Pet Books

I bought for horse-crazy 6- and 8-year-olds -- who are too young yet to really "read" them -- and mom has scheduled read-aloud time.

I bought this book for a friend's birthday and looked through it before giving it to her and found it very interesting and informative. The questions are questions that the least to the most experienced horseman or women would relate to. The answers are informative and the print is not to small or large. I would recommend this book to everyone.

Having grown up in Central Kentucky, I have had the pleasure of being around Thoroughbreds all my life. For the past 20 years, I have made my living in the Thoroughbred industry. "Why Do Horses Sleep Standing Up?" is another example that no individual can know everything there is to know about these great animals. It is a truly wonderful book that provides colorful insight as to why horses do some of the things they do.

I have acute sensitivity to poison oak. It also flourished on the hill just behind my house. After years of battle I had been to the hospital twice and my only success was with concentrated brush killer which wiped out everything. This solution got me in trouble with the neighborhood.

The Lifesaver was Susan Hauser's book, "Nature's Revenge". She uses just the right mix of basic chemistry, humor, and excellent research into every product and folk remedy you have ever heard of in dealing with the poison oak, ivy, and sumac family. Susan also provides an excellent bibliography for those who really want to study the enemy. My copy of this book has been so popular I have lost count of how many times I lent it out. Book loans being what they are I continually have to buy replacements. This is OK too since I know anyone who has it finally has a fighting chance of surviving an encounter with this instrument of torture.

Kids ages 4-7 will relish this fun picturebook story of a pet turtle who lives to listen to Emma talk about far-away places, and longs to see them. Trouble begins when he decides to embark on his own exciting journey away from home, only to find that adventure isn't quite as exciting as he'd imagined - and a lot more scary.

Caldecott Medal winning author Eve Bunting is a natural born storyteller. Whether or not her birth in Ireland has anything to do with that is immaterial as to date she has penned over 200 books for young readers. Many parents today may well remember having Bunting's books in their libraries as children and eagerly buy them for their own youngsters. Here's one more to enchant young eyes and ears.

The author might well have titled this story The Traveling Turtle because this small reptile lives in a pen in Emma's backyard yet he longs to see the world. He's very fond of Emma as she visits him often, rubs his head, and brings him treats.

However, the tales she has read to him about faraway places - India, Africa - have whetted his appetite to see for himself. So, one morning he digs a hole under the wire of his pen and begins his journey. He's amazed at what he sees but as turtles move very, very slowly, how far did he go?

Marsha Winborn's gentle watercolor illustrations are a perfect companion for this story of a globe trotting pet.

- Gail Cooke

I read the book but it didn't help me with the grieving of my pet. It is a good book to read if you aren't in the midst of recovery. There are good points as far as the ceremony but other than that it was nothing that I didn't already know.

Finally, a well written and very helpful book on grieving the loss of your pet. Dr. Greene shares a nice mix of pet owner stories and wonderful, proven exercises to help you move through your own emotions.

Best of all, for us, was her suggestions on how to respond to others who may not share as strong a bond with pets. Her simple paper-pencil assessment helped us understand where we fell on the continuum from pets are animals to pets are family members. Our 14 year dog was definitely a family member to us!

Her book provided us comfort, humor, and a sense of peace about not having to defend our grief over the loss of our dog. We highly recommend this book to anyone whose pet recently passed away, and to those with dogs and cats faced with the tough decision about putting their pet down at the vet due to a serious medical condition. Get it, read it, and allow yourself to celebrate your pet's life and its positive impact on you.

I found this book in a program that offers courses for R.N. continuing education. What a wonderful book! We have had many pets over the years. With three kids in the family, we've loved frogs, lizards, fish, cats, dogs and a horse. My horse is 25 yrs. old now and that's why this particular book caught my eye. I think it is very well thought out and written. I give thanks to Lorri Greene and Jacquelyn Landis for addressing the love that we have for our companions and how to help them-and us- to go on when their time comes. My daughter is in Vet school. I'm giving this to her. Good Book!

I got this book soon after I lost my 10-year-old Persian male soul mate, and it really helped me through a time of great sorrow. There are exercises to do that help you work through your grief and help you to understand your feelings. I highly recommend it for anyone dealing with the loss of a pet.

I ordered this book and waited for it eagerly, based on "Search Inside" reading I did on Amazon. I hoped the chapter devoted to guilt experienced by "animal guardians," as the author considerately calls pet owners, when euthanasia or an accident precipitates a pet's death would speak to me. Therefore I was surprised to find the book more clinical than inspirational. I also found it emotionally distant from its subject...which perhaps is to be expected, considering that it was written by a psychologist. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone suffering from deep grief over a lost pet.

This book is fun, easy to read, and has many practical tips and ideas for integrating a rescued dog into your home. I work with rescued dogs and offer this book to new adopters when they pick up their new best friend.
Carol Lea Benjamin has written several dog training books, which offer dog owners lots of training advice.
Great book, great ideas!

This book is dangerous and filled very bad, dangerous advice. It was written in 1998, so giving the benefit of the doubt, perhaps our thinking about homing a rescue dog has evolved, but this book is extremely outdated. It recommends using the dog's crate as a place for punishment -which we all know is wrong. It further recommends "pops" with the leash to jerk your dog into obedience and "staring down" a dog into submission -again, outdated, inappropriate concepts. It is a very high level, superficial, quick read riddled with inappropriate advice that certainly does not speak to how one goes about brining a new, most likely scared, rescue dog into your home.

This book was so disappointing! I bought it after we got an adult dog from a shelter who had some serious behavior problems. But this book was completely useless!

It isn't about rescued or adopted dogs or how to help them. It is a VERY basic training guide [and I do mean *very* basic]. It is only 93 pages long and at least 30% of those pages are just hand drawn cartoons or stark black and white photos that are irrelevant to the text. I read the whole thing in less than 1 hour [an hour that I wasted unfortunately :( ].

There was *nothing* specifically about training or working with second hand dogs and the special problems/challenges and rewards you face.

The training advice is pretty bad too. First, it is very basic. Second, it is very negative and punative - most "modern" trainers would not advocate or approve of her methods. Third, some of the advice is just plain dangerous. [For example, her advice on how to deal with a dog who is growling is actually contra-indicated by every other resource I've read - her advice will actually teach the dog to *bite* first instead of giving the warning growl. Many of the techniques she recommends would be especially inappropriate for a rescue/shelter dog who faces special challenges in getting past aggression and/or fear because of their history.

Do yourself a favor and skip this book - there are many better books on both dog behavior and dog training. This book is a waste of your time.

I was recommended this book as I adopted a dog. I've had dogs, but never an adult rescue dog. I thought it would give me advice on dealing with issues specific to an adult rescue dog, solutions to problems I may encounter, what to expect, etc. What I got was a sappy "be patient and love your dog" summary. Any advice in the book was extremely basic and common sense, especially if you've owned any dog before. Yes, we need to understand and train our second hand dog, but this book provides NONE of the "how". I thought it was a complete waste of money.

I read this book before adopting my first Weimaraner; 4 years later I volunteer as a foster for Weimaraner Rescue and I've re-read it several times. After reading many other training books over the years, I've found Carol Lea Benjamin's dog-training books to be the best in their class.

Our rescue gives Second Hand Dog to each new adopter. I also highly recommend Dog Training in 10 Minutes. Both books provide invaluable information--in an entertaining and informative format--as an easy to read, easy to implement way to acclimate & train a new dog in the household.

All of Ms. Benjamin's books give newbie & experienced dog owners insight to canine behavior as well as provide the vehicle to make your dog "the dog you've always wanted." She emphasizes consistency and humane training that's enjoyable to both owner & dog.

Carol Lea Benjamin's dog-training books should be a must-read for every new dog owner!

Like the easy to find requirements for each breed.

As a cat-owner looking for a dog, I needed help. I've only lived with cats during my lifetime (except the dog my parents had until I was 5). This book gives information about the different breeds of dogs, about finding a breeder or rescuing an animal, plus much much more. If you are looking into finding the type of dog that will fit into your household, I highly recommend this book. My husband also found it to be full of information, and he's been a dog-owner all of his life!

This book is a Godsend for folks trying to decide which is the right breed of dog for them. Concise yet complete, and very readable. You sit down intending to glance through your new book, and end up reading it cover-to-cover (often laughing out loud). You now have a short list of possible breeds, and you know just what to do next, to find your dog. Great book for dog-hunters!

I just finished reading this book and buying my first puppy. This was my bible. I even had folded down pages and brought the book with me when I went to pick up my puppy at the breeder. This book was great because if you go on the AKC web site, they describe dogs by the qualities I didn't care about. They talk about fur markings, tail length, and things about being show quality. This book told me what I wanted to know about each breed like if it's good with kids, how much it sheds, and typical behaviors you can expect. It does that for many breeds including those considered rare. All the info was here about how to find a puppy, questions to ask when interviewing breeders, what all the health certifications mean, etc. It's told from the perspective of a person on the inside who is clearly knowledgeable about the dog world. It would be nice if more of the pictures were in color, as opposed to just the top 20 breeds, but you can't have everything and it would cost a lot more if it did. But overall, it's a great book for someone interested in getting a dog and wanting to know about all the different breeds.

This book is full of information on all kinds of different dog breeds. It tells you if the breed is good with kids, how much it sheds, what it is good at, and more.

was paper back not cloth bound was listed wrong.

Frances Densmore delves into herbs of our specific area (we live in Northern Minnesota) in a way that male ethnobotanicists never have or possibly could. We have a treasure trove of herbal medicines at our disposal and she gives us the information needed to learn how to identify and use these medicines.

Rather than going to a pharmacy or health food store and spending oodles of money on supplements and/or herbs which are quite possibly made from the very 'weeds' that you stumble upon on a walk through your woods, or state forests...learn about your areas own treasure trove...I only wish you all had access to such a definitive book.

I learned alot from reading this book. It's fairly short, and has lots of interesting tidbits. Though I feel it should be renamed--it doesn't deal with most indian cultures, but rather the Chippewa Indians, as they are who Frances Densmore made an extensive study of. The title is a bit misleading. One thing I felt that would have improved the book would have been a bit more of a clear listing of the information in the book, but then again, it is rather dated material.

Densmore was liked and trusted by Native people, and had the advantage of Marry Warren English, an extraordinary Native woman living on the White Earth reservation as her interpreter and in many respects, co-author. Her book reflects information from (mostly) women of the White Earth, Mille Lacs, Red Lake, Cass Lake,Leech Lake reservtions of Minnesota, Lac Courte Oreilles, WI, and Manito Rapids, Canada, over a period of more than 20 years. Densmore had recorded many songs, including songs of the Midewewin (Grand Medicine Lodge) and explains that "Songs having been recorded, the Indian were willing to bring in the plants (that were sung with for healing) and to explain the manner of their use." Unlike male ethnobotanists, she developed a close relationships with the women, and participated on cooking, crafts, and ceremonies. The Native women found her another practiucal woman who was interested in recipes, sewing techniques and patterns, and how the day-to-day lives of families were lived. "The majority of the informants were women, and they became interested in describing the former methods of preparing vegetable foods" as well as uses for dyes, fibers, and medicines. Densmore got qwuite specific info (unlike most ethnobotanists) about such things as "scraping the bark away from the root," how long it was to be driend, how uch water to steep it in (informants brought her their pails, to measure). On the more technical side, Densmore got something most of the ethnobots don't bother with: the native names. She took info gathering about as far as you can go without computers, ith cross-referenced tables. (I am computerizing this for native students now). For each plant, she got a specimen and had it IDed by a botanist. Many plants were also analyzed, but the techniques of that period do not provide vbery good phytochmeical info. For those not interested in these aspects, still this book gives a very thorough and interesting picture of Anishnab eg (lakelands wooland peoples) way of life, recording many tnings that still happen here today. Fancxes Densmore, a musicologist rather than an anthro, had a strong feeling for the people and the places. She writes "In June the air is sweet with wild roses and in midsummer the fields are beautiful with red lillies, bluebells, and a marvelous variety of color. In autumn, the sumac flings its scarlet across the landscape, and in winter, there are miles of untrodden snow. The northern woodland is a beautiful country, and knowing it in all its changin seasons, one can not wonder at the poetry that is so inherent a part of Chippewa thought." This well expresses the spirit in which she approached her researches among Indian people, and it is quite a different attidue than male anthros (and scientific ethnobotanists) have. Yet this book is an outstanding example for its time, and up to the easy avilabity of computers to ordinary people, of scientific, as well as literary, work. A bargain at Dover's pric, even though there are mail order sources offering it $1 cheaper. Very highly recommended to anyone interested in real (rather than fantasy) Native traditional life. I don't hve time to write reviews of her other books (I have msot of them), but recommend them all very highly, not only the "Chippewa" (Ojibwe, Anishinaabeg) ones. She brought the same spirit to all of them, and learned and preserved many details of the beauty of native life at those times, things no one else in the white world was interested in then, and perhaps they still aren't.

I haven't read this book, but after reading the previous review from the other reviewer, it seems clear she highly recommends this book and thus made a mistake with her 1-star rating. It seems a shame and unjust that sales of this book would suffer because of the reviewer's mistaken star rating when her review was positively glowing. So I'm going to balance things out -- at least this book will have a 3-star rating.

Great book for any pet-parent. The recipes are quick and easy and the pictures are adorable! Lots of great craft ideas and green-cleaning tips too.

Lots of photographs,recipes and projects in Eco Dog.

The book begins with the advice that, unlike wolves, dogs need to be groomed and washed regularily. Homemade recipes, like dog tonics and an herbal flea powder, are included. The pet owner is also advised to avoid commercial dog shampoos, as they may be harmful.

The chapter on dog food advises to feed the dog high quality food or homemade food and a meatloaf recipe is included. I would have liked to have seen more recipes and more information on feeding good quality food.

I really liked that natural cleaners for the house were advised, with good recommendations. The authors point out that dogs lick stuff--like the floor--and that safe cleaners are imperative to their health.

Some cool projects include green toys to make for your dogs out of recycled objects like socks. Brilliant! Most toys for dogs are made out of synthetic materials derived from petrochemicals, so I really thought the idea of natural toys was great.

Overall, a smart, green book for raising healthy dogs.

From the author of the award winning book, Harmonious Environment: Beautify, Detoxify and Energize Your Life, Your Home and Your Planet

If you want to raise clownfish or just want to know everything about them, this is definitely the book for you. I lost my copy and tore my house apart to find it and finally had to purchase a new one - just can't live without it.
For raising clownfish, she covers everything from spawning, hatching, catching, feeding, raising food, illnesses, selling, etc. It's amazing how many times I've had a problem, looked in the book, and she wrote about it.
This is definitely 'the bible' for raising clownfish.

it was really informative. I feel when i am ready i may be able to mate my clowns successfully with confidence. i also appriciate the background the author went into.

This reads well and has great background on breeding clownfishes. It gives you the right level of detail to understand what you will have to do to be successful. I have been breeding clownfish with this and another book as my guides and this is the better one of the two. The other is more detailed but so scientific it is confusing. This one is reasonable as a resource. I have an M.A. in aquatic botany so I understand jargon, but breeding fish is a practical activity for many of us, not a scientific research endeavor. You'll like this as a resource if breeding these interesting fish.

Good luck

Tim

Of the many books i got, this is by far the most detailed. Also because it focuses on one kind of fish i guess.
pretty detailed info is available on the various clownfish types, some of the behaviours are also listed to understand your pet a little better.

not a book focussed on filling pages for sure. however, a bit more was expected for detailed trouble shooting issues concerned to behaviours.

overall a nice book if you want to get to know your clown or the anemones.

If you're interested in keeping clownfish, this is the perfect book. The author goes into appropriate detail on what is needed to keep clownfish, what kinds of anemones can be kept with them (and their requirements), and how to breed them if you're so inclined. I found the book very easy to understand and not overly burdened with scientific and technical language. I also thought she had a very funny sense of humor that is sprinkled throughout. The pictures are great and she's actually had experience with most species in captivity and is able to make careful distictions to specific characteristics or needs of the different species. Some things I found especially helpful were the chapter on clownfish nutrition (she's really done her homework on that) and the common sense approaches to copepod cultivation for feeding baby clownfish. A great book for those keeping clownfish, even if you're not interested in breeding them.