Illustrated Dogwatching

Petwatching

by Desmond Morris

What is it about the canine personality which has singled this animal out from all the 4, 236 species of non-human mammals to be man's closest companion? This is a relationship that goes back at least 10, 000 years, when both wolves and men lived in 'packs' and entered a relationship involving mutual survival, hunting and defence of property. But the bond was so strong that the loss of the canine element in human family life was inconceivable, even as mankind moved from the country to the town. Working dog became pet dog. In the last few hundred years, breeding has speeded up to produce the astonishing range which finds the St Bernard weighing 300 times more than the Yorkshire terrier. Yet all dogs, from scruffy mongrels to haughty show champions, are members of the same species - that of the wolf. DOGWATCHING tells us the answers to all the most fascinating questions about our canine companions, expressing Desmond Morris's inimitable insight and understanding of these remarkable and delightful creatures.

Genres: Nonfiction, Animals, Dogs, Science, Biology, Reference, Audiobook

144 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Desmond John Morris (24 January 1928 - 19 April 2026) was an English zoologist, ethologist and surrealist painter, as well as a popular author in human sociobiology.
He is known for his 1967 book The Naked Ape, and for his television programmes such as Zoo Time.

After the death of his wife in 2018 he lived with his son and family in Ireland. Morris died in Naas, County Kildare, on 19 April 2026, at the age of 98.

abridged from Wikipedia

Reviews

[Laura ✯]

3.5

Hay apuntes muy cómicos y algunas explicaciones sobre los peyitos.

Libro abordado para un taller de lecto-escritura sobre peyitos🐕🐾🦴🦮

[Sol González]

Lo admito. El adoptar a Nico (en compañía de Agus) es una aventura totalmente nueva y distinta de la que tuve con todos mis otros perros (Celín, Alfa y especialmente Killer). ¿Por qué? Porque esta vez Agus tenía más preguntas, porque él es curioso por naturaleza y las cosas que yo daba por hechas debían de ser contestadas y la mayor parte de las veces era "siempre he visto que hacen eso, pero no sé por qué".

Desde febrero he comenzado a leer libros de perros, libros donde hay perros, en dónde se dice cómo educar perros y cómo vivir con perros. Este es uno de los últimos que encontré y es SIMPLE. Dá respuesta a un montón de preguntas simplonas para las que nunca tuviste respuesta y que simplemente aceptaste como parte del perro.

¿El perro es un antepasado del lobo? Sí, es parte de la familia de los lobos y pueden reproducirse exitosamente con ellos.

¿Hay una clasificación para las razas de perros? Sí, perros de caza, sabuesos, perros de labor, terriers, perros falderos y perros utilitarios.

¿Son imaginaciones mías el que piense que Killer se autocastiga cuando hace algo malo? No, un perro es capaz de mostrar remordimientos.

Y muchas otras cosas más.

Ahora sé que puedo esconderme de mis perros si me quedo inmóvil a una distancia, pero que si les hago señas desde kilómetros me verán. Y yo pensaba que usaban sólo el olfato para encontrarme, ahora sé cómo jugarle bromas a Nico.

Sé ahora que el olor de los pies es muy fuerte y que es ese el olor que rastrean los perros, no el olor de ninguna otra parte de mi cuerpo, y que los gemelos univitelinos (de la misma bolsa o idénticos) tienen el mismo olor.

También sé que cuando Nico se revuelca en el jardín es para cubrirse con cierto olor y camuflajearse... tal vez para aparecer menos peligrosa... aunque también es para "perfumarse" y aparecer más interesante y llamar mi atención (aunque después necesite un baño).

Confirmé lo que me dijo mi veterinaria, de que cuando arrastran el trasero por el suelo es porque tienen llenas las glándulas anales y esto les causa irritación o dolor. Y ya sé que es hora de llevarlos a un baño en la veterinaria (porque yo no se las voy a exprimir).

Que el embarazo en una perra dura nueve semanas y un día antes del parto rechaza la comida y se vuelve agresiva con los extraños.

Que cuando un perro lame la cara de su amo es lo más parecido a la verdad si uno analiza de dónde viene el "beso" humano y el "beso" perruno.

Que los perros machos sufren cincuenta semanas al año de frustración sexual.

Que los perros Sí pueden detectar tormentas y terremotos, basados en los cambios en la presión barométrica y alteraciones de electricidad estática.

Y finalmente que aquellas personas que opinan que querer demasiado a un perro es un desperdicio y que los cuidados deben dirigirse exclusivamente a los niños en su mayoría no son buenos padres y que dichos comentarios son posiblemente generados por la culpabilidad... porque aceptemoslo, tener un perro es un placer.

[Arthur Chappell]

Full of fascinating facts and easy to read text, and written to accompany a TV series Morris presented. The book has a light FAQ format, but it's line drawings are a poor substitute for a book that for once deserves glossy colour illustrations of dogs being dogs.

[Ana V.]

Nunca li um livro tão recheado de informações erradas e absurdas sobre cães. Nem me dei ao trabalho de o ler todo. Limitei-me a lê-lo na diagonal. O cão é um lobo com aspecto canino -> Falso. Os cães difíceis de controlar tornaram-se o alpha -> Falso. O lobo deu origem ao cão porque as pessoas retiravam cachorrinhos bebés das tocas dos lobos e os domesticavam -> Falso. Durante a socialização dos cachorros, estes vêm todos os outros estranhos que conhecem como sendo da sua espécie. -> Falso. O rabo a abanar significa medo e conflito -> Falso. E por aí fora... Por amor de Deus. Para quem está a tirar o curso de treinador de cães, este livro é uma anedota.

[Is]

I found this book to be highly entertaining. Having lived with dogs all my life and now earning my living by being with them it didn't teach me anything I didn't know already but enjoyed it and recommend it to people who would like to have a better understanding of dogs.

[Colin Butcher]

I really enjoyed this book perhaps because I grew up watching this amazing guy on TV. Desmond Morris is a true expert on the subject of dog behaviour and shares his extensive knowledge within this book.
I am of the opinion that if you work with dogs then you should constantly seek to expand your knowledge about their behaviour and this book is a great place to start.

[Anthony O'neill]

An enjoyable book that answers an impressive range of questions on the nature of dogs. Demond’s writing style, compassion, and wit add an additional layer of enjoyment as he unravels competing theories and their history on the explanations we have for dogs — from their variety, behaviour, origin, and psychology.

[Fayd Eaton]

Libro carino per chi ama i cani. Non dice poi cose incredibili per chi conosce il mondo canino. Soprattutto per chi ha avuto un cane molte cose sono ovvie.
Interessanti le parti storiche e il paragone con il comportamento del lupo.
In fondo i nostri amici pelosetti sono l'evoluzione del lupo...o forse una forma di involuzione.

[Sandy]

another fun bathroom book on one of my favourite subjects. Dogs. The cover dog looks so much like Digbee, one of our neighbourhood hounds. Makes me smile... and the book answers some questions I've often had about dog behaviour - or at least given me 'food for thought.'

[Allan Wearing]

This book was very interesting to learn about the history of the evolution of the dog from wolves. It offered many explanations of dog behavior at many stages and the genetic connection to the wolf. It was also an easy read.

[Luis]

Un libro genial para cualquier amante de los animales

[Antonio Meridda]

Very interesting, many useful tips for anyone who wants to better understand the behavior of their dog

[Major Doug]

Some interesting tales about tails + tiny chapters made it easy to nibble-read

[Iván]

Lectura sencilla que a manera de preguntas y respuestas explica algunos aspectos de los perros como conductas o curiosidades, lo mejor es cuando pone en perspectiva el comportamiento de los lobos.

[Prabhash Gokarn]

great book for any dog lover......understand why your pet behaves the way it does and how you should react,

[Milt]

doggone fare

[Just This]

One from Desmond Morris's Watching series.

I'm normally a fan of his work, but while there were a few interesting facts, there wasn't enough here to merit a book

[Marjorie McGuire]

A fun, light read.

[Jo-jean Keller]

Answers to amost of those puzzling questions about our dog companions!

[Janelle]

kind of dry, but informative

[Marion Linke]

Ich habe das Buch mal vor über 10 Jahren von meinem Vater geschenkt bekommen und habe es, da wir nun einen neuen Hund haben, mal zum Anlass genommen, es zu lesen. Es war absolut nicht das, was ich mir vorstellt habe. Und man kann auch deutlich merken, dass es eher historisches Wissen ist als anwendbares Trainingswissen. Aber es hat meinen Horizont erweitert und es war auch ganz unterhaltsam (und doch korrekt) geschrieben.

[Pherit]

After enjoying Horsewatching, picking up Dogwatching seemed like an easy choice. I love animals and really enjoyed Desmond Morris's approach to explaining how horses interact with the world around them, so I was curious to see what he had to say about dogs. Like Horsewatching, this book gives an interesting look into how dogs communicate, behave, and react to the world around them. I also enjoyed the little pieces of history and trivia scattered throughout the book, including the origin of phrases like “the dog days of summer.”
It's an easy, informative read that gives you a different perspective on behaviors you may have seen from dogs countless times without ever really thinking about why they do them.

Overall, another good read from Desmond Morris and one I'd recommend to fellow animal lovers.

[Hugo Fiallos]

Un libro que trata de explicar muchos comportamientos de los perros, si bien es cierto que Desmond Morris es Desmond Morris, tambien es cierto que lo que dice no es palabra de Dios. Al Libro le falta base científica con referencias que Confirmen lo Afirmado (como los mordedores de cola por ejemplo) pero es un libro interesante. Sorprendentemente mas grande de lo que uno pudiese esperar con este tema. Lo recomiendo siempre y cuando no creas todo lo que se dice en él. Investiga, razona y acepta.

[María Paz Greene F]

De los libros que he leído de él (que son buenísimos) es mi menos favorito... Desactualizado, algo básico, aunque me gusta que, como buen científico antiguo (o seudo antiguo) se da las licencias para decir lo que quiera como verdad, jijiji. Igual lo recomiendo para los que aman a los perros y/o a la ciencia, aunque prácticamente todo lo que dice puede encontrarse hoy en internet.

[Florence Buchholz]

Desmong Morris always supplies such fascinating tidbits on information; the section on canine sexuality was especially enlightening. After reading this book I am afraid that our dog thinks that HE is the dominant member of the family pack.

[Julie Brock]

He has some interesting canine theories but they seem largely speculative and anthropomorphic, though stated as factual. Okay, so he was curator of mammals at a zoo...but no mention of his educational background or other qualifications.

[Kevin Driskill]

This is one of the most enlightening books I have ever read. There is an entire world waiting to be understood about dogs. You will know and understand your pooch better after this book by the original dog whisperer.

[Michael P.]

I thought I knew dogs until I read this amazing book. Morris explains the reasons for many puzzling behaviors, and some of the explanations will help us better meet our dog's needs. The only negative is that bits of the book are now a little out of date. Still, this is very good.

[Alice Harbin]

A delightful read if you love dogs or have just become a dog owner as I have. He helps you to understand your dog's behavior and encourages owners to pay more attention to their dogs. Very interesting and instructive.

[Nate]

Read this book. Dogs are not stupid. People who think dogs are stupid are stupid, stupid......