Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 26-30 of 50
 Useful March 8, 2007
Bob Fitzsimmons (New York City)
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
This book has become popular among dog-trainers, not without cause. But if you want to dive deeper into understanding and communicating with your dog, I recommend "Adam's Task: Calling Animals by Name," by Vicki Hearne, which combines animal training with philosophy and literary criticism. The Atlantic Monthly called it "A fascinating and often surprising discussion of animal-human encounters." If you are an animal trainer-- or even just an animal lover-- it's definitely worth checking out.
 What everyone should be taught in kindergarten January 7, 2007
D. Carpentier (California)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
This is by far the most useful compilation of general dog-knowledge I have read. It is especially valuable if you have a new puppy, but also a MUST for those of us with older dogs who have 'problems' that need to be resolved, including chewing, dog-dog aggression, dog-human aggression, fear, barking, urinating, etc. IF YOU HAVE CHILDREN, you should absolutely read what Donaldson says about how dogs view small people staring into their eyes, clinging to their necks, and patting them. Considering the thousands of children injured by dogs every year, training children to behave around dogs, and vice-versa, should be common place. Another interesting read that goes MUCH deeper into canine-primate relations is The Other End of the Leash (McConnell).
This is not a cookbook for dog training (though there are several puppy-lessons to give you an idea of how to go about that). It should be viewed as a foundational, Dogs 101 class. The stuff you should know BEFORE you look down into those happily mischievous puppy eyes and say "BAD DOG!"
I bought this book because it was highly recommended by professional behaviorists in dealing with aggression. I was so impressed with it, I have since, in four months, loaned it to 3 friends, and am waiting to get it back so I can quick-read it again. Interestingly enough, while I thought it easy to read and completely fascinating, the first friend found it too dry to finish. :-D Give it a try: if you stick with it, you WILL find out SOMETHING that will change how you relate to your dog.
Easy to read and understand January 4, 2007
Avid Reader (Jackson, NJ)
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book was recommended to me by several members on the two animal rescue groups I volunteer with. I loved the conversational approach that the author takes and the examples she gives. She has made a complex subject easy to understand and with a writing style that keeps the reader actively engaged. Bravo!
Good, clear and highly recommended October 5, 2006
Olga Paredes (Oakland, CA)
17 out of 18 found this review helpful
I found this book very helpful. It is clear and thorough and a very good resource for owners and trainers. It is also easily accessible, despite covering some fairly technical material. In terms of the content, Culture Clash is first rate.
It suffers from problems in other areas, however.
I agree with other reviewers who found this book to be distractingly disorganized. The chapters are loosely put together, and the lack of an index makes finding specific references difficult. My own copy has several post-it notes sticking out of it: a testament to the book's utility and lack of organization.
Another weakness of this book is Donaldson's tone, which is kind of cranky at times. She takes issue with other schools of thought in dog-training, and not only lets the reader know she disagrees with them, but also lets the reader know how stupid they are. The dog-training world is famous for rabid arguments, so I take her comments with a big salt-lick, but the book suffers from them.
This book would have greatly benefitted from a good editor. But still, the information it offers more than compensates for it's shortcomings. I have re-read sections of it many times, and still find it helpful.
Easy read, thorough October 4, 2006
S. Wisner (London, UK)
6 out of 10 found this review helpful
A huge amount of dog books are a slog to read, preachy and unhelpful. This book on the other hand, gives a simple over view of modern training techniques interspersed with humour. As an experienced dog handler I appreciated some of the basic reminders about our dogs being..just dogs... and I think for a new dog owner it is essential reading. Some areas do become quite technical and I recommend those not into the `dog behaviour' thing to skim those sections and quickly move on. Overall though, the number one book in this area now with practical advice balanced against dog insight.
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