Dogs transformed from wolves during the Stone Age, study finds

A new study has found that the physical transformation of dogs from wolves began in the Middle Stone Age, several centuries earlier than previously thought.

It is difficult for many people in the 21st century to imagine their beloved pets as wild predators, animals that roam free and potentially pose a threat to communities.

While it was initially thought that it was the Victorians who advocated the domestication of dogs through selective breeding, new research has discovered that this transformation actually began 10,000 years ago.

An international team of researchers spent more than a decade collecting prehistoric dog skills spanning 50,000 years of canine evolution.

By creating digital 3D models of more than 600 skulls, they were able to reveal that dog skulls began changing shape shortly after the last Ice Age, about 11,000 years ago.

Their ancient wild relatives had slimmer, wolf-like appearances, while shorter snouts and stockier heads became more common.

The relationship between humans and dogs has long been a focus of interest.

The burial of a sickly young puppy and an adult dog with a human in Northern Europe 15,000 years ago has been interpreted as evidence of their long-standing domestic status.

It’s unclear what drives this relationship, but researchers suggest it began when wolves began collecting food from hunter-gatherers, and domestic wolves received preferential treatment.

Dr. from the University of Montpellier, one of the lead researchers of the study. “When you see a Chihuahua, it is a wolf that has been living with humans for so long that it has been modified,” Allowen Evin said.

Research published in the journal Sciencehe also noted that the continued existence of wolf-like dogs among modern breeds “highlights the complexity of unraveling the biological and cultural status of early domesticated individuals.”

from the University of Exeter. As for why their appearance has changed, Carly Ameen told the BBC: “It’s probably a combination of interacting with humans, adapting to different environments, adapting to different types of food, all of which contribute to the explosion of diversity that we’re seeing.”

“It’s hard to work out which of these is most important.”