Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 9
 The Missing Manual August 21, 2009
LLK
After reading other reviews on this book, I was concerned that the text would be overly technical and disorganized; that is not the case. This is a totally comprehensive guide, and covers all topics relating to dog aggression, with concrete instructions on how to handle aggressive behavior.
Yes, it is detailed and uses specific terms of art, but it has to be in order to explain how your actions, though subtle and well-intentioned, can send a very different message to your dog. There are numerous photos and demonstrations that show you how to read--and react to--your dog's body language.
After reading the Cesar Millan books and talking to various trainers, I understood the whole calm-assertive mantra, but needed more tools to use when dealing with our Boxer around other dogs. Once you have exercise, discipline, and love down, this book will help you with the specifics, and teach you how to condition your dog to look to you for guidance before lashing out.
My only issue is with the instruction to muzzle your dog if it's ever shown any aggression towards anyone. (And what dog hasn't?) It seems like muzzles can lead to paranoia, discomfort, stress, and even more aggression. We use a prong collar, which works for our dogs but she strongly advises against it. It would have been better for her to simply explain--not endorse--certain equipment in her section on collars and leads.
An Important Book For Anyone Who Owns An Aggressive Dog August 21, 2009
J. D. Antell
This book's value cannot be understated. It's far too easy to write a book that merely brushes over a subject, with no more substance than an 11th hour term paper. Ms. Aloff did no such thing. "Aggression In Dogs" is literally PACKED with useful information surrounded by science and common sense. Which is why I have recommended it to all my readers.
great book February 9, 2009
Eric Goudy
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
book is 400 pages and covers more than any other dog behavior book I have found to date. Very complete solid information. Brenda Altoff knows what she is talking about. I strongly recomend this book if you seriously want to learn some stuff but warning this is a long book with alot of detail info, not a quick answer guide but dog behavior problems can't be solved with a quick fix.
 Aggression in Dogs: More Like Aggression in Me After Reading October 9, 2008
PJ in SLC (Salt Lake City UT)
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
Just a bit too much info for me. I didn't want a Master's Degree, just some "practical" info on how to decrease dog aggression one dog toward another. Seems overwhelming and way too detailed; had to read so much to get up-to-speed on the jargon. Maybe I'm too lazy
Badly Needs an Editor and Book Designer September 24, 2008
J. Kletsky (San Francisco, CA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
There does seem to be some good information in this book, but it is so difficult to read that it easily gets lost along the way. Some of the problem is that the book looks like its been laid out using a late 80s word processing program attempting to create a "homey" feel, but fails to follow even basic layout principles, such as a consistent pattern flow of text from column to column on a page. Even if the text were to be more accessible, the content is badly in need of an editor, both for the overall structure and flow, as well as removing a Propensity For Capitals and "Overuse of Quotation Marks" in the text. Dennis is pretty much right on in that it wants to read like a scholarly work, but it doesn't and I believe it would have been much better presented in another style.
Definitely "Look Inside" at more than a couple pages before you buy this one!
The first third of the book is about reading "dog" and some categories of aggressive behavior. It is good content, but, as the text points out, unless you are a professional seeing a wide range of dogs and breeds on a regular basis, the subtleties are likely to be elusive. I was disappointed to find that fear-driven aggression was not one of the categories. The remainder of the book goes into what now seems to be well-accepted positive-reinforcement practices of training "replacement" behaviors for inappropriate aggression.
As the book is so difficult to read, there are probably some more easily accessible sources of information. Some that I have recent read that I find valuable include:
How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves -- General dog learning and training approaches. A good read for the non-trainers in your household.
The Power of Positive Dog Training -- 2nd Ed., 2008 -- Similar in scope to "How to Behave..." but more focused on clicker training and a little more "cookbook" in its approach (not a bad thing).
Click to Calm: Healing the Aggressive Dog (Karen Pryor Clicker Book) -- Covers similar exercises as those in "Aggression in Dogs..." in a much more digestible way.
Click for Joy! Questions and Answers from Clicker Trainers and Their Dogs (Karen Pryor Clicker Books) -- Think of this as the FAQ of clicker training. While not a "textbook" on training, helps to answer those nagging questions like, "Will I have to use the clicker and treats forever?"
On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals -- "Reading" your dog, and helping shape your own movements.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 9
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