Customer Reviews

Dogs Behaving Badly: An A-To-Z Guide to Understanding and Curing Behavioral Problems in Dogs

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is arranged in an a-z format but is VERY difficult to find what you are looking for. At first glance, it may seem like the arrangement of topics is a benefit, almost like a dog behavior encyclopedia. It's quite the contrary, I'm afraid.

There is but one topic for each letter of the alphabet and, thanks in part to the limited and lacking index, requires practically a cover-to-cover read to find all of the potentially useful topics in this book. Dog behaviors are like allergy symptoms in humans, no two dogs will have the same set of defects in their behavior. It's a waste of time to have to page through each of 26 chapters highlighting and focusing on your own dog's behavior, while tripping through chapter after chapter of other people's dog's problems.

Perhaps the worst part of the format is the series of chapters idiotically placed where other dog behaviors wouldn't fit. I? Imprinting problems (what?). K? Kissing. Q? Quarreling (doesn't that require the dog to be able to speak?). G? Geriatric Behavior Problems. X & Z? I'll let you ask somebody else, because you might not believe it from me. Come on, Dodman!

We bought three books to help us through our newly-adopted dog's troublesome first few weeks at home, and this is completely useless by comparison. The other 2 books we bought were 'Help for your Shy Dog' by Deborah Wood and 'The Dog Whisperer' by Paul Owens & Norma Eckroate. Both of these books have much better info, arranged for readers who aren't interested in random, sometimes bizarre topics.

I was quite disappointed in this book. It is full of interesting stories of dogs and their troubles (like Maggie the German short-haired pointer and her false pregnancies), but I was looking for solutions to specific behavior problems. As another reviewer pointed out, some of the topics were quite bizarre and weren't intuitive (X-Files?) so I had to read the entire book to find what I was looking for. Based on the title (A-to-Z Guide), I was expecting quicker look-ups. In fact, the behavior-modification techniques are actually in the appendix, which is less than 20 pages long.

While I found the stories and chapters very informative and interesting, this book was almost utterly useless as a tool to help those with the problems. The actual appendix in the back was really short and that's where the solutions were. Bad placement. I found the book hard to use, hard to find your problem, and even harder to figure out what Dodman was "sort of, kind of" recommending. The title was very misleading A-Z, more like alphabet soup see if you can find it...

I found the chapter on prey drive particularly useless. I was so terribly disappointed. This was the one problem for which the author offered absolutely no solutions or recommendations at all. Of course this was my problem.

I loved THE DOG WHO LOVED TOO MUCH, and found it helpful, but this book was not as useful. And a lot of time was spent expounding on Bull Terriers which while very interesting didn't really fit into the title.

I'm glad I read the book, but disappointed that I expected help and didn't get it.

This is Nick Dodman's third book on animal behavior. I have read his first two and find "Dogs Behaving Badly" to be well worth the investment. Given the horrendous number of dogs that are turned over each year to local animal shelters, it is crucial that dog owners and dog lovers be made aware not only of the myriad of behavioral problems their "best friends" can and do exhibit, but also the possible cures-both pharmacological as well as behavior modification.In the past several weeks since the book's release, I have found myself recommending it dozens of times to people who I come in contact with on the various pet-related bulletin boards as well as friends who would just like to know about Fido's latest antics.I have had the privilege of knowing Dr. Dodman personally since I first spoke with him well over five years ago about putting my best friend, King, on Deprenyl (page 80). Dr. Dodman's assistance and support throughout the remainder of King's life is a debt that I can only repay through my respect of his work and efforts to educate dog owners about their pet's behavior. I trust Nick Dodman with those that mean an awful lot to me. What better recommendation is there for his book?

I got this book after reading Dodman's other amazing work, "The Dog Who Loved Too Much." Where that book was mostly empathetic tales of disturbed dogs, "A to Z" is more educational -- but it still has inspiring anecdotes that keep it entertaining. I think Dodman is the Konrad Lorenz of the '00s: He is (seemingly) the first person to recognize that dogs have the same neurobiology as humans, and that they respond to the same medications and therapy (in dog terms, training) methods. Seriously -- penicillin works in both dogs and people... Why not Prozac?

This is an easy-to-read, yet very informative book which details problems every pet owner will encounter, particularly those whose pets exhibit behavior problems. The first part of the book details the problems and an appendix gives suggested behavioral approaches to "undo" these problems in a pet. I have a "fearful" dog, who after reading this book, was taken to a veterinarian for a hypothyroidism test. It seems this may play a BIG part of this personality problem and medication may help control it. We would never have known this without reading this helpful book! Thank you, Dr. Dodman!!!

This was an intersting book that covers many common behavior problems in dogs. As a strength, I thought it offered insight into why dogs commonly engage in these types of behaviors.

As a weakeness though, the book wasn't organized very helpfully. A better index would be more useful in times of looking for help. In addition there wasn't clear solutions to each of the behavior problems mentioned. He offers ideas of what one could do, but doesn't explain it well.

The main thing I disliked in this book was Dodman's seemingly high use of medications. Not that the use of medications is bad in certain dogs, but Dodman makes it seem like most dogs should be medicated from the get go. I am sure he does not do so in practice, but it comes across as such in his book.

However, this was an interesting reading and one I will keep in my collection.

I have now officially read all three of Dr. Dodman's anecdotal and informational works, and it is astounding how much he can compile into his books and still keep them so richly entertaining.

This A-Z guide covers everything from aggression to zoonosis...literally...and each chapter delves into a new problem. I read this book before I started veterinary school at Tufts (where Dodman is the resident behaviorist), and it really helped introduce me to the common problems owners may face with their pets. He even goes into some of the medical treatments used to approach difficult cases representing each of the behavioral syndromes.

If you are puzzled by your pet, this book is an easy-to-read, clearly explained introduction to whatever ails him/her. It is especially helpful if you are seriously considering consulting a animal behaviorist. You'll have a great advantage if you already know how these problems are manifested and treated.

I highly recommend that anyone considering adding a puppy to their home read this book cover to cover. I have used many of the techniques in this book successfully. I find that it is much easier trying to deal with a behavior issue when you know why the dog is exhibiting the behavior in the first place. I've lent my copy out countless times and recommended that several people purchase it.

The book was so general that I found it quite unhelpful, at least for what I thought it would be useful for: helping me find a strategy for curbing excessive dog barking.