Archive for the 'book reviews' Category

jennaHow Dogs Think by Stanley Coren

How Dogs Think book cover imageOne thing I said I would do more of after moving to Indiana… READING! I have shelves of books I’ve never had time to read. So, what does my daughter do the first or second week after she arrives in Indiana? She drags me into a BOOKSTORE and I end up buying another book. :)

How Dogs Think
What the World Looks Like to Them and Why They Act the Way They Do

by Stanley Coren

Rating: ★★★★½

In any and all training and behavior endeavors, my primary interest is understanding as much as possible about what Snickers is communicating to me and how he is perceiving what I am trying to communicate to him. Several of my recent book purchases have been on this subject. When I picked this book up in the store, I was impressed by the following three testimonials on the cover.

"Coren’s love for dogs shines like a beacon throughout this thoughtful and fascinating exploration of the mind of a dog."
      - Patricia B. McConnell, Ph.D., author of The Other End of the Leash

"The thinking dog owner’s guide to everything they ever wanted to know about their dog. Truths expanded, myths exposed, common sense prevailing. Dr. Coren tells it the way it is. Two dew claws up for the this excellent book."
      - Nicholas H. Dodman, BVMS, MRCVS, DVA, author of The Dog Who Loved Too Much and If Only They Could Speak

"Meticulously researched, highly readable, and essential for anyone who loves and lives with a dog."
      - Jon Katz, author of A Dog Year

Of course, I brought it home and read it and now I have my own good things to say about it.

How Dogs Think is full of details about the physiology of dogs’ perceptions. I’ve always known that dogs don’t see, hear, feel, taste and smell the same way we do, but I didn’t have any information on how they do experience the world. After reading this book, I have a much better idea of how dogs experience their environment (and our actions), why they react the way they do and how they communicate back to the world. If you want to learn as much as you can about how your dog interprets and responds to the world around him, add this book to your library (and read it). Here are a few interesting facts and quotes from the book.

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