Every dog should be taught to respond to basic commands like “No”, “Stop”, “Sit”, “Stay”, “Come”, and “Quiet” to name a few. When the pup learns to understand your basic commands it becomes quite easy for you to train the puppy. It can be quiet challenging for the little puppy to understand human words. Dog owners should keep patience and continue with their efforts. The first twelve months or so of a dog's life are the hardest work, but Adam Spivey can help. He will help you both thrive as you learn to understand your dogs needs and behaviours. Adam's simple, straight-talking approach takes all the nonsense out of dog training and puts your pup at the centre of everything you do. That said, I was looking forward to reading this book. I was curious as to what he could say that hasn't already been said numerous times on his show. So after putting my baby to sleep who was part of my family for thirteen years, we decided to adopt a new puppy. She's a rescue and I wanted help getting to establish good behavior and socialization early on. Since I love reading, I went and bought a bunch of books including this one. Basic info to finding your puppy, tips, and anecdotes. I found it was helpful in some respects but every dog and every human is different. I think the part that must be stressed here and also is touched upon in the book is to seek professional trainers.

For those of you who do not know, Cesar Millan – He is a Mexican born American Self Taught Dog Trainer who gained World-Wide Fame with the Television Series ‘The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan’ – which is currently in its 8th Season and being broadcast to over 80 countries worldwide. He has an unbelievable fan following along with books & DVD’s to his credit on Dog Training. New York Times bestselling author, Cesar Millan shows you how to raise the perfect dog and prevent behavior issues before they start, including: Consistency is paramount when it comes to dog training. Dog parents need to be consistent with their training schedule as well as training norms. Frequently changing its pee location, sleeping spot, and even disciplinary rules confuse the little pet and this leads to delays in their training process. Do not make frequent changes to the dog’s preferred spots or pee locations. Be Consistent with your training program to help the pup get used to it sooner. 9. Training Tools and Toys: In this book, Cesar adopts five calm puppies (most from elite breeders) and raises them from puppyhood. Yet, not all puppies are created equal and a calm puppy is not always available or what you end up getting. The final chapters discuss dog “adolescence” and the physical and behavioral changes that come with it, ending with an update of the happy, well-adjusted lives of the four puppies in their adoptive homes up to the time of writing. Spaying and neutering is advocated, relating the neutering of the English bulldog as proof of how it is a trauma-free and beneficial procedure.

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While parts of this book did sound like one massive advert for specific puppy breeders, as a whole I found it interesting. Don't get me wrong. I love my four-legged kids, but when next time happens and I go and get myself another pup, I will do things differently. Cesar does have a few really good points about what to look for etc. (Although I will still get a rescue dog. I will not be supporting breeders while there are dogs who need homes.)

The author of this book is a self-taught dog behaviorist, trainer, and television personality. He founded the Dog Psychology Center in California and the Millan Foundation to aid in the rescue and rehabilitation of dogs. He has published 5 books for dog owners on behavior and training. One of his basic beliefs is that people must respect dogs as animals and not “co-opt [them] into being our friend, soul mate, or child” (p. 3), as this leads to unstable dogs with behavioral issues.

I would say the one thing I learned was to treat your puppy the same way a mother dog does instead of treating them like human babies. At the end of the book, there’s a section that has the most common behavioral problems with dogs. This is nice since you can use the headings to skip the topics that aren’t pertinent to your dog. But, even these sections are extremely short and are missing the steps needed for training.

The book contains everything you need to know from how to select a puppy that would suit you and your lifestyle, to what to expect at each stage of your puppy’s life, importance of nutrition & vaccination, the common mistakes of dog training, how to correct problems, to how to bring out the best in your dog. Based on Cesar’s own detailed experiences raising individual puppies from some of the most popular breeds, How to Raise the Perfect Dog is like having Cesar right beside you, as your own personal expert, coaching you and your dog from the first day of your life together. From the bestselling author and star of National Geographic Channel's Dog Whisperer, the only resource you’ll need for raising a happy, healthy dog.

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Every little pup needs tender, loving care. Try to spend the maximum time with your cuddly little buddy. Enjoy your time together by engaging in fun games and activities. You can easily train your dog while playing with it. Spending quality time helps create a strong bond between the owner and the little puppy. That’s not all. The puppy feels secure and will respond better to training instructions. Try to communicate with your little bow-wow as much as possible. Pups often give signs through behavioral habits. These behavioral signs are its medium of communicating with owners. Dog owners should therefore learn to observe these behavioral signs to understand the dog’s needs and feelings. 8. Be Consistent: How to Raise the Perfect Dog tells you everything you need to know to train your puppy, with straight-talking advice from Southend Dog Training founder Adam Spivey.

Teach him to 'sit'. One helpful command to teach your puppy is 'sit'. To start off, stand in front of your puppy with a treat in your hand that he can see. Firmly tell him to 'sit', then push his bottom down until he is sitting. Once he is there, give him the treat and praise him. Like humans, little pups also need to acquire social skills. They need to be trained so that they can interact appropriately with not just humans but other pets, including cats as well as other dogs. Encourage your dog to meet other dogs during walks or visits to the park. Regular social interaction with people and pets leads to the pet getting accustomed to outsiders, which can help control unwanted aggression. With routine social interplay, you are sure to avoid embarrassing accidents of your pup’s social misbehavior. 4. Schedule: Having 2 cute dogs at home, along with a sweet-loving-wife who watches ‘The Dog Whisperer’ almost everyday with total excitement and yes, a full-blast volume (with me covering my ears thanks to my over-priced ear-phones while on my PC), I just had to read a few instructions from the world’s best and most famous Dog Trainer – Cesar Millan.

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Canine and Feline Behavior for Veterinary Technicians and Nurses. Edited by Julie Shaw and Debbie Martin. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2015