The Heart of the Matter : Breaking Codes and Making Connections Between You and Your Dog or Your Cat [Hardcover]

Paul Loeb (Author), Suzanne Hlavacek (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1999

Paul Loeb and Suzanne Hlavacek presented a revolutionary -- and surprisingly simple -- approach to teaching and understanding dogs in "Smarter Than You Think." Featured on NBC's "Dateline," that acclaimed volume has been embraced by scores of fans who have seen Loeb's methods work wonders with their "problem dogs." Now, this acclaimed animal behaviorist joins his partner Hlavacek to further enrich our bonds with our dogs "and" cats with a guide to giving them the best care possible and to deepening the special love that is at "The Heart of the Matter."

This breakthrough book offers a whole new perspective on the human/animal relationship. "The Heart of the Matter" features a three-point approach to your animal's health and well-being:

The Magic Touch -- how to make a profound and lasting soul connection; including sharing dialogues and conversations with your dog or cat Diet -- how you can ensure balanced nutrition with an astoundingly easy food plan You -- what you need to know to end behavioral problems, allergies, and more.

These are the keys to creating harmony between yourself and your dog or cat. You'll gain a fuller understanding of their needs, abilities, emotions, intelligence, and highly developed "super senses" -- and delight as they become well-behaved, truly integrated family members, and trusted friends.

Loeb and Hlavacek also tackle one of our biggest obstacles to animal health and happiness: the startling conspiracy between pet-food manufacturers and veterinarians who sell "premium" food that can keep animals susceptible to illness, skin problems, and other chronic conditions. How can "you" feed your dog or cat and break this chain of codependency?The answers will surprise you; the solutions are right at your fingertips.

Filled with fascinating, often amusing, case histories -- including amazing accounts of improved health based on dietary changes -- this is the essential care guide that animal lovers have waited for. With the compassionate advice in "The Heart of the Matter," you can create a powerful connection -- and enjoy the gift of looking into your animal's eyes and seeing love.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

From the authors of Smarter Than You Think, the revolutionary book on teaching and understanding your dog in hours rather than months, The Heart of the Matter takes the next step in addressing dog and cat behavioral problems and nutritional needs--with detailed explanations of the health benefits of fresh food and the health and behavioral problems possibly caused by some commercial foods for pets. The authors have created an innovative and eye-opening approach to living in greater harmony with our beloved dogs and cats.

Forget obedience school, forget the choke chains. Paul Loeb and Suzanne Hlavacek eschew even the word training with its negative connotations of crates, muzzles, cages, and other devices of animal cruelty and control. They explain "The Magic Touch," a simple method of creating immediate and positive behavior change without gadgets, practice, or pain. They take a very thorough look at nutrition and its ramifications for pets' health and behavior, and debunk numerous "well-known truths" of animal care and behavior. The goal is to acknowledge and understand your pets' personalities, enjoy each other's company, and not end up with a furry robot-pet. This is a refreshing and unusual approach, and the book entertains with stories of the authors' and others' hilarious adventures and misadventures with dogs and cats. --Mark A. Hetts

From Library Journal

Aiming to strengthen further the human-animal bond, animal behaviorist Loeb and Hlavacek, coauthors of Smarter Than You Think, propose a two-part training program that consists of feeding pets people foodAone-third each of protein, carbohydrates, and steamed vegetablesAand training them with something they call the "magic touch." This method involves throwing objects at a misbehaving pet. If your dog jumps, take aim with a sneaker; if your cat doesn't come when called, bean her with a pack of cigarettes. That's it. The "magic touch" simply startles the animal, causing him or her to interrupt bad behavior in progress. This technique may be all right to use with a self-assured dog but could be downright damaging to young animals and older ones that lack confidence. The rest of the book is filled with a diatribe against processed pet foods and popular dog trainers who have been on television. The tone is heavy-handed and condescending to the average pet owner. Skip this title and look for books and videos that use positive reinforcement training methods, such as Gwen Bailey's The Perfect Puppy (Reader's Digest, 1996) and anything by Karen Pryor or Gary Wilkes.APeggie Partello, Keene State Coll. Lib., NH
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Atria (July 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671027905
• ISBN-13: 978-0671027902
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,879,927 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Paul Loeb

The Wall Street Journal compared Paul Loeb's work with animals to the work of B.F.Skinner:
"Loeb illustrates practical approaches to physical needs as a means to psychological (read "behavioral") cures, he is to the canine world what B.F. Skinner, the noted Harvard psychologist who devoted himself to the techniques of shaping behavior, was to the study of man."
The Chicago Tribune noted that Loeb has been identified as an animal psychiatrist, animal psychic, or animal trainer. Whatever you call him, he's a success in a wide range of activities involving animals.
"His credits include more than 600 TV commercials, ranging from pet foods to men's underwear."
Loeb was for several years the Director of Education of animal behavior for the ASPCA in NYC, and held a behavioral clinic at NYC's Animal Medical Center, the largest small animal hospital in the world. His most popular classes were group therapy sessions with radical confrontation for aggressive dogs. Never before or since has anyone taken groups of aggressive dogs with their owners and successfully solved these problems, and solved them quickly.
Dr. Wm. Kay DVM, former Director of The Animal Medical Center, and Dr. Martin De Angelis DVM, Director of Village Animal Clinic and a leading authority on orthopedic surgery, have acknowledged Loeb's work, calling him a "pioneer in the field" and one of the "premier animal trainers in the world today." Dr. Kay and Dr. De Angelis endorsed Smarter Than You Think and The Heart Of The Matter referring to them as the "champions of training books" and Loeb as an "internationally acclaimed expert" in this area.
When National Geographic produced an Educational Series on animal behavior they featured Loeb as the expert on dogs and cats. This was a special honor since he was in the company of such renowned names as Konrad Lorenz and Jane Goodall. Loeb's, You Can Train Your Cat, was translated into many languages and is still widely referenced today by cat owners and experts, as was his next book, Cathletics.
Early on he realized the need for a holistic approach when working with animals including diet and nutrition. The wrong diet can be detrimental not only to a dog's health but also to his behavior and learning ability. Gaines, a division of General Foods, used Loeb as a consultant in the early development of their Cycle dog food. In addition to Nutrition And Your Dog, his work regarding diet, nutrition and proper exercise, has been written up in the Wall Street Journal, Esquire Magazine, Glamour, Newsweek, Cosmopolitan, Family Circle, The Christian Science Monitor, The New York Times, New York Post, New York Daily News, Chicago Sun Times, Chicago Tribune, and the Philadelphia Inquirer.
His easygoing style and ability to make the complex simple with humor and understanding made his column for Parent's magazine, during the early eighties, an outstanding success. The series, which ran for three years, dealt with such topics as: When a Child Fears Animals; Communicating With Your Pet; Can My Pet Perform Like Those Animals on TV; Teaching Your Pet to Accept Your New Baby; How to Pet Train Your Child; Traveling With Your Pet and other subjects, in a direct, common sense approach.
Loeb made frequent appearances on national and local radio and television shows from Johnny Carson's Tonight Show in the early seventies, The Today Show, Good Morning America, Entertainment Tonight, CBS Early Show, among others, including a recent challenge on NBC's Dateline.
Although the seeds of Loeb's new techniques are evident in his large body of work, he has refined and simplified this technology. What has taken him over fifty years to develop is now available to you, the reader. Your dog, or cat, can learn all that's necessary for success in a few hours. Loeb's philosophy is quite simple. Animals have the ability to learn more and learn faster, if what they really need to know is delivered in a way they can fully understand. They are smarter than you think.
Loeb's latest books, (with co-author Suzanne Hlavacek) Smarter Than You Think and Heart of The Matter have set a new standard in the understanding and the shaping of behavior in both dogs and cats.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read this if you want a dog that is a member of the family!, November 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Heart of the Matter : Breaking Codes and Making Connections Between You and Your Dog or Your Cat (Hardcover)

I was a fan of their first book(Smarter Than You Think). Paul and Suzanne really made bringing up my three dogs so simple. These dogs are the envy of everyone who has met them. Their second book "Heart of the Matter", really helped me to further understand their methods. The reading is entertaining while packed with valuable suggestions. My dogs are part of my family. Because I feed them canned dog food and everything that I eat, they are beautiful and healthy. They do not smell and sleep in the bed with my husband and I. They eat everthing we do and don't have to beg for their food. What a pleasure having well behaved dogs. I can not say enough about their methods, they work and work fast. In a matter of hours, you can show your dog what is expected of him. In addition, the funny thing is dogs love it! I have read many books on this subject, but none as comprehensive and user friendly as this one. These are people who understand and love animals! My sister even used these techniques on her cat and it worked! BUY THIS BOOK, AND MAKE YOUR LIFE AND MORE IMPORTANTLY YOUR ANIMALS LIFE SO MUCH BETTER!

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It Works!, January 4, 2000

By 

Beatrice Booth (New York City) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart of the Matter : Breaking Codes and Making Connections Between You and Your Dog or Your Cat (Hardcover)

Paul Loeb's book takes an unduly complicated subject and makes it simple. When I read this educational and entertaining book I found myself saying "Of course, why didn't I think of that! ". I think every great philosophy and discovery has that element of recognition. Animals in the wild don't get fed canned mush, they eat natural foods just as we do. Why should we not allow our dogs to eat the way every other animal does? And why should we not use our human advantage (hands that can throw) to impress them and make them behave in a way that benifits us, our neighbors and therefore the dogs themselves? Absolute common sense, and it works. My dog is wonderful and much happier since she understands that I am in control. I can take her anywhere and be proud of her. Thank you Paul Loeb, when is the next book coming out?

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Heart of the Matter, April 17, 2002

By 

myrna p abrams (CHICAGO ,ILLINOIS) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart of the Matter : Breaking Codes and Making Connections Between You and Your Dog or Your Cat (Hardcover)

All of our animals, dogs, cats and horses have been raised and nurtured with the healthy and humane methods of Paul Loeb over a span of 18 years. The unique method involves only and always a soft voice,a loving approach and common sense.All basic training took us no more than a week and was never difficult as the animals all responded quickly. Our animals,with the exception of the horses, ate "Healthy Food" and as a result spent very little time sick and visited the vet when the yearly notice came in the mail.We have had glorious years with our animals who are (and were) all gentle, intuitive and loving. All of our animals adjusted to "our way of living" and all became "family members" as well as life- long friends",without exception. We would never dream of owning any pet without applying "the Loeb Methods".It is a joy to live with all of our animals in a loving and peaceful family- and we are grateful that we found Paul Loeb so many years ago.