Dogs were probably the first animals to be domesticated, somewhere between 15,000 and 40,000 years ago.
Experts like Dr. Brian Harr, PhD, a professor of evolutionary anthropology at the Duke Canine Cognition Laboratory, think it’s likely that dogs adopted us, or at least evolved to get along with us.
As humans became less nomadic between 15,000 and 20,000 years ago, they began to produce food scraps. That’s when Hare believes that proto-dogs found the evolutionary imperative to become full-fledged dogs.
“If you’re going to be a wolf that eats people’s garbage, it’s better to be a wolf that’s less anxious, less fearful, and doesn’t spend a lot of energy running away from people,” says Hare.
“It is better not to be an aggressive wolf towards people. Otherwise people are going to kill you. So you have a choice for anti-aggression and low wolf anxiety. And you end up with dogs.”
According to Rabbit, only two species have adapted to human culture: humans and dogs. However, although dogs have learned to function in human society, humans are not necessarily adept at understanding dogs.