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  • Published: 29 August 2011
  • ISBN: 9781846142963
  • Imprint: Penguin eBooks
  • Format: EBook
  • Pages: 352

In Defence of Dogs

Why Dogs Need Our Understanding




An authoritative exploration of what dogs are from a scientific perspective

A dog is not for Christmas. This is.

John Bradshaw, one of the world's leading dog experts, brings us a compelling insight into what dogs would ask us for, if only they knew how.

The dog has been mankind's faithful companion for tens of thousands of years, yet today finds itself in crisis throughout the western world. Until just over a hundred years ago, most dogs worked for their living, and each of the many breeds had become well suited, over countless generations, to the task for which they were bred. Now, in their purely domestic roles we fail to understand their needs. And it is time that someone stood up for dogdom: not the caricature of the wolf in a dog suit, ready to dominate its unsuspecting owner at the first sign of weakness, not the trophy animal that collects rosettes and kudos for its breeder, but the real dog, the pet that just wants to be one of the family and enjoy life.

Biologists now know far more about what really makes dogs tick than they did twenty years ago, but this new understanding has been slow to percolate through to owners, and has not yet made enough of a difference to the lives of the dogs themselves. This book is here to set the record straight.

  • Published: 29 August 2011
  • ISBN: 9781846142963
  • Imprint: Penguin eBooks
  • Format: EBook
  • Pages: 352

About the author

John Bradshaw

John Bradshaw is a biologist who founded and directs the world-renowned Anthrozoology Institute, based at the University of Bristol. He has been studying the behaviour of domestic dogs and their owners for over 25 years, and is the author of many scientific articles, research papers and reviews, which have not only shed new light on the dog's abilities and needs, but have also changed the way that dogs are understood and cared for all over the world.

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