Abstract Domestic species have a special status to naturalists and biological scientists. Aristotle held a very broad view on adaptations of animals. Darwin and other 19th century scientists who interested in evolution made assessments of canine speciation that proved to be incorrect. In contrast, companion animals in France today receive only a small share of scientific behavioral research. Unfortunately, many assessments of companion animal behavior are idiosyncratic and not scientifically evaluated. The prevalence of subjective assessments over scientific approaches is counter-productive. Veterinary ethology, as a new discipline, has two aims: stimulating a dynamic research program in the ethology of companion animals, and producing sound scientific results useful to clinicians treating companion animal behavioral disorders. As part of this we can ask whether two concepts, dominance hierarchy and attachment, are relevant to a better understanding of dog-human relationship.