Question

Your friend, who has yet to take this course, tells you that humans first domesticated animals because we became sedentary and no longer wanted to hunt for our meat. You know something that conflicts with their claim, which is:

a-Humans became sedentary because they wanted a less labor-intensive lifestyle, and this has nothing to do with domestication of animals.
b-Humans first domesticated dogs before sedentary lifestyles became widespread.
c-The first animals to be domesticated were sheep, which are not sedentary. They prefer to roam.
d-Cows were sedentary before humans, and this led humans to become sedentary due to their large amounts of meat.
e-Animals are not actually domesticated like plants are, since they are wild creatures who are only tamed, not domesticated.

Answer 1

Humans domesticated dogs before adopting sedentary agricultural lifestyles, and the domestication of animals played a significant role in shaping human societies, both sedentary and nomadic.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement that humans first domesticated animals because they became sedentary and no longer wanted to hunt for meat is contradicted by the historical fact that dogs were domesticated before sedentary lifestyles became widespread. This happened roughly 10,000 years ago, in a time when humans still lived as nomads, before the full development of agricultural societies. Additionally, the process of domestication shaped both humans and animals mutually, leading to transformations in the way humans lived and interacted with the environment.

One of the earliest domesticated animals, dogs, played various roles aside from being sources of meat, such as guards, herders, and companions. This early domestication suggests a symbiotic relationship between humans and certain animal species. Although some human societies did become sedentary following the agricultural revolution, others, like pastoral societies, continued to be nomadic, moving with their herds to fresh grazing grounds, and integrating these animals into their livelihood in a manner that did not solely center around meat consumption.