Scientists have uncovered two 12,460 year old puppies in the Russian permafrost.
The pups were DNA tested and found to be siblings. They were discovered by Wooly Mammoth tusk hunters in Yakutsk. The puppy’s nose was sticking out of the ice. They contacted Sergei Fyodorov, who is the head of exhibitions at the Mammoth Museum in Yakutsk.
The puppies are so well-preserved, their fur, organs and even stomach contents are all intact. They had eaten twigs and grass, possibly because they had been starving and hungry.
The pups are named the Tumat Dogs, having been found close to Tumat, a small village.
The excavation site contained burned and cut-up mammoth remains, which would indicate that human activity was in direct relation to the canines. This makes it seem that the dogs were domesticated.
The find will greatly enrich dog history. So much is still unknown about the origins of dogs. The fact that they were from the pleistocene era, when humans were still hunters and not farmers, and that they were found in this part of the world, will help us trace back where our furry buds came from.
It was an ultra-rare find, because puppies are so small and have fragile bones, their remains are no match to thousands of years of decay. But they were perfectly mummified in ice until now, making them the oldest mummified dogs in the world
Since the permafrost is melting, due to climate change, we probably can expect more ancient secrets to be revealed. I guess that’s the only good thing about climate change.
Read The Siberian Times for more info!
