With over 60% of the population owning one, it’s clear that we in the UK love our pets. We explore the history of pethood for National Pet Month this April.
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Animals have always played an important part in human life throughout history but haven’t always been by our sides as pets – even though it may feel like they’ve been there forever! The history of pets is connected to the domestication of animals, though the exact time and location of the first domestication remain a mystery.
The first animal to be domesticated was man’s best friend, the dog. In 2016, a study by the University of Oxford published evidence that dogs were domesticated twice – once in Europe 16,000 years ago and again in Asia 14,000 years ago – from two separate wolf lineages. A 2017 study suggested that early dog-like wolves were genetically predisposed to be friendly, which likely paved the way for the first relationships between humans and dogs, where people provided food or shelter in exchange for the dogs’ service as guards or hunting companions.
Cats, on the other hand, have a more complicated history. Unlike animals that were domesticated for their milk, meat, wool, or labour, cats didn’t offer much to human survival except pest control. Archaeological evidence suggests that cats were drawn to human settlements to take advantage of mice and food scraps. It is believed that the ancient Egyptians were the first to domesticate cats as pets in the 16th century – after already taming lions, monkeys, and hyenas!
But when did domesticated animals become pets? It wasn’t until the 18th and 19th centuries that the concept of pethood (as we know it today) in Europe came into existence. At this time, they were seen as symbols of connection to the natural world and human control over nature.
Fast forward to the present day, and the human obsession with keeping animals has gone above and beyond just our furry friends. While pets like dogs, cats, and guinea pigs are familiar companions, some people have always sought after something a little more unusual, such as exotic pets. An exotic pet is an animal not native to the country in which it’s kept and is often considered a wild species rather than a domesticated one, such as birds, reptiles, fish, insects, and more.
Throughout history, it was typically wealthy people that kept exotic animals as a status symbol, with many members of the royal family keeping collections of wild animals on their estates at Richmond and Kew in the 18th century.
The 20th century is when the demand for unique creatures exploded, and millions started being traded across the globe. Much of this can be attributed to the popularity of social media, which has provided a way for people to easily advertise, sell, and show off live animals. For example, a flurry of videos posted to YouTube in 2015 of slow lorises eating rice balls in captivity went viral and led to poaching of the wide-eyed primates for the pet trade.
The relationship between humans and animals has evolved significantly over thousands of years, from early domestication for practical purposes to the modern-day phenomenon of exotic pets. While domesticated animals have integrated seamlessly into human lives, the increasing popularity of exotic pets raises important ethical and environmental concerns. The demand for unique creatures has led to the exploitation of wild species and the disruption of ecosystems. As we continue to have pets into our homes, we must consider the impact of pet ownership on both animals and the planet, ensuring that the bond between us and them remains mutually beneficial and respectful.
