The advancement in animal sciences can do wonders for the mankind. It is because there are certain wild animals that can be tamed to make sure that they become our pets. The start of the journey was the breeding tests which were done way back during the Soviet era. For the instant, the canine animals can also be used to make sure that they become our hunting dogs. They will then never mind the cuddly lifestyle which a normal dog loves a lot. In short, they will never be harm to the people that have kept them as a pet. The gene development has seen a whole new level with this advancement. It is also to be noted that the idea is not as new as it seems of be. It is early 50’s first experiment of this kind was taken up Soviet scientists.
The research was started in 1959 by a Soviet scientist named Dmitry Belyaev. This scientist was of the view that the traits of the foxes can be changed. This is also possible due to the fact that the traits can also be genetically transferred. He even started the experiments and made sure that the genes of the foxes are replaced by the pet dogs. The Wolf to Pup transition is something that was researched by Dmitri. It is believed that the dogs are the descendants of the wolves and both can be genetically modified if there is equipment at hand. It is also one of the ways that will make sure that the traits which are similar among both the breeds.
A group of silver foxes was used for the experiment and the genes were biologically modified to make sure that they become the friendliest of the creatures. It was seen that the traits of the breeds suddenly changed once they were genetically modified. They now began showing affection towards the humans. The cages were also placed separately from the regular breeds. The cross of such breeds also showed that the offspring was also genetically modified and there was no need of genes injection at all. The traits of the domesticated dogs were also seen in such breeds and they never ever bit any human if it showed the signs of affection. The use of the foxes in the experiments was also used to make sure that another line of the breed is also developed.
Dmitri also used a line of foxes which were bred to have volatile behavior. The breeding of the foxes was done on common lines. The results are astonishing as about 40 generations later 2 distant breeds have been developed which are of the same descent. One is highly aggressive and the other is much tamed just like an apartment dog. The behaviors of the breed are the most common traits which were used for the selection of the foxes for this experiment. It clearly shows that the breeding of the foxes can be differed by the gene alteration. There are some other experiments which are to be done to come up with a definitive conclusion.