A wealth of recent archaeological discoveries and genetic analyses are challenging the long-held theory of dog self-domestication, proposing instead that the domestication of dogs was a deliberate, human-driven process initiated over 36,000 years ago, predating agriculture. This paradigm shift moves away from the idea that wolves were drawn to human refuse and gradually became more docile. Paleolithic canids found across Eurasia, dating between 35,500 and 13,000 years ago, exhibit distinct physical differences from wolves, including a lighter average weight of 31.2 kg compared to Pleistocene wolves' 41.8 kg, shorter snouts, wider palates, and reduced canines. Ancient DNA analysis further supports this, indicating origins in Southwest and East Asia and suggesting multiple independent domestication events.
The prevailing self-domestication hypothesis, popularized by Raymond and Lorna Coppinger, suggested wolves approached human settlements for food scraps. However, counterarguments point out that Stone Age peoples were resourceful and unlikely to leave significant waste near living areas, and modern hunter-gatherer practices often involve storing meat away from scavengers. Archaeologist Loukas Koungoulos highlights behavioral and cultural obstacles for self-domestication in large carnivores. Consequently, many researchers now favor the human initiative hypothesis, suggesting Paleolithic humans actively selected wolf pups, raised them, and selectively bred those with docile temperaments. Evolutionary biologist Raymond Pierotti emphasizes the critical role of early socialization. Archaeological findings, such as a fox buried with humans 16,000 years ago in Jordan, indicate deep bonds. Mietje Germonpré, an archaeozoologist, believes adopting wild pups as pets was the initial step. Wolves also held material and symbolic significance, with pelts valuable for survival during the Last Glacial Maximum (26,000-19,000 years ago). While analogies with Australian dingoes suggest coexistence can modify behavior, the self-domestication theory is increasingly being superseded by evidence supporting human agency in canine origins.