Raising Rover: Breed-By-Breed Training from Afghans to Yorkies

by Judith Halliburton

Book Overview

When it comes to understanding and training a dog, we all need a little help. This first-rate revolutionary guidebook tells you everything you need to know. Animal behaviorist and trainer Judith... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312143990
• ISBN13: 9780312143992
• Release Date: April 1996
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.9" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Worth Buying!!!

This humorous little book, has accurate information - and you'll find a ton of things that are true, but you haven't heard of before!A "must read" for anyone who has a dog, or is planning to own one. This book goes very in-depth with the breed porfiles, and I bet you that every, single piece of info is true.

Yes! Pugs are neither Border Collies nor Borzois

RAISING ROVER is definitely different from any other training book I've ever encountered, in that it concentrates on training tips and methods by breed of dog. In addition, I think it would be a marvelous book for would-be dog owners to peruse to help them decide which breed is right for them.The book starts with a 95 page general training section, the usual housetraining, obedience, dog pack "pecking order," and problem solving. I always find it useful to read these sectiosn because each author/trainer (Halliburton is an animal behaviorist and trainer) has different methods and new viewpoints and tidbits to add. Halliburton includes a chapter called, "It's Okay, It's Okay" about the pitfalls of trying to comfort one's dog in times of stress such as visits to the vet, loud thunderstorms, strange people, and the like.Then comes 175 pages of breed profiles--profiles of 87 of the most popular breeds (sorry, no Clumber Spaniel, Ibizan Hound, or Dogue de Bordeaux). The basis of these profiles is, of course, that well-bred purebred dogs (i.e. not bred willy-nilly at puppy mills--DO NOT buy from them or from pet stores!) have certain predictable behaviors for each breed, and particular ways of reacting, learning, and getting along with others.Each profile includes:What the dog was originally bred for: Basenjis were bred in Africa to act as guides to hunters and warn their human if there was a lion or some other dangerous animal in the vacinity.Housetraining tips: you can't tell if a Bloodhoud pup needs to go out just because he's sniffing the floor, becauses he's *always* sniffing the floor and everything else; if your Bulldog pup starts sniffing the floor, whisk him outside immediately; Poodles are one of the easiest to housetrain.Personality: Dachshunds can be problem barkers because they all think they're Mastiffs; Cocker Spaniels get along great with children and will happily follow them anywhere; Pekingese "have more guts than brains...wouldn't hesitate to protect you from a lion" (a Peke is a toy breed weighing no more than 15 pounds); "Vizslas are an odd mix of hardy hunter and nervous wreck." Training: Boxers, Chesapeake Bay Retrievers, Rottweilers and Samoyeds are some of the breeds that need strong leadership from their human; "Borzois can be very bullheaded if you're asking them to do something they don't want to do or see no point in doing. On the other hand...these dogs are polite and well-mannered automatically;" regarding Border Collies, "There is very little you can't train this dog to do. And what you don't train Rover to do, he'll probably figure out for himself." (Then follows a great anecdote about a BC who learned out to get ice from the dispenser in the door of the refrigerator).Environment needed, including active (Irish Setters) or sedate (Great Pyrenees), how they get along with children of various age groups (Chihuahuas are great with teenagers but not good with small children) and the el

It's a fun book to read!

I loved the section on breed description. It's helpful and accurate. The writer has lots of personality and the book is fun to read.

Great advice plus special breed concerns

I found this book to be easy to use and simple to implement. Love of dogs permeates the book, while the author explains such tricky subjects as displacement (why he tears up the sofa when you're gone) and hierarchies (how people make their little dogs into terrors.) The biggest and best part of the book is the breed by breed breakdown where all that the author has taught you before gets highlighted according to the breed of dog. She tells the tale of a Great Dane who really didn't want to run the family, and how the family's futon furniture confused him into thinking he was the top dog. If a breed is hard to housebreak, she explains why and how to get around it, and goes into the mindset of many breeds as a training tool. I read dog training books all the time, and this one is full of great ideas and a real empathy for dogs that should let anyone get closer to their dog. Humane training, emphasizing psychological methods, is the best way to train your dog, and with this book there should be nothing you can't do with Rover!