Rover, Get off Her Leg!: Pet Etiquette for the Dog Who Pees on Your Rug, Steals the Pot Roast and Poops in Improper Places [Paperback]

Darlene Arden (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2007

Do You Know a Dog
Who Could Use Some Petiquette?
Does your dog:
Jump on your guests?
Bark incessantly?
Beg for food?
Get aggressive with other dogs?

Then relax! In all the years she's helped owners better relate to their dogs, animal behavior consultant Darlene Arden knows there's no dog (or human) who can't be helped in the behavior department--and she's there to provide the 411 for all kinds of doggie dilemmas in this must-have primer on the essentials of pet etiquette.

Filled with the most often asked questions, plus humorous tales of dogs and owners gone bad--and over the top--this complete guide to canine comportment will teach you how to solve any problem, from the embarrassing to the downright unacceptable, including when your dog . . .

• humps your guests
• gives you "love bitesÓ
• ignores you
• has a gas problem
• pees everywhere except outside
• eats strange things
• uses your furniture as a chew toy
• acts like the Òsex policeÓ
• is afraid of thunder
and more!

With this ultimate how-to-handle-it book, you and your canine friend will be the envy of the dog park (or at least you will not be asked to leave).

Editorial Reviews

Review

[Darlene] Arden (The Angell Memorial Animal Hospital Book of Wellness and Preventive Care for Dogs), a certified animal behavior consultant, has written a good-humored training guide for pet owners with canines whose behavior is less than amusing. She begins by describing the clicker training method of positive reinforcement, applying these methods to the top ten annoying behaviors —inappropriate urination, humping, excessive barking, aggression, possessiveness, crotch sniffing, begging food, separation anxiety, phobias, and obstructing human relationships —as well as coprophagia and destructive chewing. Even the most inexperienced dog owner will find her advice easy to follow. Humorous anecdotes illustrating the undesirable behavior enhance the text. While there are many helpful guides available addressing the same behavioral issues and using the same training methods, including Tamar Geller's The Loved Dog, Arden's book is easy to read, entertaining, and affordable. An excellent purchase for all public libraries. Recommended.

-- Library Journal

About the Author

Darlene Arden is a certified animal behavior consultant, writer, lecturer, and author of The Irrepressible Toy Dog and The Angell Memorial Animal Hospital Book of Wellness and Preventive Care for Dogs.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: HCI (June 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 075730544X
• ISBN-13: 978-0757305443
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #220,727 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A Certified Animal Behavior Consultant, Journalist, Author, Learning Facilitator in Kutztown University's Dog Training and Management Certificate Program and frequent media guest, Darlene Arden's passion for helping animals live longer and better lives shines through in all she does. Whether she's writing books or articles, speaking to breed clubs and other animal-related groups, attending veterinary conferences to increase her own knowledge and as a presenter, or interacting with individual pet owners, her goal is always the same -- to enhance the lives of dogs and cats. In her "spare time" she is a World Canine Freestyle Organization Judge, Referee, and Advisory Board member and she produces and hosts a local cable television program. Find her on the web at: www.darlenearden.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Darlene Arden does it again!, May 25, 2007

By 

Nancy Jensen-Norris "bouvmom" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rover, Get off Her Leg!: Pet Etiquette for the Dog Who Pees on Your Rug, Steals the Pot Roast and Poops in Improper Places (Paperback)

Although Darlene Arden specializes in issues in dogs under 20 pounds, her new book offers behavioral advice applicable to any dog from a 4-lb. Yorkie to a 225-lb. English Mastiff and all breeds, purebred and mixed, in between. Interspersed with humorous anecdotes that illustrate a variety of frustrating behavioral problems, she offers sound advice and training solutions to many annoying (and worse than annoying) behaviors such as aggression, biting, humping, socialization issues, barking, stealing food and house training among others. With emphasis on operant conditioning, this book presents valuable information to all dog lovers/owners from the novice dog owner to those with many years of training experience.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A no-nonsense but good-humored approach to dog behavior, July 20, 2010

By 

RJ Peters (Nebraska) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rover, Get off Her Leg!: Pet Etiquette for the Dog Who Pees on Your Rug, Steals the Pot Roast and Poops in Improper Places (Paperback)

Author Darlene Arden could be considered the Miss Manners of dog etiquette, but her playful twin is the Dave Barry of doggie Q & A. Her sensible yet tongue-in-cheek approach to the problems of canine parenthood provide just the right balance to teach us how to deal with life with a dog... or two... or more.
From the most embarrassing to the most annoying, with an occasional dose of disgusting, the author reveals the best strategies to help us overcome those difficult moments that make one wonder why we got a dog in the first place. Well, the first place is easy - we love dogs. It's the second place that can give us fits when behavior issues come up.
It's an easy read and makes so much sense, you'll very quickly be helping your own Rover be a better dog. Be prepared for comments from friends and family when you're done, though. They'll suspect you've been to special classes when your dog becomes a model of good canine behavior and you're not tearing your hair out anymore.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Small book in size, mighty in contenet, October 5, 2007

By 

Diane M. Smith (Lexington, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rover, Get off Her Leg!: Pet Etiquette for the Dog Who Pees on Your Rug, Steals the Pot Roast and Poops in Improper Places (Paperback)

Dog ownership is a wonderful, rewarding experience. Well, it can be. For many unfortunate people, it turns into a nightmare because the dog has adopted bad, sometimes very embarrassing, or even dangerous behaviors. This book is here to help change the negatives in the dog-person relationship into positives. Darlene Arden, who is a certified animal behavior consultant, addresses every bad-canine behavior issue you can think of, and shows you sound, practical ways to turn things around. Furthermore, she does this in a lighthearted, upbeat way that nevertheless gets the advice across. She tackles everything from the more innocuous issues, e.g. housetraining, to those with potentially dire consequences, such as aggression. She also addresses social behaviors that are deeply mortifying to owners, including those related to sex.
The first illustration in the book shows a man calling his dog, while the dog runs off with his paws over his ears singing "La La La La" ("I can't HEAR you!") As Darlene points out, it doesn't have to be that way; it can change, and it can change without requiring that the owner turn into an ogre. On the contrary, as the author points out, screaming and physical punishment do not work and can make situations worse.
At the end of the book, the author provides a list of references: books, DVDs, videos and websites for readers who want to know more.
The book is small in size, so it's easily portable. The sections are constructed so that you can easily focus in on your particular problems -- but really, you'll want to read the whole thing. There are real-life stories that are very entertaining and often very funny. Even if your dog is a perfect citizen, you'll like this book. In fact, you'll enjoy it even if you are not a dog owner. I liked it so much I bought extra copies and gave them as gifts: pointing out to the recipients, of course, that none of this was meant to imply that I was thinking of THEIR dogs.
Diane M. Smith, Certified Veterinary Technician