DOGS. Recent archaeological discoveries place the domestication of the dog thousands if not tens of thousands of years prior to that of any of the other animals with which humanity has shared its cultural evolution. This shared heritage is reflected in the ritual, mythology, and religious doctrine of nearly every human society. The ancient Phoenicians, Chinese, Meso-Americans, and Egyptians buried, entombed, or mummified dogs, separately or together with their human masters; archaic astronomical systems from Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America identify star clusters or planets with supernatural dogs; and dogs figure prominently in a wide variety of myths and rituals, particularly those concerned with death and afterlife.

The place of Canis familiaris in religious traditions closely corresponds to the social roles, behaviors, and spatial orientations of dogs in relationship to humans, as protectors of the home, in hunting, and in herding. In every case, the dog is...