Mother Knows Best: The Natural Way to Train Your Dog [Hardcover]

Carol Lea Benjamin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1985 | Series: Howell reference books

With more than 150,000 copies sold, Mother Knows Best is one of the top training books of all time. Based on the natural way a mother dog trains her puppies, Benjamin's training method is humane, effective and all natural. Now we've put a bright new cover on a timeless classic.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

Mother Knows Best the natural way to train your dog

The Dog is a Social Animal, and in nature the mother is a dog's most successful teacher. This simple fact translates into a highly effective, dynamic approach to dog training based on the natural way dogs learn. Using this natural way of learning as a base, renowned author and trainer Carol Lea Benjamin presents a sensible, easy, humane training program designed to shape your dog into the best companion it can be, at home and in public. From the basics of puppy training and good house manners, on through all the levels of structured obedience exercises, Mother Knows Best: The Natural Way to Train Your Dog helps your dog learn as it was intended to. Here's the secret of how to enjoy your dog, have your dog enjoy you and enhance the human-animal bond?all at the same time! It's training you can rely on. After all, Mother Knows Best.

From the Back Cover

"Carol Benjamin makes dog training sound like more fun than a barrel of puppies.... Mother Knows Best is a thoroughly enjoyable book whose pages may become a bit worn from constant re-reading. But it's too good to read just once." —Dogs in Canada

"[The] author is someone who really loves and understands dogs, and that comes through on every page.... Every aspect of training is covered, from the basics of puppy training to structured obedience exercises, in sufficient detail and sufficient examples to show you how you can apply the advice to your own situation." —Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine Animal Health Newsletter

"Carol Benjamin has written a breakthrough book that exposes the fallacy of humanizing dogs and calls for an intelligent, reasoned, and painstaking re-evaluation of just how dogs are originally educated." —Job Michael Evans, Dog Fancy

"This book is full of excellent information and innovative ideas for turning that cute puppy into a true companion...an excellent book to give or recommend." —AKC Gazette
A Howell Dog Book of Distinction

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Howell Book House; 1st edition (March 1, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0876056664
• ISBN-13: 978-0876056660
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 0.9 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,955 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #54 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Pets & Animal Care > Dogs > Breeds

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

79 of 81 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply THE Best! December 29, 1998

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

I own a full library of dog books and of all the training methods I've studied, Carol's is definitly the best. Mother Knows Best gives a logical approach to raising a canine companion. Scattered throughout the book are humerous quips and cartoons in addition to the easy to read format. Benjamin's training methods are humane and appropriate for any dog. She provides many solutions to common problems and gives suggestions on correct ways to discipline and reward according to your dog's temperment. Her book contains a house training schedule for puppies as well as puppy manners and obedience. I would recommend this book to absolutely anyone. I only wish I could give it MORE than 5 stars!

63 of 65 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Dog training at its' best, this book is excellent! July 11, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

I've had dogs all my life and I've read many books on dog training and this one is my favorite. I used Benjamins' method to train my last two dogs, and I can honestly say the results were wonderful. Written with humor and insight, this book is easy to read and very educational. Whether you are a fisrt time puppy owner or have an older dog, this book has something for you. Benjamin gives plenty of information that helps you understand your dogs' perspective and makes training fun for both you and your dog. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in raising their dog to be a loving, life-long companion.

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Out dated December 11, 2007

By John A. Lefcourte VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

When this book was published in 1985 the concept of natural training was revolutionary. The Monks of New Skete followed in 1991 with a book advocating the same concept of training. However, the principles of a more natural training method have been greatly refined over the years and some of the advice that is contained in this book is wrong (or wrong in most situations).

The author is adament that food should not be given as a reward, reward should be positive attention only. The Monks also believed this but weren't so adament. More recent books have recognized that different breeds respond differently. Breeds bred for close human interaction, primarily the herding breeds, are more closely focused on humans, breeds bred to act independently such as Beagles, and other hounds, and terriers, are not closely attuned to humans and respond better to food rewards. Hey, it's animal behavior 101 that lab rats are rewarded by food and learn from those rewards. Interestingly both Benjamin and the Monks work primarily with German Shepards.

Benjamin also maintains that you can bring a dog back to the scene of its crime, i.e. where it destroyed a pillow, show it the destroyed pillow and correct the dog's behavior. All the recent books acknowledge that you can only correct a dog's behavior if you catch the dog while it is in the act.

Potentially dangerous advice that she gives is to grab a dog by both sides of the neck and get in its face to stare it down. That is threatening and confrontational and may work with puppies but other books warn against that approach with agressive dogs as it will incite them to attack and bite.

There are better books out there pass on this.