group of wolves coming upon a human gathering, opting to feed off of leftover scraps as opposed to the intense demands involved with tracking and hunting. Over many years, new wolf generations slowly evolved traits geared more toward this new socal lifestyle, slightly less adapted toward hunting.

They probably didn’t interact right away; wolves are still wired to be a cautious, potentially aggressive species if need be. Violence and aggression, or complete avoidance, wouldn’t work well for the wolves that wanted to be able to depend on humans for the easy meals they left for garbage.

Slowly, these wolves grew tolerant of their human benifactors. They are now more dependent on humans for their primary food sources, compared to intensive hunting activities. The less fearful, more sociable wolves were able to benefit more from their camaraderie and mutually beneficial relationships.

The social and non threatening animals would thrive and reproduce. These would be the animals that passed on their traits to offspring, and the cycle would continue to repeat. Eventually, we would have a new kind of wolf ‘Dog’, with a completely new set of traits. These wolves would prosper, and their numbers would continue to grow.

The Transition

This continued for thousands of years. Humans would travel to the far reaches of the globe, their animal companions following them and the food sources they offered. From the Grey wolves that probably originated in Asia, we now have new breeds suited to all kinds of environments, like:

• African Basenji (the barkless breed) believed to date back to 6,000 BC
• Mastiff type breeds, at least 2,000 years old; thought to have originated in Asia but exact origins unknown

-Possible evidence found in ancient Egypt, dating back as far as 5,000 BC

• Chow Chow, originating from either Northern China or Mongolia, around 15-200 BC
• Saluki, hailing from Egypt, records dating back to 300+ BC

Eventually, humans noticed some of the many benefits their new companions can offer, but they weren’t selectively bred until more recent in our history. Before this, humans would simply select dogs that seemed good at what they wanted, and let them breed (which may be selective breeding in itself).

Selective Breeding

The Celtic peoples of Ireland are believed to have selectively bred the first dogs, possibly Mastiff type dogs or Irish Wolfhounds, over a thousand years ago. With his long legs, despite his great size, the Irish Wolfhound could move very quickly, chasing down wolves, boars, stag and elk.

For the majority of the last 200 years, and in some cases beyond, humans have been selectively breeding dogs to help perform tasks and make our lives easier. After all, what better than an animal so skilled, happy to please us for minor rewards?

So, once we learned how to care for these dogs and use different kinds for activities they are best with and figured out how traits are passed along, we could start to focus on enhancing different abilities. Early in our selective breeding history, we had:

• A version of the English Bulldog, bred partially to work with cattle.
• Rottweilers, whose ancestors became a force in Ancient Rome 2000 years ago, protecting stock animals.
• German Great Danes, originally bred to hunt Boar, among others.
• Siberian Huskies, whose ancestors were bred to tolerate frigid climates, pulling loads and other works.
• Small game hunting breeds, like Beagles, Dachshunds, Basset Hounds, Parson Russell Terriers, etc.
• Herding breeds, some among the most intelligent dog breeds on earth, like the Border Collie.
• More recently, ‘Designer breeds, like the Puggle, Yorkipoo, or Shnoodle.

Today’s Domesticated Pets

As time passed, selective breeding practices became more exact in many ways, but our culture slowly changed from a ‘working dog to make our lives easier’ closer to more of a ‘family companion and adored pet’. It’s true, many pet owners love their dogs like you would love a son or daughter! People easily can spend thousands of dollars on their pets over lifetimes, and that is a common minimum.

• The idea of simple kennels has grown into luxurious ‘dog hotels’.
• Dog boarding facilities often have dog pools and ‘playgrounds’.
• Pet health insurance is more common, countless companies offering it.
• Dog parks are common at certain apartment complexes.
• Advanced veterinary care.

Entire careers are built around teaching dogs to perform complicated functions for disabled people. Service dogs do things like guide the blind, open doors, help people suffering from PTSD, autism, and other personality disorders, epilepsy or seizure conditions, and even help detect various diseases early!

Though it was much different even a mere century ago, many of us couldn’t imagine life without our furry companions, and would risk our lives to ensure their well-being just the same as they would do anything to protect them, providing a wonderful home and amazing life.