Definition of animal domestication

The concept of the process of domestication of animals

Domestication is defined as the human reorganization of wild animals and making them able to live with humans in the way they wish, in order to meet the many and diverse human requirements. It should be noted that domestication has played a prominent role in the development of human culture over time.^[XNUMX]

Man has begun to produce from the land and from raising and domesticating animals at the same time. Many animals have acquired behavioral and living changes due to the domestication process compared to their ancestors who lived in the wild. It appears that the first human attempts to domesticate animals appeared in the Mesolithic era in the Central Asian region 15,000 years ago. general.^[XNUMX]

The first process of domestication of dogs was by hunters who went out to hunt animals and collect wild plants to provide food for themselves and their families. The process of domestication continued after that, and humans began to domesticate other animals, such as raising sheep and improving their productivity.^[XNUMX]

How does the domestication process of animals occur?

The domestication process takes place through what is known as selective breeding, which is a process in which a person selects some animals that he will domesticate from a group of animals that display the desired characteristics in the domestication process, and these characteristics will be passed on to future generations of this species.^[XNUMX]

Since most of the domestication work was practiced in stages before recorded history, there is not a lot of clear and accurate information available about the stages that animals went through from living in the wild until they became pets or domesticated.^[XNUMX]

There is no doubt that these animals showed many characteristics that led people to believe in the feasibility of domesticating them, such as that their meat tastes delicious or that their skins are suitable for making pieces of clothing and other features.^[XNUMX] Accordingly, there are many basic requirements that an animal must meet in order for it to be a valid choice for domestication, and these standards are as follows:^[XNUMX]

Diet

Perhaps one of the most important criteria to take into consideration when starting domestication is the animal’s diet and what nutritional needs it needs. It is noted that carnivorous animals have a high domestication cost, while animals that depend on plants will be easier and less expensive to domesticate.

growth rate

The growth rate of the animal to be domesticated is very important, as it must be rapid in order for the investing farmers to be able to achieve a good return that covers the costs of the domestication process.

Behavior and behaviour

The animal to be domesticated should be friendly, as animals that are ferocious or have aggressive tendencies will be difficult to subject to the domestication process.

reproduction

The reproductive process for the animal to be domesticated should proceed according to its natural pattern. If the animal refuses to reproduce during a certain period during the course of the domestication process, this means that it will not continue to remain under human control for a long time.

Lack of fear and panic

The animal to be domesticated must not panic or become afraid when it is tied up or placed in a closed place. Otherwise, the domestication process will often be very difficult or impossible.

The goal of the process of domesticating animals

There are many goals that humans seek to achieve through the domestication process, perhaps the most important of which are the following:

Get the products

In ancient times, humans domesticated animals in order to obtain meat, skins, milk and their derivatives.^[XNUMX]

Examples of animal domestication

Man has sought to domesticate many animals in the past and at the present time. Perhaps among the most famous animals that have been domesticated are the following:

Domestication of goats

Goats are among the first animals that humans domesticated and took full advantage of, in the Fertile Crescent region of Mesopotamia approximately 10,000 years ago, as humans benefited from them to obtain milk, meat, and hides.^[XNUMX]

It should be noted that domesticating goats was an easy task that did not require much human effort. They do not depend on a difficult or expensive diet, but on the contrary, they feed on various types of plants that humans do not find difficult to obtain.^[XNUMX]

Domestication of cows

Cows are also among the first animals that humans domesticated in an effort to obtain the benefits that cows provide for them, primarily meat, milk, and leather. They are also among the animals that feed on grass and are therefore inexpensive from a financial standpoint.^[XNUMX]

Domestication of horses

Horses are among humans' favorite animals to be domesticated and raised on farms and fields. Horses need training, but training a horse born on a farm is usually much easier than training a horse caught from the wild.^[XNUMX]

Domestication of cats

The domestication of cats goes back thousands of years, as it is believed that their domestication dates back to 7500 years BC. M, and it descends from 5 different types of wild cats,^[XNUMX] Man has always sought to domesticate and raise cats indoors, which contributed to the development of many of their genetic traits, and it is reported that they were used for many purposes, such as catching mice and rats.^[XNUMX]