"Informative, entertaining . . . A] terrific book."--Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post

When Michael Schaffer and his wife drove to a rural animal shelter and adopted Murphy, a mistreated Saint Bernard, they vowed that they'd never become the kind of people who, say, get their dog a facial treatment. But then they started to get weird looks from the in-laws: You hired a trainer? Murphy is on antidepressants?

It turned out Murphy wasn't alone: yesteryear's pooch has moved from the backyard doghouse to the master bedroom, evolving from man's best friend to bona...