Hi, everyone! I’m new to the forum, but have been “lurking” for many months. I have a “problem” dog, and when my other (old) dog died a year ago, I threw myself into sorting her out. I’ve done a lot of online research on books and have bought quite a few. The kind that go far deeper than “teaching your dog to sit” and focus more on actual behaviour and learning patterns. I’ve found nearly all of them fascinating and they’ve gone a long way to help me have a “less-of-a-problem” dog (work in progress!);)

It’s obvious that a lot of you are well-read when it comes to dog training. A lot of very good advice is given on here. Lotti's, in particular.

So, which books come with the Sheffield Pet Owners seal of approval? And why?

I’d like to nominate 2 (to start with…. I’ve spent a lot of money on books this year!).

Firstly, The Culture Clash – Jean Donaldson
This is the first one I read at the beginning of the year when I decided to take control of the miserable situation I was in. I believe that if our dogs could recommend a book for us to read, it would be this one. It really makes you look at things from the dog’s point of view and takes away a lot of the anger you feel when your dog is so BAD! It made me feel like the worst dog owner on the planet, and then gave me hope that things could change.

I think this is the kind of book you either love or you hate, but I wish I had read it before I got my puppy (who’s now 6). Things would have been very different. Anyone who is getting frustrated by their dog’s behaviour should give it a go.

I cried many times during this book! In particular, the bit where she asks you to imagine you’ve been taken in on an alien planet where the aliens speak in high pitched whistles and act in ways you don’t understand. If that doesn’t stop you shouting at your dog, I don’t know what will!

Its only downfall is that she depicts dogs in a very simplistic manner, and we dog-lovers don’t really like that. She is basically trying to tackle people who expect their barking, feisty, scavenging, bitey, fox-poo-rolling dog to be like Lassie. If you’re lucky enough to have a dog that behaves like Lassie, then you are truly blessed (as I was with my first), but if you’ve got a “normal” dog, please recognise that that’s what you’ve got. A normal dog. And it’s your job to help it live by the confusing and illogical rules of human society. This book will help you do that, even if you do feel like you're being beaten with a stick while you read it!

My second recommendation is The Other End of the Leash - Patricia McConnell
This is a LOVELY book. She is pretty much in the same camp as Jean Donaldson, but doesn’t tell you off as much! And she gives a lot more credit for dogs having personalities. There is as much in there about human behaviour being related to chimps as there is about dog behaviour being related to wolves. Every chapter has little stories of her own life as a behaviourist and on her farm with her sheep dogs. She brings her dogs to life and completely immerses you into her world. Every chapter is fascinating. I cried ALL the way through this one, not out of guilt, but out of admiration for our little four-footed friends. If you don’t have problems with your dog, I STILL recommend this one. Every dog-lover should read it. It’s less of a training manual and more of an autobiography. I couldn’t put it down.

As this is a very long post, I'll leave it there for now! Hope it isn't too long. As my area of "experience" is aggression :( , I'll be back at some point with 2 recommendations specifically for owners like me, but I would still recommend the 2 books above to be read first.

I also love 'the other end of the leash' and have been told the 'dog whisperer' is good, though I haven't got round to reading that one yet.

The other end of the leash is nice as she really talks about her dog's characters and you can tell they mean so much to her.

I will keep a look out for the culture clash too although at the moment I don't have a lot of time to read, with having multiple novels to read for uni...

by the way - thanks for mentioning my advice - nice to know it's appreciated :D

Can't think of the other one I've read right now, will let you know soon. Also know a lot of 'professional' trainers who I chat to regularly so learn a lot from them.

I have to say I haven't read any dog training books, as I had my grandad as a guide to respecting a dog, and spent one heck of a lot of time reading up on beagle breed characteristics to enable me to understand the world from his perspective ;)

Having established that I was going to be the owner of a dog for whom scent was everything, and food only a close second - with the power of destruction only rivalled by a car compactor, I had a good place to start from :thumbsup:

I'd be VERY interested in reading a book that helps you to identify your dog's motivating factors instead of lumping all breeds in together

You wouldn't believe the number of times I have to explain to my ex-jack russell owning relatives that you can't play tug of war with my 'over dominant, rip a bunny to shreds, if I win I'm stronger than you' beagle :roll:
they'd be letting him win as part of the game, but he'd perceive himself as having really won, and would be displaying further dominance :suspect:
You can only tug with him if you make him leave and sit, then throw the toy for him to chase.... and note it's 'chase', he doesn't 'fetch', as he's not a retriever. Once it stops moving, it's dead, and he loses interest ;)

What breed of dog do you have Elsa?
(Or nearest guess as to possible breeds if your's is a heinz ;) )

Strix, if you want to borrow 'the other end of the leash' you can do. I don't have time to finish it off at the moment due to uni and it's surprising how well written it is. She doesn't lump all breeds together and explains how her different breeds of dogs - she has border collies and a pyrenean, if I recall - are so different.

You may find it interesting...

Thanks Lotti :)

Do you think I can get his lordship to read it too? :suspect:

I also love 'the other end of the leash' and have been told the 'dog whisperer' is good, though I haven't got round to reading that one yet.
:D

The dog whisperer is very good, it helped our 1st rescue dog who used to chew his paws as he was so upset we'd left the house. We changed him in to a loving, and more importantly secure dog who understood we would be coming home when we went out.

We are using the same techniques on our 2nd rescue dog, he's a staffy cross and a bit bouncy at the moment so its slightly more difficult to make him concentrate!!

My dog is a border collie/terrier cross. Can't really think of a worse mix, but she has calmed down a lot in the past year or so. She's becoming a little less of a toddler-like responsibility and a bit more of a friend. She's always had big shoes to fill, though, as the dog I lost last year was my best friend and soul mate. One-in-a-million.

Strix - The Other End of the Leash is well-worth a read to any dog lover. And it goes quite deep into research that has been done with both dogs and primates. I've read quite a few that overlap with their research so it's difficult to remember which book talked about what! I've found them absolutely fascinating, though, and as Lotti says, this one is just brimming with the love she has for her dogs.

I'll give it a good read if Lotti's going to lend it to me ;)

... after I've finished this NLP book I've been lent :suspect: