The Essential Guide to Dog Behaviour

Dogwatching

In Dogwatching, zoologist Desmond Morris gives answers to fascinating fundamental questions about our canine companions.

Desmond Morris was born in 1928. Educated at Birmingham and Oxford universities, he became the Curator of Mammals at London Zoo in 1959, a post he held for eight years. In 1967 he published The Naked Ape which has sold over 10 million copies worldwide and has changed the way we view our own species forever. An accomplished artist, tv presenter, film maker and writer, Desmond Morris's books have been published in over thirty-six countries.

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? Strangely enough, all dogs, from scruffy mongrels to haughty show champs, are members of the same species – that of the wolf. In Dogwatching, zoologist Desmond Morris gives answers to fascinating fundamental questions about our canine companions – questions so often overlooked by standard dog books, which concentrate on grooming, feeding and veterinary care. It is a book for dog-lovers everywhere, one which will lead to an even deeper bond of understanding and an insight into such remarkable and delightful creatures. 
 
Why do dogs bark? 
Why does a frightened dog put its tail between its legs? 
Why do puppies chew slippers? 
Why does a dog bury a bone? 
Why does a Pointer point? 
Why do we cure a hangover with the ‘hair of the dog’? 
Do dogs have a sixth sense? 
Why do some dogs chase their own tails?

A World Guide to Gestures

Bodytalk

Desmond Morris was born in 1928. Educated at Birmingham and Oxford universities, he became the Curator of Mammals at London Zoo in 1959, a post he held for eight years. In 1967 he published The Naked Ape which has sold over 10 million copies worldwide and has changed the way we view our own species forever. An accomplished artist, tv presenter, film maker and writer, Desmond Morris's books have been published in over thirty-six countries.

The first book to bring together the many different everyday gestures that are used all over the world. Desmond Morris has travelled to over 60 countries while making field studies of human body language, and made notes of hand gestures and facial expressions. The result is a fascinating reference book of over 600 different gestures from Europe, the Middle East, North &amp; South America and the Far East. The book is arranged alphabetically under the part of the body used with Meaning, Action, Background and Locality and each gesture is illustrated with a line drawing. The World Guide to Gestures complements Desmond Morris's bestsellers Manwatching and Bodywatching.

Intimate Behaviour

A fascinating study of human intimacy from the bestselling author of The Naked Ape and The Human Zoo.

One of the best chronicles of human intimacy--from the handshake through the twelve stages that people pass through on their way to the total sexual embrace.

Collected Papers

Patterns Of Reproductive Behaviour

First published in 1970, Patterns of Reproductive Behaviour: Collected Papers is a collection of some of Desmond Morris's finest essays on reproductive behaviour. It is evidence of how, and why, Morris has been instrumental in shaping the science of human behaviour.

Catlore

Desmond Morris considers the cat in myth and history, and answers questions he received from cat owners after the publication of the internationally best-selling Catwatching.

Horsewatching

How intelligent are horses? Why do they toss their heads and what makes them paw the ground? 
After spending more than twenty years studying the body language of the human species, Desmond Morris has turned his attention to the behavior of some of our closest animal companions. First he looked at dogs, then cats, and now horses. As Curator of Mammals at the London Zoo he was able to study closely the zebras and wild horse in his charge. More recently, as a racehorse owner, he has scrutinized the glamorous world of thoroughbred racing. 
 
Throughout his long involvement with horses, Desmond Morris has never stopped asking questions. In Horsewatching he sets out to answer them. As a zoologist and a lifelong student of animal behavior, he approaches the horse world in an unusual way, dealing with topics often ignored in equine literature. In addition to examining details of behavior, Dr Morris considers such questions as why horseshoes bring good luck, why we don’t eat horses, why jockeys are allowed to whip their mounts and why we call a bad dream a nightmare. 
 
And for punters everywhere, he applies his zoological mind to the all-important question of why some horses run faster than others…

Babywatching

Desmond Morris combines his skills as a zoologist and manwatcher to take a close look at the most remarkable life-form ever to draw breath on this planet - the human baby. In a revealing portrait of life from the baby's point of view, Desmond Morris answers the questions that parents ask: How important is a mother to her baby? How well can babies hear, smell and taste? Why do babies cry? And what makes a baby smile? Do babies dream? 
 
Babywatching is a classic to rank alongside Desmond Morris's world bestsellers, The Naked Ape and Manwatching.

A study of the male body

The Naked Man

'A refreshing celebration of the wonder that is the human male' - New Scientist

This is a book that every man should read. Morris, with a breathtaking sweep across millennia, first pains an arching overview of civilised society's development. Then, in a style both easy to read and free of pomposity, he examines the male body from hair to feet... But the thrilling thrust of the book is in the compelling conviction with which he orchestrates the human response to the mysterious thud of the rhythm of life

[An] irresistible blend of hard science and populism

Witty, informative and closely argued... A treasure trove of such humorous anecdotes, but it has a scholarly tone and a serious purpose

Desmond Morris was born in 1928. Educated at Birmingham and Oxford universities, he became the curator of mammals at London Zoo in 1959, a post he held for eight years. In 1967 he published The Naked Ape which was to sell over 10 million copies worldwide. An accomplished artist, television presenter and film maker, Desmond Morris's works have been published in over thirty-six countries.

Following on from the international success of The Naked Woman, bestselling zoologist Desmond Morris turns his attention to the human male. The Naked Man is a study of the masculine body from head to toe, exploring how biological features have been modified, suppressed or exaggerated by customs and changes in social fashions. 
 
Packed full of scientific fact, engaging anecdote and thought-provoking conclusions, including a controversial chapter examining male sexuality, The Naked Man is a must-read for anyone interested in this far from rare, but nevertheless endangered species.

The Naked Woman

‘An explosive study of the female form’ (Mail on Sunday) in the same vein as Morris’s classic Bodywatching

The naked ape will be a wiser and better hominid by the time he has thumbed his way through to the end

A clear and careful introduction to an involved subject

Desmond Morris was already the author of some fifty scientific papers and seven books before completing The Naked Ape in 1967, which was to sell over 10 million copies throughout the world. He has made many television programmes and films on human and animal behaviour, his friendly and accessible approach making him popular with both adults and children, and he is now one of the best-known presenters of natural history programmes. He is also an accomplished artist.

The human female form is the brilliant end-point of millions of years of evolution, loaded with amazing adjustments and subtle refinements. It is the most remarkable organism on the planet. At different times and in different places, human societies have tried to improve on nature, modifying and embellishing the female form in a thousand different ways. In this new study, people-watcher Desmond Morris turns his skill and attention to the female form and takes the reader on a guided tour 'from head to toe'. Highlighting the evolutionary functions of biological features that all women share, Morris explores the enhancements and constraints that human societies have developed in the quest for control and perfection of the female form. Written from a zoologist's perspective and packed full of scientific fact, fascinating anecdote and thought-provoking conclusions, The Naked Woman builds on Desmond Morris's unrivalled experience as an observer of the human animal.

Catwatching

New paperback edition of classic No 1 bestseller on cat behaviour

The personality of the cat is a fascinating mixture of affection, domesticity and active independence. You may think you know your cat as he purrs in your lap, but come across your pet in the street on a dark night and you might think that Bagpuss suffers from a dual personality. 
 
Every single feline pet carries an inheritance of amazing sensory capacities, vocal utterances, body language and territorial displays. By answering such questions as 'what does a cat signal with its ears? 'why does a cat rub up against your leg?' and 'why does a cat swing its head from side to side when staring at its prey?', Desmond Morris decodes the private world of the cat. 
 
Your cat is full of surprises and our finest zoologist is about to reveal their secrets in this beautifully repackaged edition of a much loved bestseller.

The Desmond Morris Guide to Body Language

Peoplewatching

Combining Morris' timeless classic Manwatching, completely revised and updated, with the text of his Bodywatching, this new edition is set to become the definitive 'body language bible'.

An extremely important book...eminently readable and richly illustrated

Niko Tinbergen, Nobel Prize Winner for Physiology

This is the kind of book you pick up idly and put down very reluctantly

Desmond Morris was born in 1928. Educated at Birmingham and Oxford universities, he became the curator of mammals at London Zoo in 1959, a post he held for eight years. In 1967 he published The Naked Ape which was to sell over 10 million copies worldwide. An accomplished artist, television presenter and film maker, Desmond Morris's works have been published in over thirty-six countries.

Peoplewatching is the culmination of a career of watching people - their behaviour and habits, their personalities and their quirks. Desmond Morris shows us how people, consciously and unconsciously, signal their attitudes, desires and innermost feelings with their bodies and actions, often more powerfully than with their words.

The Human Zoo

A must-read for anyone who has ever wondered why people do what they do, from the popular author of The Naked Ape.

Compelling and absorbing...Morris is concerned with the tension between our biology and our culture, as it is expressed in power, sex, status and war games

Having startled, amused, and in some cases infuriated his fellow-men by his bestseller The Naked Ape, Desmond Morris now proceeds to contemplate Homo sapiens as he has transformed his environment. He has offended some people with entrenched views, but he has made millions wonder about themselves. Exceedingly well written, with never a dull moment

Desmond Morris was born in Wiltshire in 1928. After gaining a degree in zoology from Birmimgham University, he obtained his D. Phil. from the University of Oxford. He became Curator of Mammals at London Zoo in 1959, a post he held for eight years. 
 
He was already the author of some fifty scientific papers and seven books before completing The Naked Ape in 1967, which was to sell over 10 million copies throughout the world and be translated into almost every known language. 
 
Desmond Morris has made many television programmes and films on human and animal behaviour, his friendly and accessible approach making him popular with both adults and children, and he is now one of the best-known presenters of natural history programmes. 
 
He is also an accomplished artists and his books inlcude The Biology of Art, The Art of Ancient Cyprus and The Secret Surrealist, as well as his familiar series of Manwatching, Bodywatching, Animalwatching and Babywatching. His study of the meaning of gestures, Bodytalk: A World Guide to Gestures is published by Jonathan Cape.

A must-read for anyone who has ever wondered why people do what they do, from the popular author of The Naked Ape. 
 
This study concerns the city dweller. Morris finds remarkable similarities with captive zoo animals and looks closely at the aggressive, sexual and parental behaviour of the human species under the stresses and pressures of urban living. 
 
‘Compelling and absorbing...Morris is concerned with the tension between our biology and our culture, as it is expressed in power, sex, status and war games’ New York Times

Desmond Morris

I really enjoyed The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris. It was published in 1967 and is often a very amusing zoological perspective on human beings. The chapter on sex is hilarious

Thought-provoking...Morris has introduced some novel and challenging ideas

I don’t think I’ve ever read a book quite so slowly… I didn’t want to miss a beat in what became an intoxicating series of revelations about not only my species but apparently about me, too. I’d never experienced a book that reached out to the reader in such a way and even now, this still holds true for The Naked Ape in that you can’t help but examine where (or even if) you fit in with Morris’s observations.

Original, provocative and brilliantly entertaining. It's the sort of book that changes people's lives

A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal

FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY EDITION - WITH A NEW PREFACE BY THE AUTHOR 
 
Here is the Naked Ape at his most primal - in love, at work, at war. Meet man as he really is: relative to the apes, stripped of his veneer as we see him courting, making love, sleeping, socialising, grooming, playing. 
 
Zoologist Desmond Morris's classic takes its place alongside Darwin's Origin of the Species, presenting man not as a fallen angel, but as a risen ape, remarkable in his resilience, energy and imagination, yet an animal nonetheless, in danger of forgetting his origins. With its penetrating insights on man's beginnings, sex life, habits and our astonishing bonds to the animal kingdom, The Naked Ape is a landmark, at once provocative, compelling and timeless. 
 
'Original, provocative and brilliantly entertaining. It's the sort of book that changes people's lives' Sunday Times

The Naked Ape

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Praise for The Naked Ape

Readable, surprising and provocative

I really enjoyed The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris. It was published in 1967 and is often a very amusing zoological perspective on human beings. The chapter on sex is hilarious

Stimulating

Readable, surprising and provocative

I really enjoyed The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris. It was published in 1967 and is often a very amusing zoological perspective on human beings. The chapter on sex is hilarious

Stimulating

Readable, surprising and provocative

I really enjoyed The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris. It was published in 1967 and is often a very amusing zoological perspective on human beings. The chapter on sex is hilarious

Stimulating

Books by Desmond Morris

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