Customer Reviews

The Hidden Life of Dogs

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(31)

 

 

When I read this book 12 years ago I was fascinated by the story. I was also very intrigued with her observations about her dogs and the emotional journey she took with them. I even found myself weeping when one of her dogs had passed and how the other dog mourned for it's dead companion. I was excited about leaving a review for this book, but after reading all the negative reviews... it's easy to now look back on this book in a negative light. It was a different time/era when she wrote this book. It was published in mid 90's meaning she observed the dogs in late 70's and 80's. That was a time when in small neighborhoods dogs did roam a little more free and not everyone spayed their dogs. It was also a time when my parents would tell me to "go outside and play, but make sure your back by dark." As a parent now, I'd never do that, just like I'd never not get my dog spayed -- but back then it was quite normal. I guess what I'm saying is that we may need a little perspective when reading this book and realizing, as said... it was a different time. If you take that into consideration -- and put down your present-good-dog-owner cap -- this is quite and enjoyable, emotional read.

I have to say this is the first book review I've writen, I just haven't been compelled to write any reviews. After reading this book I changed my mind. I was so utterly DISGUSTED by this author's total irresponsible treatment of her dogs. I have read many books about dog behavior and I thought I would get a little more insight from this book. How wrong was I? I finished the book out of sheer determination. I read all the reviews written for this book and all of the negative ones are true. She let her dogs run wild through busy streets, she did not spay or neuter any of her dogs, had many unwanted puppies (which she allowed her dogs to kill), and the list goes on. This was not a scientific experiment it was neglect and abuse. If you would like an insightful/refreshing book about dog behavior that does not involve irresponsible ownership/guardianship buy Patricia McConnell's "The Other End of the Leash."

I was flabbergasted when I read this book. Bluntly put, the author is an idiot, and should not own dogs at all. The first part of her book describes how she is taking care of a friend's dog, and lets it wander all over town. Instead of making sure he can't escape from the yard, she makes a habit of following him... that is, unless he CROSSES THE HIGHWAY, in which case she turns back. Personally, I'd want anyone watching my pet to have at least a small amount of responsibility and common sense. She describes problems she has with the police and her neighbors because of her 5 (sometimes more) dogs; she describes how she lets her un-spayed/neutered dogs breed out-of-control. The travesty just goes on and on. The part that made me laugh is that, at the end, she seems to be impressed that the dogs don't seem to pay any attention to her anymore; she seems to have missed the point of having pets. Her conclusion that dogs primarially want the company of other dogs should include the caveat "in the absence of any human attention."

The author does not appear to be an expert on dogs, dog behavior, dog training, or dog care. She does, however, have some good tips on being a public nuisance. I'm amazed that anyone would write such an account of irresponsible behavior.

Pity her poor dogs. What example is she setting? The reason for Ms. Thomas' 'dogological studies' is flawed. She wishes to study how dogs conduct themselves if left undisturbed in normal circumstances. Yet she dismisses the studies of feral, abandoned, or homeless dogs, stating that these free-ranging dogs lived under terrible stress in a hostile dangerous environment and thus were not living normal lives. Yet according to Ms. Thomas dogs roaming suburban Boston with traffic, dogcatchers, dognappers, etc. live a 'normal' life in a non-hostile environment. Ms Thomas' negligence and irresponsibility is almost unbelievable if I hadn't read her book myself. For the sake of her 'dogological' studies she: 1. Let someone else's dog roam Boston while under her care violating laws unconcerned about complaints of neighbors. 2. Let conditions exist where her dogs attacked another dog under her care. 3. Bemoans the fact that there are no legal or moral responsibility attached to motorists hitting dogs, yet "flouts", her words, the leash law. She mentioned that her free ranging dogs had made her known in police stations throughout the Greater Boston area. 4. Routinely let were dogs run loose for days and they returned with evidence that they had chased and killed deer. Let four-month-old puppy roam. 5. Did not spay and neuter her dogs and they produced at least four litters one of which was killed by dogs she owns. 6. Let an old infirm dog roam during a New Hampshire winter.

Recipe for Disaster:
Get a dog for every member of the family.
Don't spay or neuter any of them.
Allow them all to run free for a year while you follow along, observing them as they run through traffic, fight, and place themselves in danger of death or injury with regularity.
Don't establish a relationship with any of them, work with them, and train them in any way.
Watch and take copious notes as they withdraw from the family and revert to survival behavior.
Write a book about the experience and make a lot of money. Fool the masses into thinking that this was a fascinating experiment and therefore any irresponsible behvior on the part of the author was somehow justified.

I threw this book in the garbage, where it belongs.

The hidden life of Dogs by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas was disappointing to me. I am very interested in dog behavior, as I am a certified canine obedience instructor, and this book failed what it claimed to be. There are some interesting stories that support other behaviors we have already known to exist. There are no new findings in this book. And as the author admits, there is no science involved- just her observations. I was hoping for a lot more, and I would not reccommend this book unless you have extra time to kill. It is 138 pages long with a fairly large font. There are nice illustrations at the start of each story. Basically the book is a bunch of short stories about her dog's behaviors. I think at one point she has 13 dogs. She claims that she only provides food, shelter, and water for them. She does not train them in any way because she wants them to act naturally and not "become robots." In the end I think she only has 2 females spayed, and that is after they have a litter or two a piece. I admit that some of the stories spark my imagination, but quite a few of them upset me. I agree with other raters that she is an irresponsible owner who puts her neighbors, their animals, and her own dogs in danger. She reports often that she has been confronted by the police many times throughout the book. Well, she lets her huskies roam at night all over town! Just because she follow behind them on a bicycle some nights does not make it legal. She talks about them crossing highways and major intersections- does she really care about these dogs? Also, her dogs have attacked a neighbors horse, went after a poor yorkie who was walking by on the sidewalk- on leash- with its owner, and killed one of the other dog's entire litter of puppies. If she was responsible she would have moved out in the middle of nowhere, set up a sanctuary type environment for these dogs- one that they can not escape from- and observed that way. If she had done this it would have been a lot more courtious to everyone around her and safer. I was not happy with the book- do not pay more than a couple bucks for it, it's not worth it.

This book reads like a horror novel.

By allowing her dogs (as well as another one in her care) to roam freely throughout an urban area crisscrossed by busy roads, the author demonstrates her utter disregard for the animals' welfare. Not to mention the antisocial attitude she displays with her total inconsideration for her neighbors, and for the countless strangers kind enough to phone when her lost dogs seek refuge on their doorsteps.

Oh, and let's not forget the dozens of shelter dogs killed because their potential adoptive homes were filled by the plethora of puppies spawned by the author's choice not to spay and neuter her animals.

This book moves at a peppy pace, and might have been interesting (albeit morally reprehensible) if the author's "observations" actually provided any insight. But those eighteen-wheelers on the Alewife Parkway veered closer to poor Misha than the author's whimsical interpretations stray within range of scientific evidence. Case in point: She is so clueless about the reality of canine behavior that she inadvertently allows one of her dogs to kill another one's litter of puppies. Oops!

Any genuine dog lover (or any human with an ounce of compassion and common sense) will despise this book. A previous reviewer hit the nail on the head: If "feelings" are your road map to life, you might enjoy this book. If you regularly take your brain out for walk, forget it. Calling this a meaningful book about dogs is like calling "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" the definitive text on marine fowl.

Since I agree with every negative review here, it may seem a bit strange for me to give this awful book three stars. My reason is that after I flew into several rages about how she "cared for" a dog left with her by a friend, and the nocturnal criss-crossings of major highways by this dog and the maniac author, I found that I wasn't reading to learn about dogs, but--as one does with a piece of fiction--to penetrate the character of the narrator. (Think, for example, of Poe's "The Telltale Heart". . . .)

Thus I found myself laughing out loud from time to time. Hearing a dog bark outside the house, I imagined looking out the window, seeing a woman lope across the lawn and into the woods, and muttering to myself, "there goes that crazy Thomas woman again."

You have to wonder if, as she wrote, Elizabeth Marshall Thomas had the least clue about what she revealed of herself! The book doesn't read as if she did. It's a psychological museum piece.

I am a dog owner in Cambridge, MA, and have to live with the backlash against such irresponsible people like the author of this book. Not only did she "flout" the leash law, but the law against breeding dogs within city limits (which has severe fines), and the scoop law. Every day I walk past signs put up by desperate people, searching for their missing cat, how many of these cats were killed by unrestrained dogs? How many dogs were put to death at the pound, while she allowed her dogs to breed out of control? How many children stepped in the mess her dogs made, which she was obligated to clean up? Cambridge has become a very dog-unfriendly place, due to the criminal negligence of people like this author. Dogs are NOT wild animals, they have been domesticated for thousands of years, but she prides herself for letting her animals run feral, rejoicing that they are untrained and may do as they like. This is, pure and simple, wrong. Dogs were created to serve man, to "pack" with their owners and family, they need to be trained and kept safe and healthy, and out of trouble. To the author, this is "slavery". She is wrong, and I greatly discourage anyone who is thinking of purchase this book. I gave this book a one star rating, but I'd rather have given it zero star, as it may lead some inexperienced dog owners to make some very bad mistakes. There are many excellent books written about dog behavior, by people who know and understand dogs, purchase one of them. Elizabeth Marshall Thomas clearly does not know dogs, avoid this book.

I am struck by the widely differing views of this book by other reviewers. Elizabeth Marshall Thomas reminds me of someone who goes through life with more feeling than thought. If you are of like mind, you will find her book charming. If, however, you bring any intelligence to your own existence, you may find this book interesting, but you will surely find Ms. Thomas, reprehensible. This book is a beautiful & touching account of incompetence & irresponsibility. The author may well be correct in her assumptions of dog behavior, but reading her 'road to discovery' is quite simply, painful. For those who argue that the book is not about how to raise a good pet, I totally agree. This book is about how to conduct life and assume responsibility for it. We can indeed learn from the author's failure.