The wolves that were more successful at interacting with humans evolved into the domesticated dogs that we find so lovable today. ©Kristin Maynes, flickr

It’s a given that most of us can’t resist dogs. As the first animal domesticated by humans—sometime around the end of the Ice Age—our bond to Canis familiaris just seems a little tighter than those we share with other species.

While dogs were long believed to have been descended from several canine families, such as the wolf, jackal and coyote, recent scientific analysis reveals that the dog’s primary ancestor is, indeed, the wolf, Canis lupus.

A popular theory holds that as scavengers, early wolves would have been naturally attracted to refuse left at human campsites. The wolves that were more successful at interacting with humans would have been favored to survive and subsequently would have passed these traits onto their offspring. Eventually, wolves with a greater propensity for domestication started appearing. These animals were the ones we kept alongside us in our living areas, in turn continually breeding those traits into the dogs that we find so lovable today.

Pixabay

Our dogs are members of our families now, and so we tend to feel like we know what they’re thinking. Perhaps, we do.

In fact, we now feel so close to dogs that we’d swear we know what they’re thinking—and would say, if they could. Watch how this dog lets his human know how he feels about bacon—especially, the maple kind.

Here’s to finding your true places and natural habitats,

Candy