Humans have been turning wild animals into pets for thousands of years. Pets – animals kept for companionship, not for food or work – were widespread in ancient Egypt.
In Australia, First Nations groups favoured dingoes, a naturalised canine arriving perhaps 5,000 years ago. “Dingo” is derived from din-gu, the Dharug word for domesticated dog – wild dingoes were known as “warrigal”.
