Book Review: What's a Dog For?

Considering the role that dogs play in many of our lives, the question "What's a dog for?" would probably yield a whole host of answers, most of which would be near and dear to our hearts. But it's not always been seen that way. Before man's best friend shared our beds, he was relegated to sleeping on the porch or in the back yard. He had full run of the neighborhood, chased cars whenever he had the chance, and acted like... well, a dog. In more recent years, our dogs have become part of our families and what used to be seen by the scientific community as an animal not worth studying is now opening up a whole new field of canine study. The full title, What's a Dog For? The Surprising History, Science, Philosophy, and Politics of Man's Best Friend aptly encapsulates the theme of this book but it's certainly not a dry and dusty study of how far dogs have come over the past hundred (or in some cases thousands) of years.

Homans engages the reader first and foremost as a dog lover and brings his own canine companion, Stella, along for the journey as he retraces the paw-prints of dogs as they descended from gray wolves to that very early bonding with ancient man. The ride continues as we rediscover the Victorian era when the common dog exploded into a myriad of breeds of every shape and size. Moving into the turbulent 60's and 70's, the author takes a closer look at the evolution of our animal control efforts as it moves from the local pound to the no-kill shelter. As he raises one ethical question after another, one begins to wonder if we're doing our canine friends any favors and if our system is getting any better for us or the dogs we try to save. This part of the book got pretty heavy and rightly so. Homans isn't afraid to pose the tough questions and his writing challenges the reader to ponder the moral and ethical quandry we often face in the name of being humane. The book closes with a brief examination of our relationships with our dogs as their short lives come to an end. Those who have lost a canine friend will be able to relate to this section in a deeper, more meaningful way. 

The pace and general feel of What's a Dog For? is much like the life of our dogs. It starts with its nose to the ground, getting the lay of the land and looking at what we know and have learned about the lives of dogs and our relationships with them. It moves into a vibrant, compelling middle that explores the burgeoning field of canine studies and relates some of the fascinating findings as of late. The latter section of the book takes the reader into the world of how life and death decisions are made on behalf of our canine friends. As the sun sets and the writing comes to a close, Homans uses the last chapter as a final farewell and tribute to the life of a dog; a life that goes too quickly and ends too soon.