Books - Training and Activities

General Dog Training / Activities

Volunteering With Your Pet
How to Get Involved in Animal-Assisted Therapy With Any Kind of Pet
By Mary R. Burch, Published by Howell Book House, ISBN: 0876057911, May 1st 1996

Animals make an incredible difference in a lot of people's lives, and people who bring their pets to people in need often witness miracles. Whether it's a bird or a dog, whether its a prisoner or a kindergartener, there are ways in which all sorts of pets can help all sorts of people. This book discusses all the elements of animal-assisted therapy so that readers can learn what it takes to get involved and make a difference.


No Bad Dogs
The Woodhouse Way
By Barbara Woodhouse, Published by Summit Books, ISBN: 0671541854, 1984

amazon.com's review: According to the late Barbara Woodhouse, there are no difficult dogs, only inexperienced owners. In No Bad Dogs she propounds her outspoken beliefs about dog behavior; having trained more than 17,000 dogs and their owners, Woodhouse knows of which she speaks. She isn't shy about condemning bad owners, firmly believing that dogs reflect their masters, habits and all. But this highly regarded book doesn't dwell on the negative; it suggests positive and simple training techniques for any owner and offers hope for all types of dogs, ranging from the chronically phobic to the severely jealous. No Bad Dogs is illustrated throughout with case studies of cured canines.


Don't Shoot the Dog!
The New Art of Teaching and Training
By Karen Pryor, Published by Vintage Books, ISBN: 0553253883, 1993

This book is frequently recommended for people with 'problem' dogs.


The Dog Who Loved Too Much
Tales, Treatments, and the Psychology of Dogs
By Nicholas Dodman, Published by Bantam Doubleday Dell, ISBN: 0553101943, 1996

An estimated 25 percent of the 55 million pet dogs in the United States today exhibit serious behavioral problems. In this book, a professional veterinarian and animal behaviorist tackles the most common and baffling of these disorders and explains through engaging, often humorous case studies his therapies to help both troubled dogs and befuddled owners.


The Culture Clash
By Jean Donaldson, Published by James & Kenneth Publishers, Berkeley, CA, ISBN: 1888047054, 1996

The Culture Clash

Reviewed by: 
Jody Frederick

If you share your life with dogs, you owe it to yourself and your canines to pick up a copy of Jean Donaldson's book The Culture Clash. It will give you new and amazing insight into dog behaviour that will provide you with ideas of how to improve your relationship and understanding of your best friend. The book emphasizes training but it is very basic. The everyday dog owner can learn a great deal about dog behaviour from this book even though they might not be interested in obedience competition. 

Donaldson starts by exploding the popular "Walt Disney dog" myth that suggests that dogs are moral, extremely intelligent beings that are capable of understanding and solving complex problems. For years, we have believed that dogs think, feel and act like humans. The truth (supported by scientific research) is that although dogs are great learners, they do not think abstractly, do not have morals, do not understand language, and cannot move mentally forward and backward through time. Therefore, many of the previous training methods and approaches to understanding dog behaviours are built on misinformation. 

When you bestow intelligence and morality, you bestow the responsibility that goes along with them. If the dog knows it's wrong to destroy furniture yet deliberately and maliciously does it, remembers the wrong he did and feels guilt, it feels like he merits a punishment, doesn't it? Well, that's just what dogs have been getting -- a lot of punishment. (page 13) 

Dogs cannot understand the difference between right and wrong. What they can understand is the difference between safe and dangerous. That is, chewing the sofa while the human is away is self-rewarding with no consequences (safe) but doing the same while the human is home has negative consequences (dangerous). Dogs are also incapable of recognizing the economic value of our possessions. Everything is a potential chew toy! 

Donaldson also explains the "eager-to-please" fallacy--the idea that our dogs are dying to do as we wish and furthermore know what we want of them. Again, this is based on our anthropomorphic vision of dog behaviour and intelligence. Dogs learn by the immediate consequences of their actions. Dogs are self-interested. If there is something in it for them, they will do it. If there is nothing in it for them, they require motivation. 

"The Dominance Panacea" is another myth that Donaldson takes apart. Ever since humans discovered pack order in wolves, dog owners have been explaining every conceivable dog-dog and human-dog interaction in terms of dominance. "Dogs misbehave or are disobedient because they haven't been shown who's boss." How many times have we heard that? Donaldson believes that this viewpoint amounts to yet another opportunity for punishment-based training methods. Behind a dog that rushes through doorways first, fails to come when called, or pulls on its leash is a human who has not taught the dog what is inappropriate. In other words, we should rule out lack of training before we immediately assume the dog is planning a coup of our leadership. 

Other important behaviours can be understood when you recognize that dogs are predators. Predatory behaviour results in searching, stalking, rushing, chasing, biting, and dissection. Furthermore, the dog is a pack animal and is programmed to be constantly around others to survive. Separation from the group activates behaviours that help reunite with the pack These behaviours include agitation, distress vocalizations, scratching, digging and chewing. 

Aggressive behaviour in domestic dogs is another issue that needs to be addressed, according to the author. Biting is natural, normal dog behaviour, which is why it is so prevalent. She states: Biting and threat displays (which are simply the indication of intention to bite) are how dogs settle both minor and major disputes and defend themselves from any perceived threat they cannot or opt not to flee from. In dog culture there are no letters to the editor, slanderous gossip and backstabbing, guilty feelings, democratic institutions or litigation lawyers. There are growls, snarls, snaps and bites. (page 57) 

The problem is that dogs have been domesticated into our culture which views biting as a betrayal of trust and is met with capital punishment. With these few examples, you can begin to see how very different our cultures truly are. 

To say that this book has been eye-opening for me is an understatement. Donaldson's frank and often humorous descriptions of dog behaviour have challenged my beliefs and values to their very core. I highly recommend this book to anyone who's interested in moving beyond the "Walt Disney dog" myth and seeing a dog for what it really is...and isn't.

Reprinted with permission from Celebrating Greyhounds: The Magazine, Winter, 1997. © Jody Frederick

Reviewed Publication: 

The Culture Clash

http://staging.adopt-a-greyhound.org/sites/adopt-a-greyhound.org/files/publications/books/bc-donaldson-s.jpg
By: 
Jean Donaldson
Published by: 
James & Kenneth Publishers, Berkeley, CA
ISBN: 
1888047054
1996

excerpt from our review: If you share your life with dogs, you owe it to yourself and your canines to pick up a copy of Jean Donaldson's book The Culture Clash. It will give you new and amazing insight into dog behaviour that will provide you with ideas of how to improve your relationship and understanding of your best friend. The book emphasizes training but it is very basic. The everyday dog owner can learn a great deal about dog behaviour from this book even though they might not be interested in obedience competition.

Out of Print: 
0
Category: 
General Dog Training / Activities
Review: 
The Culture Clash

excerpt from our review: If you share your life with dogs, you owe it to yourself and your canines to pick up a copy of Jean Donaldson's book The Culture Clash. It will give you new and amazing insight into dog behaviour that will provide you with ideas of how to improve your relationship and understanding of your best friend. The book emphasizes training but it is very basic. The everyday dog owner can learn a great deal about dog behaviour from this book even though they might not be interested in obedience competition.


Caninestein
Unleashing the Genius in Your Dog
By Betty Fisher, Suzanne Delzio, Published by HarperCollins, ISBN: 0062734857, Nov 1997

Seven out of ten Americans think of their pets as children, and they spend more than $680 million a year on their "babies", buying gourmet food, health insurance, and even daycare. Caninestein is for these doting parents who want to make sure that their beloved pooch leads the pack when it comes to intelligence.


Greyhound/Sighthound specific

So You Want to Run Your Sighthound
By Denise Como, Published by the author privately, 1996. $15.00 paperback. To order, write to: Denise Como 741 Lakehurst Ave Jackson NJ 08527, 1996

So You Want to Run Your Sighthound

Reviewed by: 
Laurel E. Drew

If you have ever considered entering your sighthound in one of the various forms of running sports for gazehounds, this could be one of your most invaluable resources. It ranks right up there with having the rule books for the various sports in which you are interested. It's handy for those of us who have been at the games for a while but could use a refresher and reminder as well as for rank novices. 

In addition to basic information on lure coursing and how to do it, Ms. Como provides a brief guide to lesser known running sports such as NOTRA (National Oval Track Racining Association), NOFCA (National Open Field Coursing Association), NPR and ARM racing (for whippets), and even LGRA (Large Gazehound Racing Association) which holds events similar to the whippet straight line racing. These are the best know groups, but others are also mentioned. 

There is good advice on conditioning your hound and on feeding for performance. First aid and veterinary information are given in two chapters. Some of the best sections are the ones on how to actually enter a coursing trial and what to expect and do once you get there. The novice will find this invaluable! 

Hints on starting puppies on chasing the "petroleum hare" are also succinct but very handy. Box breaking for NOTRA and LGRA events is mentioned but needs to be expanded. I believe that this may be done in the new edition which is now in preparation. 

One of the more fascinating sections is a brief breed history and standard for each of 18 different sighthound breeds including the Italian Greyhound plus some information on the American Staghound. Additional "newly discovered" breeds will be included in the new editon, I am told. 

Last but not least, there are useful chapters containing a bibliography of sighthound books and sources of special sighthound equipment. A final chapter lists the addresses of all the national sighthound field sport organizations. 

And, I cannot close without mentioning the clever and thoroughly enjoyable cartoons done by Maryann Conran. They are so true to the breeds and the sport that I giggle every time I look at them. I would love a copy of the closing cartoon of an out-of-shape Greyhound in front of a mirror to hang on my refrigerator! 

So You Want to Run Your Sighthound is a handy little guide which will only get better in the new edition, but if you plan to run your dog soon, don't wait for that. Get this one--and fast!

Reprinted with permission from Celebrating Greyhounds: The Magazine, Fall, 1997. © Laurel E. Drew, El-Aur Greyhounds, Greyhound Club of America Archivist

Reviewed Publication: 

So You Want to Run Your Sighthound

http://staging.adopt-a-greyhound.org/sites/adopt-a-greyhound.org/files/default_images/not_available.gif
By: 
Denise Como
Published by: 
the author privately, 1996. $15.00 paperback. To order, write to: Denise Como 741 Lakehurst Ave Jackson NJ 08527
1996

If you have ever considered entering your sighthound in one of the various forms of running sports for gazehounds, this could be one of your most invaluable resources. It ranks right up there with having the rule books for the various sports in which you are interested. It's handy for those of us who have been at the games for a while but could use a refresher and reminder as well as for rank novices. Laurel Drew

Out of Print: 
0
Category: 
Greyhound/Sighthound specific
Review: 
So You Want to Run Your Sighthound

If you have ever considered entering your sighthound in one of the various forms of running sports for gazehounds, this could be one of your most invaluable resources. It ranks right up there with having the rule books for the various sports in which you are interested. It's handy for those of us who have been at the games for a while but could use a refresher and reminder as well as for rank novices. Laurel Drew


Running With the Big Dogs
The Gentle Art of Training Your Retired Racing Greyhound into Your Best Friend
By Lee Livingood, Published by the author privately. 1997 $21.95 plus $4 shipping and handling per copy To order, write to: Lee Livingood 4807 Lancer St. Harrisburg, PA 17109-3231 or contact the author by e-mail at lcl@paonline.com

Running with the Big Dogs

Reviewed by: 
Terrill Schulcraft

Running with the Big Dogs fills a gap that has existed in available literature about greyhound adoption. In it Lee Livingood discusses greyhound behavior and the reasons behind that behavior, and gives good suggestions on how to make the transition from a working racing dog to family life in the community. She accomplishes this without playing on the pity theme that results in adoptions that don't work out once the adopter's altruistic feelings have subsided. 

What the racing greyhound may not be familiar with is the need to share daily life, night and day, with humans, both adults and children. They may never have seen another breed of dog than other greyhounds. They have probably never lived in a house with a family. They have never in their lives been totally alone -- they've always been surrounded by other greyhounds and, in the daytime at least, many people who are experienced in handling dogs. 

They move into a life where they are expected to be alone for periods of time, where they have more actual freedom to move about all day, and where they are expected to know some words they've never had to understand before, like "Sit!" and "Stay!" Their new owners don't usually have anything near the experience with dogs that racing trainers and breeders have. Livingood shows us how to introduce our hounds to their new life, with many training suggestions that are all based on kindness, positive motivation and no punishment. 

In addition to the training, she discusses supplies the new adopter may need, what problems to look out for and what behaviors may be different from those of dogs bred and raised as pets. There is an excellent resource list at the end of the book. 

She also touches on the special needs of the aging greyhound and how they can be managed. 

All in all, Running with the Big Dogs is a must-have for anyone new to greyhounds and a very useful source for all of us who care for these wonderful hounds. It is illustrated with good photographs of greyhounds learning and playing, and it is well written with humor and understanding. 

The book is currently published in a loose-leaf notebook form, but I understand a spiral-bound edition is in the works.

Reprinted with permission from Celebrating Greyhounds: The Magazine, Fall 1998. © Terrill Schulcraft; Northcountry Kennels, Near Hershey, PA, USA terrills@ezonline.com

Reviewed Publication: 

Running With the Big Dogs

http://staging.adopt-a-greyhound.org/sites/adopt-a-greyhound.org/files/default_images/not_available.gif
The Gentle Art of Training Your Retired Racing Greyhound into Your Best Friend
By: 
Lee Livingood
Published by: 
the author privately. 1997 $21.95 plus $4 shipping and handling per copy To order, write to: Lee Livingood 4807 Lancer St. Harrisburg, PA 17109-3231 or contact the author by e-mail at lcl@paonline.com

excerpt from our review: Running with the Big Dogs fills a gap that has existed in available literature about greyhound adoption. In it Lee Livingood discusses greyhound behavior and the reasons behind that behavior, and gives good suggestions on how to make the transition from a working racing dog to family life in the community. She accomplishes this without playing on the pity theme that results in adoptions that don't work out once the adopter's altruistic feelings have subsided.

Out of Print: 
0
Category: 
Greyhound/Sighthound specific
Review: 
Running with the Big Dogs

excerpt from our review: Running with the Big Dogs fills a gap that has existed in available literature about greyhound adoption. In it Lee Livingood discusses greyhound behavior and the reasons behind that behavior, and gives good suggestions on how to make the transition from a working racing dog to family life in the community. She accomplishes this without playing on the pity theme that results in adoptions that don't work out once the adopter's altruistic feelings have subsided.


Play Training Your Dog
By Patricia Gail Burnham, Published by St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010, ISBN: 0312616910, 1986

Ms. Burnham is a well known breeder and trainer of a fine line of show champion greyhounds, and her book on dog training is based on her experience training her own dogs.

This is not written as a guide to general Greyhound care. It is an obedience training book written by a Greyhound breeder and all but two pages of the many lovely illustrations are photographs of Greyhounds. It covers basic obedience (AKC) through the Utility Dog exercises.


Making Friends Training Your Dog Positively
By Linda Colflesh, illustrated by Deb Mickey, Published by Howell Book House, ISBN: 0876056877, 1990

The Author has greyhounds and has pictures of them in her books; this book is wonderful for the sighthound breed and other breeds that are not obedience loving dogs.


George Curtis Training Greyhounds
By George Curtis & Julia Barnes, Published by Bantam Books, ISBN: 094895566X, 1993

General Dog Training / Activities, Essential Reading

Childproofing Your Dog
A Complete Guide to Preparing Your Dog for the Children in Your Life
By Brian Kilcommons and Sarah Wilson, Published by Warner Books, ISBN: 0446670162, Apr 1st 1994

Child Proofing Your Dog

Reviewed by: 
Joan Dillon

If you already have a dog and are expecting a baby, already have kids and want to get a dog, or already have kids and dogs and want to improve the status quo, then this is the book for you. 

To quote the authors, Childproofing is about preventing the preventable as much as that is humanly possible. Thats exactly what this book is about. It is no promise that your dog or any other dog will never harm a child. But it does give you many steps and exercises that you can do with your dog and your child to help them avoid some of the most common problems. 

This book will help you to train your dog to deal with children in ways that are both easy to understand and fun to do. It will also provide you with a good foundation for understanding and communicating with your dog. 

As far as I am concerned this book is the Bible for dealing with kid and dog problems. It covers everything from getting your dog ready to accept a new baby to avoiding problems when bringing the baby home. It covers the subjects of dogs and toddlers and dogs and small children. It even gives instructions for various games for children to play with their dog which will help the dog to understand its proper place in the family. In addition, there is also a section on dogproofing your child to help them understand the rules to follow in dealing with strange dogs. 

Brian Kilcommons is one of the countrys foremost dog trainers as well as the only American to study under the renowned Barbara Woodhouse. He was also the official trainer for the PBS series, The Gentle Doctor: Veterinary Medicine. 

This book provides wonderful insight into the reasons why dogs act the way they do around children as well as ways for dealing with any potential problems before they become major problems. Highly recommended.

Reprinted with permission from Celebrating Greyhounds: The Magazine, Winter, 1996. © Joan Dillon

Reviewed Publication: 

Childproofing Your Dog

http://staging.adopt-a-greyhound.org/sites/adopt-a-greyhound.org/files/publications/books/bc-kilcommons-s.jpg
A Complete Guide to Preparing Your Dog for the Children in Your Life
By: 
Brian Kilcommons and Sarah Wilson
Published by: 
Warner Books
ISBN: 
0446670162
Apr 1st 1994

Master dog trainer and author of Good Owners, Great Dogs, Brian Kilcommons shows readers how to encourage children and dogs to be perfect companions, in a comprehensive manual that demonstrates how to train an older dog to acept an infant, choose the right breed, and more

Out of Print: 
0
Category: 
Essential Reading
General Dog Training / Activities
Review: 
Child Proofing Your Dog

Master dog trainer and author of Good Owners, Great Dogs, Brian Kilcommons shows readers how to encourage children and dogs to be perfect companions, in a comprehensive manual that demonstrates how to train an older dog to acept an infant, choose the right breed, and more