10 Animals We No Longer Domesticate and 10 We Continue to Domesticate

The royal family loved to show off their trained cheetahs during hunts. These spotted felines could catch their prey faster than any dog, making them symbols of social status in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. But the cheetahs refused to breed in captivity, despite all efforts to the contrary. Eventually, firearms came into use, and no one needed these capricious felines anymore.

The rabbits remained safe underground, where dogs were useless, so farmers turned to ferrets. Their slender bodies allowed them to chase their prey into their burrows and drive them out into nets. This method worked for generations, until traps and poison made it unnecessary to rely on an aggressive hunter that was difficult to control.

Imagine a bird diving underwater to catch fish, but with a ring around its neck that prevents it from swallowing the larger ones. This is how Chinese fishermen have worked for generations. Although tourism keeps this tradition alive today, no one fishes this way anymore.

When elephants were used in warfare, soldiers often fled even before the battle began. Hannibal led them through the mountains, and the Indian kingdoms bred them specifically for combat. Then cannons were introduced, and these massive targets became liabilities rather than weapons.

People raised migratory pigeons in cages, just like chickens, because meat was meat, and these birds were everywhere. Hunters captured billions of them to sell. In just a few decades, they went from being incredibly abundant to becoming completely extinct, taking their domestication efforts with them.

These wild cats could jump three meters high and catch birds in mid-flight. The Persian nobles found this fascinating and began training them to hunt. After a while, the effort required to train them no longer outweighed the entertainment they provided.

African societies domesticated guinea fowl for their meat and eggs long before chickens became widespread throughout the world. Compared to chickens, guinea fowl proved to be noisy, temperamental, and difficult to manage. Over time, most cultures abandoned them, leaving guinea fowl today largely wild or semi-wild.

The wild ancestor of cows stood nearly two meters tall at the withers and had horns capable of easily killing a man. Early farmers managed to domesticate these terrifying beasts, but then spent generations breeding them to make them smaller and calmer. The last aurochs died in 1627.

The Romans collected exotic animals like trading cards, and porcupines, with their spectacular quills, were undoubtedly considered exotic. Apparently, some people even ate them. But handling an animal covered in sharp quills quickly becomes tedious, and they offered nothing special beyond their novelty.

Sweden really tried to make moose farming work. These animals could produce milk and pull sleds in frozen regions where ordinary livestock struggled. But moose become violently aggressive during the mating season and require a very specific diet. What’s more, they flatly refuse to cooperate half the time.

Domestication only works when both parties benefit, and the following animals prove that this balance still exists.

About 15,000 years ago, wolves began prowling around human settlements to scavenge for scraps. Somehow, they evolved into golden retrievers and Chihuahuas. We have shaped dogs in hundreds of different ways for thousands of tasks, from herding sheep to detecting cancer.

Cats sort of domesticated themselves by deciding that humans’ grain stores attracted delicious mice. Egypt went completely crazy for them and began to worship cat gods. The cats didn’t mind all the attention. They still hunt rats on farms and on boats, all while napping on our keyboards.

About 6,000 years ago, someone in Central Asia got on a horse and changed everything. Suddenly, armies could move quickly, plows could dig deeper, and distant cities weren’t so distant anymore. Cars have replaced most of the tasks once performed by horses, but we still raise thousands of them every year.

Deserts take a toll on horses fairly quickly. Camels, on the other hand, can cross vast desert expanses without water while carrying incredible loads without complaint. The Arabs domesticated them 4,000 years ago and opened trade routes that connected the continents.

In Southeast Asia, wild roosters used to fight each other to entertain crowds. Then people realized that they laid eggs and tasted pretty good. Modern broiler chickens grow so fast that they’re ready to eat in six weeks. Fun fact: There are currently more live chickens than any other bird on Earth.

Wild boars are intelligent, vicious, and will eat just about anything, including their own kind. Chinese farmers have turned them into pigs capable of turning waste into bacon—which may be the best idea humanity has ever had. They adapt to all climates and remain among the most intelligent farm animals.

Mesopotamian shepherds realized that it was possible to shear sheep every year without slaughtering them for meat. Sheep thus became a renewable resource rather than a one-time source of food. Modern breeds produce much more wool than their wild ancestors.

Goats have survived under human care for 10,000 years as livestock that work when nothing else does. Their milk contains proteins that are different from those in cow’s milk, which often allows people with allergies to drink it. 

Bees aren’t really domesticated, since they fly off whenever they please. Humans have simply convinced them that wooden boxes make nice homes. The ancient Egyptians transported beehives by boat along the Nile to pollinate crops seasonally. Modern agriculture would collapse without managed bee colonies.

Ten thousand years ago, someone looked at an aurochs and thought, “I bet I could get it to give me milk every day.” It worked. Cattle pulled the plows that fed civilizations and provided meat and leather for just about everything else.