Learn how to forge a great friendship with man's best friend. With the KISS Guide to Living with a Dog you will discover the rewards - and the pitfalls - of bringing a dog into your home. You'll learn the basics such as essential equipment for dog care, healthy eating, and good grooming. This guide will help you understand how to be a leader of the pack and establish good house rules and canine etiquette. The Keep It Simple Series is the new standard in how-to books! Written by leading experts, each book includes full-color photographs and illustrations throughout, making these the first and only truly accessible guides for beginners. The KISS format is designed to help readers build confidence from the start, and learn gradually and thoroughly to the very last page. Much more than introductions to various subjects, these inspiring and innovative books are the ones that readers can trust!

You will enjoy it. The book is filled with quality images, colorful subtitles, and negative space--resulting in a visually stimulating read.

I bought this book for the couple who adopted Honey, a wonderful stray I rescued. But in actuality, I gave it to the people mainly for the dog's benefit. (Those of you who regularly place dogs in new homes may want to consider using this book for that same purpose.)

Fogle demonstrates obvious concern for the physical and emotional welfare of dogs. A great part of Fogle's motivation is to make people better owners--for their dogs' sake.

The book is thorough. From genetics to adoption dog temperment testing. From grooming and accessorizing to dog-proofing your home, garden, and yard. From playing to training to dealing with aggression. Then there are several chapters on veterinary care: things like giving your dog a physical with details like how to take your dog's temperature, pulse, and heart rates--and what to do if they are off by varying amounts. There's also a chapter on the special concerns of associated with aging canines.

Veteran dog owners will also find the book interesting. Fogle begins with a plausible--but unsupported--opinion on the evolution of dog from wolf. Why do dogs have floppy ears, crowded teeth, and smaller brains than wolves? Fogle believes he knows.

He moves logically into a discussion of how the breed types came about and how their original purpose shaped their builds and temperments.

He discusses picking the right breed or mix and picking the right individual dog, whether a puppy from a breeder or an adult dog from a shelter. (I think he falls short in discussing breeds' drawbacks. For example, he doesn't mention that many people find the cute little Jack Russel terrier to be a terror.)

He goes on to thoroughly, yet succinctly, discuss most of the issues a dog owner is likely to worry or wonder about. Being a vet himself, he devotes a lot of detailed attention to safety and health concerns, some of which will be new to even experienced dog owners.

If you want to a give a book to dog owners, a book that will make them better care takers, a book that they will actually read, this is the one.

Jeff


Fun, Very Comprehensive, Accurate (mostly)   July 9, 2001
 2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Put off by the K.I.S.S. branding? Don't be. They hired the right guy to write this book.

You will enjoy it. The book is filled with quality images, subtitles, and negative space--resulting in a visually stimulating read.

It begins with the author's very interesting opinion on the evolution of dog from wolf. Why do dogs have floppy ears, crowded teeth, and smaller brains than wolves? Fogle believes he knows. His explanation is very plausible. It's a little lacking in its understanding of the interrelation of genetic traits, but still good.

He moves logically into a discussion of how the breed types came about and how their original purpose shaped their builds and temperments.

He discusses picking the right breed or mix and picking the right individual dog, whether a puppy from a breeder or an adult dog from a shelter. (I think he falls short in discussing breeds' drawbacks. For example, he doesn't mention that many people find the cute little Jack Russel terrier to be a terror.)

He goes on to thoroughly, yet succinctly, discuss most of the issues a dog owner is likely to worry or wonder about, and a few more to boot. Of course, being a vet himself, he devotes a lot of attention to safety and health concerns.

It also seems that part of Fogle's motivation is to make people better owners FOR THIER DOGS' SAKE. I like his advice to owners that they let their dogs be dogs.

All in all, this book is quite fine book and an especially good one to give to a new dog owner.


Everything you need to know   February 5, 2001
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

I bought this book for a friend (new puppy owner) and ended up going back to the bookstore a week later to get one for myself (owner of a 7 year-old Boston Terrier). This book covers everything you need to know, from training to grooming to feeding habits. The author, Bruce Fogle, has a great, reassuring tone to his writing that will make reading about your best friend fun and helpful!


Dogs for Dummies and more   January 22, 2001
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

My family and I are planning on purchasing a dog within the next 3 weeks and I felt it necessary to gain as much knowledge as possible before then. In searching for a book that would give me all the information I could need before and after the purchase, I narrowed my choices down to two books (this one and Dogs for Dummies). In comparing both books side by side at a local bookstore, I determined that this is the better book. In my opinion this book is easier to understand, is easier to look at (love the color pictures), gives more information (even gives websites where you gain more knowledge), has general characterisics of the dog breeds, has a "Info Sheet" for your dog, and is overall a higher quality book that the Dogs for Dummies. This has everything that you could ever need from a "Dog Reference" book, especially if you are new to the responsibilities of owning a dog. This book has it all. Without it, I would have never been prepared to give my dog everything it needs.