The Domestic Dog provides an account of the domestic dog's natural history and behaviour. Chapters cover the dog's domestication and evolution, behaviour and behaviour problems, and human-dog interactions. Dogs have been part of human society for longer than any other domestic species. They exist in a greater variety of different shapes and sizes, and they occupy a wider ecological niche, from pampered pets and faithful servants to feral scavengers. Even our attitudes to dogs seem to oscillate between extremes. On the one hand, the dog is man's best friend, on the other, he is the despised and degraded outcast.

Origins of the dog: domestication and early history /JulieClutton-Brock -- Evolution of working dogs / Raymond Coppinger and Richard Schneider -- Genetic aspects of dog behaviour with particular reference to working ability / M.B. Willis -- Analysing breed and gender differences in behaviour / Benjamin L. Hart -- Early experience and the development of behaviour / James Serpell and J.A. Jagoe -- Feeding behaviour of domestic dogs and the role of experience / Chris Thorne -- Social and communication behaviour of companion dogs / John W.S. Bradshaw and Helen M.R. Nott -- Ethology and epidemiology of canine aggression / Randall Lockwood -- Canine behavioural therapy / Roger A. Mugford. Effects of owner personality and attitudes on dog behaviour / Valerie O'Farrell -- Dogs as human companions: a review of the relationship / Lynette A. Hart -- Welfare of dogs in human care / Robert Hubrecht -- Variation in dog society: between resource dispersion and social flux / D.W. Macdonald and G.M. Carr -- Population biology and ecology of feral dogs in central Italy / L. Boitani, F. Francisci, P. Ciucci and G. Andreoli -- From paragon to pariah: some reflections on human attitudes to dogs / James Serpell -- Hair of the dog / James Serpell.