Product Description

Expert guidance in choosing the right dog -the first time

Written by a renowned expert in shelter adoption, Successful Dog Adoption delivers all the information you need to find the perfect dog at a shelter and make him part of your family. In easy-to-understand language, Sue Sternberg helps you decide if you're ready to adopt by evaluating your reasons and translating them into what you should look for in a particular dog. She shows you how to find a reputable shelter, prepare for the adoption process, and work with shelter personnel to make sure they have appropriately screened their dogs. You'll also learn about "rescue" dogs and why one might be right for you.

This practical guide covers all the vital issues you need to consider when adopting-choosing a male or female, a puppy or an adult; identifying fearful dogs or dogs who will bite; and seeking out a dog with the ideal temperament. Featured here are detailed tests and observations used by professionals to ascertain the temperament and compatibility of shelter dogs-now made available to the public for the first time. You'll discover how to determine risk factors in an unknown dog, gauge a dog's potential reaction to guests and strangers, and predict the compatibility level when you add another dog to your household.

This book also offers invaluable advice on training your new pet, including guidance in housebreaking, selecting a training class, and helping a dog who gets carsick or doesn't like to be home alone. And, if you still experience difficulties with your dog, Sternberg gently discusses the steps you can take.

Authoritative and friendly, Successful Dog Adoption is the one-stop guide for finding your own "superdog"-and keeping the dog-owner relationship fresh and rewarding for years to come.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #115751 in Books
• Published on: 2003-09-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Book Info
Text delivers all the information you need to find the perfect dog at a shelter and make him part of your family. Softcover. DLC: Dogs.

From the Back Cover
Expert guidance in choosing the right dog –the first time

Written by a renowned expert in shelter adoption, Successful Dog Adoption delivers all the information you need to find the perfect dog at a shelter and make him part of your family. In easy-to-understand language, Sue Sternberg helps you decide if you’re ready to adopt by evaluating your reasons and translating them into what you should look for in a particular dog. She shows you how to find a reputable shelter, prepare for the adoption process, and work with shelter personnel to make sure they have appropriately screened their dogs. You’ll also learn about "rescue" dogs and why one might be right for you.

This practical guide covers all the vital issues you need to consider when adopting–choosing a male or female, a puppy or an adult; identifying fearful dogs or dogs who will bite; and seeking out a dog with the ideal temperament. Featured here are detailed tests and observations used by professionals to ascertain the temperament and compatibility of shelter dogs–now made available to the public for the first time. You’ll discover how to determine risk factors in an unknown dog, gauge a dog’s potential reaction to guests and strangers, and predict the compatibility level when you add another dog to your household.

This book also offers invaluable advice on training your new pet, including guidance in housebreaking, selecting a training class, and helping a dog who gets carsick or doesn’t like to be home alone. And, if you still experience difficulties with your dog, Sternberg gently discusses the steps you can take.

Authoritative and friendly, Successful Dog Adoption is the one-stop guide for finding your own "superdog"–and keeping the dog-owner relationship fresh and rewarding for years to come.

About the Author
SUE STERNBERG is one of the foremost authorities on successful shelter adoption in the United States, with more than 23 years of canine behavior experience. She is the Executive Director of the Community Animal Shelter Association (CASA), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to pet owner outreach, safe animal adoptions, and quality-of-life issues at animal shelters around the world. Her extraordinary work with dogs is the subject of a Winter 2004 HBO documentary, Shelter Dogs.

Customer Reviews

Don't understand how anyone can do these tests on a dog?
It just isn't practical in a shelter when you go to adopt a dog, to do all those tests. I have also read that the test is not reliable at all. Some people have great dogs that failed the test. Other things in the book were very interesting. Like what kind of second dog to get. That made a lot of sense.

buyer be aware, this temperament test is controversial
Even in the hands of professional dog persons, the test has not been proven accurate. In the hands of a novice, your gut instincts may serve as well. In fact Jean Donaldson of the SFSPCA, in a small sample of 8 dogs, had a 75% WRONG rate. Dogs that failed went on to never bite anyone and a dog that passed wound up biting. Don't just take this test as science. It isn't. Notice that the author has referenced no other authorities but herself.

It is an engagingly written book, and has much useful information, but the test is very, very controversial among shelter people and dog-knowledgeable people.

Take it with a grain of salt. No, take it with several grains of salt.

Don't even THINK of adopting a dog before reading this book
Wow! In my excitement over our decision to adopt a dog, I hadn't thought about the challenge it would be to find a suitable one. What did we know? Thank goodness someone recommended we read Successful Dog Adoption before going any further. With Sue Sternberg's expert guidance, I have learned more than I ever could imagine, including why not all shelters are good sources from which to adopt a pet (and how to find a good one), why many shelter/rescue dogs are *not* reasonable candidates for adoption (and how to tell which ones to stay away from, no matter what the shelter may tell you), and, while it's "buyer beware" out there, how to find a safe and enjoyable companion. We look forward to becoming first time owners of a terrific dog soon: I'm so glad we discovered this book BEFORE we tried to adopt one without understanding what we *could* have gotten ourselves into, especially in an urban environment. An enlightening and enjoyable MUST READ for anyone wanting to adopt a dog!