Share <Embed>

Buy New

$12.91

List Price: $15.00
Save: $2.09 (14%)

FREE Shipping on orders with at least $25 of books.

Only 8 left in stock (more on the way).

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

Want it Saturday, April 23? Order within and choose Saturday Delivery at checkout. Details

Ship to:

Select a shipping address:

Buy Used

$5.40

FREE Shipping on orders over $25.

Used: Good | Details

Sold by Clean Earth Books

Fulfilled by Amazon

Condition: Used: Good

Comment: Support Your Planet. Buy CLEAN EARTH BOOKS. Shipping orders swiftly since 2008. A great value for the avid reader! GOOD can range from a well cared for book in great condition to average with signs of slight wear. Overall, All text in great shape! Comes with our 100% Money Back Guarantee. Our customer service can't be beat! Tracking included on all orders.

Turn on 1-Click ordering for this browser

Have one to sell? Sell on Amazon

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See all 2 images

What's a Dog For?: The Surprising History, Science, Philosophy, and Politics of Man’s Best Friend Paperback – October 29, 2013

by John Homans (Author)

83 customer reviews

See all 3 formats and editions Hide other formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Kindle

"Please retry"

$10.97

—

Hardcover

"Please retry"

—

$1.63

$0.01

Paperback

"Please retry"

$12.91

$0.98

$0.01

As dogs take their place as coddled family members and their numbers balloon to over 77 million in the United States alone, it’s no surprise that canine culture is undergoing a massive transformation. Now subject to many of the same questions of rights and ethics as people, the politics of dogs are more tumultuous and public than ever—with fierce moral battles raging over kill shelters, puppy mills, and breed standards. Incorporating interviews and research from scientists, activists, breeders, and trainers, What’s a Dog For? investigates how dogs have reached this exalted status, and why they hold such fascination for us humans.

What's a Dog For?: The Surprising History, Science, Philosophy, and Politics of Man’s Best Friend

$12.91 FREE Shipping on orders with at least $25 of books. Only 8 left in stock (more on the way). Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Frequently Bought Together

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

The New Yorker…

107

Hardcover
$27.10
Temple Grandin

333

Paperback
$12.00
David Wroblewski

2,312

Paperback
$10.62
Aaron S. Gross

4

Paperback
$32.00
Meg Daley Olmert

32

Paperback
$13.81
James Guiliani

22

Hardcover
$17.17

NO_CONTENT_IN_FEATURE

Product Details

Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books; 1 edition (October 29, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0143124129
ISBN-13: 978-0143124122
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.7 x 8.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (83 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #153,236 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #796 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Pets & Animal Care > Dogs

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Customers Viewing This Page May Be Interested In These Sponsored Links

(What's this?)

Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars

5 star		46%
4 star		28%
3 star		10%
2 star		13%
1 star		3%

See all 83 customer reviews

Share your thoughts with other customers

Write a customer review

Top Customer Reviews

Honorary persons

By TChris TOP 500 REVIEWER on November 12, 2012

Format: Hardcover

"Canine science is intended to shed light not only on what makes dogs dogs but on what makes people people," says John Homans. What's a Dog For? reviews a wealth of canine science. Some of it pertains to wolves, the dog's genetic ancestor, but wolves don't necessarily tell us much about dogs, at least from a behavioral perspective. Some of it examines a dog's cognitive skills, including the ability to interpret human gestures. Some of it addresses the reasons people seek canine companionship. Dogs are a hedge against loneliness. Dogs are part of our families, but they also fill the gaps when our families disintegrate. When we gaze into a dog's eyes, our levels of oxytocin -- a hormone that promotes bonding and attachment --spike. Perhaps a dog's purpose is to sustain the mental health of dog lovers. While the health benefits of dog ownership are disputed, one study result stands out in my mind as being undeniably correct: dogs are better stress relievers than spouses.

We bestow honorary personhood upon dogs (at least the dogs we love), but are they entitled to it? The central question, according to Homans, is whether dogs, during the course of their long association with humans, have taken on human qualities. It's clear that dogs have developed communicative and cooperative abilities that surpass those of their ancestral wolves, but those abilities appear to be an outgrowth of tameness and are not necessarily unique to dogs (tame Siberian foxes, for instance, exhibit some of the same traits). But that may mean that dogs (and some other tame animals) are much like humans in this sense: they have evolved a capacity for cooperation that supplants the instinctive trait of competition.Read more ›

2 Comments 57 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...

Thank you for your feedback.

Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again

Report abuse

a fantastic and engaging read.

By Vanessa R. Woods on December 29, 2012

Format: Hardcover

My favorite line out of Homans' remarkable book is 'the dog is now in the process of being reimagined'. This couldn't be more true. In an age where everything worthwhile seems to have already been done or discovered, it is incredible that one of the most exciting subjects of study sleeps placidly at our feet, or as Stella, the heroine of Homans' book does, turns her nose up at milk biscuits, knowing there is steak in the refrigerator. There has been a revolution in how we think about dog intelligence, and what goes on in the canine mind, that has really only taken flight in the last decade. Hohman admirably weaves the threads of scientific discovery together in a fast paced, page turner, that is no surprise, given his experience as Executive Editor of NY Magazine and writer for other respected national publications.

Stella is a compelling character, because she is every dog. Homans doesn't claim there is anything extraordinary about her compared to other dogs, but just that being a dog makes her extraordinary. Stella is the dog we've all had, where looking into their eyes, you can't help but wonder what is going on behind them. To find out the answer, Homans traveled all over the world, interviewing leading scientists on dog cognition. Homans' grasp on the science is admirable especially since he is not an academic - the raw material has taken years for me to become familiar with, and Homans manages to explain complex ideas clearly without losing any of the subtleties.

Full disclosure - one of the scientists Homans interviewed was my husband - Brian Hare - which leads me to my second favorite line 'Hare.... is somewhere between school boy and rock star'. Said line has lead to much hilarity in our household.Read more ›

Comment 23 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...

Thank you for your feedback.

Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again

Report abuse

Balanced Scientific, Cultural, and Moralistic Evaluation

By D_shrink VINE VOICE on November 22, 2012

Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )

The book was a nicely balanced discussion on the purpose of a dog with science, culture, and morals all taking their respective places.

We learn early on that the author might be "slightly" biased in that the dog on the cover is his dog Stella, a rescue mixed breed transferred from Tennessee to NYC, and to which he ascribes mostly lab characteristics. But who can blame any owner for feeling his/her own dog is special, yet he doesn't let this get in the way of the points he makes on science and the genetics.

The book is filled with a myriad of facts and statistics all nicely placed within the narrative, so as to render them part and parcel of each topic of discussion. I would like to give a few examples of the many offered as:

1. In 2010 the U.S. dog population totaled approximately 77 million, and increase of 24 million from just 1996.
2. This increase in population accounted for annual spending of about 38 Billion for pet food/supplies/care.
3. Almost all dog owners talk to their dogs [the ones who don't admit this are probably prevaricating] and almost 80% of the owners consider their dog a true member of the family.
4. Domestic dogs only vary from their genetic antecedents, the gray wolf, by only .2% of their DNA.
5. Dogs and wolves primarily differ in behavioral characteristics in that the wolf is far more independent of man than a dog. When trying to solve a problem a domesticated dog will normally look to his/her human companion for guidance while a wolf even one somewhat domesticated would not, as wolves will not make eye contact long enough, as that would be considered a challenge or threat to a wild animal.
6. Only 3 genes account for over 95% of the different types of fur on dogs.
7.Read more ›

Comment 11 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...

Thank you for your feedback.

Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again

Report abuse

See all 83 customer reviews (newest first)

Write a customer review

Most Recent Customer Reviews

Five Stars

brilliant

Published 4 months ago by Robert Maxwell

Four Stars

A good book for a penny.

Published 6 months ago by John R Groh

Great read!

Excellent scientific work!

Published 8 months ago by Mike

Disappointed

This book was a good history of the dog but was not what I thought it would be like as the title implies. Read more

Published 9 months ago by Patricia C. Brown

For ever animal lover out there! But for dog lovers its even better!

Wonderfully written book

Published 11 months ago by TimeLord Alex

After The Inside of a Dog, I decided I ...

After The Inside of a Dog, I decided I needed to know more from another angle. I now more clearly understand Ms. Read more

Published 13 months ago by Ron Heard

Five Stars

gift

Published 14 months ago by Chris Ulrickson

Truly Informative, AND Entertaining

WONDERFUL!! Homans seems to have real insight into what makes a dog...well...a dog...and what MADE dogs the loving, goofy, funny, friendly companions they are today. Read more

Published 15 months ago by HannaH Rose

May make you see your canie companion in a diffrent light.

still reading but I am really enjoying the thought process that is being generated in my head.

I don't think it will ever change how I feel about my dogs, but it sure... Read more

Published 15 months ago by Travis F.

Don't bother.

Good book until you realize he is drunk on the koolaid of the pit apologists. I plan another bonfire with this one.

Published 20 months ago by Pat Dunaway

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more

This item: What's a Dog For?: The Surprising History, Science, Philosophy, and Politics of Man’s Best Friend

Set up a giveaway