Product Description

Marking the first time that dogs have been explained in such detail by eminent researchers, Dogs is a work of wide appeal, as absorbing as it is enlightening.

Drawing on insight gleaned from forty-five years of raising, training, and studying the behaviors of dogs worldwide, Lorna and Raymond Coppinger explore the fascinating processes by which dog breeds have evolved into their unique shapes and behaviors. Concentrating on five types of dogs -- modern household dogs, village dogs, livestock-guarding dogs, sled dogs, and herding dogs -- the Coppingers, internationally recognized canine ethologists and consummate dog lovers, examine our canine companions from a unique biological viewpoint. Dogs clearly points the way for dog lovers, dog therapists, veterinarians, and all others who deal with dogs to understand their animals from a fresh perspective.

How did the domestic dog become a distinct species from the wolf? Why do different breeds behave differently? Most important, how can we improve the relationship between humans and dogs?

The authors show how dogs' different abilities depend upon the confluence of their nature and nurture -- that both genetics and the environment play equally key roles. They also reveal that many people inadvertently harm their canine companions because they fail to understand dogs' biological needs and dispositions.

Dogs is a highly readable biological approach by noted researchers that provides a wealth of new information about the interaction of nature and nurture, and demonstrates how unique dog behavior is in the animal world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #135103 in Books
• Published on: 2001-05-27
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

Amazon.com
There are dog lovers, and then there are dog lovers. Behavioral scientists Raymond Coppinger and Lorna Coppinger have raised hundreds of dogs of various breeds, raced sled teams, and published professional and popular works on canine behavior. Dogs is their manifesto of canine evolution and treatment by humans, and it offers deep insight, provocative theories, and controversial ideas regarding our relationship with them. Though some of the material is most appropriate for readers with some zoological background, much of it is written for a general audience--one that cares about dogs not just for what they offer humans, but for their own sake.

Arguing that much of current thinking about dogs' evolutionary history is misguided, the authors share their own complex story of wolflike animals coevolving with permanent human settlements and only recently being subject to directed breeding and artificial selection. This is interesting enough, but they go on to take issue with the use and treatment of dogs, some of which they claim is bad for dog and human alike. Pure breeding, making companion animals of inappropriate breeds, and even some uses of disability assistance are assailed for neglecting genetic and other hardwired aspects of canine life. Surprisingly little is known for sure about dogs' lives and behavior, so the Coppingers' contribution is a welcome, if occasionally unsettling, eye-opener. --Rob Lightner

From Publishers Weekly
Too often books about pet species are larded with anthropomorphic sentimentality. Not so the current offering by Raymond (Fishing Dogs) and Lorna Coppinger (The World of Sled Dogs). This is a literate scientific treatise that has much to offer dog owners and readers with a general interest in animals. With 35 years of experience breeding different types of dogs, and a strong background in biology, this couple offers new insights into dog behavior and evolution. Contrary to the current evolutionary theory that dogs are the same species as wolves, the authors postulate a common (archaic) ancestor for domestic dogs and wolves. Building on the work of earlier ethologists, they assert that modern dogs and modern wolves are as distinct from each other as modern humans are from modern apes. Accordingly, they contend that the idea of using wolf pack protocols to alter the behavior of dogs as prescribed by some popular manuals is absurd. Additionally, the authors note that because of selective breeding for patterns of behavior, some dog breeds are unsuitable as pets (e.g., sled dogs such as huskies, hunting breeds such as bloodhounds). In the managed evolution of dogs, which has produced a remarkable range of working and hunting breeds, the writers perceive both environmental and genetic factors. Through these new perceptions regarding the mechanics and tenacity of inbred and enhanced behavioral traits, humans can better understand the primal biological motivations of their canine companions. Chock full of both scientific studies and personal experiences, this fast-paced, absorbing book deserves a wide audience. Photos and charts. (May)
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
A dog is not a wolf, and humankind may not be dog's best friend or so argues this serious work by two world-renowned ethologists and champion dog-sled competitors. Taking a biological approach to the study of canine behavior and intelligence, the authors promulgate a theory of how the dog evolved. They explain in depth how the interplay of nature and nurture and critical periods of development produced an animal that has more shapes and sizes and uses than any other. The Coppingers debunk the notion that there are genes for speed or herding, and they discuss the genes governing form predisposed to a particular function. They also explore the types of symbiotic relationships commensalism, mutualism, amensalism, and parasitism and demonstrate how the relationship between humans and dogs has progressed from one benefiting only the dog to one in which the dog is "enslaved." They define what constitutes a breed and criticize today's purebred breeding programs. Unique, insightful, well written, informative and even controversial, this book belongs in every college library with programs in genetics and animal behavior and in large public libraries serving informed lay readers. Florence Scarinci, Nassau Community Coll. Lib., Garden City, NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Applied Coppingerology K9 style
My husband, a biology faculty member, brought home a review in the journal, _Science_, of the Coppingers' new revolutionary work, and after I read the review, I was intrigued, so Darling Doc brought the book home from University library. I ate it with laughter, outloud head nodding, and pondering brain wrinkles. I am a K9 trainer of 15 years, have competed nationally, currently have two K9 partners working with me and train others to train their K9s. We also do a sport called Schutzhund, designed as a breed qualifcation test for German Shepherd Dogs. GSDs are very wolflike in appearance, so dispelling the notion that they ARE domesticated wolves was not a topic I wanted to take on with my trainees....until Drs Coppinger. Now I understand my own gut reaction to the earlier theories of evolution wolf to dog. My husband teaches the Coppinger theory, as well, in his intro evolutionary biology course (freshpersons always love dogs and this is a great start, discussion wise and learning wise).

I have been using Drs Coppingers' ideas, information, and wisdom for about 2-3 years now with huge success given the way I train...use of presented genetic/biological characteristics, shape behavior to desired form, and voila! trained dog with little stress.

I cannot recommend this series of books highly enough. I have personally seen the results of application on 3 of my own competition dogs and many others. This book is for the layperson whose dog has the most important job of all, companionship and partnership, to the serious dog trainer and trainer of dog handlers.

Janica Tansey

"Dogs" is a fascinating journey into the soul of "dogginess"
I had never heard a word about this book before I bought it, but I decided to buy precisely for the inflamed criticism I read from someone who was "horrified" at some of the things he had read in the book,things like "oh,this book is evil, they say horrible things about service dogs(dogs for the blind or deaf)or even pet dogs!!"I think I also read some criticism of someone from the AKC or similar...
I thought Ray & Lorna Coppinger MUST have treaded on some sensitive "paws"+ touched some controversial issues to recieve this kind of criticism...SO I decided to write this review because this book is a JEWEL of dog books.The minute I started reading it,I was fascinated + swept!!Its an amazing and UNIQUE book,full of information it would've been hard to find had not the book been written by biologists.That's probably what sets it aside from other dog books.TRUE:you have to keep in mind its is NOT the book that will tell you how to get your dog to stop chewing on the furniture or how to stop pulling on the leash.But I have already read it twice, and I find it one of the most fascinating books I have ever read in my whole life.I think their hypothesis on dog origin-dogs domesticating themselves by becoming scavengers is highly plausible,just watch dogs in different cities + terraces where people are eating!-and I agree 100% in most(almost all!)of issues the authors claim when they talk about service dogs,show dogs and pet dogs.They are professionals that have decades of experience teamed with scientific data,and real love for dogs.Ray Coppinger has trained + ran with sled dogs for 30 years,and he explains the biological conformation of sled dogs, and why wolves DO NOT make good sled runners(for example)and then he followed shepherd dogs in Europe while they where migrating with flocks of sheep.He explains the difference on how you train one puppy to watch the sheep + another one to herd the sheep, and how the different puppies get used to the different jobs,and how unique that is,considering the dog is a predator and the sheep are its prey,so what a paradox it is to have a predator protecting its prey!!Just read carefully and enjoy every word!I certainly did, and still do.

Fascinating look at dogs
Dogs seem so familiar and common that even without owning one, you think you know them. However, this book, written by a biologist specializing in animal behavior, shows us how little we understand dogs. Coppinger points out why the "descended from wolves" story doesn't explain dog behavior and why asserting alpha dominance doesn't mean the same things to dogs as it does to wolves. If you are interested in a scientific understanding of why dogs do what they do, this book will be truly eye-opening. The "critical period" of puppies and the predator behavioral sequences that explain herding vs. guarding dogs were most fascinating. Coppinger should have his own special on PBS.