My Smart Puppy (TM) - Fun & Easy Puppy Training Kit for Obedience & Behavior | Perfect for New Dog Owners & Puppy Training at Home

I have read many dog training books in order to get some of my puppies thru basic obedience and then Canine Good Citizen class.From the Monks of New Skete's books ( which I think are wonderful) to Ceasar Milan and Victoria Stillwell's books as well as watching them on their shows ( now a waste of time to me)This book blows them all away and I will tell you WHY.....The book is clear , consise and TELLS you how to begin to train puppy and ( most importantly!)the very REASON you are training a specific command so that puppy understands your command,,,,and the consequences of how a dog will take it if you dont do something a certain way. I don't speak dog,,,,but this pairs understands the language of the canine better than any trainer or " show person" I ever saw!I just want to help my dog understand what is expected of him/her and train!Today you hear a lot about being the " pack leader" first,, or your puppy will assume that position should you give up that position to ignorance on all the shows.And that is truly how it is,,,,,,not purposefully, but people do not understand the language of the canine world and how to effectively communicate with a dog in order to allow the puppy to grow to be the dog that you want your pup to be.While most of the other books deal with problems that already exist , this one clearly teaches you that you will not have to deal with problems long term if you take the window of opportunity at the very beginning ,and seize the moment in a fun way , not a sour and overly determined stressful way for you or your puppy. Training is a game that puppy ( and you!) should enjoy and have fun with!Its a time to bond, hang out,,, and plain old have a great time together.Training is looked at like a game , and this is the HUGE difference that this book offers vs other books.I cannot speak highly enough about this book , I am reading this prior to picking up my lona awaited Cavalier puppy from the breeder in 5 short weeks from now.I will be able to work thru stage I immediately,, while understanding at the same time my puppy's need for sleep and also how to handle issues common to puppyhood ( chewing , housetraining etc)( as the saying goes,,,,,,this too shall pass,,)The DVD that accompanies this book is outstanding, in fact I wish this team would put out MORE training DVD's as many of us cannot get to their seminars ,,,,and would appreciate even more information as our dog grows.I read the reviews about a dog food companies endorsement,,,oh well,,,,fast forward,( you DO have a clicker in your hand dont you?) Move on and get over it. ( I did!)I do not feed kibble at all, I feed raw food and have been successful at that for a few years so I skipped over that part rather quickly, somebody has to back somebody, and this food company did that.Economics 101 is all it is. Get past that.It did not take away from the very valuable advise and training exercizes on the DVD!I want to be SHOWN how to do this also! The DVD delivers.This book is THE best book I have EVER read on training puppies!I would give it 10 stars if I could but amazon only allows 5. If anyone should have a TV show on animal planet it should be this couple but alas, the others are there for the shock value , because people have allowed their pets to rule the roost and have accepted ( and dare I say encouraged!) such horrid behavior in their dogs, so it makes for good viewing for many.( sad isnt it?)Sort of like the show Bridezilla ,(which I wouldn't put up with either in my family by the way) I pay for wedding=we collaborate,,,, and you act like the grownup you are,,, IMHO.But once again,its done for shock value just like many of the dogs shows that are only retraining people shows essentially.You can still bet that when I make that long long drive to the breeders,,,, I * will* do a few puppy tests on my chosen puppy ( info is out there in many other books too,) to see the personality of the puppy before I hand over hard earned money.Its just wisdom to do so.I am looking forward to training in this most positive and fun way ( I threw out the clicker too!)A clicker cant be heard as puppy heads towards a busy road with cars should you be foolish enough to have your pup off leash not trained well on re call yet.Great book,,,,and fun to read!Added note Feb 2011~ Everything the book says to do was correct, while we allow our little one up on the couch, she always must " earn" it,,,,she has to do a sit, roll over, or something so she knows SHE is not in charge, we areMY son got a yorki at the same time we bought our puppy and oftentimes bring his dog over when he stays overnight,, that dog litterally will FLY thru the air up on any piece of furniture, and take over any toy even the small childrens toys if it wants it.It seems to be ok with them but I asked him ,,,,would you put up with the same behavior in an 80 lb dog that you put up with your 8 lb yorki?? The answer clearly was no wayI dont care what size your pooch is, do train the dog for your sake , your families sake and for the safety of your pet,,,I have * never* had my dog not come back on a re call after taking time( yes lots of it) to get her back, We live on a country road and I dont want her hit b/c she does not know her bounderiesShe is now ready to take her Therapy dog test and I can thank the authors of this book for steering me in the right direction in the first place~ we have a great time with our dog and we are happy b/c she is trained and NOT a problem to us or anyone elseBelieve me those cute puppy days go by fast and ya better learn early on who is in charge or your dog will make that decision for youthank you for the great book!regards~One very grateful owner of a nicely trained and well loved dog.ETA ( 12/15/12)DH has purchased me a puppy for Christmas,,,,actually we will pick him up AFTER Christmas b/c it can be very confusing for a pup to come to new home that is filled to the brim w/family and friendsI am re reading this book b/c it has worked So well for my training,, and I have purchased copies for friends that had new dogs come into their lives this past year,, one a basset, one a doxie) Am going to order yet another book for my son and family as we are both getting new pups from the same litter,,,,,English doxies, I do have a cavalier now ,she actually loves to be not only w/other dogs but our nearest neighbors kittens,so I know she will be fine.Time for me to read the book again and while I do not relish training in winter in Wisconsin, I will be getting a lot more walking outside for the next few months to border train alsoMerry Christmas to one and all,,,,,,I started by reading a good portion of the book, which I found very helpful and informative (the occasional glaring scientific error, as mentioned by another reviewer, notwithstanding). The text raised my expectations for the video - I looked forward to a practical demonstration of the many training "games" that are listed, categorized, and described in the book.What I found on the video is that those demonstrations *are* forthcoming, if you're patient. But it's kind of like one of those mandatory time-share seminars - you're held captive for a LOT of advertising. That adorable puppy on the cover of the book? Instead of that cute red scarf, he's got a bandanna bearing the all-over imprint of the sponsoring brand of puppy food. So does his collar, his leash, and the big bag of food in the background of nearly every scene. Frequent references are made to how high quality food (gee, we wonder which one) is necessary for the brain development that will make your puppy especially brilliant and trainable. Thinly veiled commercial breaks are frequent, both for the food and for a flea-treatment product (same congolomerate?). The names of these products are never spoken, but the conspicuously-labeled packaging is everywhere. Overall, it made me feel as if these folks assume me to be a whole lot less smart than a puppy.I still like the book, and I'll probably make it through the whole DVD for the sake of the training demonstrations. But I kind of feel as if the food manufacturer should have offered this set for free with your first purchase of puppy-chow.Being a naturally contrary sort, I was inspired by all of this to look for a more objective source of food-quality information for my puppy. If you do a web search for "dog food analysis," you'll find a very informative site that helps to clarify food quality issues. And, sad to say, the much-endorsed brand doesn't exactly leave the competition in the dust (to say the least), so now I feel less guilty about being too stubborn to buy it after being subjected to this sales pitch.I really do like the book though; you can be sure I wouldn't have put aside my annoyance to give it 4 stars, otherwise! It has a lot of helpful insights about how puppies think, where our communications with them often break down, and how to work *with* your puppy to ingrain habits and responses that will be constructive for all concerned.I looked at several book reviews for puppy training and also checked some out from the library and this was the best one I found. You work through levels of training (I think 3 levels?) with step-by-step instructions for each exercise. They emphasize teaching your puppy good manners in day-to-day life, giving a lot of tips that I never would have thought of. It was the most detailed training manual I found. I read some other books afterward that gave one way to deal with a behavior and I know if I had read those first I would have felt like "What's wrong with me or my puppy?" because it would not have worked for my puppy. This one gives several options for dealing with behaviors and also has several trouble-shooting suggestions for if your puppy is not responding to the training as expected. There were only a few disappointments for me with this book. When they talk about how to deal with a lot of behaviors, they refer you to the page that would help teach the proper behavior instead, their motto is "homework first, then the test", which is a very good idea, but it does not tell you how to appropriately discipline your puppy in the meantime until they've learned the proper behavior (I know a lot of people are against any kind of discipline, but I feel discipline is necessary at times and can be humane). I wonder if training my puppy would have been faster and easier, if I also knew how to properly discipline my puppy; you'll get the desired behavior eventually, but it's more work on your part and takes longer. I was also surprised there was not more about just basic puppy care. All in all, it is an excellent training manual and if I had to recommend one to use exclusively, this would be it.The layout of the book is difficult to read. The information is structured in a way that make it hard to find certain topics, and it feels more like a book to sit and read, than to use as a reference book. Wasn't helpful for me at all.Very useful tips and the free DVD was a bonus too! It's definitely a book I will refer back to time and time again.Good book. Practical and well laid out.Comes with DVD.Full of very useful tips and tricks of dog training well worth the money.Very easy to read and assimilate.Although this is listed as a book and DVD, The DVD is not included. The book is excellent but the DVD is needed to illustrate some of the techniques not clearly described. We ordered a second copy for our son hoping we could share the DVD, Neither book came with the DVD! We do not want a refund - We want the DVD as advertised.