“An informative, well-written book on the evolution of all canids, including the wild types (wolves, coyotes, jackals, and dingoes)…Recommended.”—Choice Of the world’s dogs, fewer than two hundred million are pets, living with humans who provide food, shelter, squeaky toys, and fashionable sweaters. But roaming the planet are four times as many dogs who are their own masters—neighborhood dogs, dump dogs, mountain dogs. They are dogs, not companions, and these dogs, like pigeons or squirrels, are highly adapted scavengers who have evolved to fit particular niches in the vicinity of humans. This book present an eye-opening analysis of the evolution and adaptations of these unleashed dogs and what they can reveal about the species as a whole. Exploring the natural history of these animals, canine behavior experts Raymond and Lorna Coppingers explain how the village dogs of Vietnam, India, Africa, and Mexico are strikingly similar. These feral dogs, argue the Coppingers, are in fact the truly archetypal dogs, nearly uniform in size and shape and incredibly self-sufficient. Drawing on nearly five decades of research, they show how dogs actually domesticated themselves in order to become such efficient scavengers of human refuse. The Coppingers also examine the behavioral characteristics that enable dogs to live successfully and to reproduce, unconstrained by humans, in environments that we ordinarily do not think of as dog friendly. A fascinating exploration of what it actually means, genetically and behaviorally, to be a dog, What Is a Dog? is likely to change the way beagle or bulldog owners reflect on their four-legged friends.

A guide to the hundred most popular breeds of dog that highlights their individual characters and which provides welcome advice on how well they fit into a home, how much exercise they need, how much grooming, how amenable they are to training, etc etc. Each breed is beautifully illustrated, both adult dogs and puppies being pictured, while a colour bar chart provides at-a-glance visual reference about seven of the most important character traits. This newly revised edition features a new and exciting group of Designer Dogs.

Do you have the face of a Golden Retriever, with the determination of a Bloodhound, the heart of a Husky and the voice of a Chihuahua? Take these three easy quizzes to learn what dog, out of a 100, best shares your physical features, choices in life, and personality. Each score will account for one component of your "puppy genetic makeup." Will you end up being a purebred, mixed or mutt? Do you want to be the same breed as your family and friends? Manipulate your answers and score to end up as your favorite dog.

What have dog lovers learned or can learn about God through their relationships with canines? Plenty, especially when the Lord is the trainer. What Dog Lovers Know About God consists of an easy-to-read, entertaining narrative about experiences with dogs that are full of spiritual lessons sure to benefit the individual reader and/or a Bible study group. Through stories about losing a pet and about rehabilitating rescued dogs, this book explains how to: cope with death and loss, have a relationship with God, be confident in ones salvation, be freed from those things that bind us, learn to trust God, study the Bible, do spiritual warfare, identify our true enemy, become more like Jesus, hear God, know His will, appreciate fellowship, endure and understand suffering and trials, embrace our own rehabilitation, have patience through training, love the leash, live in dog-wagging joy, and best of all, know Gods unconditional love.

For dog lovers, big and small, these amusing rhyming stories coupled with delightful watercolour illustrations make this the perfect bedtime book to explore with young children who will recognise the unique traits of nine well-known and loveable pooches. The book’s charming paintings will draw in animal lovers, and the poems’ catchy, irregular rhythms will encourage recitation.