This book explores the history and nature of our dependency on other animals and the implications of this for human and animal health. Writing from an historical and sociological perspective, Joanna Swabe's work discusses such issues as:

* animal domestication

* the consequences of human exploitation of other animals, including links between human and animal disease

* the rise of a veterinary regime, designed to protect humans and animals alike

* implications of intensive farming practices, pet-keeping and recent biotechnological developments.

This account spans a period of some ten thousand years, and raises important questions about the increasing intensification of animal use for both animal and human health.