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| My Super Mutt:Dolly. Island Rescue. |
"Dogs
are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To
sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden,
where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace." - Milan Kundera
Do
you ever look at your dog and wonder about his ancestors? The latest trend for
us humans is to seek out our ancestry and find out about great, great, great
grandmothers and the like. But what about your dog? How is it that humans and
dogs have developed such a close relationship?
Dog
history is really the history of the partnership between dogs (Canis lupus
familiaris) and humans. That partnership began with simple origins. Human
needed help with herding and hunting, an early alarm system, and a source of
food in addition to the companionship many of us today know and love. In
return, dogs get companionship, protection and shelter, and a reliable food
source out of the deal.
The
world's first known dog was a large and toothy canine that lived 31,700 years
ago. Some fossils found show prehistoric dogs to be as big as a small pony. One
of the largest species was the Pleistocene predator the Canis Diris, also known
as the Dire Wolf. This was believed to be the biggest prehistoric dog that ever
lived, outweighing the modern wolves to which it was immediately ancestral.
Unlike modern wolves, though, the Dire Wolf had an uncommonly small brain, and
there's speculation that it may have scavenged prey like a hyena rather than
killing it on the fly like a wolf. As far as most other species of prehistoric
dogs, they lived on a diet of horse, musk ox and reindeer, but not fish or
seafood.
Remains
for the older prehistoric dog, which were excavated at Goyet Cave in Belgium,
suggest that the Aurignacian people of Europe from the Upper Paleolithic period
first domesticated dogs. Some research suggests that dog domestication might
have begun when the prehistoric hunters killed a female wolf and then brought
home her pups. Recent studies on silver foxes suggest that when the most docile
pups are kept and cared for, it takes just 10 generations of breeding for
morphological changes to take effect. The skull recently found most closely
represents prehistoric dogs, rather than wolves. Research actually suggests
that wolves and dogs split into different species about 100,000 years ago.
Since
the Aurignacians are believed to have hunted big game and fished at different
times of the year, the researchers think the dogs might have enjoyed meaty
handouts during certain seasons. Lucky dogs. Sounds rather familiar, doesn’t
it? How many times has your dog sat patiently by the dinner table, watery brown
eyes silently begging, and you toss your beloved dog a tasty morsel from the
table? Some things, regardless of the passage of time, do not change. However,
the earliest dogs likely earned their meals with a little more effort that
today’s furry companions. It’s believed that the dogs were used for tracking,
hunting, and transport of game. Transport could have been organized using the
dogs as pack animals. Also, the dogs could have been kept for their fur or
meat, as pets, or as an animal with ritual connotation.
"In
order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be
semihuman. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly
a dog." - Edward Hoagland
There are
quite a few superstitions and myths associated with dogs. According to the
legends of several Native American tribes, the first humans were created in the
shape of wolves. At first these wolf people walked on all fours; then, slowly,
began to develop more human characteristics until they became men and women.
Among many Native American tribes, it is the dog who awaits the spirit of the
newly deceased on the Way of Departed Spirits and who accompanies the entity to
the Land of the Grandparents. In addition to its role as a guide to the other
side, a number of tribes associated the dog with the moon and the sun. Such an
association with the moon may have stemmed from the dog's howling at the moon
on shadowy nights. The connection with the sun may derive from the dog's habit
of walking around in a small circle before it lies down. To early people, the
making of such a circle was to create a symbol of the sun.
One
of the biggest associations was regarding death. Dogs have always been credited
with the power of sensing supernatural influences, and seeing ghosts, spirits,
faeries or deities which are invisible to human eyes. In Wales only dogs could
see the death-bringing hounds of Annwn; in ancient Greece the dogs were aware
when Hecate was at a crossroads foretelling a death. Dogs are believed to be
aware of the presence of ghosts, and their barking, whimpering or howling is
often the first warning of supernatural occurrences. A howling dog at night
means bad luck or somebody close to you will be very sick or worse. There are many instances of
black dog ghosts which are said to haunt lanes, bridges, crossroads, footpaths
and gates, particularly in Suffolk, Norfolk and the Isle of Man. Some black
dogs are said to be unquiet ghosts of wicked souls, but others are friendly
guides and protectors to travelers; the Barguest of northern England could also
appear as a pig or a goat, but was most commonly a huge black dog with large
eyes and feet which left no prints. Packs of ghostly hounds have also been
recorded all over Britain, often heard howling as they pass by on stormy nights
rather than actually seen; these hounds generally foretell death, or at least
disaster, if they are seen and the proper action is to drop face-down onto the
ground to avoid spotting them.
Ok, not all doom and gloom, right? In Scotland, a
strange dog coming to the house means a new friendship; in England, to meet a
spotted or black and white dog on your way to a business appointment is lucky.
Three white dogs seen together are considered lucky in some areas. If a new-born baby is licked by a dog, that baby will
be a quick healer. If you scratch a dog before you go job-hunting, you’ll get a
good job.
All
right, so in spite of several bad associations regarding death superstitions,
dogs have not only been humankind's most consistent and considerate animal
friend, but certain scientific research now suggests that the human species
might not be here today if it hadn't been for an ancient linkup with the canine
family. That’s something to keep in mind the next time you’re rubbing the head
of your furry companion, or offering a tasty treat for a good deed, or just for
the heck of it. There’s a famous joke about dogs and humans that maybe we
should all bear in mind. If you were visiting our planet from another world,
and you saw humans walking their dogs and picking up their poop, who would you
think was in charge?
