Dogs

by Coppinger, Raymond; Coppinger, Lorna

• ISBN13: 9780226115634
• ISBN10: 0226115631
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-10-01
• Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr

Summary

Biologists, breeders and trainers, and champion sled dog racers, Raymond and Lorna Coppinger have more than four decades of experience with literally thousands of dogs. Offering a scientifically informed perspective on canines and their relations with humans, the Coppingers take a close look at eight different types of dogshousehold, village, livestock guarding, herding, sled-pulling, pointing, retrieving, and hound. They argue that dogs did not evolve directly from wolves, nor were they trained by early humans; instead they domesticated themselves to exploit a new ecological niche: Mesolithic village dumps. Tracing the evolution of today's breeds from these village dogs, the Coppingers show how characteristic shapes and behaviorsfrom pointing and baying to the sleek shapes of running dogsarise from both genetic heritage and the environments in which pups are raised. For both dogs and humans to get the most out of each other, we need to understand and adapt to the biological needs and dispositions of our canine companions, just as they have to ours.

Author Biography

Raymond Coppinger is a professor of biology at Hampshire College. He is the author of Fishing Dogs and coauthor of Wheelchair Assistance Dogs.

Lorna Coppinger is the award-winning author of The World of Sled Dogs. Together they founded Hampshire's Livestock Dog Project.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	11	(2)
Preface: The Right Kind of Dog	13	(8)
Introduction: Studying Dogs?	21	(1)
Why Study Dogs?	21	(6)
How to Study and Who Studies, Dogs	27	(10)
Part I. The Evolution of The Basic Dog: Commensalism	37	(60)
Wolves Evolve into Dogs	39	(30)
The Pinocchio Hypothesis of Dog Origin	41	(1)
Taming the Wolf	42	(5)
Training the Wolf	47	(2)
Domesticating the Wolf	49	(1)
Speciation Requires Populations That Evolve-Not Individuals	50	(2)
Speciation Requires Differential Mortality	52	(17)
Village Dogs	69	(16)
The Mesolithic Island	72	(13)
Natural Breeds	85	(12)
People Become Conscious of Dogs	89	(8)
Part II. Working Dogs and People: Mutualism	97	(128)
Developmental Environments	101	(56)
Livestock-Guarding Dogs	101	(1)
In the Nest: Shaping the Behavior	101	(18)
The Transhumance: Distributing and Mixing Genes	119	(11)
The Transhumance: Evolving the Size and Shape	130	(6)
Breed Genesis: Selecting for Color	136	(4)
Walking Hounds	140	(17)
The Physical Conformation of a Breed	157	(32)
Sled Dogs-How Do They Run?	157	(19)
The Shape of the Team	176	(5)
Running Is Social Behavior	181	(4)
The Society of a Sled Dog Team	185	(2)
The Value of the Breed Standard	187	(2)
Behavioral Conformation	189	(36)
Herding Dogs, Retrievers, and Pointers	189	(22)
The Border Collie's Behavioral Conformation	211	(6)
Motor Patterns	217	(8)
Part III. Are People the Dog's Best Friend? Parasitism, Amensalism, and Dulosis	225	(46)
Household Dogs	227	(26)
Measuring the Benefit to Humans of the Household Dog	237	(16)
Assistance Dogs	253	(18)
Part IV. The Tail Wags the Dog	271	(56)
What's in the Name Canis familiaris?	273	(10)
The Age of the Dog	283	(12)
Why Dogs Look the Way They Do	295	(22)
How to Change Size	299	(3)
How to Change Shape	302	(5)
The Shape of Intelligence	307	(1)
Rapid Evolution of Breeds	308	(3)
Neoteny Paedomorphism, and the Evolution of Dogs from Wolves	311	(6)
Conclusion	317	(10)
Bibliography	327	(12)
Index	339