3 comments about 1,001 Reasons to Love Dogs (1001 Reasons).

1. Very well done. A pleasure to read. Very interesting with many facts.
   Great Book



2. I just got this book from Amazon thanks to Amazon's speedy delivery which I much appreciate. The book is small but heavy. It is full of great photographs of all breeds. It even has the famous 9/11 Golden Retriever dog being scaffolded from one area of the wreckage to another. I can tell already that this is going to be one of my favorite dog books!



3. This is a delightful, entertaining, and hugely informative book - a perfect gift for dog lovers, including one's self! Every turn of the page brings a bright surprise - lots of smiles, out-loud laughs, and a few tears. Ms. Tiegreen is a truly brilliant designer, and Ms. Miele's research is a tour de force. This book is a tribute to them, and to the animals we love so well.

2 comments about Brittany (Kennel Club Dog Breed Series).

1. I recently adopted a seven year old Brittany Spaniel from The American Brittany Spaniel Rescue. I found the book to be full of great information on Brittanys. It was very helpful to me.



2. As the cover states the book provides a comprehensive guide for Brittany owners. It cleared up misconceptions about the beginning of the breed that I acquired from other "authoritative" sources. For any one interested in a highly energenic affectionate companion dog this book and contact with good examples of the breed will bring pleasure to your life.

1 comments about Entrenamiento para Perros (Facil & Rapido).

1. BEEN QUITE A PERFECT TOOL FOR TRAINING MY THREE MONTH OLD BELGIAN SHEPERD MALINOIS. THANKS

2 comments about A New Owner's Guide to Weimaraners (New Owner's Guide To...).

1. We just brought home a weimaraner puppy. This book is good for basics but did not go into specifics in regards to the breed. For example, the training section of the book was very simple, basic instruction. No specifics in that portion, nor did I feel that other sections had too much detail. On the plus side, the section on the breed's history was very informative. Good pictures.



2. We are first time owners of a Weimaraner Puppy. This was excellent for us, it covers the dogs origin, characteristics, feeding & bathing, housebraking & training, health care, dental care, traveling, behavior, plus what to look for in a show dog and sports companion. I really learned a lot with this book. The only thing it does not cover is breeding her (it does cover what to look for in a good breeder).

4 comments about Second Thoughts On: How to Be as Terrific as Your Dog Thinks You Are!.

1. This book is as terrific as the title. When I first picked up a copy, I thought, "Okay, clever title but is there any substance?" There was. This is a touching but profound look at life with many personal anecdotes. And it's not just a book for pet lovers. It's for anyone interested in a richer, deeper more rewarding existence. I heartily recommend it for anyone, young or old, with or without a love of dogs. Oh, by the way, cat lovers will also find a chapter just for them.



2. This did not qualify as a book but rather is a form of dribble that we often hear from Mort.

   Save your money and donate it to a dog shelter.




3. Storytellers have long known that the best way to spin a good yarn is to have a hook. In the middle ages, troubadours used songs to entice illiterate peasants around a campfire to teach them life's lessons.

   In today's competitive popular culture, Mort Crim has found a novel way to teach us some of the most important lessons about life. He uses man's best friend, the family dog, as his literary foil.

   Mort Crim follows in the tradition of satirists like George Orwell and Jonathan Swift,

   _Animal Farm_ taught lessons about totalitarianism using barnyard animals. _Gulliver's Travels_ projected human frailities on a race of giants and on the tiny Lilliputians.

   Crim portrays his two pet dogs as four-legged furry humanoids without the baggage of human egos. Because dogs can't talk, they can't do such nasty things as lie, brag or complain --- the perfect life mate for man.

   The author points out that dogs display some of man's best traits like loyalty, playfulness, forgiveness, without our dark side. But who really holds the leash in the human-canine partnership?

   As one wit once remarked: "If aliens watched us from above and saw humans feeding, bathing and walking their dogs with pooper-scoopers in hand, the aliens could easily be forgiven for thinking that dogs ruled the planet and humans were their pets."

   It's said that man is made in the image and likeness of God. But Mort Crim's use of dogs as human substitutes works so well because, in reality, dogs are made in the image and likeness of man.

   That is, we humans project onto dogs the positive traits that we value in people. The truth is that their human masters are the equivalent of deities to dogs.

   Mort Crim cleverly uses the basic goodness that we choose to see in our pet dogs to illustrate lessons about racism, forgiveness, and adaptability in life.

   For example, Crim points out that dogs do not judge other dogs by their color or size. He notes that would be about as useful as librarians classifying books by their color. Dogs, unlike humans, don't worry whether their dog-dishes are half-empty or half-full. They just chow down. Nor do dogs often bite the hand that feeds them.

   This book is chock full of highly entertaining anecdotes and touching stories. Some are tales of dogs and humans. Others are biographical sketches plucked from the lives of famous people that illustrate inventive lessons about love and life.

   If you read Mort Crim's earlier book, _Second Thoughts_, you know it's packed with bite-sized literary appetizers. But this new book can be digested as a full-course meal with all the side dishes, plus dessert. It's his best effort yet.




4. I purchased the book as a gift for my daughter who has 2 dogs. When I received the book I thought I'd look it over to see what it was about. Once I started reading, I stopped doing all the things I thought I'd do over the weekend.I found myself laughing, and sharing many of the thoughts written by Mort Crim with my husband who isn't a big lover of dogs. He lived on a farm most of his life and thinks dogs are to be outside, not in the house. But after I read him parts of the book, he was even agreeing that it is so well written and thought provoking. I found myself remembering the dog, "Suzie" I had growing up and how she loved sleeping under the blankets by my feet every night! When I started dating my future husband, she would growl everytime he hugged or kissed me. I think she knew that was the person who was going to take me away from her. After we were married, she stayed with my parents as we couldn't have any pets in the apartment we moved to. Soon after that she was poisoned by a man who put out meat he'd put poison in. Several dogs in our neighborhood died. I always felt sad I never took her with me so she wouldn't have gotten that poison. As I read Mort's book I could relate to so many things he was writing about that we face in our everyday lives. If only everyone were as loyal and trusting as dogs are, we'd all be so much happier and better friends. I'm going through changes at my company and I found so much help as I read how we need to have faith in ourselves and not worry about tommorrow or have regrets about yesterday. Mort really has such a gift in comparing our human problems and challenges to how dogs face things everyday and accept and love everyone. When my 5 children were young, we didn't have a dog as I felt I was too busy to handle one. Suddenly one of our sons died at age 9 and we were devastated. One of our friends had some puppies to give away and I thought maybe that would help all of us focus on something positive. It was amazing how much "Buffy" helped us accept what we had to and learn to love and trust again. I would find our oldest son laying with the puppy and telling her all about his brother, Danny, and things that they had done together. I would listen and hear the things that he said and realize how sad he was, but also happy to tell the puppy about him and see Buffy wag her tale like she understood. I never thought the book would affect me so much, it really makes you relate to your past and remember many wonderful memories. What a special talent Mort has to be able to put his thoughts into words that everyone will relate to whether you have a pet or not. It is the Golden Rule book of how we should all face everyday and live it to the fullest.

3 comments about Have Dog Will Travel, California Edition: Comprehensive Guide to Over 2,200 Dog-friendly Accommodations.

1. HAVE DOG WILL TRAVEL CALIFORNIA lists over 2,200 dog-friendly accommodations in the state, includes emergency clinics and pet etiquette, and includes notes on paw parks and facilities with its city-by-city listings. Both books should be on the shelves of any dog owner residing in any of these areas and also should be a basic reference for any traveling with pets.



2. In Have Dog, Will Travel: California, pet travel expert Barbara Whitaker draws upon her considerable experience and practical knowledge to personally research almost 9,000 lodging throughout California to create the definitive travel guide and directory for dog-friendly accommodations. Now travelers with their canine companions can select from more than 2,200 hotels, motels, B&Bs, cabins, and vacation homes that will accept both owner and pet. Additionally, Have Dog, Will Travel: California informs the reader of travel essentials for their pet, var travel safety and pet etiquette advice, easy obedience commands, as well as lifesaving and first aid procedures. If you are traveling through California with your canine companion, then you need to browse through Have Dog, Will Travel: California as a substantive aid in planning your trip's itinerary whether for overnight outing, a weekend excursion, or a full-blown vacation with all the trimmings.



3. Having already purchased the Northwest edition of this comprehensive guidebook, I was delighted to find the California version. Have Dog Will Travel, California is my new perfect gift for friends who travel extensively with their dogs. As in other editions, this book completely covers the state and gives important details from "people amenities" to the location of the nearest dog-friendly park -- everything needed to locate and reserve the best lodging for both dogs and their drivers.

5 comments about What All Good Dogs Should Know: The Sensible Way to Train.

1. This book is outstanding. It is concise, and loaded with information. The art is great, and also instructive. Even someone with great dog training experience will gain from it.
   
   One thing in it is the questionnaire and brief information for the Drives evaluation of your individual dog. So valuable. I read this book and did that evaluation in an afternoon. Time very, very well spent.
   
   The earlier in your dog's life you read this book, the better. Before you get the dog is great, too. But it will help at any point. It truly will. Thank you so much, author and artist, for another fantastic job.



2. Anyone with a serious yearning to understand learning theory will need more in-depth guides than this book. But anyone whose end goal is a mannerly dog who can be a full-fledged family member would do well to start here.
   
   The beauties of this book are:
   (1) It focuses on manners and context - WHY you should teach certain behaviors and HOW to use them in real life. Other books tend to imply that training a dog is a goal in itself - and I've met many trainers who seem to enjoy training just for the sake of it - but your average family wants to train for more practical reasons.
   
   (2) The authors don't waste time justifying themselves or "selling" themselves/their methods.
   
   (3) It promotes realistic expectations and understanding of a dog - simple stuff that everybody really really needs to know but most don't (dogs don't act out of spite; dogs associate their immediate actions with consequences, so you can't punish them for past misdeeds; etc.).
   
   (4) There isn't any bad or dangerous advice (with 1 possible exception, see #3 below), and it steers clear of controversial hot-buttons topics such as dominance theory.
   
   It has a few nuisance issues, tho they aren't a big enough deal to override the positives:
   
   (1) Using the cue (aka command) before the dog knows to associate it with a specific behavior. It is better to get the behavior reliably and then add the word, but it isn't make-or-break.
   
   (2) The only method they introduce for teaching "down" is physical prompting. Prompting is my pet peeve for so many reasons! After you've taught the dog to respond to the prompt, you have to teach them to respond without it - that's double the work. Dogs have an opposition reflex, so pushing or pulling them down will cause them to resist - that's nature, not stubbornness, which the authors don't address. Dogs that don't like handling will shy from prompting. Dogs VERY quickly become collar-wise, and since the prompting requires using the collar, dogs are less likely to respond when they aren't wearing a collar (the collar becomes part of the cue, basically). Etc.
   
   (3) It shows its age by referring to choke chains as the last resort for pullers (choke chains are terrible for pullers, by the way, because pulling will keep the chain tight - very dangerous), but ignores modern alternatives such as harnesses and head halters.
   
   (4) There isn't much in the way of troubleshooting. They say go to your dog rather than call them to you for unpleasantries, which is absolutely vital. But what if your dog begins to associate your approach with unpleasant stuff, and begins to run from you? So, you may need another book for "troubleshooting."



3. A friend on mine gave me this book, she currently has 6 dogs and havs used this book to train all of them. I really enjoyed the book. It was an easy read with very easy to understand methods, funny little comics, and it got right to the point. Grant it my Pup is only 11 weeks old and I'm still having some trouble with a few things with her, but not much. I suggest you give this book a whirl especially if you have read other books and feel they haven't helped much.



4. So easy to follow & understand! And, the cartoons throughout are great!
   Without this book, I would have been completely clueless when it came to getting our first puppy housebroken & trained. Because of this book, we now have two fantastic dogs (one who is 1 year and one at 6 mos. old). This book completely debunks so many age-old dog training myths - how to dicipline, not rewarding inappropriate behavior by accident...etc. I would have done a lot wrong without this book! Very humane, thoughtful & insightful into the world of puppies and dogs. If you've ever wondered "why does my dog do that?" you'll find the answer here. Bravo to the authors!



5. This is one book that every dog owner, or potential dog owner, should buy! It doesn't matter if you have a Rottweiler, a Chihuahua, or just a good old Heinz 57 dog, this book is for all dogs. Cute illustrations and sound advice on how to make your dog the good doggie citizen of the year abound in this book. It addresses common issues like housebreaking, walking on a leash nicely, crate training, and much more. I highly recommend this book!

5 comments about Shar-Pei (Complete Pet Owner's Manual).

1. I am trying to be cute with my title. Maybe it didn't work. But what did work for me was how informative and all-around helpful this book was for me. A former Shar-pei "co-habitant" (at a home I lived at in the 90's), I had a birds-eye view of this breed, but couldn't quite remember all the details of what to expect. This cleared it all up for me. I recommend this book for people who are trying to learn about these wonderful dogs.



2. I have previously owned a shar pei before, but when my husband and I started planning on getting a new puppy I thought I would find a good book on shar pei. I bought three books originally but came to find that I like this one the best. Its simple and not very big, but is filled with lots of information. Info ranges from caring for you puppy or adult dog, health concerns, nutrition, obedience training and information about the shar pei breed. I would reccommend this book to anyone who has or is getting a shar pei.



3. I am brand new to the breed Shar Pei's and recently bought 2 puppies for my husband for Christmas (now 3 1/2 months old). I knew that the breed was an excellent temperment for families and small children (they met my niece who is 1 1/2 yrs old and they ignored her for the most part, but played well with her, and she liked them).
   
   I wanted a book that would tell me about the breed, possible health problems that they may have, and general living and training tips. This book absolutley fit the bill. It's the square deal.
   
   First off, the author recognizes that this breed does have health issues, and lists those off. For a new owner, or possible owner, this lets you know what happens SPECIFIC to the Shar Pei. I have read other Shar Pei books and found them to be very general to dogs, and not just to Shar Peis.
   
   Surfing the net, it seems hard to find specific information that you want to know before going to the vet. We live in a rural area, so our vet has not dealt with many Shar Pei's, so as the owner, I want to be as knowlegeable as possible when discussing possible problems. I found this book to help out with learning those aspects.
   
   Overall, I fully recommend you to buy this book. Buy this book if you are considering buying a Shar Pei, and it will let you know what you are getting into.



4. This book tell you everything you want to know about the sharpei,even how to train and educate your dog,everything about health, behavior, etc... You won't need any other book.



5. After 4 litters, I have decided to give one of these books to each of our new owners. It is a down to earth, easy read. Anyone who reads this book should feel comfortable with the contents. They will come to know that the Shar-pei is one of the best breeds around. That is why I breed them and would recommend this book to all.

1 comments about The Labrador Retriever (Terra Nova Series).

1. Labs being one of my favorite breeds and this book provide allot of info I didn't know so it was even better then I expected.

3 comments about AnimalSign TO You. Imagine! Signing Is Not Just For Primates Anymore.

1. 
   "AnimalSign To You" By Sean Senechal has transformed my training of my own therapy dogs, as well as the service dogs I train. An example of how this book has transformed my training is that my dog's can now communicate to me their needs as my co-therapists whether it is that they need water, food, a toy, a break, space, quiet time etc. Communication is key to our relationships with our dogs and this book provides an easy to follow technique that will expand our ability to respect our dogs. I highly recommend it and suggest that it be mandatory reading for ALL dog trainers, behavioral consultants,veterinarians and anyone who shares their life with a dog!
   
   I love this book! Thanks for providing specific tools to help open our eyes to communication with our dogs.



2. This book "goes where no one else has gone" in the field of animal communication. Sean describes methods for teaching your companion (horses and dogs are featured here, but other cooperative species should be able to learn also) to use signs to communicate with you. Yes, you read correctly - the dog or horse uses sign language to ask questions, ask for things, and to respond to your conversation. This is so much more than our critters learning to follow directions or commands - this is the real communication many of us have longed for but have been unable to implement. It will take a good bit of patience to get the process started, but if my rather elderly sheltie is in any way typical, the first signs will quickly be followed with several more - it seems that some of these guys have just been waiting for us to get smart enough to understand them! I highly recommend this book to anyone with a pet, companion, service, or working animal. Sean's enthusiasm will rub off on you, and you and your companion will enjoy a new, higher level of communication. Did I mention that I really like the premise, as well as the book?



3. Excellent for all people interested in canine capabilities, training and communication. We compared Senechal's book scientific content with that of other well founded reports and books and found close agreement on the concluisons and recommendations. The book is written at a level accessible to and can be used and understood by almost anyone from age 5 upwards. The author focuses on domestic horses and canines, a numerous population of intelligences who are in close day to day association with ordinary people, and capable in many cases to communicating to the people associated with them - not merely from people to non-human companions.
   The author provides the extremely rare practical recommendations and procedures that even children (as well as parents and PH D candidate researchers) can use effectively to explore and confirm the observations made by the author.
   The author's emotional excitement indicated in the book we eventually concluded indicated sincerity that did not in any way compromise the scientific significance of the reported findings and recommendations.