Good "owners manuals" for new dog owners?
October 30, 2013 11:35 PM Subscribe
What are good "owners manuals" for new dog owners?
I'm looking into getting a pug puppy. My experience with dogs is third-party. I'd like to know of good books that bring the prospective owner into the world of what's involved: particularly with respect to crate/potty training, when to take said puppy to the vet, what procedures to do (shots, etc.) as the lad grows up.
Online sites are fine but I'm really just interested in books that I can read through and come back to as the months and years go by. Thanks for any advice!
I'm looking into getting a pug puppy. My experience with dogs is third-party. I'd like to know of good books that bring the prospective owner into the world of what's involved: particularly with respect to crate/potty training, when to take said puppy to the vet, what procedures to do (shots, etc.) as the lad grows up.
Online sites are fine but I'm really just interested in books that I can read through and come back to as the months and years go by. Thanks for any advice!
Best answer: I am not sure she falls under the category of dog manual but I love Patricia McConnell, her book, The other end of the leash, is a great dog book and I like her training methods as well.
I love pugs. They are so snoreful (Iknow that is not a word but it kinda describes what they sound like).
posted by cairnoflore at 1:33 AM on October 31, 2013 [4 favorites]
I love pugs. They are so snoreful (Iknow that is not a word but it kinda describes what they sound like).
posted by cairnoflore at 1:33 AM on October 31, 2013 [4 favorites]
Best answer: I highly recommend Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson. It really changed the way I think about dog training, after having done several more traditional obedience classes with various dogs I've had. It is very positive reinforcement based and makes a lot of sense from a scientific point of view. It has an extensive section on crate training, which you mentioned you are looking for. I've come back and re-read this book multiple times, it's a great resource, in my opinion. Good luck with any pup you get!
posted by PinkPoodle at 4:56 AM on October 31, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by PinkPoodle at 4:56 AM on October 31, 2013 [3 favorites]
Best answer: biscotti's suggestions are here (scroll down to 'recommended reading')
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 5:33 AM on October 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 5:33 AM on October 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: "How to be your dog's best friend" by the monks of new skete, ny. they've also got a second, puppy-specific book, but I think the first one is a better overall book.
posted by rmd1023 at 6:15 AM on October 31, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by rmd1023 at 6:15 AM on October 31, 2013 [3 favorites]
Best answer: Patricia McConnell, mentioned above, has a number of dog training books that are clear and concise. I like Family Friendly Dog Training, but the puppy one might be a better start for you.
posted by Squeak Attack at 6:35 AM on October 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Squeak Attack at 6:35 AM on October 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Among my veterinary colleagues, Dr. Sophia Yin is all the rage.
I have also raised several generations of wonderful dogs using the Monks of New Skete's books.
Investigate your pug provider and pug progenitors carefully for upper airway problems, eye problems, and luxating patellas. Ask your vet specifically about these when you take the little lad in for his first visit.
posted by Seppaku at 6:40 AM on October 31, 2013 [5 favorites]
I have also raised several generations of wonderful dogs using the Monks of New Skete's books.
Investigate your pug provider and pug progenitors carefully for upper airway problems, eye problems, and luxating patellas. Ask your vet specifically about these when you take the little lad in for his first visit.
posted by Seppaku at 6:40 AM on October 31, 2013 [5 favorites]
Best answer: I was recommended Before You Get Your Puppy and After You Get Your Puppy and both are pretty good, although I felt one or two of the suggestions/requirements were a little unrealistic/bizarre. (Introduce puppy to at least 300 people within the first 6 months of life? Invite strange men into my house to meet the dog? What?)
I am excited to see puppy photos when you have made you selection.
posted by elizardbits at 6:56 AM on October 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
I am excited to see puppy photos when you have made you selection.
posted by elizardbits at 6:56 AM on October 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I assume you'll be getting your dog through a breeder. Ask your breeder! I got my stupid high-end dog through a really fantastic breeder, and she had great suggestions for me for resources specific to my breed.
posted by phunniemee at 7:51 AM on October 31, 2013
posted by phunniemee at 7:51 AM on October 31, 2013
Best answer: I highly recommend the Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook. It will save you so many "Is this normal?" "Is my dog dying???" trips to the vet to be told that the dog just ran too much at the park and now is tired, or that the dog itched himself because he happened to have an itch once, not because he's infected with some flesh-eating bacteria.
posted by melissasaurus at 8:17 AM on October 31, 2013
posted by melissasaurus at 8:17 AM on October 31, 2013
Best answer: Devoting Monks of New Skete. They have a ridiculous, probably assumption-based test for "determining adult personality from puppies". They also discourage buying rescue dogs - BOO!, and implicitly encouraging buying german shepherds, who are notoriously inbred in the US.
It's dated in its cartoons (though not in its advice), but I used "Mother Knows Best" by Carol Lea Benjamin.
My dog is regularly called "the best-behaved dog I've ever seen" by strangers, and, in part because he wasn't trained with food treats, he has immaculate food manners. I could put his favorite snack down on my coffee table, leave for work, and come home to a ravenously hungry dog, and his snack on my coffee table (which isn't for dogs).
Also, I agree with her that using approval & praise to reward good behavior builds better responses than snacks, or really anything else. My dog is hugely motivated by human approval, in everything he does. He'll sometimes bring a "new toy" he's found to my feet, to ask permission before chewing it... in case it isn't "his".
Only one data point, but huge successes training him with this book's guidance.
posted by IAmBroom at 9:18 AM on October 31, 2013
It's dated in its cartoons (though not in its advice), but I used "Mother Knows Best" by Carol Lea Benjamin.
My dog is regularly called "the best-behaved dog I've ever seen" by strangers, and, in part because he wasn't trained with food treats, he has immaculate food manners. I could put his favorite snack down on my coffee table, leave for work, and come home to a ravenously hungry dog, and his snack on my coffee table (which isn't for dogs).
Also, I agree with her that using approval & praise to reward good behavior builds better responses than snacks, or really anything else. My dog is hugely motivated by human approval, in everything he does. He'll sometimes bring a "new toy" he's found to my feet, to ask permission before chewing it... in case it isn't "his".
Only one data point, but huge successes training him with this book's guidance.
posted by IAmBroom at 9:18 AM on October 31, 2013
Best answer: Puppy's First Steps: Raising a Happy, Healthy, Well-Behaved Dog
From Tufts University Vet Med School...
posted by NoDef at 9:26 AM on October 31, 2013
From Tufts University Vet Med School...
posted by NoDef at 9:26 AM on October 31, 2013
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posted by MuffinMan at 12:23 AM on October 31, 2013