Customer Reviews

DogSmart: The Ultimate Guide for Finding the Dog You Want and Keeping the Dog You Find

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

 

 

I was really looking forward to this book, as I'm a long-time dog lover and zoologist who's about to buy his first dog. I checked it out at the library and read through it, hoping that the comments in and about the book were right: it's the "thinking person's" guide to getting and training a dog.

I was disappointed. Yes, the author is a vet and ethologist (animal behaviorist) and yes she can write well, but the content of the book is sorely lacking. I would read a chapter, feel like I was just thiiiiiis close to picking up something useful, and then it would end (or she'd change subjects). When I put the book down after a chapter or after finishing the whole thing, I thought back to recall what I'd just learned. Disturbingly, the answer was "very little."

The problem here is that there's no real nuts and bolts; there's no real "hook" upon which you can hang your hat and really receive what the author's saying. It's all very general and somewhat obtuse and even ephemeral.

First, let me tell you about my point of view. During the past 30 years as an adult, I have lived with 5 dogs: 4 were family pets, 3 serious hunting dogs, 2 very good hunting dogs and 2 very good family pets (oddly enuff, the same 2!) The dogs have varied in size from 25 to 90 pounds and all had very individual personalities.

I have a bias toward books. I believe I can take care of any problem, do anything, if I just lay my hands on the right book. So I have read and owned many dog training books. For sound advice on family dogs, I have come to rely on Job Michael Evans. He was the anonomous writer for the Monks of New Skete and eventually became a professional dog trainer, specializing in problem pets. His stuff works.

Then I found the book at hand: DogSmart by Myrna Milani. This one volume sums up the theory behind the detailed advice from Evans. By basic in the headline above, I do not mean dumbed down or insultingly elementary. In understandable language you are given the information you need to understand how to prevent confusion and problems developing between you, the neighbors and your dog. If you have the theory and principles, you can invent your own solutions for your unique situation.

This should be every prospective dog owner's first and most fundamental dog book.

And interestingly, Milani dedicates this book to William E. Campbell, and the late Job Michael Evans.

I found this book to be very informative and stimulating. For someone who is looking for some professional to give them a cut and dry answer to their prospective dog relationship questions this is not the right book. For someone who is interested in the mechanics and development of a highly unique (and ultimately rewarding) interpersonal relationship with a member of another species then this is the book you want. Just like people, cultures, and snowflakes, dogs are just as special and unique as individuals and breeds. This book is designed as more of a workbook or troubleshooting guide with a dash of dry humor and executed with the author's adroit writing style. If you are interested in all the different breeds get The Atlas of Dog Breeds of the World. If you are interested in developing a health well informed relationship with your specific dog (and learn a few things about yourself along the way) get this book.

I am currently looking for my next dog and came across this book at the library. The idea sounded promising but I was very disappointed. There are too many checklists and questions without real guidance (a questionnaire at the end of each chapter would have been better) and they are alternating with more examples than I care to know of how the sample humans deal with their dog situation. I started skipping from chapter to chapter, hoping to find some real revelations somewhere especially since each chapter sounded promising but in the end I was utterly confused and certainly did not gain any new insights. I give the book two stars for the idea that is behind its contents, but the execution is poor.

I thought this book would help me select a breed of dog that would fit in with my family and lifestyle, but it only offered general ideas for looking for a dog. It told me to create a "dream dog want list" without offering suggestions or questions that would help the process. This book didn't help me out at all!

As a professional dog trainer, DogSmart, by Myrna Milani, is a book I recommend to all my students. Hopefully people will read it before buying a dog, but better late than never. This book is full of great recommendations on what to ask yourself before you commit to a lifetime relationship with your canine partner.

This is one of the best books I've ever read! Easy to understand, but she doesn't treat the reader like an idiot, either. Definitely not one of those 'you do it this way, and any other way is wrong' books. Also very interesting reading, and not so dry you put it down after three paragraphs.

I read it all night! This book explains with real-life cases. I recommend it to anyone with a love for dogs.