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To: cmsgop
Even Shih-Tzu's ??????

I wonder whether there were any such from among the 564 dogs studied. I remember reading somewhere the claim that dogs are likely descended from jackals and coyotes at least as much as from wolves, but the dog people like the wolf idea better.

As for the idea that prehistoric man domesticated wolves, this seems a nasty and unlikely business. More likely, the first dogs were a few extremely rare wild canines who lacked the usual animal fight or flight instinct, and these sought out people when hungary. Increasingly tame dogs would then have evolved, as the friendliest dogs, being best at begging food scraps off of people, survived and prospered. Only when prehistoric human camps already had good safe dogs in tow would humans them had been motivated to select for characteristics of specific breeds. Nobody wants to breed animals which are liable to attack them.

10 posted on 11/21/2002 4:52:52 PM PST by Steve Eisenberg
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To: Steve Eisenberg
More likely, the first dogs were a few extremely rare wild canines who lacked the usual animal fight or flight instinct, and these sought out people when hungary. Increasingly tame dogs would then have evolved, as the friendliest dogs, being best at begging food scraps off of people, survived and prospered.

Or the humans would kill a wolf, and take her pups, and raise those, which would then be loyal to the humans.

17 posted on 11/21/2002 6:23:19 PM PST by xm177e2
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To: Steve Eisenberg
Dogs were domesticated for use as primitive fresh meat refrigerators.

In the fall, the beaters set out and forced the game into a smaller area.

The village dogs were then attracted to the area. They went in and did all the killing; then they ate all the game.

During the winter, when the villagers wanted fresh meat, they popped their cheeks and whistled. The best dogs were those that came running and leaped into the caller's waiting arms where they could be quickly slaughtered.

This was still the custom among First Americanss right up through the late 1700s.

The idea that dogs might do work and not just slink around outside the village gates all day arose in modern times. Ancient man thought of the dog much as modern people think of steak packed in plastic wrap at the grocerystore.

20 posted on 11/21/2002 6:29:26 PM PST by muawiyah
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To: Steve Eisenberg
I think the known DNA sequences for wolves and dogs are virtually identical. This from about 15 years ago, when a group of scientists announced that dogs ARE wolves.

What human breeders manipulated was neotony. That is, they extended picked wolves who had an extended puppyhood. Generations of that resulted in most dogs acting like wolf puppies (not particularly agressive). Nhey never turn into adult wolves behaviorally. Then there was Cujo . . .

34 posted on 11/21/2002 7:26:03 PM PST by ffrancone
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