Canine Evolution Flashcards
Describe the theory of artifical selection as it pertains to dogs
The most common theory
Ancient man took in wild wolf pups, bred and trained them for protection and hunting
Over generations the wolves became tamer and tamer eventually resulting in the domesticated dogs we have today
What evidence suggests the dogs have evolved methods of communicating with humans?
Reduction in fear of humans (applying their problem solving skills to human interaction)
Learned how to respond to human social cues (easily regocnize and understand pointing)
Developed type of “cognitive machinery” to understand the human mental state by reading human body language
Dogs are now predisposed to learn human communication (due to thousands years of evolving together)
What is an example of some evidence of coevolution?
Most people are able to tell the difference between happy and angry bark just by the sound alone and can even tell the size of a dog just by its growl
