question: How do people breed animals to be naturally more comfortable around/near humans?
comment: You simply keep breeding the animals that show the least aggression towards humans with each other and do not let the more aggressive or frightened ones breed. Russian scientists used this method to [breed tame foxes.]( URL_0 ) Note that this took a long time. You need to do it over a lot of generations.
passages: BULLET::::- "Cross-breed" animals : Genetic hybrids of wild and domestic parents. They may be forms intermediate between both parents, forms more similar to one parent than the other, or unique forms distinct from both parents. Hybrids can be intentionally bred for specific characteristics or can arise unintentionally as the result of contact with wild individuals.
  
  BULLET::::- "Feral" animals : Domesticates that have returned to a wild state. As such, they experience relaxed artificial selection induced by the captive environment paired with intensified natural selection induced by the wild habitat.
   For example, a breeder that is pleased with the muzzle length, muzzle shape, and eye placement in the breeding stock, but wishes to improve the eye shape of progeny produced may determine a minimum level of improvement in eye shape required for progeny to be returned into the breeding program. Progeny is first evaluated on the existing quality thresholds in place for muzzle length, muzzle shape, and eye placement with the additional criterion being improvement in eye shape. Any animal that does not meet this level of improvement in the eye shape while maintaining the other qualities is culled from the breeding program; i.e., that animal is not used for breeding, but is instead spayed/neutered and placed in a pet home.
   In the breeding of pedigreed animals, both desirable and undesirable traits are considered when choosing which animals to retain for breeding and which to place as pets. The process of culling starts with examination of the conformation standard of the animal and will often include additional qualities such as health, robustness, temperament, color preference, etc. The breeder takes all things into consideration when envisioning his/her ideal for the breed or goal of their breeding program. From that vision, selections are made as to which animals, when bred, have the best chance of producing the ideal for the breed.
   Section::::Artificial selection and domestication.
  
  Some believe that no species of raptor have been in captivity long enough to have undergone successful selective breeding for desired traits. Captive breeding of raptors over several generations tends to result, either deliberately, or inevitably as a result of captivity, in selection for certain traits, including:
  
  BULLET::::- Ability to survive in captivity.
  
  BULLET::::- Ability to breed in captivity.
  
  BULLET::::- (In most cases) suitability for interactions with humans for falconry. Birds which demonstrated an unwillingness to hunt with men were most often discarded, rather than being placed in breeding projects.
   Breeders of pedigreed animals cull based on many criteria. The first culling criterion should always be health and robustness. Secondary to health, temperament and conformation of the animal should be considered. The filtering process ends with the breeder's personal preferences on pattern, color, etc.
  
  Section::::Pedigreed animals.:The Tandem Method.
   BULLET::::- "Captive wild" animals : Directly affected by a relaxation of natural selection associated with feeding, breeding and protection/confinement by humans, and an intensification of artificial selection through passive selection for animals that are more suited to captivity.
  
  BULLET::::- "Domestic" animals : Subject to intensified artificial selection through husbandry practices with relaxation of natural selection associated with captivity and management.
   Section::::Genetics.
  
  There are a greater variety of coat colours, patterns, lengths and textures found in the domestic dog than in its wolf relations, as is typical of all domestic animals. In the wild, mutations often put animals at some practical disadvantage decreasing survival or reducing their attractiveness to the opposite sex; whereas domestic animals are protected from harm, and bred from specifically due to practical applications of the mutation for human uses, or to the attraction humanity has for uniqueness.
   Section::::History.:North American gray wolf-domestic dog admixture.
  
  In the United States, over 100,000 wolf-dogs exist. In first-generation wolfdogs, gray wolves are most often crossed with wolf-like dogs (such as German Shepherd Dogs, Siberian Huskies, and Alaskan Malamutes) for an appearance most appealing to owners desiring an exotic pet.
  
  Section::::Documented breeding.
   "Domestication" of animals should not be confused with "taming". Taming is the conditioned behavioral modification of an individual animal, to reduce its natural avoidance of humans, and to tolerate the presence of humans. Domestication is the permanent genetic modification of a bred lineage that leads to an inherited predisposition to respond calmly to human presence.
  
  Certain animal species, and certain individuals within those species, make better candidates for domestication than others because they exhibit certain behavioral characteristics:
  
  BULLET::::1. The size and organization of their social structure
  
  BULLET::::2. The availability and the degree of selectivity in their choice of mates
   Terrier work, as it is known today, began with the rise of the Enclosure Movement in the late 18th Century in England. With enclosure, people were moved off the land and into cities and towns, and sheep and other livestock were moved into newly walled, hedged and fenced fields. Vast expanses of enclosed open spaces proved perfect for mounted fox hunting – a sport that had arrived in the UK from France in the late 17th Century.
   Section::::Aviculture.:Grooming.
   To breed small and domestic animals, no formal training or credentials are required, though it is recommended they familiarize themselves with the desired and standard characteristics of the breed they work with. For those who are seeking to breed more exotic animals, such as those in a zoo, a bachelor's degree in veterinary science is needed. It is also recommended that an individuals also goes onto graduate school and specializes in zoology. To breed agricultural animals, a 4-year degree in agricultural science is needed for most entry-level positions.
  
  Section::::See also.
  
  BULLET::::- Animal breeding
  
  BULLET::::- Animal husbandry
  
  BULLET::::- Animal fancy
   A lower-cost alternative mating strategy, useful to bachelors without a harem, is kleptogyny or the "sneaky fucker strategy", sneaking in to mate while the harem owner is distracted: in the case of red deer, when the harem stag is involved in a fight with another older stag. The strategy is also recorded in the elephant seal.
  
  Section::::List of animals that form harems.
  
  Species that form harems include:
  
  Section::::List of animals that form harems.:Mammals.
  
  BULLET::::- Red deer
  
  BULLET::::- Elephant seal
  
  BULLET::::- Greater short-nosed fruit bat
  
  BULLET::::- Jamaican fruit bat
   A breeder can breed purebred pets such as cats or dogs, livestock such as cattle or horses, and may show their animals professionally in assorted forms of competitions In these specific instances, the breeder strives to meet standards in each animal set out by organizations. A breeder may also assist with the breeding animals in the zoo. In other cases, a breeder can be referred to an animal scientist who has the capabilities of developing more efficient ways to produce the meat and other animal products humans eat.
   BULLET::::3. The ease and speed with which the parents bond with their young, and the maturity and mobility of the young at birth
  
  BULLET::::4. The degree of flexibility in diet and habitat tolerance; and
  
  BULLET::::5. Responses to humans and new environments, including reduced flight response and reactivity to external stimuli.
  
  Section::::Animals.:Mammals.
   BULLET::::- adequate housing may be difficult and/or expensive to procure or build. This is usually only a problem for large and/or highly active animals that need a large amount of space.
  
  BULLET::::- it may be difficult to provide the correct environment (such as temperature or amount of sunlight)
  
  BULLET::::- feeding the correct diet may be difficult or impossible
  
  BULLET::::- providing the right social environment for highly social species may be impractical or impossible in a home setting.
   Section::::Challenges.:Genetics.:Behavior Changes.
   The wolves more likely drawn to human camps were the less-aggressive, subdominant pack members with lowered flight response, higher stress thresholds, and less wary around humans, and therefore better candidates for domestication.
   Domestication is a fluid and nonlinear process that may start, stop, reverse, or go down unexpected paths with no clear or universal threshold that separates the wild from the domestic. However, there are universal features held in common by all domesticated animals.
  
  Section::::Universal features.:Behavioral preadaption.
   Captive breeding techniques began with the first human domestication of animals such as goats, and plants like wheat, at least 10,000 years ago. These practices were then expanded with the rise of the first zoos, which started as royal menageries in Egypt and its popularity, which led to the increase in zoos worldwide. The first actual captive breeding programs were only started in the 1960s. These programs, such as the Arabian Oryx breeding program from The Phoenix Zoo in 1962, were aimed at the reintroduction of these species into the wild. These programs expanded under The Endangered Species Act of 1973 of the Nixon Administration, which focused on protecting endangered species and their habitats to preserve biodiversity. Since then, research and conservation centers have been housed in zoos, such as the Institute for Conservation Research at the San Diego Zoo founded in 1975 and expanded in 2009, which have contributed to the successful conservation efforts of species such as the Hawaiian Crow.
   Domestication should not be confused with taming. Taming is the conditioned behavioral modification of a wild-born animal when its natural avoidance of humans is reduced and it accepts the presence of humans, but domestication is the permanent genetic modification of a bred lineage that leads to an inherited predisposition toward humans. Certain animal species, and certain individuals within those species, make better candidates for domestication than others because they exhibit certain behavioral characteristics: (1) the size and organization of their social structure; (2) the availability and the degree of selectivity in their choice of mates; (3) the ease and speed with which the parents bond with their young, and the maturity and mobility of the young at birth; (4) the degree of flexibility in diet and habitat tolerance; and (5) responses to humans and new environments, including flight responses and reactivity to external stimuli.
   BULLET::::2. Quick growth rate – Fast maturity rate compared to the human life span allows breeding intervention and makes the animal useful within an acceptable duration of caretaking. Some large animals require many years before they reach a useful size.
  
  BULLET::::3. Ability to breed in captivity – Animals that will not breed in captivity are limited to acquisition through capture in the wild.
  
  BULLET::::4. Pleasant disposition – Animals with nasty dispositions are dangerous to keep around humans.
  
  BULLET::::5. Tendency not to panic – Some species are nervous, fast, and prone to flight when they perceive a threat.
   Section::::Growth and development of meat animals.:Human intervention.
  
  Meat producers may seek to improve the fertility of female animals through the administration of gonadotrophic or ovulation-inducing hormones. In pig production, sow infertility is a common problem — possibly due to excessive fatness. No methods currently exist to augment the fertility of male animals. Artificial insemination is now routinely used to produce animals of the best possible genetic quality, and the efficiency of this method is improved through the administration of hormones that synchronize the ovulation cycles within groups of females.
   Newly hatched Barred Rocks, Rhode Island Reds, and New Hampshire Reds can be sexed with fair accuracy. With Barred Rocks, the males tend to have a large, distinct white head spot and yellow feet, and the females have a smaller, less well-defined head spot and darker feet. Rhode Island Red and New Hampshire Red chicks with chipmunk stripes are almost always females. With all these breeds, the chicks with the most distinct indicators can be sexed with confidence, while the others cannot. Nevertheless, one can often pick over a straight-run batch of chicks (at a feed store, say) and find enough of the desired sex.
   Pak Breeder is analogous to a human adult: sexually mature, self-sufficient (in later writings) and provides immediate care for the children. To the Pak, the Breeder stage, though capable of space travel, is not deemed fully sentient; Breeders, to a large extent, rely on Protectors for long-term survival. Earlier Niven stories describe the breeder as "just intelligent enough to swing a club or throw a stone."
  