Eli5: How does domestication tend to change the wild animal undergoing domestication?

Question

Eli5: How does domestication tend to change the wild animal undergoing domestication?

In: 1

Answer 1

Domestication doesn’t change the animal.

Evolution changes the animal, and the domesticator places a a strong survival pressure on the traits they care about. When a wild animal misbehaves, it gets killed, so those genes aren’t going to get passed on to future generations. When it behaves as the domesticator desires, it gets better living conditions, access to better food, and a much safer environment in which to raise its offspring. This increases survival, for the obedient ones, and zeros out survival chances for the rest.