The Loved Dog: The Playful, Nonaggressive Way to Teach Your Dog Good Behavior

The Loved Dog: The Playful, Nonaggressive Way to Teach Your Dog Good Behavior | Tamar Geller | The Loved Dog

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The Loved Dog: The...

	The Loved Dog: The Playful, Nonaggressive Way to Teach Your Dog Good Behavior Tamar Geller Simon Spotlight Entertainment, 2007 - 256 pages average customer review:based on 92 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

There is No EASY Button

I've read several negative reviews of this book and of other dog-training books on Amazon and honestly it seems like people just want an Easy Button. The more books your read and the better you know your animal will help you develop your own style of training. Each person is unique, so where I don't allow my dogs on the furniture, many people reading this may love the cuddle time with their pup. No one book is giong to 100% resonate with you, so it's really about learning as much as you can and setting your dog up to succeed.

Climbing off my soap box, I think this is a great book for almost any dog owner. Let's face it, the majority of pet owners would hardly call themselves experts so it's frustrating when reviewers say books like this are recycled material. I commend anyone who's taking an active interest in learning how to train their dog. For those who want something clear and simple Tamar delivers. This is a How-To book that helps with the basics.

One of my favorite suggestions she gives is to have the dog sit for everythjing, just as if you were teaching a child to say please. The dog is in a calm state of mind and getting whatever reward he's sitting for in only that position. My dog now sits whenever he wants anything. Doesn't mean he always gets it, but it's his way of asking nicely instead of jumping in my lap.

When she talks about teaching tricks and behaviors, it was like a lightbulb went off in my head. I had never thought not to repeat myself over and over. The more I tried it (and it took patience on my part) I found that it actually worked quite well. Tamar instructs us to wait and let the dog "think" about it. I swear I could see the wheels turning in my dog's head. It's all logical though. If you asked me sit down and knit a blanket I couldn't do it. Saying it over and over and louder and louder would not overcome the fact that I don't know how to knit. With practice and incentive though, I could learn. So can your dog.

My last commetn for the book is training to "Back Off" I didn't understand its value at first, however I'm already teaching my 7 month old puppy the behavior b/c I use it so much. Instead of jumping and getting excited for what he wants, my dog almost does the opposite by walking away from me and then sitting. The best part is that he does it on his own. When I do tell him "off" it's either b/c he's in harm's way (like when I open a hot oven) or I just need space (tying shoes, putting food bowl down, or opening a door) it's nice for him to take a step or two backwards without it being a struggle. Overall this book taught me how to teach functional behaviors. The biographical part is maybe not necessary, but it does show why she's trying to take a loving approach to dog training. I recommend this book for anyone who looses patience with their dog and wants to react some way other than yelling. It's much less stressful =)

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The Loved Dog

It was a pleasure finally to find someone with whose gentle, sensible, methods, view point, and philosophy I agree, especially after some rather harsh tactics I have observed by other trainers. You can tell Tamar truly loves her dogs as much as most owners love their dogs. I am glad I happened to become familiar with her book. All dogs deserve to be the loved dog.

Beginners' dog training (with excessive name dropping)

I enjoyed this book, since I'm at the beginning of learning about dog training, in advance of getting a dog. But dear god, that woman likes to name drop! Did I mention Oprah's dogs? What about Olivia Newton-John? And my favorite, her best friend in the world is married to some moderately successful somebody, and she barely mentions her best friend to describe what her best friend's husband does... and then she gets to their dogs. Yikes.

That being said, she has a nice message, I like the nonviolent approach, and the fact that she does incorporate some pack behaviorism (alpha dog without the alpha roll or forced submission).

Next, I'm reading "The Other End of the Leash", "Culture Clash", and "How Your Dog Thinks" for a little meatier training. Tamar Geller is light and has a nice kind philosophy, and some good ideas about how to handle your dog(s).

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Good, but not great.

"The Loved Dog" doesn't teach or instruct the reader on anything more than common sense would dictate in dealing with dogs. Geller uses a much kinder method than other trainers, but the book is lacking in depth and detail. Too much time is spent on her past without really connecting the reader on anything more than a basic level. Once the training starts in the book, the author seems to speed through it without taking enough time to get fully into the hows and whys. More time is spent in commenting on all the famous folks that Geller knows and has worked with in the past. The book is definitely a good start to someone new to dog training, but wouldn't be the only book needed.

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