Scientists are stunned by this perfectly preserved 18,000 year-old animal

Everyone knows that bloody doggos originally evolved when ancient humans domesticated wolves. While we’re not actually a hundred per cent sure it’s as cut and dry as that, we’re gonna make out like it is and just move on. That, my friends, is because this frozen good boy that scientists found in the Siberian permafrost, might just be a missing link between the species. Well, sort of. Read on to find out more…

Okay then, ya big bloody bewdiful bogans, let’s get this show on the road.

The canine, who scientists have named Dogor, was found in the Siberian permafrost last year.

If you read this site fairly regularly, you’ll know they’ve been pulling all sorts of cool stuff out of the ice there – and are probably going to doom us all sooner or later – but this little fella might be one of their most awesome finds.

Credit: Centre for Palaeogenetics

Don’t let us waffle on, though. Just ask the scientists. Basically, Love Dalén and his mate Dave Stanten reckon it could be the oldest dog ever discovered, but they’re actually having trouble separating it from a wolf in terms of its DNA. And, yeah, nah, yeah, they were sceptical that it was even ancient at first:

Credit: Sergey Fedorov

Love reckons, “It was amazingly well preserved even before they cleaned it up. [When we found it] we didn’t know how old it was. They said they found it in the permafrost but it happens that things get frozen in there that are only a few hundred years old or even a few decades.”

Credit: Sergey Fedorov

“We were excited about it but we had a healthy dose of skepticism until we radiocarbon-dated it. Obviously, when we got the results that it was 18,000 years old, that changed everything. When we got that result, it was amazing. 18,000 years ago is an interesting time period where we think a lot of stuff is happening with both wolves and dogs genetically.

Credit: Sergey Fedorov

We cannot separate it from a modern wolf, Pleistocene [Ice Age] wolf or dog. One reason why it might be difficult to say is because this one is right there at the divergence time. So it could be a very early modern wolf or very early dog or a late Pleistocene wolf.”

Credit: Sergey Fedorov

Naturally, the discovery has scientists pretty bloody excited. The actual origin of dogs has long been a point of debate. Russian researcher, Dr Sergey Fedorov, who specialises in ancient dogs, has spoken of his own excitement at the find.

Credit: Sergey Fedorov

“This is intriguing. What if it’s a dog? We can’t wait to get results from further tests. It’s amazing to see, touch and feel the history of Earth. Just imagine, this puppy has been lying underground in the same pose and condition for 18,000 years without being disturbed at all.”

Yeah, nah, we reckon it’s pretty bloody rad too, Sergey.

Final thought: While we’re still reserving judgement on this whole Siberian permafrost thing, it’s hard to deny that they’re bringing some great stuff out of the ice. If this good boy is one of the early critters tamed and domesticated by humans, it’s a hell of a find, that’s for sure.

Just in case you missed it, here’s one of Ozzy’s latest commentary videos…Ozzy Man Reviews: Cockatoos Feeding

H/T: ABC.