<P> The origin of the domestic dog is not clear . The domestic dog is a member of the genus Canis, which forms part of the wolf - like canids, and is the most widely abundant terrestrial carnivore . The closest living relative of the dog is the extant gray wolf and there is no evidence of any other canine contributing to its genetic lineage . The dog and the extant gray wolf are sister taxa as modern wolves are not closely related to the wolves that were first domesticated . The archaeological record shows the first undisputed dog remains buried beside humans 14,700 years ago, with disputed remains occurring 36,000 years ago . These dates imply that the earliest dogs arose in the time of human hunter - gatherers and not agriculturists . The dog was the first species to be domesticated . </P> <P> Where the genetic divergence of dog and wolf took place remains controversial, with the most plausible proposals spanning Western Europe, Central Asia, and East Asia . This has been made more complicated by the most recent proposal that fits the available evidence, which is that an initial wolf population split into East and West Eurasian groups; these, before going extinct, were domesticated independently into two distinct dog populations between 14,000--6,400 years ago . The Western Eurasian dog population was partially and gradually replaced by East Asian dogs introduced by humans at least 6,400 years ago . </P>

When did humans start keeping dogs as pets
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