Dog Training for Dummies (Paperback)

~ Jack Volhard (Author), Wendy Volhard (Author) "A well-trained dog is a joy to have around..." (more)
Key Phrases: setting the stage for training, sit your dog, puppy period (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A well-trained dog is the result of education – actually, more yours than your dog’s. You need to know what makes a dog a dog: how he thinks, reacts, grows, and expresses himself; what his needs are; and most important, why he does what he does. When you understand your dog, you will achieve a mutually rewarding relationship. Dogs aren't homogeneous. Each one is unique, and in their differences lie the challenge.

Dog Training For Dummies can help anyone who has just brought home a puppy or is thinking of getting one. Even if you have experience with dog training, you’ll find useful information for a wide variety of dog breeds and personalities. This book is also for you if

You want your dog to be well behaved – for his sake as well as yours.

You have little or no knowledge of proper dog training techniques

You have done some reading on the subject, but have had limited success with your dog.

Your dog is partially trained but needs to learn a few more things

Find out what it takes to have a well-behaved pooch by recognizing your dog's instinctive behaviors and determining its personality profile. Understand what your expectations are and know how your attitude affects your dog's training. This handy reference guide also covers the following and more:

Dealing with barking and chewing

Coping with separation anxiety

Housetraining a puppy

Walking and heeling

Retrieving on command

Training for competitive dog titles

Teaching your dog to be a Companion Dog

Dealing with aggression

Understanding your dog's health

Going to obedience school

The important thing about dog training is to get started today. The sooner you train your dog to behave the way you want him to, the sooner the two of you can live in peace together, and the more problems you can prevent down the road. So get going! Your dog will thank you for it.

From the Back Cover

"Easy to read and full of tips for the new owner, as well as the experienced one." Valerie Rutledge, professional dog trainer "An exceptionally informative volume on behavior and training. You'll learn as much about yourself as you will about your dog." — Joel Gavriele-Gold, Ph.D., author of When Pets Come Between Partners "It can be read cover to cover (as I did) or used as a well-organized reference guide. It packs an amazing amount of knowledge into a remarkably portable volume." — Bob Payne, certified kennel operator and professional dog trainer

Understand your dog's drives and how to use them in training

The quick, easy, and fun way to make training succeed for you and your dog All dogs need training to live peacefully among humans. This book's clear, step-by-step instructions show you how to train your dog, from housetraining and socializing your puppy to teaching your adult dog fun new tricks.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 408 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; illustrated edition edition (January 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764552864
• ISBN-13: 978-0764552861
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 3.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #485,629 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

97 of 104 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed bag, June 16, 2005

By	Debbie the Book Devourer "dletour7" (Waltham, MA USA) - See all my reviews

I thought the parts of this book that talked about training were, for the most part, quite good. The authors give clear instructions and reasons for their practices. For example, don't say "no" to your dog; tell him what you want him to do instead. If he's jumping, say sit, for example. Be consistent. Reinforce commands. Say commands only once. I could give more examples, but you get the idea: sound, sane, and humane advice. The advanced training sections started to lose me a bit. I found them tedious after a while.

Although the authors are very experienced with all aspects of caring for dogs, I thought they were reaching a bit with their nutritional and medical advice. They talked about homeopathic remedies as though they're proven treatments. They're not. Anecdotal evidence is not the same as statistically significant results from controlled studies. Their opinion on vaccines seemed dangerous and unbalanced. They have too much confidence in their alternative nutrition and treatment methods -- maybe they have some effect, but they're not perfect. A well-fed dog could still get fleas and infections and communicable diseases. After a while, they sounded like shills for the company that makes the supplements they use. Finally -- and I hope you'll excuse the e-shouting, but I cannot emphasize this enough -- DO NOT FEED YOUR DOG RAISINS, EVEN FOR A TREAT! Scientists haven't yet identified what it is about grapes and raisins, but they've been implicated in acute toxicity and even death in some dogs.

And as someone who makes a living from the written word, I have to say it seemed to me that the copy editor gave up on this book around Page 200. The text in the last half of the book is full of typos, errors, and repetitive writing -- not repetitive as in emphasizing a point, but repetitive as in restating the content of one paragraph in the next. Ugh.

The training advice was sound. Read this book for that, and disregard the rest.

37 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worthy of a Spot on Your Bookshelf, January 1, 2004

By	Starry "evenstar7139" (United States) - See all my reviews

This book gets put down a lot because it has a couple of flaws. However, overall, it is a great book on Dog Training, and it contains a lot of information the person trying to train their dog really needs to know. This book helps you get inside your dog's head and understand why he does and does not listen. It puts the world as your dog sees it in perspective and shows you how to communicate on his level so you can help him understand exactly what is expected of him.

If you read this book you will become someone who can control their dog and have a happy, obedient canine companion.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not just for Dummies, September 16, 2005

By	houses (Vicksburg, MS) - See all my reviews

This book was both useful and interesting for old hat dog owners and new ones as well. I initially found it at a friend's house and while flipping through the chapters I decided I needed one for myself. Though I am very familiar with dogs, the behvioural sections helped me get a handle on my new puppies' quirks and demands, particularly the section on typing your dog's profile. They were a new breed for me, and rescues, so I appreciated the explanation of behaviours I was not familiar with. I liked this book enough to send it on to my parents when they recently got a new dog as well. I did not find the homeophatic information very helpful at all, however I don't think the inclusion of that information outweighed the potential benefit of owning the book.