Skip to main content
M:N3:26 3
Edit position
Edit position

Last set 1 hour, 50 minutes ago. Manual moves override automatic placement until the next shelfie/spine match.

Loading shelves…
How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution Diagnose
Diagnose this book
Open in Vernon Browser

How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution

by Lee Alan Dugatkin, Lyudmila Trut

This account examines a long-term Siberian experiment that replicated the domestication of wolves into dogs using silver foxes. It explores the genetic and behavioural changes observed across fifty-six generations of selective breeding for tameness.

Accession 12106 ISBN 9780226444185 Publisher University of Chicago Press
Book Images
Reference and live side by side Hover to see live images
Reference
How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution cover
Live
How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution live spine
No live
How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution live spine
How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution cover
No live
TAGS
Curated Derived
Animals Biography Biology Life Sciences Professions Psychology Science Social Sciences
CONNECTIONS
No connections
State
on_shelf
True
position_updated_at
2026-06-16 14:23
orientation
vertical
position_confidence
1.00
Details

Physical

binding_type
Hard Back
dimensions
none captured
spine_text
none captured

Metadata

Book form
LOCATION HISTORY
M:N3:26 3 Current vertical 1.00 conf
4 days, 1 hour ago Latest update
Book Location
Updated 1 hour, 50 minutes ago
Vernon snapshot
View live

Frozen copy of Vernon's record from the last sync. Fields tagged → flow back into the Pulse record.

Last synced 2026-06-15 20:33 (19 hours, 41 minutes ago)

Identity

name→ title
How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution
vernon_id
16240
accession_no→ accession_number
12106
vernon_slug
how-to-tame-a-fox-and-build-a-dog-visionary-scientists-and-a-siberian-tale-of-jump-started-evolution-lee-alan-dugatkin-lyudmila-trut

Drives Pulse state

curr_loc_status→ on_shelf
On Shelf
location_name
Zone N3/Level 2 (Mezzanine)/Phrontisterion/MONA
location_reason
On Shelf
isbn_issn→ isbn (when valid)
9780226444185

Descriptive

production_date
2017
object_type
Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication
object_status
Accessioned
brief_description
Tucked away in Siberia, there are furry, four-legged creatures with wagging tails and floppy ears that are as docile and friendly as any lapdog. But, despite appearances, these are not dogs they are foxes. They are the result of the most astonishing experiment in breeding ever undertaken imagine speeding up thousands of years of evolution into a few decades. In 1959, biologists Dmitri Belyaev and Lyudmila Trut set out to do just that, by starting with a few dozen silver foxes from fox farms in the USSR and attempting to recreate the evolution of wolves into dogs in real time in order to witness the process of domestication. This is the extraordinary, untold story of this remarkable undertaking. Most accounts of the natural evolution of wolves place it over a span of about 15,000 years, but within a decade, Belyaev and Trut's fox breeding experiments had resulted in puppy-like foxes with floppy ears, piebald spots and curly tails. Along with these physical changes came genetic and behavioral changes, as well. The foxes were bred using selection criteria for tameness, and with each generation, they became increasingly interested in human companionship.Trut has been there the whole time, and has been the lead scientist on this work since Belyaev's death in 1985, and with Lee Dugatkin, biologist and science writer, she tells the story of the adventure, science, politics, and love behind it all. In How to Tame a Fox, Dugatkin and Trut take us inside this path-breaking experiment in the midst of the brutal winters of Siberia to reveal how scientific history is made and continues to be made today. To date, fifty-six generations of foxes have been domesticated, and we continue to learn significant lessons from them about the genetic and behavioral evolution of domesticated animals. How to Tame a Fox offers an incredible tale of scientists at work, while also celebrating the deep attachments that have brought humans and animals together throughout time.

Subjects & people

authors→ author (initial fill only)
Lee Alan Dugatkin, Lyudmila Trut
tags→ tags
Science, Psychology, Life sciences, Biology, Genetics, Animals, Domestic animals, Scientists, Professions, Occupations, Dogs, Organisms, Life (Biology), Cells, Domestication, Animal behaviour, Animal psychology, Chromosomes, Cell nuclei, Cell organelles, Cytoplasm, Biologists, Life scientists, Genetic engineering, Genetic recombination, Geneticists, Microbiologists
subject_people
Lyudmila Trut
subject_objects
—

Cover image

vernon_cover_image_id→ cover_image
18996

Raw Vernon JSON

click to inspect

The source payload behind the snapshot above.
Use ⌘F to search once expanded.
{7 keys}
"slug": "how-to-tame-a-fox-and-build-a-dog-visionary-scientists-and-a-siberian-tale-of-jump-started-evolution-lee-alan-dugatkin-lyudmila-trut"
"opacObjectId": "16240"
"opacCollection": {1 keys}
"opacCollectionId": "1"
"imagesCollection": {2 keys}
"images": [1 items]
"[0]": {5 keys}
"imageId": "18996"
"cssColors": [4 items]
"[0]": {9 keys}
"hex": "dcdcdc"
"hue": 0
"rank": 1
"presence": 47.19
"colorName": "gainsboro"
"lightness": 86
"colorGroup": "gray"
"saturation": 0
"formattedColorName": "gainsboro"
"[1]": {9 keys}
"hex": "708090"
"hue": 210
"rank": 2
"presence": 26.29
"colorName": "slategray"
"lightness": 50
"colorGroup": "gray"
"saturation": 13
"formattedColorName": "slate gray"
"[2]": {9 keys}
"hex": "a0522d"
"hue": 19
"rank": 3
"presence": 7.83
"colorName": "sienna"
"lightness": 40
"colorGroup": "brown"
"saturation": 56
"formattedColorName": "sienna"
"[3]": {9 keys}
"hex": "808080"
"hue": 0
"rank": 4
"presence": 7.32
"colorName": "gray"
"lightness": 50
"colorGroup": "gray"
"saturation": 0
"formattedColorName": "gray"
"rawColors": [7 items]
"[0]": {6 keys}
"hex": "dddddb"
"hue": 60
"rank": 1
"presence": 47.19
"lightness": 86
"saturation": 2
"[1]": {6 keys}
"hex": "76787a"
"hue": 210
"rank": 2
"presence": 26.29
"lightness": 47
"saturation": 1
"[2]": {6 keys}
"hex": "575a5c"
"hue": 204
"rank": 3
"presence": 4.94
"lightness": 35
"saturation": 2
"[3]": {6 keys}
"hex": "866b5c"
"hue": 21
"rank": 4
"presence": 7.83
"lightness": 44
"saturation": 18
"[4]": {6 keys}
"hex": "918e8e"
"hue": 0
"rank": 5
"presence": 7.32
"lightness": 56
"saturation": 1
"[5]": {6 keys}
"hex": "8f5550"
"hue": 4
"rank": 6
"presence": 2.96
"lightness": 43
"saturation": 28
"[6]": {6 keys}
"hex": "9f9d99"
"hue": 40
"rank": 7
"presence": 3.47
"lightness": 61
"saturation": 3
"imageLabels": [10 items]
"[0]": {5 keys}
"count": 99
"score": 83.25
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Carnivore"
"imageLabelId": 243
"[1]": {5 keys}
"count": 19421
"score": 82.37
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Font"
"imageLabelId": 12
"[2]": {5 keys}
"count": 11836
"score": 79.4
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Poster"
"imageLabelId": 21
"[3]": {5 keys}
"count": 113
"score": 74.16
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Felidae"
"imageLabelId": 556
"[4]": {5 keys}
"count": 194
"score": 73.02
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Snout"
"imageLabelId": 530
"[5]": {5 keys}
"count": 1185
"score": 69.31
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Photo caption"
"imageLabelId": 216
"[6]": {5 keys}
"count": 59
"score": 69.02
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Cat"
"imageLabelId": 751
"[7]": {5 keys}
"count": 913
"score": 68.66
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Happy"
"imageLabelId": 66
"[8]": {5 keys}
"count": 57
"score": 67.55
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Whiskers"
"imageLabelId": 680
"[9]": {5 keys}
"count": 5376
"score": 67.4
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Advertising"
"imageLabelId": 71
"imageDerivatives": [6 items]
"[0]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/large/5050/e1c9f850a7bc3242ba6c86d64fae60287ca921f0.jpg"
"width": "533"
"height": "800"
"identifier": "LARGE"
"[1]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/medium/5050/e1c9f850a7bc3242ba6c86d64fae60287ca921f0.jpg"
"width": "267"
"height": "400"
"identifier": "MEDIUM"
"[2]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/nano/5050/e1c9f850a7bc3242ba6c86d64fae60287ca921f0.jpg"
"width": "23"
"height": "35"
"identifier": "NANO"
"[3]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/small/5050/e1c9f850a7bc3242ba6c86d64fae60287ca921f0.jpg"
"width": "100"
"height": "150"
"identifier": "SMALL"
"[4]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/tiny/5050/e1c9f850a7bc3242ba6c86d64fae60287ca921f0.jpg"
"width": "50"
"height": "75"
"identifier": "TINY"
"[5]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/xlarge/5050/e1c9f850a7bc3242ba6c86d64fae60287ca921f0.jpg"
"width": "800"
"height": "1200"
"identifier": "XLARGE"
"totalImages": 1
"objectSearchScore": 0.305478
"opacObjectFieldSets": [40 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "accession_no"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "12106"
"[1]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "name"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution / Lee Alan Dugatkin, Lyudmila Trut"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "title"
"value": "How to tame a fox (and build a dog) : visionary scientists and a Siberian tale of jump-started evolution / Lee Alan Dugatkin, Lyudmila Trut"
"[2]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "other_name"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[3]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "artist_last_first"
"opacObjectFields": [2 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Dugatkin, Lee Alan"
"[1]": {1 keys}
"value": "Trut, Lyudmila"
"[4]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_date"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "2017"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [2 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "earliest_date"
"value": "2017-01-01Z"
"[1]": {2 keys}
"key": "latest_date"
"value": "2017-12-31Z"
"[5]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_date_notes"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[6]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "edition"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[7]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "brief_desc"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Tucked away in Siberia, there are furry, four-legged creatures with wagging tails and floppy ears that are as docile and friendly as any lapdog. But, despite appearances, these are not dogs they are foxes. They are the result of the most astonishing experiment in breeding ever undertaken imagine speeding up thousands of years of evolution into a few decades. In 1959, biologists Dmitri Belyaev and Lyudmila Trut set out to do just that, by starting with a few dozen silver foxes from fox farms in the USSR and attempting to recreate the evolution of wolves into dogs in real time in order to witness the process of domestication. This is the extraordinary, untold story of this remarkable undertaking. Most accounts of the natural evolution of wolves place it over a span of about 15,000 years, but within a decade, Belyaev and Trut's fox breeding experiments had resulted in puppy-like foxes with floppy ears, piebald spots and curly tails. Along with these physical changes came genetic and behavioral changes, as well. The foxes were bred using selection criteria for tameness, and with each generation, they became increasingly interested in human companionship.Trut has been there the whole time, and has been the lead scientist on this work since Belyaev's death in 1985, and with Lee Dugatkin, biologist and science writer, she tells the story of the adventure, science, politics, and love behind it all. In How to Tame a Fox, Dugatkin and Trut take us inside this path-breaking experiment in the midst of the brutal winters of Siberia to reveal how scientific history is made and continues to be made today. To date, fifty-six generations of foxes have been domesticated, and we continue to learn significant lessons from them about the genetic and behavioral evolution of domesticated animals. How to Tame a Fox offers an incredible tale of scientists at work, while also celebrating the deep attachments that have brought humans and animals together throughout time."
"[8]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "measure_desc"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[9]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "credit_line"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[10]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "curr_loc_status"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "On Shelf"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "curr_loc_status:"On Shelf""
"[11]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "ob_status"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Accessioned"
"[12]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "lender"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[13]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_owner"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[14]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_type"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[15]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_start"
"opacObjectFields": [0 items]
"[16]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_expiry"
"opacObjectFields": [0 items]
"[17]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_notes"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[18]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "curr_loc"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Zone N3/Level 2 (Mezzanine)/Phrontisterion/MONA"
"[19]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "object_type"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "object_type:"Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication""
"[20]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "collection"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Main Collection/Library"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "collection:"Main Collection/Library""
"[21]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_place"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Chicago/Illinois/United States of America"
"[22]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_publisher"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "University of Chicago Press"
"[23]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "physical_notes"
"opacObjectFields": [2 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "216 pages, 12 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (colour) ; 24cm."
"[1]": {1 keys}
"value": "Includes bibliographical references and index."
"[24]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "language"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "English"
"[25]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "isbn_issn"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "9780226444185"
"[26]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "user_sym_1"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "636.9776 DUG"
"[27]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "usual_loc_being"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Zone N3/Level 2 (Mezzanine)/Phrontisterion/MONA"
"[28]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_class"
"opacObjectFields": [6 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Domestication/Domestic animals/Animals"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Domestication/Domestic animals/Animals""
"[1]": {2 keys}
"value": "Dogs/Domestic animals/Animals"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Dogs/Domestic animals/Animals""
"[2]": {2 keys}
"value": "Genetics/Biology/Life sciences/Science"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Genetics/Biology/Life sciences/Science""
"[3]": {2 keys}
"value": "Genetic engineering/Genetic recombination/Chromosomes/Cell nuclei/Cell organelles/Cytoplasm/Cells/Organisms/Life (Biology)"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Genetic engineering/Genetic recombination/Chromosomes/Cell nuclei/Cell organelles/Cytoplasm/Cells/Organisms/Life (Biology)""
"[4]": {2 keys}
"value": "Animal behaviour/Animal psychology/Psychology"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Animal behaviour/Animal psychology/Psychology""
"[5]": {2 keys}
"value": "Geneticists/Microbiologists/Biologists/Life scientists/Scientists/Professions/Occupations"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Geneticists/Microbiologists/Biologists/Life scientists/Scientists/Professions/Occupations""
"[29]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_date"
"opacObjectFields": [0 items]
"[30]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_event"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[31]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_period"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[32]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_object"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[33]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_person"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Lyudmila Trut"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_person:"Lyudmila Trut""
"[34]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_place"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Siberia/Russia"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_place:"Siberia/Russia""
"[35]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_person"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[36]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_place"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[37]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_event"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[38]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_object"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[39]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "user_sym_9"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"relationshipsCollection": {2 keys}
"relationships": [1 items]
"[0]": {4 keys}
"relatedRecords": [2 items]
"[0]": {3 keys}
"slug": "lee-alan-dugatkin"
"title": "Lee Alan Dugatkin"
"relatedRecordId": "24449"
"[1]": {3 keys}
"slug": "lyudmila-trut"
"title": "Lyudmila Trut"
"relatedRecordId": "24450"
"relationshipId": "object_prod_pri_person"
"relatedRecordType": "person"
"totalRelatedRecords": 2
"totalRelationships": 1
Topics and Themes