Background

Domestic dogs are likely descended from populations of gray wolves. The time,
place, and region in which dogs were initially domesticated, as well as the number
of separate domestication events which took place, are heavily debated among
scholars. The presence of dogs by the later portion of the Magdalenian period
of Paleolithic Europe (c. 15,000–12,000 BP / c. 13,000 – 10,000 BCE) is well
established, but debated examples of dogs from the Aurignacian (c. 43,000–
26,000 BP) have been described.[1][2] Some genetic studies place the origin of dogs
with a population of East Asian wolves c. 39,000 BP.[3] Numerous prehistoric dog
burials are known, spanning from ritualistic and symbolic burial to simple corpse
disposal out of hygienic concern. Factors such as the presence of grave goods, the
positioning of the dog within a grave, and burial alongside humans can serve as
indicators for care and symbolic intent. [4][5][6]
Various Magdalenian dog finds have been dated to c. 15,000–14,500 BP,
corresponding to the beginning of the Late Glacial Interstadial and rapid climate
change, with the Pleistocene Eurasian mammoth steppe giving way to forests.
Humans may have sought out hunting dogs in increasingly "closed-in" conditions
due to their greater smell and hearing abilities. [7]
Discovery and research history

Overview of the Oberkassel basalt quarry, with location of burial site indicated by
arrow

Workers at the quarry, pointing to the location where the burial was discovered
(marked with a white cross).
On 18 February 1914, workmen constructing a cart track at Peter Uhrmacher's
basalt quarry in Oberkassel, Bonn, Germany, discovered two human skeletons, an
older man and a young woman, buried within a layer of sandy loam between
weathered basalt. The dig site was on the Kuckstein, on the southern edge of the
Rabenlay mountain.[8][9][10] Damaging extraction methods partially destroyed the
grave, likely contributing to the loss of many of the bones. [11] Uhrmacher informed a
local teacher of the discovered remains, who, recognizing its importance, alerted
archaeologists of the University of Bonn. An archaeological team assembled three
days later and dated it to the "Reindeer Period" (Upper Paleolithic), and additionally
noted various animal bones, including the "right lower jaw of a wolf." [10][12][13]
Several other animal bones were later identified from the site, including a
bear penis bone, a red deer incisor, and an elk-antler sculpture of what is likely an
elk head.[14] A team comprising physiologist Max Verworn, anatomist Robert
Bonnet and geologist Gustav Steinmann examined the skeletons and tentatively
dated the site to the Magdalenian due to commonalities in grave goods. [10]
A 1919 monograph described the canine skeleton further, grouping other bone
fragments with the specimen. While the two humans skeletons were put into
storage in the Rheinisches Landesmuseum Bonn, the animal remains from the site
were split into two groups. The canine's lower jaw was placed into storage alongside
the human remains, but various other pieces of the animal were stored in the
University of Bonn's geological collections without records of their origins. [8][12]
In the late 1970s, Erwin Cziesla, a prehistory student studying the Oberkassel site,
rediscovered the separated material within the university collections. The remains
were reunited at the Landesmuseum and placed under further study, with the lower
jaw and associated bones identified as those of a domestic dog. [12] A 1982 study by
Cziesla's advisor, Gerhard Bosinski dated the Oberkassel site to the Middle
Magdalenian due to observed similarities between a carved bone discovered
alongside the remains and the contours découpés bone figurines of Middle
Magdalenian France.[12][15] This made the Bonn–Oberkassel dog the earliest known
example of a domesticated animal, a status now shared by other Magdalenian dog
finds.[12][16][17]
Radiocarbon dating of the remains by the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit in
1993 specified this age as slightly later than originally thought, into the end of the
Magdalenian and the earliest portion of the Late Glacial Interstadial, c. 14,000 BP.
These dates were later supported by radiocarbon dating via accelerator mass
spectrometry taken by Kiel University in 1997; the results also confirmed
contemporary dates between the canine and human remains. [2][16][18] A 1994
reexamination created a catalog of the remains and grouped several other bones,
previously interpreted as other animals, as portions of the dog. Yet more fragments
were discovered during and after the dating examinations, all without any
duplicates in the skeleton.[2][16][19] The Bonn–Oberkassel dog is now part of a small
group of unambiguous early dog specimens found across Germany, Spain, and
France, dating to c. 15,000–13,500 BP. Finds of domestic dogs before this are
tentative and disputed.[2][17]
Physical description
The estimated height and weight of the Bonn–Oberkassel dog suggest a build
similar to West Asian wolves (such as the Indian wolf), or some
modern sighthounds, such as the Saluki.
Thirty-two[a] identifiable bone fragments have been identified from the Bonn–
Oberkassel dog. This comprises nine cranial pieces [b] and twenty-three fragments
from across the rest of the body, including
ribs, vertebrae (including cervical, thoracic, and lumbar), two partial scapulas, a
damaged left humerus alongside the end of another, fragments of the left radius,
and portions of both ulnas. An additional twenty-five very small bone fragments
could not be firmly identified, but many were likely portions of the ribs, skull, and
vertebrae.[20][21]
Modern scholarship dates the dog to c. 14,000 BP ± 200 years.[22][23] The dog likely
had a height of 40–50 cm (16–20 in) at the shoulder,[c] with an estimated weight of
13–18 kg (29–40 lb). Such figures suggest a relatively slim build for the animal,
comparable to the Indian wolf and some breeds of sighthound.[25]
Estimations place the dog's age at death as around 7.5 months. The cranial growth
plate of the lumbar vertebra is closed;[d] it usually closes at 7 months in modern
dogs. However, the same vertebra's caudal plate is open, which in modern dogs
closes at around 8 months.[27]
Health
 Canine distemper virus (Morbillivirus canis) inclusions
seen under a microscope
The Bonn–Oberkassel dog likely suffered from canine distemper as a puppy. Canine
distemper is a serious viral disease with an estimated fatality rate of 75% in modern
domestic puppies, often due to starvation, dehydration, and secondary infections
over the course of three waves.[28] Signs of enamel loss, missing teeth, and
severe gum disease are consistent with a diagnosis of canine distemper. [29] This
infection was likely contracted at 19 or 21 weeks old, and lasted around three
weeks.[3][30] The dog's remaining canine tooth showed heavy abrasion and enamel
loss, probably caused by compulsive stone chewing. Pica (consumption of inedible
objects) is a common indicator of the disease's impact on the brain during its last
wave.[31]
Bone spurs are visible on both ulnas and elbows, suggesting osteoarthritis.
Osteoarthritis is extremely rare in dog remains before the end of the Iron Age; one
of the only other known cases is a buried dog from the Anderson site in
Tennessee, c. 7000 BP. The condition likely began around a month before death, at
approximately 28 weeks of age.[32] Most typical causes of elbow osteoarthritis in
modern young dogs are unlikely to have created the bone spurs seen in the Bonn–
Oberkassel dog.[33] Epileptic seizures linked to canine distemper may have caused
the osteoarthritis, through physical trauma from falling without control. [34]