Wolf puppies play fetch, too, scientists find
- Research made discovery by chance while conducting test on differences between wolves and dogs
- Rare behaviour adds ‘new piece to the puzzle’ of canine domestication
It is a game familiar to most people: you throw an object a short distance, and wait as your joyful canine companion leaps to intercept and return the missile, encouraged by words of praise or a pat on the head.
Such scenes have no doubt played out over millennia, symbolising the unshakeable bond of friendship between humanity and our “best friends” ever since dogs were domesticated from wolves at least 15,000 years ago.
But a new study in the journal iScience shows that some wolf puppies also know how to play fetch, upending the long-held hypothesis that the ability to interpret subtle human social cues is unique to dogs and arose as a result of selective breeding.
The finding was made by chance as researchers in Sweden subjected 13 wolf puppies born to three different litters to a series of behavioural tests.
The team was raising wolf and dog puppies from the age of 10 days old to answer fundamental questions about how the two species differ, and what they have in common.