A comprehensive and accessible guide to choosing and caring for your dog. Discover the dog throughout history and culture, its uses and status, anatomy, appearance and behaviour, and take in a wealth of practical advice on how to choose a dog, care, health, breeding, training and showing your dog. Helpful statistics and icons provide essential information at a glance.

Sean O'Meara has written extensively on the history, evolution and behaviour of dogs as well as authoring a correspondence course on dog obedience. He is currently managing editor of K9 Magazine and Pet Friendly Magazine. Michael Hayward is a contributor to K9 Magazine and has previously worked on Shoot magazine. He lives in Bath and owns a Beagle named Blythe.