Canine Connections: The Origins of Man’s Best Friend

Dogs are considered man’s best friend, and why shouldn’t they be?  They are loyal, playful, and helpful.  Dogs have been known to diagnose disease in the ill, flush out hidden drugs and bombs, as well as search and rescue humans trapped under various types of debris.  Humans and dogs have a very connected history that is very well understood today, but until recently it was unknown specifically how and when this history began.  Last year, however, the origins of the domestication of dogs was more precisely known based on a discovery in Siberia, adding another layer to the mystery of dog domestication.  Today’s blog post is going to discuss this new evidence, as well as other pieces of evidence related to the origins of dog domestication.

For many years archaeological and genetic evidence suggested that dogs were domesticated from wolves between 12,000 to 15,000 years ago.  Dogs were believed to have been domesticated at the advent of agriculture across the Old World (Europe, the Middle East, and Asia), but the exact location of dog domestication was unknown.  In 2015, though, the discovery of a Taimyr wolf bone in Siberia by Love Dalén and the subsequent analysis of the bone clarified the debate.  Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA analyses of this bone suggests that dogs originated from the Taimyr wolf, pushing the date of domestication back to 27,000 and 40,000 years ago, which is when humans were largely nomadic and relied on hunting and gathering.  Not only that but the Taimyr wolf also gave rise to modern day wolves prior to its extinction.   

While the date and time of dog domestication has been clarified it is remains unclear as to how exactly domestication occurred.  Some scholars believe that early canines were easily domesticated because humans and dogs share several social and behavioral characteristics in common.  It is believed because both species are social, pack like creatures that travel and thrive in groups the connection was bound to occur.  It is further believed that early dogs and humans hunted similar prey, and therefore they may have worked cooperatively to meet their nutritional needs.  As this behavior became patterned domestication may have coevolved and dogs and humans domesticated each other.  Another prevailing idea about the domestication of wolves into dogs is the notion that early humans merely took in orphaned pups and raised them as their personal as well as occupational companions.    

It is still too early to determine which of the above ideas is more likely as no new evidence has been released, but hopefully this new discovery and subsequent analyses of additional evidence will lead to further clarification regarding the domestication of dogs.  What is clear thus far is that it appears that dogs were the earliest domesticated animal species, and that selective breeding, or the intentional breeding for specific traits, has led to the various breeds of dog that we know of today and the behavioral traits that reinforce the notion that dogs truly are man’s best friend.

References Cited


Dunham, W.  2015.  "Dog Domestication Much Older Than Previously Known."  Scientific American.


Fessenden M. 2015.  "Humans May Have Domesticated Dogs Tens of Thousands of Years Earlier Than Thought."  Smithsonian Magazine.


Grimm D.  2015.  "Feature: Solving the Mystery of Dog Domestication."  Science Magazine.

No Author.  No Date.  "6. Evolution and Domestication of Wolves."  Kids Planet. 


Savolainen P.  2007.  "Domestication of Dogs."  In The Behavioral Biology of Dogs, edited by Jensen, P.  Science.