Dog Health Questions: Is the book "For the Love of a Dog: Understanding Emotion in You and Your Best Friend" any good?

am looking for a dog's book that explain dogs in general. Not a dog training book (I already have 101 Dog Tricks). I run into this book that looks very promising. I have read some reviews in amazon, an apparently is very good. However, I would like to know if there is a better book that deals with the topics in this book. Any recommendations on books about understanding you dog.

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Its a book by Patricia McConnell. A well respected woman in canine behavior people. How can you doubt it just based on its title?

Anyway to answer your question: I like the book. Will it do everything you want, maybe, maybe not. There is no book or item out there that will just give you everything. Your dog is unique to what he responds to and dog behavior is just as varied as human behavior is. Time will teach you when your dog is thirsty as an example.

Now after that, this book is a good book but so are her other books, Suzanne Clothiers articles/book and many others linked within the elite group they are in. I still want to read Brenda Aloffs book on aggression in dogs, but its 40bucks and I just dont have that yet.

Combination is key. This book will help you understand your dogs behavior better, no doubt.

As an answer to your question: get the book.
I'm still reading it along with about three other books in rotation, but I remember a chapter where she was doing a seminar and she asked the audience to count one second. They did and she did anything she could think of in that one second. Then went on to explain there is no way to ever truly know every second what your dog is thinking. But as you start to notice one thing, you get better at it and can notice more things in that second. Kind of like going back and describing all the things she did in that one second. Maybe the first time you try, you only get one or two, but the next time, you get three or four.
If you are looking for a well respected book to read on dog behavior, you can not go wrong with a patricia mcconnell book.

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• Never read it and never would just judging by the title.
  Why would anyone be interested in reading a book that compares human emotions to that of a dog?
  
  Also, FYI, a book titled "101 Dog Tricks" does not sound like a good training book at all. It sounds like a book just to teach your dog tricks - which is NOT obedience which is what you should be teaching your dog.
  
  Why are you trying to "understand" your dog exactly? Gives us a better idea of what you're trying to accomplish.
  
  ADD: Okay, but getting books about doing tricks with your dog - that's not going to help you with obedience trianing at all. I will get back to you with a training book that was recommended to me...trying to relate to your dog is not going to help either one of you.
  It's called "Control Unleashed"


• Patricia McConnell (the author of this book) is very good on the subject of understanding dogs. I haven't read this one, but I did read her book, "The Other End of the Leash," and found it to be one of the best dog books I've read. Cesar Milan is good, I like him, but not everyone agrees with his methods. Jon Katz is another good author to help understand dogs. Coren is good but you might his approach a bit dry. "How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend: The Classic Training Manual for Dog Owners" by the Monks of New Skete (a monastery) truly is a classic, although you should keep in mind that they've backed off on one bit of discipline (I think they called it the "alpha wolf roll" or something); I don't know if that will be reflected in new versions of the book. Everything else about the book is solid, and covers both understanding dogs and training.
  
  It's good that you've decided to read up on dogs before getting one. More people should do that.


• I have never read that particular book. I am, however, a huge fan of Stanley Coren books. I think he gets it right on the money. A couple good books by him are Why We Love The Dogs We Do and How Do Dogs Think. How Do Dogs Think is really interesting because it explains scientifically how dogs perceive the world. Also How To Speak Dog, by Stanley Coren is a great tool for learning the body language of dogs.
  
  ADD: Coren's book Why We Love The Dogs We Do, includes a personality test (he's originally a Psychologist) that tests for certain personality factors in order to best match you up with a breed. I took it afterwards and it was pretty interesting. I actually got matched up with one of my breeds.


• I highly recommend anything by Cesar Millan, aka The Dog Whisperer.