Customer Reviews

The Art of Raising a Puppy (Revised Edition)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book not only teaches how to raise a puppy, it teaches you that it takes patience, time and commitment to raise a great dog. Dogs typically aren't full grown until they are around one year old. Using this book, you won't be spending months of teeth grinding frustration and people will compliment you on your dogs good "manners". Because let's face it, dog are only fun to be with if they are not chewing on your shoes, jumping up on people, and don't respond to the most basic of commands. And don't worry, we didn't get our pup until it was three months old and I was able to still learn so much and now have the best dog I've ever owned. I love this book and recommend it to friends and even strangers! No dog wants to be "difficult". It just needs understanding, consistency and love while it learns what you have to teach it. Also the book is very readable and interesting in and of itself. It is NOT pretentious or read like a textbook. If you buy one book, buy this one. You won't regret it.

Quite a few people suggested I get this book when I adopted my now 16 week old Malty Poo, Chloe. The book describes how the monks raise their dogs to become the great companions they become for the people that end up adopting them.
With that said, I quickly realized that this book is not really what I was looking for in terms of a guide on how to raise a puppy. This book has some best practices and I definitely picked up some tricks which I will be using but overall I will either buy their companion book "How to be your dogs best friend" which they suggest in the book contains more of the details and meat on how to raise a puppy.
I would recommend reading this book to gain some familiarity around various puppy stages and leave with some best practices but if you are looking for a more thorough detailed book then I suggest you keep looking.

Read How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend years ago, when we got our first dog. We have new puppy and I was thrilled that the monks' puppy guide was just updated. Contains tons of information for new puppy owners or those contemplating getting a puppy, with an emphasis on young puppies. The monks' deep knowledge and love of dogs and their relationship to people shine through in every chapter, along with information on canine development, health, training, and management. Highly recommend!

This book has been invaluable during the first two weeks we've had our little Luna (we got her at 8 wks). Following the techniques I learned in this book, Luna has been progressing wonderfully. She is almost fully housebroken (in two weeks!!), she plays really well with children (we went to a kid's birthday party), and with other dogs (we took her to a puppy socialization group). Everyone from the vet to the leader of the puppy group to friends and family have commented on how well she behaves.

This book is really well-written, clear, engaging, and generally a good informational read. I have so much patience with Luna because I have a better understanding of what's going on with her at any given time. It's also easier to train her because I know why she's misbehaving and I can address her needs with the appropriate response. Those monks really know what they're talking about.

Written in an engaging manner and full of useful information. So much useful information that I had trouble keeping track of everything. It would have been nice to have more appendixes in the book listing key points in puppy care and initial training. I would suggest having a highlighter on hand and note-taking. The book is full of pictures, which are a nice touch. I now have more confidence in my abilities as a puppy parent. I also have greater insight into the nature of a dog, which will be very helpful during training when my patience may be tested. Lastly, I heartily appreciate the monk's philosophy in canine care and their tender perspective of canine companionship.

Our English Mastiff/Bull Mastiff cross is now 12 weeks old (yesterday) and we bought this book based on some friends' recommendation. There are a lot of good basic puppy training ideas, though in my opinion it's a little out of date, and maybe a little out of touch as well. I ended up liking Cesar Millan's How to Raise The Perfect Dog better, it tailors to the average suburban or city dwelling dog owner than this book does.

This book is easy to read and has a load of great information. It is well organized, clear in its explanations, and has been a great help. My pup loves being trained and behaves very well around others. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who is considering adopting a puppy, and you should read it prior to bringing the pup home.

I've been a fan of the Monks of New Skete since I worked for a vet over 20 years ago. This is a terrific book! I've got a new pup, and decided to revisit this book as well as Cesar Milan's book on raising puppies, and the techniques do work if you're consistent. I lost my two 14-year-old dogs within two months of each other, and had honestly forgotten how much work it is to train a puppy, but it's nice to have books like this to refresh and remind me of how to do it right, so I end up with an awesome dog!

This is a wonderful book. I came across this book after I had purchased my German Shepherd puppy a year ago. My brother is expecting his first German Shepherd puppy in April so I bought him this book as a gift to read before the puppy arrives. I wish I had known about it prior to purchasing my puppy!
This book really gives you a different perspective on raising a puppy. I believe that it calms down that uncontrolled enthusiasm that most first time puppy owners have. Everyone wants the perfect dog, we all want to be the envy of all other dog owners because our dog is the most well behaved and best trained. So sometimes we go into the whole puppy ownership thing with unrealistic expectations. Eventually the enthusiasm to create a wonder dog is squashed and is replaced with frustration, anger and the desire to get rid of the puppy! This book really tells you what you can expect for each stage of your puppies life, so that you are not trying to force training beyond your puppies comprehension level. I am expecting another German Shepherd puppy at the end of Feb. and I will be reading this book again in preparation for her homecoming!
Believe me, the training experiences that I have had over the last year have been very rewarding. I love the Monks of New Skete books! They make training feel like more of a natural progression in your dogs life rather than a forced response. I feel that I should also mention that the German Shepherd I purchased was sold to me at 5 weeks of age and due to the early separation from the litter, we have had to deal with a lot of issues. But with patience and attention and the help of this and other Monks of New Skete books, my girl is a healthy well balanced and very well trained companion. I know that at least three of her littermates were euthanized due to issues that the owners did not know how to deal with because of the early separation. It makes me sad to know that just the first few chapters may have helped them too.

This book was recommended to us by a dog trainer. It is easy to follow and the information about training is excellent. I learned so much. It is so important to have the right information to train a puppy correctly so you end up with a great dog. This book does it.