Today, a guest post from Leslie Simpson of Homemakerguide.com. She’s going to share some great books about dogs!
Discover the best dog books and learn how to treat your pet differently! We’ve compiled a list of top books that you can read to change perspective. It’s all here, get started.
Dogs can be one of the best companions for humans, but it is challenging for new pet owners to understand the various signs given out by these faithful pets. A great deal of knowledge is required to interact in a better way with pets. It is also essential to have a lot of awareness about the different facets of a dog to be able to train them well.
Thankfully, several resources come in handy while trying to understand dogs. These are primarily in the form of books. Some of the best books every dog owner should have are the following.
The Other End of the Leash: Why We Do What We Do Around Dogs – by Patricia B. McConnell
Patricia McConnell is an animal behaviorist and zoologist who has dealt heavily with subjects like dog’s behavior and actions. The focus of this book is communication, which can be among dogs or between dogs and humans. There exists many communication differences between these relationships, but it is brought out well with a lot of examples and experiences. McConnell has extensive knowledge of working with dogs and wolves. Some suggestions made by the book are to take up the role of a ‘compassionate leader’ than an alpha. It is a great book to understand the different behaviors of a dog – when interacting with other animals and when interacting with its owner.
Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals by Karen Pryor
Karen Pryor is the author of this book, which manages to provide a tremendous amount of information regarding dogs and how to train them. Many consider this as one of the best dog books for the type of training approach preached. This training approach is considered as a successful method for creating a strong bond between man and animal. Pryor is a great advocate of clicker training, which involves creating a consistent clicker sound to alter a dog’s behavior. The method consists of treating the dog with a reward if it manages to change its behavior with an associated sound.
Clicker training is very practical, and it is capable of acting even on older dogs. Crucially, this book can come out with information about the technique and science behind the clicker training method, and it will be sufficient to reinforce people’s belief in this system further.
Cesar’s Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems – by Cesar Millan
Cesar Millan is the controversial dog trainer who also hosts the ‘Dog Whisperer’ show on National Geographic. His techniques of training dogs are primarily based on the old-school philosophy of dominance, but it is still relevant in the case of older dogs. There are also several instances – like in the case of an unruly dog – where techniques mentioned by Millan tend to work well. Since the knowledge acquired by Millan is born out of experience rather than academics, one can be sure that the methods listed out in this book tend to work. A significant section of Millan’s training methods focuses on physical communication and dog psychology.
Don’t Shoot the Dog!: The New Art of Teaching and Training, by Karen Pryor
It is one of the numerous books on training dogs, but it comes with a difference. Trainer Karen Pryor has come out with a string of training methods that would even be applicable for humans. It focuses on ‘affection training’ as a means to encourage change in behavior.
Many people make the mistake of trying to use force or authority to make dogs understand commands, but this may not be the right way to make a dog know that specific behaviors are not acceptable. This book focuses on imparting a particular response even as a puppy, as it would help bring out a quick change. Pryor is also a massive advocate of socialization by puppies to make them go through changes in an effortless manner.
Perfect Puppy in 7 Days: How to Start Your Puppy Off Right, by Dr. Sophia Yin
Dr. Sophia Yin is the animal behaviorist and veterinarian who was known for her stellar work with dogs before passing away in 2014. Yin was immensely responsible for changing the notion that dominance was required by pet owners to ensure proper behavior from their pets. Instead, Yin focused on a humanitarian approach towards reinforcing good behavior among dogs. This book best describes this ground-breaking approach, and it is a gold standard for owners not keen on dominating their pets.
Conclusion
These books break down several training styles and the significant differences between them—just like how homemakerguide.com places focus on top home improvement products. These training techniques are excellent when it comes to frequently addressing issues seen amongst puppies. Sticking with these techniques should ensure a positive and trustworthy relationship between a puppy and a pet owner. They are also quite helpful in dealing with older pets. What do you think? Let us know in the comments!
About my guest blogger
Leslie Simpson is a person who devoted all her amazing life to cultivating, homesteading, planting, growing, caring, making the perfect landscape and all other things home and garden as well as a writer with https://homemakerguide.com/. She considers herself a Word Nerd as well counting numerous books she read through the years.
