Dogs may have domesticated themselves because they liked snacks, model suggests

A question I've often heard asked with regard to domestic pets is whether they're "food motivated". I've never met a dog or cat that wasn't... is there some rando in Arkansas that has a Dachshund that enjoys true crime documentaries and experimental mathematics more than treats? Or is my impression that fuzzy quadrapeds with walnut-sized brains are universally food-motivated a correct one?

I will apologize to dogs in advance for any insensitivity I might show here.<p>My relationship with dogs is complicated. Once I read that their eyes rounded in response to their <i>long</i> adaptation to humans, I started feeling a little remorseful. Their Family is fundamentally altered and some of their natural self has been remolded to serve as our adjunct.<p>I know we didn&#x27;t set out to do that but I regret it some, nonetheless.<p>In regard to all pets, I&#x27;ve come to feel a debt for sacrificing their independence. I feel an obligation to understand them, to accept them as what they are and to treat them in a way that respects that being. Hopefully they&#x27;ll receive some fulfillment they otherwise wouldn&#x27;t have.<p>But with dogs, that obligation feels uniquely expansive. I don&#x27;t really know how to do it justice.

<p><pre><code> The model showed that over 15,000 years, natural selection could potentially drive dog self-domestication. But for this to happen, two conditions had to be met: Wolves had to choose to stay near humans to eat food scraps, and they had to select mates with a similar temperament. </code></pre> Why would humans feed wolves scraps without them providing something of value in return?<p>Wolves have to provide something to humans in order for humans to keep feeding them right? In this case, humans would want some wolves around them. Therefore, it seems very unlikely to be self domestication because humans would have a heavy sway in how dogs evolved.

The silver fox domestication experiment that ran for 60 years<p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;evolution-outreach.biomedcentral.com&#x2F;articles&#x2F;10.1186&#x2F;s12052-018-0090-x" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;evolution-outreach.biomedcentral.com&#x2F;articles&#x2F;10.118...</a>

In my study, (n=2), I can attest, indeed, that both of my dogs will willingly give up roaming outside in the wild for snacks, scritches, and belly-rubs.

Wheat may have domesticated us because we like bread.

I find the self-domestication theory quite plausible for cats, but I&#x27;m having a hard time accepting it for wolves. Why would human tribes tolerate wolves in close proximity?<p>Small cats are largely harmless and get rid of pests. Wolves compete for the same food sources, kill children, and are otherwise a nuisance.<p>Granted, selective breeding of captive animals also doesn&#x27;t jibe with what we know about the Stone Age, but we don&#x27;t know all that much.

I can tell you for a fact that our dogs love snacks. Especially the one, he&#x27;s asking me for one right now.

<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=Kf9fjF26-ZU" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=Kf9fjF26-ZU</a><p>In Hoh Xil, China. a wild wolf started begging for food from humans. It now approaches vehicles for food, and also shows some dog-like habits.

I love it when statistical modelling is used for research like this. I think we&#x27;re underestimating the impact research simulations will have on science, especially when they get cheaper and easier to build. Exciting stuff!

There was also a study that showed dogs are healthiest when they eat a single meal a day (as opposed to the usual twice a day most people do). <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.newsweek.com&#x2F;dog-feed-once-day-cognitive-health-1649704" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.newsweek.com&#x2F;dog-feed-once-day-cognitive-health-...</a> Behaviour isn&#x27;t always aligned with biological needs though.

slightly off topic: does anyone have the link to genetic arguments dogs descend from wolves, rather than dogs and wolves being both descended from a common proto-canine? i should be able to find such, the article alludes to such as a foregone conclusion, but no luck.

It could be the other way around, where dogs that were domesticated were the ones that responded to humans&#x27; love of feeding them.<p>Humans love feeding animals. It&#x27;s a unique behavior in the animal kingdom. And the first step to domesticating anything is feeding them.

Hasn&#x27;t this been determined for quite some time? &quot;Wolves found out they could get easy food and some shelter by working with humans&quot; is a determination I&#x27;ve been seeing since at least the 00&#x27;s, maybe even 90&#x27;s.

Reminds me of the scene in Blood Meridian where they find a dog in an abandoned Apache camp and Brown says, “you won’t man that thing,” and Captain Glanton says, “I can man anything that eats.”

As a dog lover I believe that sure they might have first learned to trust us thanks to food, but I believe they stayed and became our best friends thanks to scritches.<p>Those five fingers work magic.

What does the Model say about parasites, they like to snack too (:

They aren&#x27;t many examples of humans making &quot;friend&quot; with other animals without the help of food

Coincidentally this is also how I have a partner.

The title reads like a factoid produced by an LLM.

Also they like to be told they are good doggies.

The same could be said about humans.

My dog agrees.

why so many fake &quot;science&quot; articles posted on HN lately?

Your dog is a gmo.

Peckish pups

I, too, was domesticated because I like snacks. :)