As I understand it, the current theory of dog origin is that they all descend from an African species of dog, not wolves. So dogs have shared man's journey from the start.

Well, as we currently believe, all of life originated in Africa, so you would expect a common ancestor to emerge from there. African ancestor --> wolves --> dogs. The wolf theory mainly refers to the idea dogs are not direct descendents of other canine species, such as coyotes or jackals, existing at the same time as wolves.

Man didn't the start the journey, we're just one of many who tag along for the ride : )

sorry, not the origin of all of life. I meant that mammals originated in the southern hemisphere, including Africa. Hence you'd expect to find possible ancestors there.

It's an interesting hypothesis, but completely unsupported by the facts. Dog and wolf DNA have been compared and there is no doubt that they are both Canis lupus.