Animals can be categorized mainly into two categories- domestic, and wild. However, the domestic animals that live under wild conditions are called Feral Animals.
It is not very difficult to understand a domestic animal from a wild animal. Anyone can distinguish between the two just by simple visual observation.
Domestic Animals
Animals that live with us and depend on us for their food are called as domestic animals. The definition of domestic animal includes three types known as companion, livestock, and working animals.
People have been domesticating animals under their control to gain economic benefits through agricultural and various other purposes. Humans control their behaviours like feeding habits and other biological requirements. People even manipulate the genetic backgrounds of domestic animals through selective breeding.
Farm animals have been important for humans to fulfill milk and protein requirements. Dogs have been useful for protection and companionship. Large animals (viz. horses, elephants, donkeys… etc.) have been vital to human beings for fulfilling working purposes.
The relationship in handling the domestic animals is sometimes crucial. It is because the domestic animals too are well capable of harming to humans and their children, and sometimes to the extent of death.
However, the domestic animals have been playing major roles in the lives of human beings. Some of heir roles in human lives may be companionship, entertainment, working in agriculture as labourer, as transporter, and yes sometimes as beasts of burden too.
Wild Animals
All the species start their journeys on Earth as wild species. However some remain always as wild while some become domesticates. It depends on the nature of the species which is innately built.
Animals that live in wild conditions without being domesticated or that cannot be domesticated are the wild animals. It would be important to note that there may be a portion of a particular species found in wild while the rest has been domesticated, such as elephants.
In fact, there are only few species that have become completely domesticated such as dogs, chicken, or cattle.
Wild animals live the life that has been gifted from the Mother Nature, which is far from the human influence. They would not have to obey commands of humans but can live on their own.
Wild animals have their own preferences to survive in the environment that they live in. However, they face many problems caused by humans or by anthropogenic activities. Hence, the free roaming environment of wild animals has been reduced to small areas compared to the earlier situations. As a result, the human-wildlife conflict has been resulted. We often read reports of elephants causing damage to crops of villagers and to their houses as well. Many times we read reports of elephants and their children about falling into wells. Sometimes we read reports about death of an elephant due to coming in contact with a live electric wire.
Wild animals raid on agricultural crops, destruct human habitations, or they can even kill humans for food in worst cases. However, wild animals have been a great source of information for the world of science.
Wild animals are sometimes a great source of income, which can be earned through tourism-related activities. If sustainable harvesting is practiced, wild animals could be reasonably used as a source of protein for humans, as well.
Differences between domestic and wild animals are –
(i). Wild animals live without direct influence from the humans whereas domestic animals live under the care and every influence of humans.
(ii). Wild animals are more aggressive than wild animals. Domestic animals become aggressive only under specific conditions ranging to the threats to their lives.
(iii). Domestic animals are trained to obey the human commands but wild animals cannot be trained to obey the human command until domesticated.
(iv).The number of wild species is much higher than the number of species of domesticated animals.
(v). Wild animals can be the pests of agriculture, but domestic animals are often friends of agriculture.
(vi). Domestic animals are useful for various anthropogenic activities but not the wild animals.
(vii). Anthropogenic or human activities may be mostly problematic for the wild animals, but domestic animals do not usually get disturbed from those.
Wild, domestic, animal, agriculture, species, anthropogenic
