2007-05-14 14:03:44 · 18 answers · asked by Justin S 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Zoology
Hi. From the web...Wolf - "Any of three extant species of canine. The gray, or timber, wolf (Canis lupus) is the ancestor of all domestic dogs."
2007-05-14 14:06:35 · answer #1 · answered by Cirric 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Back in the day humans selectively bred the gray wolf (Canis lupus) for the traits that best suited humans and created a new sub-species: the dog (Canis lupus familiaris)
So, to answer your question, sometimes a wolf is a dog (as in my pet poodle is a wolf, technically), but a wolf is not alway a dog (as in the case of a gray wolf out in the wild).
Really, it is dogs that are really wolves, not the other way around.
2007-05-14 21:39:53 · answer #2 · answered by George B 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The wolf is the original dog.
2007-05-17 14:57:34 · answer #3 · answered by johnandeileen2000 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Nope it's the other way around.. a dog is a subspecies of wolf, Canis lupus familiaris. Therefore all dogs are wolves and all wolves are... well wolves! The Wolf came first, we just took some and domesticated them.. they are still wolves we just call them dogs now that they have changed so much because of selective breeding, they are still just domestic wolves.
Excerpts from Wikipedia... The dog (Canis lupus familiaris) is a domestic subspecies of the wolf, a mammal of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog
The Gray Wolf shares a common ancestry with the domestic dog (Canis lupus familiaris), as evidenced by DNA sequencing and genetic drift studies.
2007-05-15 13:59:40 · answer #4 · answered by Kelly + Eternal Universal Energy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is a great article on the origins of dogs.
It is believed dogs originated from a Eurasian Gray Wolf about 12 to 14 thousand years ago.
There were probably a few wolves that were tamer and than others and hung around people to eat scraps of food. (just like they do now).
These "tame wolves" would breed with other tame wolves so over time a population evolved that was different from wild wolves.
Scientists have studied DNA of different canines to see how closely related they are.
http://canidae.ca/dog.htm
2007-05-15 03:15:08 · answer #5 · answered by michael971 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Actually a wolf is a "wolf" and all dogs are decended from wolfs. Saw a documentary on it last week.
2007-05-14 21:10:02 · answer #6 · answered by dad 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
no but a dog could be a wolf
2007-05-14 21:08:31 · answer #7 · answered by psycho 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I believe so, I think they're cousins. Actually, I think the domestic dog originates from the wolf.
2007-05-14 21:10:43 · answer #8 · answered by twinkle*toes 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Actually, no. Dogs are wolfs- after centuries of selective breeding by man.
KrazyKyngeKorny
(Krazy, not stupid)
2007-05-14 21:11:47 · answer #9 · answered by krazykyngekorny 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
the other way around
dogs originally come from wolf type animals ,also coyote ,and dingo
2007-05-15 03:02:14 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋