Evolution of furry friendship

Perhaps it began with a wolf that couldn't quite make up its mind.

- KUMAR ABISHEK

Too bold to slink away, too wary to attack, it lingered at the edge of firelight, nosing roasted bones and the strange creatures gathered nearby.

That single pause — part hunger, part curiosity — may have sparked one of history's longest-running bonds. Fast forward a few thousand years to the Natufian village of 'Ain Mallaha (now in Israel), where archaeologists uncovered a woman buried with a puppy nestled against her ribs, her hand resting on its chest as if steadying a tiny heartbeat. Around 12,000 years ago, affection and grief mingled in a grave — proof that the wolf's gamble had blossomed into kinship.

That kinship is alive and contentious still. The Supreme Court first ordered all stray dogs in Delhi to be confined. Public outcry prompted a modification: Dogs would be sterilised, vaccinated, and returned to their neighbourhoods, with only rabid animals excluded. This compromise echoed a familiar truth. Dogs live among us, not apart from us.