What the dog knows: scent, science, and the amazing ways dogs perceive the world

Description

A New York Times-bestselling book about the extraordinary abilities of man's best friend. When Cat Warren adopted Solo, an unruly German shepherd puppy, she soon began to wonder what she'd let herself in for. Solo's boundless energy was what made him loveable - but it also made him exhausting, and difficult to train. Then she struck upon an idea- what Solo needed was something to do. Like many dogs, Solo was destined to work- using his nose to help the police locate missing people. In this lively, accessible book, Warren details Solo's journey from troublesome pup to expert cadaver dog, and explores the fascinating hidden world of animals that do essential work and the handlers who train them.

Cat Warren is a professor and former journalist with a somewhat unorthodox hobby- she works with cadaver dogs - dogs who search for missing and presumed-dead people. What started as a way to harness the energies of her unruly, smart, German shepherd puppy, Solo, soon became a passion for them both (though Solo thinks it's simply a great game, with the reward of a toy at the end). They searched for the missing throughout North Carolina for eight years.

'What the Dog Knows is a fascinating, deeply reported journey into scent, death, forensics and the amazing things dogs can do with their noses: sniffing out graves, truffles, bedbugs, maybe even cancer. But it's also a moving story of how one woman transformed her troubled dog into a loving companion and an asset to society, all while stumbling on the beauty of life in their searches for death.' -Rebecca Skloot, The New York Times Book Review;'It you have ever loved a dog, you must read this book. I loved it!' -Robert Crais, author of Suspect;'A personal, informed account of the myths and truths of working dogs.' -Los Angeles Times;'Masterfully shows how even the best technology cannot compete with our best friends. If you have ever wondered what dogs are truly capable of, this is the book for you.' -Brian Hare, author of The Genius of Dogs;'A book for anyone who loves dogs, and has watched them catch a scent on the wind or in the leaves on the ground and wondered about that brilliant organ they possess: the nose.' -Virginia Morell, author of Animal Wise;'A meaty, fascinating tour of not only what led humans to train dogs to sniff drugs, bombs and dead bodies but also the science behind why dogs can be good at these tasks.' -Raleigh News & Observer;'Warren writes with verve and provides rare insight into our working partnership with canines.' -Kirkus Reviews;'A beautifully written, fascinating, heartwarming, and oft-hilarious homage to working dogs.' -Maria Goodavage, author of Soldier Dogs;'It's a lively read, rich with details on the exhausting and rewarding process of training a working dog, but in the end, you realize that the process is really about bonding in a way that transcends - or perhaps sidesteps knowing.' -Natural History