The Puppy Listener: A comprehensive handbook for beginner and experienced dog owners alike

by Jan Fennell

An indispensible guide to raising your new puppy from the author of The Dog Listener. From teething to training, this book follows the development of your puppy from new pet to best friend.

In The Puppy Listener Jan Fennell presents a simple-to-follow yet detailed handbook for puppy owners. Whether this is your first pup or you are a seasoned dog-owner, the hints and tips in this concise guide are valuable and well informed.

This handy guide follows the life of your puppy from weaning to walking. Jan Fennell covers every aspect of caring for your new best friend – from introducing a puppy into its new home and handling it in public, to dealing with behavioural problems. With detailed sections on everything from exercise to diet, there are problem-solving guides dealing with worries such as biting or anxiety.

Once again Jan illustrates her points with entertaining and inspiring real-life cases from her own work with damaged and delinquent dogs. Her love of animals is contagious and she inspires owners to persevere with their pups and show them who is boss.

Genres: Nonfiction

234 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2010

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Content is very similar to author's other book....THE DOG LISTENER. Detailed info about basic training methods, care, and preparing for a puppy to enter the home. Author emphasizes the need for humans to understand the way a dog thinks and to interact with it in a way that will make "dog sense" rather than "human sense."

[Liafish · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Show me the puppy of six months old, and I will show you the dog it is going to become”.
This is a great book to read and learn from for anyone thinking of getting a puppy. Jan Fennell is the genius that works through Amichien bonding. In which the dog learns to treat the owner as its Alpha, and perceives itself as the subordinate.
Amichien bonding is a straightforward and efficient method of communicating with your dog in a method it instinctively understands, that you are the dependable leader and decision maker of your “pack”. This is what the dog truly wants and it is the most peaceful way of life for both human and dog.

[Hallie Gleave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our veterinarian recommended this book to help us lay a good foundation for our new puppy. Our breeder recommended Cesar Milan “How to Raise a Perfect Dog.” I preferred Fennel’s book much more over Milan’s. She laid everything out plain and clear. She didn’t fluff it up, sensationalize it, or make it a story. This book is a MUST for anyone thinking of getting a puppy or just got one. I feel like this book gave me a great place to start with my puppy. I’m excited to read The Dog Listener!

[Hannah Ouston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Similarly to ‘The Dog Listener’ I’ve given this book 3 stars because whilst it is well written, appears to have good intentions and, in the case of this book specifically, is really well researched and contains a lot of biological and scientific information, the theory of alpha training that it puts forwards has no empirical evidence when it comes to dogs and can in fact be harmful to dog training and relationship.

[Ted · Rating 2 out of 5]

A much shorter read than The Dog Listener, the first few chapters talk about puppy development which, while interesting weren't germane to training puppies. Her principles for puppy training were the same as TDL and I felt like I was reading the same book, at points it seemed it was a verbatim quote. Save time and money reading The Dog Listener or this one but not both

[Axel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful for first year of raising your puppy. Good refresher as the dogs age. Positive reinforcement in training and tips for reading puppy body language. Easy to read and well laid out.

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

We're getting a Labradoodle puppy next week, and this book gave a great overview of all of the things we need to prepare and what to do in the first 6 months of the puppy's life. It was really easy to read and understand.
I haven't read any other dog books, but I looked at many and read reviews before choosing this one. Some (eg. Cesar Millan's How to Raise the Perfect Dog) have too much of a narrative style with unnecessary descriptions of their own pets. Some have lengthy sections on how to choose a dog but, like most readers of these books, we'd already chosen our dog and were just waiting to get it. Many focus on dog training but don't really deal with diet, grooming, health etc. Many so-called experts push their own styles of training and dog care, but Jan Fennell seems a bit more objective in her approach. It's not all about her - it's about the dog.
After reading the whole book in one day, I now want to go back and mark the pages I'll need to refer to more often. The contents page and index make it quite easy to find the information I need, but it's not quite as easy as some of the dog books which are written in a less narrative style. But I'd rather have more information in a less user-friendly format than vice versa. I'm also surprised that crate training isn't really mentioned.
Overall, I'm very happy with the choice of book, but we'll see how we go when we get the puppy in a few days.

[Cynthia Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful explanation of the behavior of puppies and dogs based on the scientific knowledge of wolves, dog's ancient ancestors. Lots of good advice on dealing with them based on their most basic instincts. I don't agree with all her training ideas, but still a useful book for dog lovers and owners. This is on the kitchen table as a reference for the next few months.

[Suzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very Through

A must read for every puppy owner. It is full of great information to correct your puppy's behavior. It's also full of info on health, how dogs communicate & relate to their wolf ancestors. A good & quick read that helps the owner to initiate the practices quickly.

[Emily Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful, we recently got a collie puppy (named Lola) and it has helped us teach/train her

[Tena Edlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good information. I know I'll refer to this book frequently when we bring our puppy home in December!