This paper deals with the Cauchy problem for a weakly dissipative shallow water equation with high-order nonlinearities yt + u m+1 yx + bu m uxy + λy = 0, where λ, b are constants and m ∈ N, the notation y :which includes the famous b-equation and Novikov equations as special cases. The local well-posedness of solutions for the Cauchy problem in Besov space B s p,r with 1 ≤ p, r ≤ +∞ and s > max{1 + 1 p , 3 2 } is obtained. Under some assumptions, the existence and uniqueness of the global solutions to the equation are shown, and conditions that lead to the development of singularities in finite time for the solutions are acquired, moreover, the propagation behaviors of compactly supported solutions are also established. Finally, the weak solution and analytic solution for the equation are considered. 2010 Mathematics Subject Classification. Primary: 35G25, 35L05; Secondary: 35Q50.