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The bestselling guide to making the most of puppy's first year

Bringing home a puppy? This fun, friendly guide to puppyhood prepares you for this tough but terrific time. From the basics -- housebreaking, feeding, training -- to the latest on doggie day care, traveling with a puppy, and the new designer breeds, you get everything you need to help your puppy grow up to be a healthy, playful, well-mannered dog.

Discover how to
* Choose the perfect puppy for you
* Socialize your puppy
* Stimulate your puppy's growing mind
* Use the latest training tools
* Keep peace between kids and puppies

This book has good solid information and I have recommended it to many of my friends with new dogs. It was a fantastic resource for me regarding my first dog.

This book is great for people like me who have never owned a dog! There are a few chapters in the beginning that i didn't find helpful, however. I had already chosen my puppy before i bought the book, but if your are searching for the right puppy and have any questions, then these chapters would be perfect for you! I still use this book to reference back to, my puppy is only twelve weeks old, so there's still a long way to go!

This book should be given with every new puppy - even before the puppy goes home with you. Covers all major aspects of puppy raising and training. I cannot recommend this book enough.

The book offers some schedules for walking your puppy, but lacks the "before" part - how much he should eat and how soon he might need to go, for example. I agree with reviewers who say the book is superficial. If you've had dogs before at all, this book is probably adequate. If you're like me, and the only other pets you've raised successfully have been hamsters, this book is NOT enough. In less than a week, I had to buy more books that cover the same topics in more depth.

Before getting my puppy in 2002, I read several books on puppies, dogs, and training. My favorite was Puppies for Dummies, the 2000 edition. I can only imagine that the 2006 edition is even better.

Early sections help the reader decide what breed is best for his lifestyle and how to be ready for puppy's first day home. Especially important was the timeline--what training the puppy needs at what age--in order to grow to her best potential. The organization is excellent with easy-to-locate topics: a detailed Table of Contents and a complete Index.
Throughout the book, Hodgson stresses positive training and reinforcement, offering many important and helpful tips on how to be the most effective teacher you can be.

I tried the "teaching-lead" Hodgson describes, keeping my puppy attached to me by a lead at all times at home. This method is a super way to bond with your dog. Now, as a result, I have a most responsive and well-trained pet, a charmer.

I've recommended this book to friends, every one of whom thought it was an excellent resource. However, I do want to point out that no book on puppy training is useful if one does not use the techniques described....

If you really want to learn how to train your puppy in the most constructive way, get this book!