The study looked at genomes from dogs found in modern-day Britain and Turkey.
The analyses indicate that the dogs were genetically very similar and were domestic dogs, not wolves, despite the great geographical distance. The researchers believe people at the time traded dogs with each other.
"It seems that dogs were able to move between different groups in a way that humans did not always do. This suggests that dogs already had a special social and cultural significance," says Anna Linderholm, researcher at Stockholm University and co-author of the study in a press release.
Previous research has suggested that dogs have been with humans for around 10,000 to 15,000 years.
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