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Analysis of mitochondrial DNA suggests that ferrets were domesticated around 2,500 years ago. It has been claimed that the ancient Egyptians were the first to domesticate ferrets, but as no mummified remains of a ferret have yet been found, nor any hieroglyph of a ferret, and no polecat now occurs wild in the area, that idea seems unlikely. [36]
The first accurate descriptions of ferrets come from Strabo during 200 AD, when ferrets were released onto the Balearic Islands to control rabbit populations. As the European rabbit is native to the Iberian Peninsula and northwest Africa, the European polecat likely was first domesticated in these regions. [35]
Putorius was first described in 1817 by Georges Cuvier and included multiple related species. This was until 1877 when Putorius was reclassified to only include three species. In 1982, the subgenus Cynomyonax (black-footed ferrets) was merged into Putorius .
Humans have long had pet ferrets. Humans have long enjoyed the company of ferrets, which were domesticated about 2,500 years ago, according to the FDA.
Domestication is a gradual process, so there is no precise moment in the history of a given species when it can be considered to have become fully domesticated. Zooarchaeology has identified three classes of animal domesticates: Pets (dogs, cats, ferrets, hamsters, etc.) Livestock (cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, etc.)
Domesticated ferrets kept as pets are not native to the U.S., but black-footed ferrets have been part of the American prairie ecosystem for about 100,000 years, according to fossil records, and ...
The black-footed ferret species was thought to be extinct in 1981, but was later rediscovered and has now been given a second chance thanks to conservation efforts.
[38] [41] [42] Such agricultural societies emerged across Eurasia, North Africa, and South and Central America. In the Fertile Crescent 10,000-11,000 years ago, zooarchaeology indicates that goats, pigs, sheep, and taurine cattle were the first livestock to be domesticated.