Eli5: Why can’t you make a pet out of a wolf, a bear or a lion?
In: Biology
The first dogs were literally wolves which just happened to be friendlier and less aggressive. In a modern setting these early wolves we kept definitely would not be trusted around society. But at that time, if you kept those wolves around and kept feeding them your scraps, eventually they’d get close, let you pet them, maybe start living in your home over the course of months or years. Then, when they birthed some cubs, they would be much more trustworthy, as the cubs would think of you as one of their own. You could then breed the wolves with the friendly, obedient, healthy wolves, whatever trait you need you could breed for that. These wolves could help you track an animal to hunt, protect your tribe from other animals or humans, or simply give you affection, which is why we kept them around. Eventually, over time, these wolves became the various dog breeds that we know of today.
Bears, Tigers and Lions are pets, to a degree. They are raised as cubs, but only the people who were there while they were raised are really the only ones they won’t attack. Mike Tyson had a tiger for example. They haven’t been bred though for favourable traits, and are still massive animals weighing hundreds of pounds and they require huge amounts of meat to maintain them and their health. This is completely unsuitable for a house pet.
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