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May 22, 2019Wolf to Woof: The Story of Dogs Exhibit Unleashes at miSci
This Memorial Day, miSci will unleash the largest and most comprehensive traveling exhibition ever created to explore the history, biology and evolution of dogs in human societies. Wolf to Woof: The Story of Dogs sniffs out the facts on dogs and explores what makes the human-canine relationship so unique by using humans’ familiarity and love of these four-legged friends to explore key canine science and biological concepts. Wolf to Woof opens on Monday, May 27, and will run through Monday, September 2, 2019.
From sloppy wet kisses, life-saving search-and-rescues, assistance to the disabled and more, today dogs enhance the lives of millions of people in countless ways; however, they are also some of our oldest friends. Ancient clues from cave paintings and burials reveal that dogs and people have lived together for thousands of years… but why have humans formed such close relationships with dogs, and not cows or chickens? Wolf to Wolf reveals why.
“Human beings and dogs have been co-evolving for millennia. It is a story, rather a journey, of mutual benefit. One in which both species – humans and Canis familiaris, the domestic dog – have become so intimately aligned with one another, that the line between our different species is blurred,” says miSci President and evolutionary biologist, Dr. Gina Gould. “We are now each other’s family members. Dogs are part of our everyday lives, as our companions, work colleagues, and guardians. No other animal has garnered such prestige in our lives.”
Wolf to Woof: The Story of Dogs has four themed sections including multi-media displays, artifacts, photo murals, and dioramas of taxidermied wild canines and sculpted modern dog breeds. Additionally, interactive, hands-on components demonstrate key exhibit concepts. For example, visitors can enter a “howling area” and guess what dogs are saying, test their nose against a dog’s great sense of smell, and climb into an avalanche scene to see what it’s like to be saved by a search-and-rescue dog.
Wolf to Woof: The Story of Dogs includes four engaging sections:
Section 1: Dogs Come in All Shapes and Sizes: The domestic dog comes in a mind-boggling array of shapes and sizes from the pocket-sized Chihuahua to a 200-pound Saint Bernard. From the earliest wolf-like canines that lived thousands of years ago, humans have bred dogs for work and whimsy, creating the hundreds of domestic dog breeds known today. This section showcases the amazing versatility of dogs and how their appearance has changed through time – both naturally and through the help of humans. This section also addresses the geographical origins and history of select domestic dog breeds, many species of wild canines, as well as extinct canine relatives.
Section 2: A Little Wolf in Every Dog: Many dog behaviors have roots in the social world of wolves. This section explores why dogs and wolves do the things they do, and how and when they behave in similar or different ways. In domesticating dogs, and in selective breeding, people have chosen certain wolf characteristics and eliminated others. Dog breeders select for physical traits like size and hunting ability, and for personality traits that make a dog trainable, friendly, communicative, and loyal. Canines-wolves, foxes, coyotes, jackals, and dogs-star in myth and folklore almost everywhere in the world. This section explores why people find the behavior of dogs and their kin so intriguing-whether that behavior leaves them feeling awed, frightened, or just plain amused.
Section 3: Dogs Have Skills to Help Us: Dogs and people have worked together for centuries. From their incredible sense of smell to their stamina for long distance running, the amazing skills of dogs have made the lives of humans a lot easier. Dogs have served as hunters, herders, guards and warriors. Depending on the job requirements, early breeders bred dogs for speed, stamina, aggression, strength or size. Dogs were also bred for looks and style. Today most dogs are pets and companions, and some have become assistants for people with disabilities. These relationships are depicted in this section, along with a final display of images of people and their dogs. There is also a space available for visitors to leave behind pictures of themselves with their own canine friends.
Section 4: What Can We Do to Help Dogs?: For thousands of years, dogs have lived alongside people, helping with the tasks of everyday life. Over time, the breeding of domestic dogs has resulted in animals whose size, temperament, and loyalty make them far better suited as human companions than as members of a pack. The fate of many wild canines also depends on humans. Through pollution, hunting, and habitat destruction humans have altered the environment in ways that put wild canines in jeopardy. If those canine species are to survive, they need help to undo-or at least halt-the damage. This section explores what problems our modern world poses for dogs and what scientists, volunteers and everyday people are doing to solve these problems. It shows how coyotes have managed to survive and adapt despite human encroachment into their habitat, and how the two can successfully coexist. Visitors also learn about responsible pet ownership, wolf reintroduction into Yellowstone National Park, the fight to save the endangered Ethiopian wolf, and current trends in veterinarian science.
Additional Exhibit Offerings
- Hands-on Experiences:Visitors will be able to explore through sight, sound and touch, the various components of the exhibition to reinforce understanding of key concepts. There will also be additional interactive gallery demonstrations presented by the museum’s Science Communicators.
- Special Programming:During the exhibition’s run at the museum, numerous special programs will be planned to offer visitors more in-depth experiences with canine science, including a three-part lecture series on Thursday evenings: “The Evolution of Dogs” by miSci’s Gina Gould on June 13; “The Wolves of Westchester – The Modern Wolf” by the Wolf Conservation Center on July 11; and a talk by the Animal Protective Foundation on August 8.
Wolf to Woof: The Story of Dogs will be on exhibition from Monday, May 27 through Monday, September 2, 2019, and is being presented with support from Neil and Jane Golub, Turbine Services, Ltd, Head to Tail Pet Wellness Center, and NYS Animal Protective Foundation. miSci is located at 15 Nott Terrace Heights in Schenectady. miSci General admission is: Children (3-12) $8.00; Seniors (65+) $10; Adults $12.00. Planetarium tickets are $6. Access to Wolf to Woof is included in general admission.
About the Exhibition
The exhibition was created by the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, under the direction of Linda Abraham, vice president of education and Michael Nauyok, vice president of exhibitions. Principal scientific advisors were Dr. Blaire Van Valkenburgh and Dr. Robert K. Wayne, professors in the Department of Organismic Biology, Ecology and Evolution at the University of California, Los Angeles and research associates at the museum.
- Specimens: The Exhibit features taxidermy specimens of wild canines and sculpted displays of modern dog breeds. Taxidermy specimens and bones used to help create the sculptures were collected after the animals’ natural deaths.
Universal Access Design: The exhibition is unique in its commitment from the earliest planning stages to universal access and a fully-inclusive design that meets the needs of a diverse visitorship, including those with special needs.
