Dogs for Dummies
Dogs for Dummies Books
Product Description
You’ll want to send Rover out to fetch a copy of Dogs For Dummies, the doggy book that answers just about any question you may ever have about your canine companion. What? Rover doesn’t know how to fetch? Not to worry. Just turn to Chapter 20 to find everything that you (and Rover) need to know. In Dogs For Dummies, award-winning syndicated pet care columnist (and host of the Pet Care Forum on AOL) Gina Spadafori offers sage advice about everything from housetraining and veterinary care to grooming techniques, basic training, and asinine things you can teach your dog. With this handy reference as your guide, you find all the in rank you need to find and care for healthy puppies or adult dogs. Amazon.com Review
Dogs for Dummies should be required reading for anyone considering purchasing or adopting a dog. In this comprehensive, yet concise and entertaining book, author Gina Spadafori, pet care columnist for Universal Press Syndicate and host of AOL’s “Gina Spadafori’s Pet Connection,” makes a strong case for researching breeds and considering how certain types of dogs will or won’t fit an owner’s lifestyle. She doesn’t pull any punches in describing the fate of dogs who have been wrongly chosen by well-intentioned owners, then given up for possible adoption, but probable euthanasia, because they are too active, too aggressive, poorly trained, or, appallingly, because they don’t fit in with the owner’s décor.
For readers considering a purebred dog, Spadafori provides extensive in rank on selecting a breed that will fit an owner’s lifestyle, including sources of possible breeders such as magazines, Internet sites, and AKC breed clubs, and tips for screening breeders to weed out the unscrupulous or the ignorant. She strongly encourages adoption of shelter animals, though, pointing out that many of the dogs who wind up in shelters are healthy, young, and lovable animals who would make brilliant pets for the aptly people. She recommends proceeding with caution when shopping pet stores for puppies due to the high percentage of pet store puppies that come from puppy mills where animals are bred indiscriminately and often kept in horrifying conditions. Likewise, she discourages purchasing puppies from “patch breeders” believing that this only encourages irresponsible pet ownership by giving owners a reason to keep breeding their pets rather than altering them.
Once a breed or type of dog has been selected, Dogs for Dummies moves on to the matter-of-fact aspects of ownership, including bringing home a puppy or adult dog, feeding and grooming, veterinary care from puppyhood to ancient age, training and dealing with behavioral problems, and traveling with pets. One of the most fascinating chapters of the book debunks common myths about dogs–that a barking dog won’t bite, for instance. Spadafori even includes a chapter on asinine tricks to teach your dog and another on “must-see” dog sites on the World Wide Web.
Buy Cheap Dogs for Dummies Online
Related posts:
“dogs for dummies” serves the necessary knowledge with humor but a few points would need less generalization and more distinction. most of all, one topic is downright unacceptable: the author, gina spadafori, unfortunately contributes to the myth that leaving a puppy/dog lonely every day even as being at work is ,okay’ – a common (& very convenient) misconception i did not guess to find in such a well loved book – hence only 3 stars from me.
in “getting the relationship off to the best start” (part II), she never questions whether leaving a dog lonely for a whole workday may perhaps not be the ,aptly thing to do’. according to her, all the working owner needs to do is buy a crate…
she mentions that the dog owner is expected to go home for lunch and walk the pup a small, feed it a bit, play with it a even as, give it another possibility to do its business and then place puppy back into the crate. apart from the fact that it is unrealistic that dog owners live close to home, she feeds the illusion that crating is acceptable dog-owner-behaviour. thanks to people like the author it is no wonder that crates have become such a well loved ‘tool’. in the case of the absent owner it turns into a form of daily kenneling.
even though ms. spadafori raises the awareness that it’s the owner who mainly contributes and shapes a dogs behaviour, and even though she connects being alone to unwanted behaviour (chewing, soiling etc.), she does not connect crating with problematic behaviour and poor socialization.
basically, ms. spadafori indirectly recommends to get a dog, place it in a crate (or a fenced yard) go to work and place it lonely. but on top of an 8 hour workday, people also need to commute, shop and want to have a social life – and most shopping malls, theaters & pubs do not allow dogs.
even as she fosters our emotional connection with the animal by asking bluntly: would YOU like to be treated this way?”, she does not go the extra mile: well, would you want to be caged for hours, days without end?
she also draws examples from the dogs’ wild ancestors only when this is convenient. otherwise she would have to admit that wolf pups are never, NEVER left lonely. every dog will perceive this as a punishment, making stress from early on.
so, in small: IT IS NOT ,OKAY’ TO LEAVE A DOG ALONE. it is NOT in it’s nature to be all by itself for a prolonged period of time and certainly not an a daily basis! sleeping with the owner in his or her bedroom at night does not make up for the many lonely hours during daytime nor does it make up for the gone socialization – which is a 24-hour-administer that can not be reduced to a few hours per day.
there are better options… from taking a dog to work (some workplaces already allow dogs, others might be willing to acept them – it is worth inquiring), to getting two dogs from the start, to pet-sitters and/or pet-care-groups – just to name a few.
Rating: 3 / 5
This book is so full of misinformation that I shudder to reckon (since it is in the “dummies” run), that this may be the only in rank that many people will read before they embark upon a very serious commitment with a dog.
It is poorly researched, full of dogma and nonsense.
If you have to read a “quick book” find one written by an expert – a veterinarian, or anyone with a track record in animals. Instant info can be found on bulletin discussion boards, magazines etc.
Rating: 1 / 5
This book does a pretty excellent job and giving the reader the highlights of dog owenership. Its also a pretty excellent starting top if you are trying to find a breed. But, it is too simple if you have already bought a dog and now want to care for it properly.
Rating: 2 / 5
My name is Will Townsend. I am a thirteen year-ancient boy that is considering getting a Boxer puppy for Christmas from my parents. I checked this book out at my local library thought it would tell about specific breeds of dogs. I read it and found twice in this book the mention of Boxers. I was very displeased with this. I read most of the rest and found it very fascinating. I read topics on if you need a puppy or not or which puppy to get. I loved this book very much. I would hope that another book of this kind would come out on the topic of dogs very soon.
Sincerely,
Will Townsend
Rating: 5 / 5
I found this book very well written, well researched and comprehensive. She covers all the basic topics that are of use to novice dog owners. She also warns of typical pitfalls in a number of areas — when selecting a dog, when training, it, and so on. In addition she outlines the extent of coverage of dogs on the Internet. I liked her book quite a bit, and that’s not because of the plugs she gave to my site *smile*. Sincerely, this is the only book I’ve reviewed that I’ve given a 10 to. Thought of getting a dog? Do yourself and the puppy a huge act of kindness, get this book!
Rating: 5 / 5