Meadows / Flint The Dog Owners Handbook

1. Auflage 2016
ISBN: 978-1-60765-381-3
Verlag: IMM Lifestyle
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 128 Seiten

This fully illustrated, practical and modern handbook is the perfect guide for today's dog owner. Written by top veterinarians and animal behaviorists Graham Meadows and Elsa Flint, this book is comprehensive, easy to use and packed with fascinating facts and essential information. It explores the enduring relationship that has existed between dogs and humans, from the earliest days when dogs were reliable allies for hunters and herdsmen to today where selective breeding has produced dogs to suit virtually any temperament, need and personal circumstance. This book offers guidance in choosing the right kind of dog, introducing it into your home, and taking the best possible care of it.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Meadows, Graham

Flint, Elsa

Leseproben

DOGS AND PEOPLE

From wild origins to domestication

Dog ownership brings with it a number of therapeutic benefits, not only the joy of companionship. Dog owners suffer less stress, are less aggressive and judgmental and live longer.

If you have ever thought that Alaskan Malamutes and German Shepherd dogs look very much like wolves, you are pretty close to the mark. Despite many opinions as to exactly how and where our modern dog breeds originated, there is very strong evidence (DNA analysis) that domesticated wolves were their common distant ancestors.

Dogs and wolves are both classified as members of the family and share similar characteristics:

º forty-two teeth

º fifty to 52 vertebrae (seven cervical, 13 thoracic, seven lumbar, three sacral, 20–22 coccygeal)

º a circularly contracting iris

º a similar sense of smell

º similar diseases

º similar behaviour

º an exceptional sense of direction

º nocturnal habits

º a propensity to dig

º gestation of nine weeks

º their puppies’ eyes open at about two weeks of age.

Wolves (), also known as grey wolves, are found only in the northern hemisphere, throughout Europe, North America and Asia. Wolves in the far north vary in colour: animals in a single pack may be black, grey-brown, and white. Those in warmer climates are less aggressive, smaller, more uniform in colour, often yellowish-fawn or grizzled grey-brown like the domestic dog ().

Wolves and people

We can understand how and why an association developed between wolves and people if we compare their lifestyles during the period of history (between 15,000 and 60,000 years ago) that led to the wolf’s domestication.

Humans were semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers. They lived in groups, used natural shelters such as caves and made forays to hunt for food. They had leaders upon whose skill or experience the rest of the group relied. Hunting required physical strength and was primarily the task of males; cooking food and rearing children was largely the domain of females.

The grey wolf – ancestor of many North American dog breeds.

Wolves also lived together in extended family groups, or packs, within which there was a distinct hierarchy and a pack leader. They made use of what natural shelter was available, and like humans they also made forays to hunt. Females gave birth to, and reared, their cubs, and for much of the time relied on the strength and ability of the males to protect them and provide food.

Grey wolves in a wild environment. Today, grey wolves are found only in Canada, parts of the United States, Russia, and pockets of Eastern Europe.

Because wolves and humans were hunters, they almost certainly competed with each other from time to time. The wolf’s acute sense of smell helped it to track down its prey, and humans may have taken advantage of this by finding wolves that had made a kill, driving them away and taking over the carcass. Wolves probably followed humans who were hunting and picked up any scraps that were left behind.

As time went by, humans developed a distinct advantage over their canine competitors: the ability to use primitive weapons that made their hunting more effective. A better supply of food meant a more stable lifestyle, and humans began to spend more time in semi-permanent encampments.

Bones from wolf-like dogs have been found in excavations of human encampments dating from 30,000 to 60,000 years ago. They were almost certainly not pets, but semi-wild animals killed by the human inhabitants for food, or had been attracted to the encampments to scavenge on food scraps. Humans may have encouraged such scavengers, for the wolves’ superior sense of smell and hearing would have enabled them to detect approaching predators, such as bears or lions, much sooner than the human residents.

Early humans probably made use of the wolf’s hunting and scenting ability, and the protection it offered, in much the same way that we use dogs today. In return the wolves obtained some food, and by remaining close to encampments also received a certain amount of protection, for most large predators would not venture too close to humans.

The Alaskan Malamute bears a close resemblance to its grey wolf ancestors.

The process of domestication

Over a period of time, wolves living close to humans became more relaxed and sociable towards them. Both dogs and humans discovered mutu al benefits from this loose association, which gradually became closer and led to the process of domestication. One of the key factors in this process was the wolf’s natural instinct to obey a pack leader, and the ability of humans to fulfil that role. Caught when very young, a wild wolf cub was likely to obey its human master and be tamed.

Patterns of dominant and submissive behaviour in wolves

Dominant behaviour	Submissive behaviour

Dominant pose

Stiff, tall stance Ears up or forward Tail up or out

Submissive posture

Crouched posture Ears flat and tail tucked in Forehead smooth Pulling corners of mouth back (’grinning’) Licking or extruding the tongue Lowering and averting the gaze

Feet on

Dominant places its forelegs across the shoulders of a subordinate

Submissive arched posture

Back very arched and neck curved down and to the side. Head low, muzzle extended up Tail tucked in and ears flat Lifting hind leg while dropping to the ground, exposing the inguinal region

Muzzle pin

Dominant either bites or grabs subordinate’s muzzle, forcing it to the ground and keeping it there

Submissive sit

Sitting back, tucking chin into chest, sometimes pawing at the dominant and averting gaze

Stand across

Dominant stands stiffly across the forequarters of a prone subordinate

This Canadian grey wolf displays typical dominance aggression as it protects its food.

Domestication was a gradual process that occurred during very similar time periods in Europe, Asia and North America – around 10–15,000 years ago. Initially humans used the sub-species of wolf that occurred in their particular area, but as humans migrated there came a great deal of interbreeding. Four subspecies of wolf had a particular influence on the development of our modern dog breeds:

º The Indian wolf probably gave rise to the ancestors of the Dingo and Asian Pariah Dog. The Dingo’s ancestors moved eastwards with human migration, and eventually became isolated in Australia.

º From the Chinese wolf evolved breeds such as the Pekingese and Chow Chow.

º The North American grey wolf was a major source of North American breeds, such as the Eskimo Dog and Alaskan Malamute.

º European wolves were probably involved in the development of breeds such as the various Shepherd Dogs, Spitz types and Terriers.

The development of dog types

The process of selection and refinement lasted many thousands of years, and was based on the human needs for food, protection and companionship. Dogs had an excellent sense of smell and were faster and more agile than men, so they proved to be valuable allies when it came to tracking and hunting the animals on which humans relied for their food, skins and fur. Dogs also proved useful for watch and guard duty, and for killing the vermin that were attracted to the food in the human encampments. Some wolves proved better at certain tasks than others, and human selection gradually produced different types of dog.

During the Neolithic Age, which started about 8,000 years ago, humans learned to grow crops. They also domesticated and farmed goats, sheep and cattle, so they selected dogs to provide a further service: herding.

By choosing their primitive domestic dogs for different purposes, humans incidentally selected for particular characteristics. Among these were temperament, body shape and body size.

It is suggested that in selecting for temperament they chose animals that were playful, outgoing and showed little aggression towards people, yet readily barked at the appearance of intruders. These traits were consistent with the behaviour of young animals, and over a period of time resulted in an adult population that retained many ’puppy’ characteristics. Scientifically, this is referred to as ‘neoteny’.

In developing a dog type, body shape and size were clearly important. Dogs required to hunt fast-running prey needed speed and agility, and therefore a relatively light, fine-boned body with long legs and a flexible spine. Large, strong dogs were required to hunt prey such as gazelles, but dogs used for hunting hares could be smaller. A dog whose job was to catch rats or dig out a rabbit’s burrow needed quickness and agility, and thus a compact...