Review: ComPETability: Solving Behavior Problems in Your Multi-Dog Household by Amy Shojai

Blurb: Dog behavior challenges the most knowledgeable dog lovers, and dog behavior problems lose pets their homes. Dog behavioral problems arise out of owners not understanding dog language and normal animal behavior. Training a dog helps stop dog barking, for instance, but this book explains why dogs bark and how to understand and manage the behavior of dogs whether you have a single canine, a puppy or multiple dogs. The United States is home to 78.2 million owned dogs, and 28 percent of owners own more than one dog while 12 percent own three or more. That means more furry love for owners, but also can create a howling mess over that (GRRRR!) new canine friend. From conflicts over resource guarding favorite toys and chew bones to dog jealous behavior when sharing time with a favorite human, adding new pets rubs fur the wrong way and creates hairy situations for everyone—including you. This new guide gives owners the ability to understand dogs behavior including aggressive dog behavior, dog language, positive dog obedience training techniques, how to stop dog biting and prevent dog behavioral problems. You’ll find detailed prescriptive how-to advice focused in the most common problems found in the multi-dog household. Use these animal behaviorists fun techniques to learn about normal canine behavior, dog behavior modification techniques, and expert dog trainer tips to solve common dog problems and strengthen the human animal bond you share with your dogs. Step by step tips from this award-winning author and certified animal behavior consultant uses dog psychology to address: • Dog bites, dog aggression, and dog fights • Scared dogs, noise phobias, dog fireworks fears, and canine thunder phobias • Canine separation anxiety, dog separation behaviors, and dog destructive behaviors • Dog resource guarding of toys, food and owners • Manage dog nutrition and meals • Puppy house training and dog marking behaviors • Positive dog training tips including clicker training, lure training, and obedience training • Proper dog introductions • Introduce dogs and a new baby or kids • How to introduce dogs to cats • Reduce bullying behavior • How to choose pet friends to reduce growls • Solve common pet peeves: barking, puppy chewing, dog digging, puppies eating poop, dogs rolling in poop, dogs jumping up, and more! Fun, practical, and eminently informative, ComPETability helps you devise strategies that enable multiple dogs to live in harmony within the same household. Written by one of America's premier pet experts, the book explains everything the loving dog owner needs to know. Most important, CompPETability provides crucial tips on how to evaluate and match your pets' personalities, improve their relationships, and make your home a sanctuary for canine fun and peace. For more pet behavior advice refer to: ComPETability: Solving Behavior Problems In Your CAT-DOG Household ComPETability: Solving Behavior Problems In Your Multi-CAT Household

My Review: In all honesty this book isn't of much use to me at the moment because I don't share my life with dogs. However a few things factored into my decision to accept this book for review:

1) I'm a huge fan of Amy Shojai's writing - especially her blog and debut thriller Lost and Found.

2) I'm always eager to expand my knowledge of pets of all kinds.

3) As soon as my living situation warrants I fully expect to add a dog (or two) to my life. Because I will always have cats in my life, I found the section on cat/dog introductions to be especially informative.

I think this isn't as much the type of book you'd pick up and read cover to cover, but one you'd refer to as issues arise. It's an invaluable tool that any pet owner should have on their bookshelf.

I received a copy of this book via Story Cartel in exchange for a review.