Dog, a common domesticated pet, descend from wolves. This domestication happened when long ago, nomadic groups of people allowed wolves to lay by the fire and eat leftover scraps of food. This relationship grew into allowing wolves to join hunts, and from there the bond we share with our pets today. Some dogs look similar to their ancestors, the wolves, like the siberian husky. Other breeds, however, look completely different from wolves, like the chihuahua or yorkshire terrier, which may only be about the size of a wolf’s head, or even smaller! How are these related species different, and how are they the same?
A wolf’s five senses are very acute, similar to dogs. However, wolves’ sense of smell is ten times better than a dog’s, and one hundred times better than human’s. These advanced senses must be used to hunt, fight, and defend territory. Wolves need this ability because they have to be able to find shelter and prey to survive. Dogs do not need these senses as much because they have adapted to living in warm houses and not having to hunt to find food. However, some breeds of dogs must have other features that they need to survive, like how a Saint Bernard’s thick fur helps it stay warm so it can dig people out of the snow.
Size is a definite difference between domesticated dogs and wolves. Breeders are able to change the sizes of domesticated dogs by mixing them with other breeds, or raising them in different climates so they can adapt. The average male wolf weighs a maximum of 180 lbs, which is pretty large. The average height of a full-grown wolf is 2.7 feet at the shoulder. The average male English Mastiff, which is the largest dog breed, weighs a maximum of 140 lbs, which is just 40 lbs shy of double the weight of a wolf. The average height of an English Mastiff is 3 feet at the shoulder.
Wolves live and hunt in packs, in which the average size is six wolves. They have very organized social ranks and bonds with other wolves, allowing them to communicate and cooperate with other pack members during hunts and defending territory. Stray dogs do not normally form packs for more than one or two days at a time, although that is a common misconception. Dogs develop close relationships with their owners and other household pets, but it isn’t for survival, like a pack.
The main theory is that all dogs descend from a common ancestor, the grey wolf, (Canis Lupus,) however, as genetic testing and DNA analysis has become more advanced, it has helped scientists discover that it is more likely that an even older species of wolf, called the Taymyr wolf, or other ancient species were the original ancestor of our pets. Dogs originated in Europe about 19,000 to 32,000 years ago, which is when breeding wolves became more popular. All dogs have a purpose, which is why the first breeders shaped wolves’ DNA to fit each job. I think that wolves are amazing creatures, and that they are the ones to thank for allowing us humans to have dogs as our pets.
