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Audio (from NPR):
Obedience School, Eastern-Style, by Daniel Pinkwater. Listen
Of Pets and Men, training Gumbo
- a commentary by Robin Chotzinoff. Listen
Recommeded books:
I have read many books on dog training.The first one was:
Training You to Train Your Dog
by Blanche Saunders Garden City, N.Y., Doubleday,1965. I was 13
years old when I read this.
Also useful:
Behavior Problems in Dogs
by William E Campbell, Santa
Barbara, Calif. American Veterinary Publications, 1975 (book available
from his website)
Jelly Bean versus Dr. Jekyll &
Mr. Hyde:Written for the Safety of our Children and the Welfare
of
our Dogs by C. W. Meisterfeld: Petaluma, CA, : M R K Pub.,
1989 - useful information for dealing with fear biters and other
dogs with agression problems - saved at least one of my dog's
lives.
Serious dog trainers and behaviorists will also get much valuable
information from this classic study of dog behavior:
Genetics
and the social behavior of the dog, by John
Paul Scott; John L Fuller. Chicago, University of Chicago
Press, 1965. This book is "the single most important and
comprehensive reference work on the behavior of dogs ever complied."
This book is in print and available - and at many libraries.
Some of the earlier books on dog training use methods that I
think are pretty harsh.
I now use treats and a version of clicker training - "kiss"
training, which uses the human clicking sound rather than a tool.
I am trying to use pretty much only positive reinforcement, but
I do try to teach dogs the meaning of a negative sound - not always
the word "no," but something that lets him know that
a certain behavior is not good.
It depends on the dog. I have some dogs that would pretty much
"melt" if I said a harsh word to them, and others that
ignore me.
I highly recommend taking your dog to a good training class where
you learn how to work with him yourself. I have attended at least
25 training classes over the years.
Happy walkies.
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