The domesticated dog belongs to the family Canidae along with their wild cousins, wolves, coyotes, jackals, foxes and wild dogs. It is difficult to determine their origin and development because the evolution of dogs parallels the evolution of human cultures. Humans domesticated dogs at different times and in different geographical locations. It is known that most of the breeds are interrelated, arising at some time in the past from crossbreeding. Many varieties of dogs that have been described historically are no longer in existence.

According to scientific evidence, for at least 14,000 years (back to the Stone Age), humans have had dogs as close companions. Fossil evidence for this was found in the region now called Iraq and also in southern Europe. Although there is no evidence of how the partnership started, there are some possible explanations. Dogs could have been attracted to human campsites for getting food without hunting and man could have kept them for "cleaning purposes" and also for guarding the village, much as our dogs today may guard our homes. This early relationship between dogs and humans is so important that some evolutionary theorists have suggested that the survival of our ancestors is related to the cooperative partnership with the dog.

Mesopotamia seems to have been the major source of domesticated dogs disseminated to Asia and Europe in later years. In addition, there were a great deal of superstitions linked to Mesopotamian dogs, carried on throughout Europe and the Americas. Egyptians worshiped canines, believing they were descended from the god Anubis, judge of the otherworld. Like people, dogs were mummified after death to be insured of their place in the otherworld and the murder of a dog was a capital offense. For the Greeks, Vulcan, the god of fire, forged canines and their interest in dogs was more related to sports. Romans were interested in working dogs. Animals in the Far East were considered wise and canine worship was still alive in the Orient little more than a century ago.

There are several tales about how dogs are sensitive to death and these are found in many religions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism. The howling of a dog is often taken as a death omen. In many places it’s believed that every family should have a dog to keep bad things from happening.

During the Dark Age, along with inquisitions for people, there were also pet inquisitions. Many animals were killed because were believed to be evil. Cats and black dogs suffered the most.

Religious views of dogs were both positive and negative, but the original consensus was that dogs had intelligence, reason and consciousness. This could be noted in many tales of devotion and bravery told about them. It seems that, among others, the fact that saints were pet lovers made it possible to move on to a pet Renaissance as well as a human one. Among the saints we have; St. Jerome, St. Yves, St. Gertrude of Nivelles, St. Agatha, St. Patrick, St. Bernard, St. Francis, St. Margaret of Cortona, St. Roche and St. John Bosco. It was during the Renaissance that dogs became companions more than ever before. Dog art developed at its fullest during the Victorian area and there was even a heated debate among theologians as to whether dogs had a soul and went to heaven. Protestant thinkers such as Martin Luther, Samuel Clarke and Augustus Toplady insisted they did.

The pinnacle of pet privilege was reached in Europe during the reins of Henry III and Louis XIV. Dogs made great strides forward, not only socially but also politically, artistically and scientifically. Many new pet breeds appeared at this point, primarily because dogs participated in the conquest of the New World, mingling with wild dogs and wolves. Native Americans from the Atlantic to the Pacific held animals to be sacred, especially dogs. By the late 1800s, canine population exceeded the human in many frontier towns.

Dogs have had many "functions" since their domestication; these functions differ depending on the culture and time period. There are some cultures that are highly dependent on working dogs, such as the Eskimos with their sled dogs. In European culture, dogs have been used for centuries to carry materials, pull loads and as a power source for work. They also had a special place in the kitchen of large households when meat was usually cooked over an open fire on spits. The spits needed to be rotated continuously so the dogs were placed in an enclosed wheel to generate motion for rotating the spits as they walked. They were called "Turnspit dogs" and were also taken to church to serve as foot warmers. In modern times, dogs still work as farm dogs, hunters or in specialized services such as guiding the blind.

Dogs have been used in wars since the earliest ages: Babylonians, Assyrians and Egyptians drafted mastiffs while Persians had Indian Hounds in their battles. In World War I, seven thousand allied dogs were killed in action. In World War II, eight dogs received animal decoration.

We can say that while humans face certain problems in becoming more civilized, so does the dog. Dogs and humans have a great ability to adjust to their environment, but all adaptation has a cost and many times we are not aware of them. It seems that dogs have a new function in their relationship with humans, sort of a therapeutic function, a way that humans found to deal with the frustrations of the world. One should wonder how much of these frustrations the dog shares with his master. Many times frustration could lead to aggression in both man and dog.

Even though it appears that dogs have adapted extremely well to our way of life, they have lost their much needed privacy and contact with other dogs. It may be necessary that humans rethink their relationship with their best friend and, by not assuming that dogs have to lead the same life we do, become more careful with the conditions we offer them. Specific breeds have specific needs that should be taken into account when purchasing a dog. This doesn't occur nearly as much as it should. Perhaps humans are used to seeing dogs around them for so long, they take them for granted.

As it has been for a very long time, dogs will always be humankind's closest companions, therefore they deserve consideration. This doesn't mean we have to think they are like us because as Jeanne Schinto expresses perfectly, "Dogs are not people dressed up in fur coats, and to deny them their nature is to do them a great harm." In order to avoid doing them any harm, it is also important to avoid treating them as toys, or "just animals" that don't have feelings or needs.

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