Back to the beginning... There is archaeological evidence dogs were the first animals domesticated by humans more than 30,000 years ago (more than 10,000 years before the domestication of horses and ruminants).
Dogs were just a loose category of wolves until around 15,000 years ago, when our ancestors tamed and began to manage them. We fed them, bred them, and spread them from continent to continent. While other wolf descendants died out, dogs grew into a new species. We invented the dog.
But DNA analysis published in 1997 suggests a date of about 130,000 years ago for the transformation of wolves to dogs. This means that wolves began to adapt to human society long before humans settled down and began practicing agriculture.
Dogs most probably evolved from wolves at a single location about 20,000 to 40,000 years ago, a study suggests. Previously, it had been thought that dogs were tamed from two populations of wolves living thousands of miles apart.
These studies have shown, first, that dogs were the earliest animal domesticated, and the only species that entered into a domestic relationship with people during the Pleistocene (1, 2, 12, 13).
"In shape, the Paleolithic dogs most resemble the Siberian husky, but in size, however, they were somewhat larger, probably comparable to large shepherd dogs," added Germonpré, a paleontologist at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences.
Shih Tzus share more DNA with wolves than most other breeds. The only breed group with more shared wolf DNA is the Nordic spitz group (Huskies, Samoyeds, and Malamutes). The breed almost went extinct in the early 1900s after the death of Empress Tzu Hsi.
It's likely that, with time, dogs would learn to adjust, survive and potentially thrive in a world without us. Besides, nearly 80 percent of the world's dogs today are free-ranging; therefore, not having humans around wouldn't matter much to most dogs.
Our feline friends share 90% of homologous genes with us, with dogs it is 82%, 80% with cows, 69% with rats and 67% with mice [1]. Human and chimpanzee DNA is so similar because the two species are so closely related. They both descended from a single ancestor species 6 or 7,000,000 years ago.
With dogs, it's like they maintain the mind of a toddler, which means they have more limitations. Because of this and the role they take on within human households, it is highly unlikely that they will evolve to speak in the same way humans do.
The lineage, which led to the last common ancestor (LCA) of cattle and dog, was estimated to have diverged from human approximately 92 million years ago (mya) followed by the estimated separation of cattle and dog 83 million years ago [27,28].
But the group that first sequenced the dog genome found that they could match up about 73% of dog DNA to human DNA. And they found that almost all of a dog's genes are also found in humans.
Dog Domestication May Have Begun because Paleo Humans Couldn't Stomach the Original Paleo Diet. It's easy to understand why early humans domesticated dogs as their new best friends. Tame canines can guard against predators and interlopers, carry supplies, pull sleds and provide warmth during cold nights.
Humans and dogs have had a special bond for thousands of years—we see it in the way dogs work, play, and live with us. Most experts agree that this relationship developed when the wolf, the dog's ancestor, and human came in contact with each other.
The seven dog years to every human year rule comes simply from crudely dividing human lifespan, around 80 years, by dog lifespan, typically 12 years. Trey Ideker at the University of California, San Diego, and his colleagues found that the rule is a little off.
The most widely accepted earliest dog remains are those of the Bonn-Oberkassel dog which date to 15,000 YBP. Earlier remains dating back to 30,000 YBP have been described as Paleolithic dogs but their status as dogs or wolves remains debated.
There is archaeological evidence dogs were the first animals domesticated by humans more than 30,000 years ago (more than 10,000 years before the domestication of horses and ruminants).
The First Humans
One of the earliest known humans is Homo habilis, or “handy man,” who lived about 2.4 million to 1.4 million years ago in Eastern and Southern Africa.
Dogs come in a variety of breeds, some of which you may never have heard before. While there are over 350 recognized dog breeds by International Canine Federation standards, there are also extinct dogs that have come and gone over the years. Sadly, quite a few dog breeds may no longer exist in the modern world.
Some experts believe that dogs know we are a different species, so they wouldn't consider us eligible for their furry four-legged group. That said, dogs often treat us as like we're part of one big happy pack. They can be incredibly loyal and loving to their family members.
Although dogs can't identify themselves in the mirror, they still have some level of self-awareness and ace other self-recognition tests. They can recognize their own odor, and recall memories of specific events, Earth.com reports.
1. Border Collie: A workaholic, this breed is the world's premier sheep herder, prized for its intelligence, extraordinary instinct, and working ability.
Basenji. The Basenji, known for its cat-like attitude, is the oldest dog breed in the world according to genetic evidence, despite conflicting sources that recognize other breeds. This breed still retains traits from its ancestors.
A wolf dog is any canine with both domestic dog and wolf in its recent genetic ancestry and can result from any of the following parent combinations: a pure wolf and a pure domestic dog, a pure wolf and a wolf dog, two wolf dogs, or a wolf dog and a pure dog.