What was the first domesticated animal?

The first domesticated animal was the dog. Dogs descended from an ancient wolf population and joined human societies long before farming began.

Researchers think domestication started during the Pleistocene, when hunter-gatherers and less-aggressive wolves developed a mutually useful relationship. Wolves may have scavenged near human camps, while people benefited from their warning calls, hunting ability, and companionship. This gradual “commensal” pathway differs from the deliberate breeding later used for livestock.

The exact date and location remain debated. Genetic studies suggest domestication may have begun roughly 20,000–40,000 years ago, with one influential review proposing Siberia around 23,000 years ago. Archaeologists have identified older wolf-like canids, but some remains cannot be confidently classified as dogs. The Erralla dog from Spain, dated to about 17,500 years ago, is among the oldest undisputed examples.

Goats and sheep were domesticated much later, around the beginning of agriculture, while cats formed close relationships with farming communities thousands of years after dogs. The dog therefore holds the standard answer, even though the earliest stages of its transformation from wolf remain scientifically complex.