" ... intensive breeding by humans over the last 500 years - not different genetic origins - is responsible for the dramatic differences in appearance among modern dogs." Article Here

What about those who go back further then 500 years. Are they included in the same theory or is it different. Admit I have not yet read the artical but wounder why it only goes back such a short while.
Jackie

The article goes back further than 500 years, Jackie :) I think it's just the majority of "breeds" tend to be extremely recent vs. the total of approx. 15,000 years of canine domestication. :) Very well written and interesting, especially how puppies better interpret human behavior than Chimpanzees do :)
Thanks, Leigh, for the link :)

>>The scientists helped by pointing or looking in the direction of the hidden food.

I found the article very interesting too.
As an aside: I do think that people under estimate the vital part that *eye contact* plays in relationships/training etc? Then again maybe it is something we take for granted so much, that we are not even aware of how much we use our *eyes* to communicate? I know if I glare at the old man, he will stop what he is doing immediately and I have used the same look with great success on my dogs & kids :D

There is a theory that dogs have been domesticated twice in the past 135,000 years. Specialists in the field estimate that the first domesticated species of dogs originated about 100-135 thousand years ago by an inferior species of "mankind."

Scientists have done research on the DNA sequences of dogs in 27 different countries and have concluded that the origins of the domestic dog are derived from at least two "unique and commmon" ancestors. Furthermore, studies have also shown that 14,000 years is an insufficient amount of time for the genetic mutations that have been noted in the sequences of today's domestic dog to have occured. However, through the use of a "molecular clock," scientists have come to the conclusion that the true ancestors of the domestic dog (as well as today's wolf) date back to about 135,000 years ago.

What's all his technical stuff mean? Basically that today's domestic dog has been domesticed at least twice in the past 135,000 years. The last time it occured it happened about 14,000 years ago. It is widely accepted that the domestic dog of today is a direct descendant of the wolf due to their virtually identical DNA sequences. However, researchers could not identify the ancestral species of today's modern wolf and concluded that it must be extinct.

Aaaahh all this genetic stuff is so complicated it gives you a headache at first but it makes perfect sense.

Rob

Perfect ;-)