With so many pets living alongside humans, we tend to forget that most were once wild animals. Yes, that lazy orange blob on your couch was once a fierce wild cat, and that dog that’s been sighing hard sleeping in your bed is a distant relative of a wolf.
According to Todd, in the process of domestication, many animals have come to rely on humans to fulfill their basic needs, though it depends, to some extent, on the species and the individual animal. “For example, most cats could probably catch their own food if they needed to, as they still have those abilities, but some pedigrees in particular would struggle to find food. Some types of cats (Persian cats, for example) also need us to take care of their coats and wipe their faces to prevent infection.
“Quite a few dogs could probably manage to catch or find food if they had to, but some would really struggle; and again, there are some breeds that are very dependent on us for grooming, such as Poodles or Shih Tzus,” the expert noted, adding that some other domesticated species, like chickens, for example, would probably do okay without us.
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