Dogs in our lives

I was recently gifted with the book Gods, Humans, Dogs by Nikolia Gol, Irina Mamonova and Maria Haltunen, by a friend who had come from St. Petersburg, Russia.

The book is filled with art works, which date back to the fourth Millennium BC and show how dogs have been present in the lives of humans all these years.

The authors write that in fact, the first ally of humans was the dog. They have been able to trace the presence of dogs in the lives of the humans through the various artworks that show how dear, or even how fierce, the dogs were at the time they were depicted in the artworks.

From the book we get a glimpse of how the life of humans with dogs began:

“It is hard to say when the alliance began. Scholars have found signs of the domestication of the dog in archeological layers dating from the Upper Paleolithic era (20, 11,00 years ago) But, very recently, in the Goyet Cave in Belgium, an even more ancient skull of a domestic dog was discovered. Now archeologists are sure that for almost 32,000 years now a new kind of canid — canis familiaris, domestic dog — has been living side by side with human beings. 

“Feast in the House of Simon the Pharisee,” by Peter Paul Rubens circa 1618

“Tamed dogs guarded dwellings of primitive humans from wild animals and uninvited visitors. They hunted with people, helping them to find prey and the way back home, and warning of dangers. Puppies and children played together. Later when people acquired livestock, dogs began to help the herdsmen.”

I was particularly drawn to the last chapter of the book, which talks about dogs as being man’s best friend.

The artworks in this chapter show the dogs as I know them to be — loyal, loving and cute companions. The dog as a best friend is never taken lightly by any dog-lover. We have special places in our homes, in our outings and more so in our hearts, for these very special best friends of ours.

“The dog, as a true and loyal friend, is always close by — and people are glad of its company,” the book says.