How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend : The Classic Training Manual for Dog Owners 2nd Edition

For more than a quarter century, How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend has been the standard against which all other dog-training books have been measured. This expanded edition preserves the best features of the original classic while bringing the book fully up-to-date. The result : the ultimate training manual for a new generation of dog owners–and, of course, for their canine best friends.

The Monks of New Skete have achieved international renown as breeders of German shepherds and as outstanding trainers of dogs of all breeds. Their unique approach to canine training, developed and refined over four decades, is based on the philosophy that «understanding is the key to communication, compassion, and communion» with your dog.

The importance of honest and effective communication with your dog is underscored throughout this guide, especially in the practical training exercices : a detailed, comprehensive, fully illustrated obediance course through which the monks lead you (and your dog) step-by-step.

How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend covers virtually every aspect of living with and caring for your dog, including :

• Selecting a dog (what breed ? male ? female ? puppy or older dog ?) to fit your lifestyle
• Where to get–and where not to get–a dog
• Reading a pedigree
• Training your dog or puppy–when, where, and how
• The proper use of praise and discipline
• Feeding, grooming, and ensuring your dog’s physical fitness
• Recognizing and correcting canine behavioral problems
• The particular challenges of raising a dog where you live – in the city, country, or suburb
• The proper techniques for complete care of your pet at every stage of his or her life

In this new edition, How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend has been expended to encompass the latest equipment (e.g., retractable leashes, «invisible» fences) ; new trends in training and care (doggy care, professional dog walkers, etc.) ; and dozens of new anecdotes and case studies, drawn from the monks’ own experience, that bring to life the essential training concepts.

In its scope, its clarity, and its authority, How to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend remains unrivaled as a basic training guide for dog owners. Like no other book, this guide can help you understand and appreciate your dog’s nature as well as his or her distinct personality–and in so doing, it can significantly enrich the life you share with your dog.