Customer Reviews

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

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.

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

Rover Get off Her Leg (great title, by the way!) is not only helpful for dog owners, it's a must-read for future dog owners who want to get a "leg up" on dog training before Fido comes home. This book is a catch-all of unwanted dog behaviors and how to prevent or "fix" them. It's written in a friendly, down to earth style that everyone can relate to. I have read several other books by this author, and I appreciate her solid advice on all things animal.

Has your dog ever sniffed somebody in a way that wasn't exactly appropriate? What about a dog who likes to hump...again inappropriately? Or perhaps your dog eats things he shouldn't...like used food (aka poop)! UGH! It's bad enough that they do these things, but it can be embarrassing when other people are around to see it.

Rover, Get Off Her Leg, by Darlene Arden takes a light hearted look at some of the irritating behaviors dogs exhibit and gives practical advice on how to work on them. Rather than just writing about how to solve the problem though, Darlene gives a little background on why the dog may be doing whatever it is he's doing. As with most things, if you figure out why something is happening, it's easier to figure out how to fix it. Even with dogs, knowing the `why' can make the solution pretty apparent.

Rover, Get Off Her Leg is a pretty easy read, but gives a lot of practical, easy to follow advice on how to hone your dog's behavior into something a little more acceptable. And all of her advice involves kindness - you won't find any negative training methods in this book! A certified animal behaviorist, Darlene is an advocate of positive training, using lots of love and positive reinforcement. It's her opinion (as well as mine, and many others) that positive training will produce the best results and in the long run make for a happier, healthier, more well behaved dog. It's more fun, too!

There's a lot of info packed into this little book, and it can help you give your dog a bit of a tune-up in the manners department!

This is the coolest book! It blew me away to read about all the dumb things that dogs do to screw things up, or embarrass themselves and their human companions. But Ms Arden is such an expert, she was able to teach everybody how to get their dogs to smarten up. The best thing about this book is that I saw very clearly that I AM NOT ALONE. No matter what dumb things my dog does, there's somebody else's dog who does even DUMBER WORST things. That made me feel so great! I guess my little guy isn't so bad afterall.

Finally, Darlene Arden has given the common, every day dog owner a book that deals with, common every dog does it situations and she has done it with humor and easily understood language. "Rover Get Off Her Leg" deals with those embarrassing doggie behaviors and gives practical advice on how to deal with them. Ms. Arden's voice clearly comes through in her new book. The cover did indeed attract attention everywhere I carried it and the title is wonderfully catchy. The illustrations are priceless and the personal anecdotes are the icing on the cake for this great little book. As one who works in rescue, I am recommending this book to all new and repeat rescue owners. Rover is definitely a book for all dog owners and I guarantee it will be useful and enjoyed by all.

What a unique book about dogs and the problems dog owners face living with them. I love the true stories. As a dog behaviorist, I have had clients ask me about many of the situations in this book. Because this is such a fun book, my clients are more likely to read it.

With an engaging writing style, hysterical anecdotes and illustrations, Darlene Arden educates owners on solutions for dog behavior problems. From basic training to serious behavior challenges, this comprehensive book presents complex information in an easily understood way. The book's layout also greatly facilitates use as a reference. As a professional trainer and behavior consultant, I'm always looking for ways to make training fun for my clients. While there are many dog training books on the market, it is a true rarity to find one that is entertaining as well as informative. What a great resource this will be for my clients!

Darlene Arden, who usually specializes in giving advice about small dogs, has described some general problems for the average dog owner whose dog hasn't tried to kill the mail carrier, but sometimes may be not so well behaved. She does this with wit and a deep empathy for our quadrupedal friends and their sometimes frazzled owners. This is a small, inexpensive book that should be on dog owners' shelves.