How Dogs Became Domestic

Now let’s return to the wolf in our living room – the dog. Over thousands of years of domestication, the dog became a house pet. Domestication, then, is a lengthy process. During its course, animals of a species are isolated and kept and bred in human care, separated from their kin living in the wild. In captivity the process of natural selection (in nature, animals that are innately weaker often prematurely fall victim to stronger predatory animals) cannot occur, and it is replaced by artificial selection, determined exclusively by our human ideas of what is desirable. In this way, a great many different features came into being, specially cultivated by humans, depending on the dog breed.

That is the way our domestic dog came into being. It still carries its legacy form the wolf, but is is very much directed toward and dependent upon a life with human beings. Everyone who owns a dog needs to be aware of the responsibility this situation engenders.

Dogs will be Dogs

Although the dog has lived such a long time with humans, it has to be seen for what it is – a dog, not a human. If you anthropomorphize your pet, by viewing it a substitute for a child or mate, you fail to do justice to the dog’s nature. The dog’s actual needs will not be met, and that can lead to behavior problems in your pet.

Training Provides A sense of Security

Like its ancestor the wolf, the dog is a social animal and is directed toward a life in a social unit. A single wolf can scarcely survive alone, particularly if only large prey are available to it. It is dependent upon its pack. This feeling is still firmly anchored in the instincts of dogs.

For a dog, a human is its pack, and it is this fact that makes such a close relationship with a human possible.

The rigid hierarchy that prevails in a wolf pack is still in the dog’s blood. The dog wants to know what position it occupies within its pack, in this case it human family. It needs signals and rules to orient itself to some extent. They will give the dog the sense of security it needs to develop in a healthy way.

If you keep these factors in mind when dealing with your dog, it will develop a close bond with you and your family and subordinate itself cheerfully and willingly.

EDUCATING YOUR DOG WITH LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING, KATHARINA SCHLEGL-KOFLER