Breeds

Dog Training For Dummies (For Dummies (Pets))

That innocent face. Those sad, puppy-dog eyes. Let’s face it: puppies can make anyone’s heart melt. But without proper training, they can make even the most doting doggie moms and dads’ blood pressure soar. So before your new puppy has you jumping through hoops, stop and ask yourself, “Just who is the trainer here?”

Dog Training for Dummies, 2nd Edition, shows you how to select the right training method for your puppy or adult dog, based on his unique personality, to reach your desired goals. Whether you want to teach Spike to sit, or want to help Rover master retrieving, this book gives training for you and your dog—to ensure a mutually respectful relationship with your four-legged family member.

Discover how to:

• Understand your dog’s mind
• Recognize why positive reinforcement training is key
• Master basic training
• Survive the puppy period
• Deal with doggie don’ts
• Seek expert outside help
• And much more

With step-by-step instruction in basic commands, guidance on how to eliminate unwanted behavior, and tips for making training fun for you and your pooch, Dog Training for Dummies is packed with all the latest techniques and resources you need to make your pal a Top Dog for life.

Latest training commands from sitting to retrieving Find out why positive reinforcement is an effective teaching tool Does your dog need training? Featuring new and updated information on popular training methods, this hands-on guide provides clear step-by-step instructions that show you everything from housetraining and socializing a puppy to understanding your dog's behavior to dealing with doggie don'ts. You'll also explore advanced training for competition and see how to find outside help. Discover how to Appreciate the influence of nutrition on your dog's behavior Teach your dog basic commands Determine your dog's personality Make training fun and effective

The Dog's Mind: Understanding Your Dog's Behavior (Howell Reference Books)

"Quite simply this is an excellent book. It is well-written, with snatches of dry humour. It should be mandatory reading for anybody who keeps a dog or has intentions of so doing." —R. W. F. Poole, Daily Telegraph

How do dogs perceive the world about them? How do they see, hear, learn, relate to their owners? How large are their brains, what is their emotional makeup? Why do they suffer from stress and how can it be coped with? Over the last few years a substantial body of knowledge has been built up about the psychology of dog behavior. Combining more than twenty years of practical experience as a veterinary clinician with a personal knowledge and understanding of the latest international research, Dr. Bruce Fogle has written the most inclusive and relevant book on how the canine mind works.

Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds

Updated with the latest information on canine breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club, this lavishly illustrated volume is a treasure house of information for dog lovers, owners, breeders, and prospective buyers. It begins with a detailed discussion of breed evolution, focusing on the physical and behavioral traits that distinguish one canine breed from another. The book’s main section profiles more than 150 breeds, arranged in the general categories specified by the AKC—Sporting Group, Hound Group, Working Group, Terrier Group, Toy Group, Non-Sporting Group, and Herding Group. Each profile tells how and why the breed was developed, and how selection to perpetuate specific traits affects a dog’s suitability as a pet. Advice for prospective dog owners will help them be sure they are choosing a breed that is compatible with their own situation and needs. They will also find information on each breed’s vulnerability to specific health problems, longevity, exercise needs, compatibility with children, and much more. Profuse illustrations include color photos of all listed breeds.

Mother Knows Best: The Natural Way to Train Your Dog

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.

Dog Man: An Uncommon Life on a Faraway Mountain

How one man's consuming passion for dogs saved a legendary breed from extinction and led him to a difficult, more soulful way of life in the wilds of Japan's remote snow country

As Dog Man opens, Martha Sherrill brings us to a world that Americans know very little about-the snow country of Japan during World War II. In a mountain village, we meet Morie Sawataishi, a fierce individualist who has chosen to break the law by keeping an Akita dog hidden in a shed on his property.

During the war, the magnificent and intensely loyal Japanese hunting dogs are donated to help the war effort, eaten, or used to make fur vests for the military. By the time of the Japanese surrender in 1945, there are only sixteen Akitas left in the country. The survival of the breed becomes Morie's passion and life, almost a spiritual calling.

Devoted to the dogs, Morie is forever changed. His life becomes radically unconventional-almost preposterous-in ultra-ambitious, conformist Japan. For the dogs, Morie passes up promotions, bigger houses, and prestigious engineering jobs in Tokyo. Instead, he raises a family with his young wife, Kitako-a sheltered urban sophisticate-in Japan's remote and forbidding snow country.

Their village is isolated, but interesting characters are always dropping by-dog buddies, in-laws from Tokyo, and a barefoot hunter who lives in the wild. Due in part to Morie's perseverance and passion, the Akita breed strengthens and becomes wildly popular, sometimes selling for millions of yen. Yet Morie won't sell his spectacular dogs. He only likes to give them away.

Morie and Kitako remain in the snow country today, living in the traditional Japanese cottage they designed together more than thirty years ago-with tatami mats, an overhanging roof, a deep bathtub, and no central heat. At ninety-four years old, Morie still raises and trains the Akita dogs that have come to symbolize his life.

In beautiful prose that is a joy to read, Martha Sherrill opens up the world of the Dog Man and his wife, providing a profound look at what it is to be an individualist in a culture that reveres conformity-and what it means to live life in one's own way, while expertly revealing Japan and Japanese culture as we've never seen it before.

Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies

“The next best thing to having an experienced Greyhound owner living with you.”
—Joan Belle Isle, President, Greyhound Project

“Anyone who reads this book and follows its guidance will have a happier, healthier dog and be a happier, more relaxed dog owner.”
—Hal and Karen Hawley, Greyhound Friends Northwest

The Greyhound has been celebrated in song and legend for thousands of years. Nowadays, Greyhounds are bred almost exclusively for racing. In the bad old days, prior to the 1980s, dogs that didn’t make the grade at the track, and those past their primes, were destroyed. According to official estimates, 60,000 of these noble, mild-mannered dogs were destroyed each year! Fortunately, a number of organizations now exist devoted to rescuing these unwanted dogs and placing them in good homes.

Thinking about adopting a retired racing Greyhound? Or maybe you’re already sharing your life with one of these charming animals. Either way, this friendly guide tells you everything you need to know to:

• Understand the Greyhound personality
• Find a retired racing Greyhound to adopt
• Choose the right ex-racer for you and your family
• Educate yourself and your retired racer
• Give your new pal the diet and exercise it needs
• Keep your dog healthy and happy for years to come

With plenty of good humor and straight-talk, Lee Livingood drawing on her forty-years of experience training adult rescue dogs to cover all the pros and cons of being a retired racing Greyhound owner, and she fills you in on:

• The amazing 8000-year history of the Greyhound
• Deciding whether an ex-racer is the right do for you and your family
• Physical and behavioral characteristics
• How to get a retired racer used to living in a home and be a companion
• Dealing with common behavioral and health problems
• Feeding, grooming, and exercising a Greyhound
• Fun things to do with your hound

Bursting with expert advice on all aspects of living with an ex-racer, Retired Racing Greyhounds For Dummies is must reading for anyone considering adoption or who’s already taken the leap.

The Dog Breed Bible: Descriptions and Photos of Every Breed Recognized by the AKC

This heavily illustrated directory describes every canine breed recognized by the AKC. It includes recently recognized breeds, such as the Norwegian Buhund, the Pyrenean Shepherd, and the Swedish Vallhund. A succinct description of each dog cites its origins, its physical and temperamental traits, its average life span, all major health concerns, and its special needs, such as training, grooming, exercise, and adaptability to specific environments. A color photo shows an example of each breed in its show pose and an adjoining photo provides a detailed head shot. Written by an expert on dog breeds, this spiral-bound book packs a wealth of information in a manageable size. It will serve as a handy guide for prospective dog purchasers, as well as trainers and breeders. Attractive and easy-to-use charts summarize the ease of care for each breed.

Complete Book of Dog Breeding

An experienced veterinarian and writer on pets explains the seasonality of heats, choosing and conditioning breeding stock, potential breeding problems, the actual breeding process, normal, assisted and cesarean-section births, lactation, neonatal puppy care, and much more. Softcover,178 pages.

Schutzhund: Theory and Training Methods (Howell Reference Books)

An outstanding analysis of why and how protection, Obedience, and Tracking all play an integral part in Schutzhund training, with emphasis on selecting and raising a dog to suit the owner's needs.

Training Your Labrador Retriever (Training Your Dog Series)

The typical Labrador Retriever is relatively easy to train. The author takes readers step-by-step through her method, which emphasizes positive reinforcement. As part of the Training Your Dog Series you will be taught just that; how to train your dog, with special emphasis on your special breed. Virtually every aspect of training is covered, including housebreaking and paper training, basic obedience, teaching the animal to obey both verbal and hand signals, retrieving and walking on a leash. Also covered are humane methods of breaking a dog's bad habits, such as begging, jumping on people, unnecessary barking, and biting. Each book is filled with instructive full-color photos. Other breeds featured in this Series are the German Shepherd and the Rottweiler. Paperback / 176 Pages / 6 1/2 x 7 7/8 / 1999