DOGS AND HUMANS

A BRIEF HISTORY FOR CHILDREN

Many experts today agree that domestic dogs descended from wolves. Thousands of years ago, wolves gathered around human encampments in order to scavenge the peoples’ leftovers. Some wolves were more friendly toward their providers and the two species began to live near and even with each other. Eventually, a partnership developed. It wasn’t long before the humans began to take advantage of the canines’ hunting and protective instincts.

Dog human interaction has come a long way since those days. We humans have learned that dogs are trainable and make good companions. Today’s canines are important parts of many peoples’ lives all over the world. In addition to being family members, many dogs have jobs. Some of the many things dogs have been trained to do in recent history are:

• Police work/Protection
• Assist people with disabilities including those who are deaf, blind, wheelchair-bound and others
• Serve as therapy dogs by visiting at such places as children’s hospitals and nursing homes
• Carry messages during times of war as well as times of peace
• Detection work – bombs, drugs, illegal imports and termites are just a few of the things dogs have been trained to sniff out
• Search and Rescue specializing in one or more of the following skills:

• Air scent (wilderness or urban)
• Trailing (wilderness or urban)
• Cadaver search
• Water
• Avalanche
• Disaster recovery