Skip to comments.
Scientists breed cute tame foxes
BBC News ^
| Feb 8, 2005
| Staff
Posted on 02/22/2005 8:43:05 AM PST by balrog666
click here to read article
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-80 ... 141 next last
To: sassbox
lol That was my first thought too.
41
posted on
02/22/2005 9:44:24 AM PST
by
Buggman
(Baruch ata Adonai, Elohanu Mehlech ha Olam, asher nathan lanu et derech ha y’shua b’Mashiach Yeshua.)
To: Graymatter
Do we want a critter that isn't quite as doggy as a dog, not to mention one that will P4 Joy? And that one on the right in the pic looks a little buzzed, don't you think?
Over the years, other investigators and I have raised several fox pups in domestic conditions, either in the laboratory or at home as pets. They have shown themselves to be good-tempered creatures, as devoted as dogs but as independent as cats, capable of forming deep-rooted pair bond's with human beings-mutual bonds, as those of us who work with them know. If our experiment should continue, and if fox pups could be raised and trained the way dog puppies are now, there is no telling what sort of animal they might one day become.
42
posted on
02/22/2005 9:44:41 AM PST
by
balrog666
(A myth by any other name is still inane.)
To: PatrickHenry
43
posted on
02/22/2005 9:50:58 AM PST
by
King Prout
(Remember John Adam!)
To: balrog666
They will become fashionable and every half-wit moron will want one. More animals to be abused.
44
posted on
02/22/2005 9:52:14 AM PST
by
dljordan
To: Publius6961
Why should the ones more inclined to be social be any more interested in food??
Totally unscientific observation but we have two blue crown conure juveniles obtained from different sources. The more social one of the two is the one who is decidedly more interested in food. I suspect that it's an adaptation response linked to appetite.
45
posted on
02/22/2005 9:52:51 AM PST
by
elli1
To: balrog666
46
posted on
02/22/2005 9:57:59 AM PST
by
Fiddlstix
(This Tagline for sale. (Presented by TagLines R US))
To: balrog666
I've long wanted to see somebody domesticate the grizzly bear. If they could somehow be given the social instincts of dogs, what fantastic guard (or labor) animals they would make!
Polar bears would also be interesting candidates for domestication.
To: balrog666
But the physical changes came as well - making scientists think cuteness comes along with being tame. Red flag right there.
My suspicion is that the cuter the animal, the more likely it is that people will judge it to be "responding well" to people.
To: Physicist
I've long wanted to see somebody domesticate the grizzly bear. If they could somehow be given the social instincts of dogs, what fantastic guard (or labor) animals they would make! Judge Roy Bean had the Watch Bear. I love that movie.
49
posted on
02/22/2005 10:05:02 AM PST
by
ORECON
(Condi Rice/Donald Rumsfield - 2008)
To: dljordan
Half-wit moron checking in... Better a domesticated fox than what my wife wants. I will NOT spend time in the same house with a rat terrier.
50
posted on
02/22/2005 10:11:42 AM PST
by
Dead Corpse
(The neighborhood is pretty dead at night, and I'm the one to blame....)
To: Publius6961
Why should the ones more inclined to be social be any more interested in food?I don't think that was their point. Both types, wild and domesticated, are probably equally interested in food. But the socialized one were much more skilled at picking up the non-verbal cues from humans, and therefore were able to locate the food. The wild foxes could not interpret what the humans were doing and just sat there in a confused or indifferent state.
To: balrog666
This topic is getting neotenous.
52
posted on
02/22/2005 10:17:42 AM PST
by
js1138
To: Physicist
My suspicion is that the cuter the animal, the more likely it is that people will judge it to be "responding well" to people. Wolves can be cute, but they are not tame.
53
posted on
02/22/2005 10:19:55 AM PST
by
js1138
To: Dead Corpse
Perhaps I should have added a caveat. What I'm worried about is the large number of people out there that would acquire one of these animals and when the shine wore off would neglect them. Buying one for the "kids" to play with would be just wrong.
54
posted on
02/22/2005 10:45:11 AM PST
by
dljordan
To: js1138
Wolves can be cute, but they are not tame.But can you say that a marginally cuter wolf would not be perceived by people as being marginally tamer than another wolf?
To: Physicist
It wasn't that unusual for some of the mountain men to get bear cubs and train them. Many colleges used to keep animals like bears (Baylor, for example) as mascots. The real Grizzly Adams kept bears as pets, although he killed far more than he kept.
The problem with bears is not what they're willing to do, but what they're capable of doing. It's kind of like the story of the elephant yesterday that gored it's keeper to death. All it takes is one moment of anger, and you're singing a duet with Elvis.
56
posted on
02/22/2005 10:58:07 AM PST
by
Richard Kimball
(It was a joke. You know, humor. Like the funny kind. Only different.)
To: Capriole
I had a pet fox
Fennec? I've not heard of any other type of fox that makes for a good pet.
57
posted on
02/22/2005 10:58:14 AM PST
by
Dimensio
(http://angryflower.com/bobsqu.gif <-- required reading before you use your next apostrophe!)
To: Physicist
Not if it lived in your house for a weak.
The issue here is neoteny, the prolongation of juvenile traits. Humans and dogs are neotenous. Dogs and juvenile wolves bark and play. Adult dogs still bark and play.
Perception of cuteness is associated with jevenile traits, such as a larger head in proportion to height. Disney artists evolved Mickey mouse into a cuter and more juvenile form over time, probably using artists intuition rather than science.
58
posted on
02/22/2005 11:01:46 AM PST
by
js1138
To: Physicist
Not if it lived in your house for a week.
The issue here is neoteny, the prolongation of juvenile traits. Humans and dogs are neotenous. Dogs and juvenile wolves bark and play. Adult dogs still bark and play.
Perception of cuteness is associated with jevenile traits, such as a larger head in proportion to height. Disney artists evolved Mickey mouse into a cuter and more juvenile form over time, probably using artists intuition rather than science.
59
posted on
02/22/2005 11:02:48 AM PST
by
js1138
To: js1138
60
posted on
02/22/2005 11:03:16 AM PST
by
js1138
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-80 ... 141 next last
Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson