Christmas list

Get to know other Positively members here.

Moderators: emmabeth, BoardHost

Post Reply
bendog
Posts: 2188
Joined: Fri Jan 07, 2011 7:42 am

Christmas list

Post by bendog »

So decided I'm going to add some dog books onto my Christmas list.
Patricia McConnell is on my list already - any other authors/books you can recommend?

I would also like to get a book for my cousin to help her understand the problems with her fear aggressive collie cross. Any suggestions? There's feisty fido? But I'm sure there are other books that would address the topic too.
jacksdad
Posts: 4887
Joined: Thu Dec 10, 2009 10:48 pm

Re: Christmas list

Post by jacksdad »

Patricia McConnell is probably hands down the best speaker/author for introducing positive based training and dog aggression solutions to non dog geeks. her style is to basically speak in a clear, entertaining and engaging way that is easy to follow, understand and your eyes don't start glazing over.

Other end of the leash and feisty fido are probably THE place to start for someone completely new to dog training and/or dog aggression. Other end of the leash is a great book to help get the positive mindset going and for those who just want to know what they can do NOW...feisty fido is a short and quick read and gets you going "today".

Scaredy dog by Ali Brown is a VERY close second. I really like her book. It dives deeper into the subject of fear based dog aggression than Patricia's book, but is still an easy to read and understand book.
http://www.scaredydog.info/

Nichole Wilde is also a VERY close second. her book is a "monster" packed with LOTS and LOTS of great tips, information etc. it is easy to read and follow, but it's size might be a turn off to a non "dog geek"
http://www.nicolewilde.com/store/help-f ... arful-dog/

Debbie Jacobs is a new name for most of us, I have her book, haven't read it yet so I can't comment on her writing style. It's not a thick book, it falls in between Patricia and Ali's books in size. But I did get to see her give a talk back in September and was VERY impressed. Really, really liked the things she said. She even recently popped in for a post or two here. Hopefully she comes around more.
http://fearfuldogs.com/

Grisha Stewart has her bat books and recently released a "training manual". She is very passionate about force free, fear free training
http://ahimsadogtraining.com/

Jean Donaldson has a lot of great stuff. however, I would not suggest her for the non dog geek or professional trainer or aspiring trainer. her style is a lot more technical, very, very much into educating people on the theories and concepts, but a lot of times (not all, but a lot) leaves it to you to figure out how to apply the concepts in the real world. For you, HIGHLY recommend, for your friend maybe not. The exception being her "how to train like a pro book". that book was writen for the non trainer/dog geek audience.
http://www.dogwise.com/SearchResults.cf ... rch=author

If your looking to get into more technical stuff, the theories of learning, the geeky behind the scenes of training and such, names like

pat miller
Kathy sdao
suzanne clotheir
karen pryor
Pamela Reid

come to mind off the top of my head.

hope that helps get you started.
rachel540
Posts: 515
Joined: Wed Feb 15, 2012 9:31 am
Location: West Yorkshire

Re: Christmas list

Post by rachel540 »

Other end of the leash is on my xmas list - i hope santa gets it for me :D
Pictures of Pepper viewtopic.php?f=31&t=14364
OnceInAWeil
Posts: 431
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 4:20 pm
Location: AZ, USA

Re: Christmas list

Post by OnceInAWeil »

I really loved Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt for helping reactive dogs. It's available in both book and DVD format. Click to Calm by Emma Parsons is another good one. Scaredy Dog! also, but that's already been mentioned. :) The Other End of the Leash is on my reading list.
bendog
Posts: 2188
Joined: Fri Jan 07, 2011 7:42 am

Re: Christmas list

Post by bendog »

Thanks for the suggestions!
Jacksdad - geekier the better for me, I have a biology degree (1st) which included some animal behaviour - mostly mating in dung flies and alarm calls in ground squirrels and stuff but still - should give me a foundation for understanding some of the ideas.

I've followed Patricia's blog for a long time but yet to read her books so the other end of the leash and for the love of a dog are on my wish list.
Like the idea of scaredy dog for my cousin.
jacksdad
Posts: 4887
Joined: Thu Dec 10, 2009 10:48 pm

Re: Christmas list

Post by jacksdad »

OnceInAWeil wrote:I really loved Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt for helping reactive dogs. It's available in both book and DVD format.
Leslie has some REALLY, REALLY good stuff. I have her book an DVD...LOVE what she has to say... BUT...... I would not recommend her stuff some someone who isn't really that interested in diving deep. Leslie's style of writing and her DVDs....well.....ummmm...her style.....errrr...... unless you are super excited about training and diving in deeper verse just wanting a quick answer, probably not the best book or dvd to start someone out on. ie bendog's cousin.

wouldn't hesitate to suggest to the rest of you though.
OnceInAWeil
Posts: 431
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 4:20 pm
Location: AZ, USA

Re: Christmas list

Post by OnceInAWeil »

jacksdad wrote: Leslie's style of writing and her DVDs....well.....ummmm...her style.....errrr...... unless you are super excited about training and diving in deeper verse just wanting a quick answer, probably not the best book or dvd to start someone out on. ie bendog's cousin.
True story. :lol: :lol:
dontpugme
Posts: 1294
Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2009 8:01 pm
Location: Houston, Texas

Re: Christmas list

Post by dontpugme »

Dr. Nicholas Dodman published a really interesting book called "The Dog Who Loved Too Much: Tales, Treatments and the Psychology of Dogs" that I loved.

Although I really LOVED and appreciated Other End of the Leash, I enjoyed her "For the Love of a Dog: Understanding Emotion in You and Your Best Friend" more.

I'm currently reading Blink by Malcolm Gladwell because she referenced it a lot in there. (I think it was her...it might have been Karen Pryor in her book "Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals" which I REAAAAAALLLLY LOOOOOOVED)
--dontpugme
OnceInAWeil
Posts: 431
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 4:20 pm
Location: AZ, USA

Re: Christmas list

Post by OnceInAWeil »

dontpugme wrote: "Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals" which I REAAAAAALLLLY LOOOOOOVED
I loved that one, too! Blew me away. It's what made me a firm believer in clicker (and gentle, positive) training.
MPbandmom
Posts: 1637
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2010 7:18 pm

Re: Christmas list

Post by MPbandmom »

One book not mentioned yet that I really liked was "When Pigs Fly." The battery is dead on my kindle, so I'm not sure of the author. It talks about biddable and not so biddable breeds and dogs and how to turn a not so biddable dog into one. As I recall, it was very step by step and took one through a process.

I was very tempted, but did not follow the process. I think this is largely due to my cat ownership background. I'm not totally sure I want an animal doting on my every move and word, although there are times when I know this would be a big advantage to working with my dogs in the big distracting world. I think this would possibly be less of an issue for me if there were only one dog and fewer family members detracting from any training that I do. As I recall the first step was teach the dog to love their name and never use it in a harsh manner. That is a total fail in this household especailly where a certain little reactive dog is let out into the front yard and then yelled at (by name) to come back inside when she starts fence charging and barking at something passing by. :roll:
Grammy to Sky and Sirius, who came to live with me, stole my heart, and changed my life forever as I took over their care and learned how to be a dog owner.
emmabeth
Posts: 8894
Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 9:24 pm
Location: West Midlands
Contact:

Re: Christmas list

Post by emmabeth »

I found Pigs Fly to be VERY useful with shelter dogs who have little to no reason to listen to people at all - just getting some of the regular walking volunteers do so some of the things from that has really really helped a few dogs to find homes, becuase no one wants to rehome a dog that ignores them!

I am currently reading Temple Grandin's Animals In Translation and for any animal geek I think its a 'must read' even if its mainly about cows/pigs/sheep its still a very interesting insight!
West Midlands based 1-2-1 Training & Behaviour Canine Consultant
User avatar
Nettle
Posts: 10753
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:40 pm

Re: Christmas list

Post by Nettle »

Yes, Temple Grandin gives a lot of useful information. But (like all books) MUST be read critically as she is so very wrong about some things, including aspects of dog behaviour and some of her theories about poultry. As we would expect, she is spot-on about cattle.
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS
User avatar
minkee
Posts: 2034
Joined: Wed Apr 06, 2011 7:58 am
Location: Yorkshire
Contact:

Re: Christmas list

Post by minkee »

The first 'positive' dog book that I read was Suzanne Clothier's 'Bones would rain from the sky' ... or something along those lines anyway, I'll look it up exactly in a bit. It was the first book that I read that put into words the feelings that we should... well.. be nice to our dogs. I remember it very fondly, and it's full of nice tales of her and her clients.

http://flyingdogpress.com/content/view/12/56/
Post Reply