Hey Woofa’s,

Have you ever wondered Where Does My Dog Come From?

As a Groomer I am lucky to work with many pampered dogs.

I’m always having conversations about why dogs do what they do.  I’m constantly looking at Billy’s behaviour and trying to figure him out,  so as a dog owner I’m sure you do the same.

Talking about your dog’s behaviour with other dog owners is cathartic and it can also be enlightening.  After Billy’s Training Setback  I felt like I had failed him and started to question his breed, which is something I’ve never done.  However, speaking with a customer whose Staffy had been to training classes.

She told me that all the trainers had told her that  Staffies are excitable dogs and they are social.  She reassured me that if Billy was vicious the situation would’ve been terribly different.  I hate that it took someone else to reassure me of this because I already knew this, but thanks to society I started doubting it for a second.

Anyway, I feel a crucial part in understanding our dogs today is to understand where they came from.

Dogs have come a long way on their Domestication Journey, do you ever wonder how they got here??

IN THE BEGINNING

While there’s nothing definite about where EXACTLY dogs originated from, the one thing that is generally agreed upon is that they descended from wolves.

According to my copy of ‘Encyclopedia of the Dog‘, Hamlyn, 2000, it has even been speculated by R.I Pocock, 1935 and later agreed by Richard and Alice Fiennes, that dogs came from roughly four types of wolves.

Each type of these wolves contain the genetic information necessary to develop all modern breeds of dogs:-

1. the Northern Grey Wolf (Canis lupus);
2. the Pale-Footed Asian Wolf (Canis lupus palliates);
3. the Small Desert Wolf of Arabia (Canis lupus arabs);
4. the Woolly-Coated Wolf of Tibet & Northern India (Canis lupus laniger).

It’s also stated that domestication from certain breeds of wolf may have taken place in various geographical sites at around the same time.  Which could also explain the variations we seen among today’s breeds of dogs.

HOW?

Well, the story goes that over the years wolves slowly became closer and closer to camps where people resided.  They scavenged from the hunters and their camps.  The wolves soon became tame towards the people and then went on to have tamer litters and over years and years, the dog was born.  Obviously, this is the very basic version.

‘The evolution of the dog as a species and the manner in which it became both servant and friend of humankind took place over millions of years – in response to environmental changes and the growth of our civilisation’, Hamlyn, 2000.

However, the selective breeding of dogs by humans probably developed only between 10,000-20,000 years ago.

WHY?

The theory of why dogs became domesticated is purely speculation, but to me it rings true.

Way back in the beginning dogs were used for:

1. hunting and retrieving;
2. working dogs;
3. guarding, cattle, stock, farm animals, properties, families, armies etc;

Because dog and human were working together a mutual respect and trust developed.

Also as humans became more prosperous (richer) dogs were then bred for recreational reasons:

1. chasing game;
2. sporting activities;
3. fighting;
4. purely for appearance and temperament, etc.

It became aware to humans that they could utilise the dog’s immense loyalty and it’s desire to protect them while becoming a developed civilisation.

AND NOW?

As a developed civilisation dog’s still play important roles in our society.  We have:-

1. working dogs on farms;
2. guide dogs;
3. therapy dogs;
4. service dogs;
5. military dogs;
6. search and rescue dogs;
7. sniffer dogs; etc.

We also still have them for recreational purposes: –

1. agility dogs;
2. show dogs;
3. hunting dogs;
4. fighting dogs (albeit we’re trying to stop this behaviour);
5. racing dogs;
6. breeding; etc

I’m sure there’s more in each category but you get the idea, in this day’s society dog’s are still being utilised for human use.

HOWEVER the one main use a dog has these days is a COMPANION DOG!

I always guesstimate that every 2nd – 3rd household has at least 1-2 dogs, EVERYWHERE all over the world.

Most of those dogs have made their way into our homes and well and truly into our hearts.  And into our beds!!!

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

From the wolf pack to domesticated bed hogs, there’s no doubt that dogs have always and will always play a big part in our lives.

Their complete loyalty hasn’t wavered over thousands of years nor has their unconditional love.

No matter how far advanced Humans think they are, they will always need their Companion Dogs right by their side.

Stay tuned for next week’s post on Understanding the Wolf Pack!

Have you ever questioned why your dog does a certain behaviour?  What was it, Billy would love you to share with us your views in the comments below!