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THE SCOOP ON ANIMAL BOOKS
BOOKS BY SUBJECT (More subjects will be added as we get them)
ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs: Small Doses for Small Animals
Four Paws Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs
The Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog and Cat
Natural Pet Care: How to Improve Your Animal's Quality of Life
The Natural Vet’s Guide to Preventing and Treating Arthritis in Dogs and Cats
The Natural Vet's Guide to Preventing and Treating Cancer in DogsANIMAL BEHAVIOR
Alex & Me: How a Scientist and a Parrot Discovered a Hidden World of Animal Intelligence - and Formed a Deep Bond in the Process
Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior
Cats/Canine Can Communicate
Dog Talk: Lessons Learned from a Life with Dogs
The Covenant of the Wild: Why Animals Chose Domestication
Wild Minds: What Do Animals Really Think?
The Language of Miracles: A Celebrated Psychic Teaches You to Talk to AnimalsANIMAL RESCUE
Rescue Matters! How to Find, Foster, and Rehome Companion Animals: A Guide for Volunteers and OrganizersANIMAL RIGHTS
Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy
For the Prevention of Cruelty: The History and Legacy of Animal Rights Activism in the United States
Making Kind Choices: Everyday Ways to Enhance Your Life Through Earth- and Animal-Friendly Living
Irreconcilable Differences: The Battle for the Heart and Soul of America’s Animal Shelters
Redemption: The Myth of Pet Overpopulation and the No Kill Revolution in America
Saving Molly: A Research Veterinarian's Choices
Sacred Cows and Golden Geese: The Human Cost of Experiments on Animals
The Scalpel and the Butterfly:The War Between Animal Research and Animal Protection
Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating
The Way We Eat: Why Our Food Choices MatterANIMALS: CARE AND HANDLING
The Healthy Pet Manual: A Guide to the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer
Natural Pet Care: How to Improve Your Animal's Quality of Life
Protect Your Pet: More Shocking Facts to Consider
The Whole Pet Diet: Eight Weeks to Great Health for Dogs and Cats
Allergic to Pets? The Breakthrough Guide to Living with the Animals You LoveANIMALS: DEATH AND DYING
Goodbye, Jake
Just This Side of Heaven
There Is Eternal Life for Animals: A Book Based on Bible ScriptureCARTOON
Happy Cat Day
Flawed Dogs: The Year-End Leftovers at the Piddleton “Last Chance” Dog PoundCATS: GENERAL
Cat Calls: Wonderful Stories and Practical Advice from a Veteran Cat Sitter
The Cat Master
Cat Playing Cupid (Joe Grey Mysteries)
Cat Striking Back: A Joe Grey Mystery
Lessons in Stalking…Adjusting to Life With Cats
Purr More, Hiss Less: Heavenly Lessons I Learned from My Cat
Purry Logic
Treasure Cat Tails: From Trash Can to Parlor
What's the Matter with Henry? The True Tale of a Three-Legged CatCATS: CARE AND HEALTH
Cat Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook
The Complete Cat’s Meow: Everything You Need to Know about Caring for Your Cat
Fabulous Felines: Health and Beauty Secrets for the Pampered Cat
Flower Essences for Animals
The Natural Vet’s Guide to Preventing and Treating Arthritis in Dogs and CatsCATS: FERAL
Implementing a Community Trap-Neuter-Return Program
TNR Past, Present and Future: A History of the Trap-Neuter-Return MovementCATS: TRAINING AND BEHAVIOR
Good Cat! A Proven Guide to Successful Litter Box Use and Problem Solving
Naughty No More! Change Unwanted Behaviors through Positive ReinforcementCHILDREN
Belle's Star
The Bump on Lucy’s Nose
¿Cuantos Perros? How Many Dogs? NEW!
Goodbye, Jake
Hey Bossie, You're a Spokescow!
Forever Friends
Keri Tarr Cat Detective
Misty the Freeway Foxhound: The Dog Who Became a Legend
That Cat Can't Stay
What's the Matter with Henry? The True Tale of a Three-Legged CatCHILDREN AND ANIMALS: PARENTING
Parenting with Pets: The Magic of Raising Children with AnimalsDOGS: BREEDS
Dog Eat Dog : A Very Human Book About Dogs and Dog Shows
Just This Side of Heaven
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designer DogsDOGS: CARE AND HEALTH
The Bump on Lucy’s Nose
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Dog Health & Nutrition
The Natural Vet’s Guide to Preventing and Treating Arthritis in Dogs and Cats
The Natural Vet's Guide to Preventing and Treating Cancer in Dogs
Speaking for Spot: Be the Advocate Your Dog Needs to Live a Happy, Healthy, Longer Life
Flower Essences for AnimalsDOGS: GENERAL
Amazing Gracie: A Dog's Tale
Careers with Dogs: The Comprehensive Guide to Finding Your Dream Job
Dog Blessings: Poems, Prose, and Prayers Celebrating Our Relationship with Dogs
For Every Dog an Angel
Ginger’s Gift: Hope and Healing through Dog Companionship
Just This Side of Heaven
The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick’s Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption
Visiting the Dog Park: Having Fun Staying SafeDOGS: REFERENCE
The Social Lives of Dogs: The Grace of Canine CompanyDOGS: TRAINING AND BEHAVIOR
Rover, Get Off Her Leg!: Pet Etiquette for the Dog Who Pees on Your Rug, Steals the Roast, and Poops in Improper Places
Dog Eat Dog : A Very Human Book About Dogs and Dog Shows
Dog Tags of Courage: Combat Infantrymen and War Dog Heroes in Vietnam
Dog Talk: Lessons Learned from a Life with Dogs
The Social Lives of Dogs: The Grace of Canine Company
The Adventures of Bro and Tracy
Visiting the Dog Park: Having Fun Staying SafeDOGS: WORKING
Dog Tags of Courage: Combat Infantrymen and War Dog Heroes in Vietnam
The Lost Pet Chronicles: Adventures of a K-9 Cop Turned Pet Detective
Scent of the Missing: Love and Partnership with a Search-and-Rescue DogENVIRONMENTALISM
Predatory Bureaucracy: The Extermination of Wolves and the Transformation of the West
Kinship with the Wolf: The Amazing Story of the Woman Who Lives with WolvesFICTION
Autobiography of a Georgia Cat
The Cat Master
Cat Coming Home (Joe Grey Mysteries)
Cat Playing Cupid (Joe Grey Mysteries)
Cat Striking Back: A Joe Grey Mystery
Nobody’s Pets
Robin: The Lovable Morgan Horse
Targets of AffectionFUNDRAISING
Funds to the Rescue: 101 Fundraising Ideas for Humane and Animal Rescue GroupsGIFT BOOKS
Cat Confessions: A “Kitty Come Clean” Tell All Book
The Cat Lover’s Book of Days
Gotta Love Cats!
Who Moved My Mouse? A Self-Help Book for Cats (Who Don’t Need Any Help)HORSES
Robin: The Lovable Morgan HorseHUMOR
Careers for Your Cat
Lessons in Stalking…Adjusting to Life With CatsHUMAN / ANIMAL BOND
Alex & Me: How a Scientist and a Parrot Discovered a Hidden World of Animal Intelligence - and Formed a Deep Bond in the Process
Animals and the Kids Who Love Them: Extraordinary True Stories of Hope, Healing, and Compassion
Belle's Star
Ginger’s Gift: Hope and Healing through Dog Companionship
Nurturing Paws
Scent of the Missing: Love and Partnership with a Search-and-Rescue DogNUTRITION
Protect Your Pet: More Shocking Facts to Consider
Natural Pet Care: How to Improve Your Animal's Quality of LifeOPINION/ESSAY
Pieces of My Heart: Writings Inspired by Animals and Nature
Curious Creatures, Wondrous Waifs: My Life With Animals
The Dog Who Met the Queen and Other Stories
A Scattering of Cats
Tears and Tales: Stories of Human and Animal Rescue
Remember the Alamo: A Sentry Dog Handler's View of Vietnam from the Perimeter of Phan Rang Air Base
Barkley: A Dog's Journey
Rescued: Saving Animals from DisasterPET DETECTION
The Lost Pet Chronicles: Adventures of a K-9 Cop Turned Pet DetectivePET LOSS
Goodbye, Jake
Just This Side of Heaven
There Is Eternal Life for Animals: A Book Based on Bible ScripturePETS: TRAVEL
Have Dog Will Travel, California: Comprehensive Guide to over 2,200 Dog-friendly Accommodations (Have Dog Will Travel Series)
Have Dog Will Travel, Northwest Edition: Hassle-Free Guide to Traveling with Your Dog over 2,100 Dog-Friendly Accommodations throughout the Pacific Northwest (Have Dog Will Travel Series)PHOTOGRAPHY
People I Sleep With
Calico Tales . . . And Others
The Adventures of Bro and Tracy
What's the Matter with Henry? The True Tale of a Three-Legged CatPOETRY
Calico Tales . . . And Others
Cat House Sonnets: 100 Poems Celebrating Cats
Through Katrina's EyesRESCUE GROUPS
Funds to the Rescue: 101 Fundraising Ideas for Humane and Animal Rescue GroupsVEGETARIANISM AND VEGANISM
Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating
Making Kind Choices: Everyday Ways to Enhance Your Life Through Earth- and Animal-Friendly Living
BOOKS BY TITLEBOOKS BY AUTHOR ADAMS, CARL S.
ADLON, JEANNE
ALBRECHT, KAT
ANDERSON, ALLEN & LINDA
ANDERSON, ALLEN & LINDA
ARDEN, DARLENE
ARDEN, DARLENE
ASKANI, TANJA
BEERS, DIANE
BERKELEY, ELLEN PERRY
BERNER, R. THOMAS
BONEHAM, SHEILA WEBSTER
BONHAM, MARGARET
BONHAM, MARGARET
BOZARTH, SANDRA
BREATHED, BERKELEY
BROWN, ANDI
BUDIANSKY, STEPHEN
BURNAM, JOHN C.
CAMPBELL THORNTON, KIM
CARLSON, DELBERT
CHARLESON, SUSANNAH
COHEN, BARBARA S.
COTNER, JUNE
CONHEIM, CATHY & GALLAGHER, BJ
DAFFRON, SUSAN C.
DAVIS, CHRISTINE
DE RHAM, MICKEY
DECKER, DEBBIE
DEVI, LILA
DYE, DAN & BECKLOFF, MARK
DZIEMIANOWICZ, ANN
FAY, JOYCE
FELD, ELLEN
FINEBERG, JILL
FORBES, HARRISON & ADELMAN, BETH
GLASS, TIMOTHY
GORANT, JIM
GORDON, MICHAEL COWL
GOTSCH, CONNIE
GRANDIN, TEMPLE
GREEK, C. RAY & JEAN SWINGLE
HAMER, CHRISTINE & HEVEL, MARGARET
HAMILTON, DONALD
HAMPLE, TIGER
HARRIS, DENA
HARRIS, DENA
HAUSER, MARC D.
JOHNSTON, LYNN C.
KALSTONE, SHIRLEE
KALSTONE, SHIRLEE
KAY, DR. NANCY
KINKADE, AMELIA
KORTIS, BRYAN
KOSTRO, ED
KOSTRO, ED
KRASNESKY, THAD
KRIEGER, MARILYN
LEMENT, WENDY
LEVY, JULIETTE DE BAIRACLI
LINN-GUST, MICHELLE
MAHONEY, JAMES
MARCUS, ERIK
MARTIN, ANN N.
MARTINEZ, AL
MESSONNIER,SHAWN
MESSONNIER,SHAWN
MESSONNIER,SHAWN
MURPHY, PATRICIA
NEWKIRK, INGRID
NOLAN, ALLIA ZOBEL
NULL, GARY
OHRING, MARGY
PEMBERTON, BONNIE
PEPPERBERG, IRENE M.
RAMSEY, M.K.
ROBINS, SANDY
ROBINSON, MICHAEL J.
ROUSSEAU MURPHY, SHIRLEY
ROUSSEAU MURPHY, SHIRLEY
RUDACILLE, DEBORAH
SCHILDKRAUT, BAM
SCHILDKRAUT, BAM
SCHWARTZ,CHERYL
SCULLY, MATTHEW
SEABROOK, JANE
SHANAHAN, NIKI BEHRIKIS
SHAW, FRAN PENNOCK
SILLOWAY, PEG
SINGER, PETER & MASON, JIM
SMITH, CHERYL S.
STERN, JANE AND MICHAEL
STOWE, BETSY
STRAW, DEBORAH
THOMAS, ELIZABETH MARSHALL
VASSALLO, RUSSELL A.
WASSERMAN, BERNARD
WHITAKER, BARBARA
WHITE, DEBRA
WILLEMS, RG
WILLIS, JIM
WINOGRAD, NATHAN J.
WINOGRAD, NATHAN J.
ZOBEL NOLAN, ALLIA
The Adventures of Bro & Tracy
by Joyce Fay
Joyce Fay, 48pp. 2005. $20.00
If you love dogs and you love the Southwest, this is a must have book. Joyce Fay,a professional photographer, has a love affair with dogs and the stark beauty of the Southwest, which she demonstrates in every picture. It would be difficult for me to pick my favorite picture in this lovely book, but the ones of Bro and Tracy in a tree in Monument Valley and in the Painted Desert would be high on my list. Beyond the gorgeous photographs of her dogs playing, climbing trees, sitting on stools at a restaurant, and enjoying the farolitos on Christmas Eve in Old Town, Fay gives sound advice on traveling with your dogs and just having fun. As she says, “Climbing trees wasn’t the goal. It was the accidental result of the relationship, a relationship that involves having fun, communicating, traveling and enjoying dogs.” Her love of dogs led her to found the Bro and Tracy Animal Welfare, which fosters and gives hope to homeless dogs. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book go to Bro and Tracy Animal Welfare to support their work. If you can’t get enough of the pictures, some of the photographs are available on greeting cards through the web site at www.broandtracy.org. This would be a wonderful gift book for all your dog-loving friends. - N. Marano
Alex & Me: How a Scientist and a Parrot Discovered a Hidden World of Animal Intelligence--and Formed a Deep Bond in the Process
By Irene M. Pepperberg
Collins/HarperCollins Publishers, 2008, 232 pp., $23.95
For 30 years Alex, an African grey parrot, and scientist, Irene Pepperberg, worked together on a daily basis. She researched animal intelligence and Alex was the perfect collaborator for her. He mastered a vocabulary of more than 100 words, could sound out words, and add. He knew colors and understood concepts like bigger-smaller, more-fewer, same-different and absence. He was capable of thought and intention even though his brain was the size of a shelled walnut. Alex changed the way the scientific community looked at animal intelligence and cognitive ability.
During this thirty-year association, Alex became famous for his accomplishments. He was written about in many publications – scientific and popular. He even appeared on television. Pepperberg wrote about her training techniques and Alex’s achievements in “The Alex Studies.” Then Alex died suddenly. He should have lived another 20 years.
This book is about the personal relationship between Pepperberg and Alex. The reader is allowed to see the depth of the bond between researcher and subject. Alex was jealous of the attention Pepperberg gave to the other parrots or people. He liked to dance. He enjoyed showing her who was boss. Occasionally the repetition of the experiments bored him and he would play tricks on her. But every day, including Alex’s last one, ended with the same conversation,
“You be good. I love you," Alex said.
"I love you too."
"You'll be in tomorrow?"
"Yes, I'll be in tomorrow."There is the question of how Pepperberg knowing Alex’s abilities and how much he understood could leave him cooped up in a lab cage. She doesn’t deal with this issue or animal rights at any length.
This is a good book for Alex’s many fans and a fascinating book for people new to the idea of animal intelligence and cognitive ability. It will amaze them and make them look at all animals in a new light.
Irene Pepperberg is an associate research professor at Brandeis University in Massachusetts and teaches animal cognition at Harvard University. Her work has been featured in major newspapers and magazines in the United States, Europe, and Asia, as well as on tele¬vision, including the now-famous interview of Alex by Alan Alda on Scientific American Frontiers. She is the author of one previous book, The Alex Studies (Harvard, 2000). - N. Marano
Allergic to Pets? The Breakthrough Guide to Living with the Animals You Love
by Shirlee Kalstone
Bantam Books, 2006, 147pp., $7.99
Allergic reactions to animals are one of the main reasons that animals are relinquished to shelters. But now there Is hope for all of you who love animals but sneeze at the thought of being in the same room with a cat for more than two seconds. This small book is a “must read” for anyone who suffers from pet allergies.
Kalstone is thorough in discussing what allergies are and what causes them. By the end of that section I was sneezing. Then she deals with various popular pets and explains what causes a person to be allergic to them. The main animals she covers are cats, dogs, birds and horses. But she also devotes space to rabbits, gerbils, guinea pigs, hamsters, chinchillas, mice, rats and ferrets. She provides tips for minimizing the allergens in your home and office as well as giving the latest information on what doctors have in their arsenals to help allergy sufferers. Kalstone suffers from allergies herself, but it hasn’t kept her from having many animals in her life.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves animals but is afraid to adopt a pet because of allergies. Kalstone give advice, explanations and easily followed tips for dealing with your allergy symptoms. A wealth of information in a small package. Everyone needs this book either for himself or for a friend. - N. Marano
On Dogwise: Allergic to Pets? The Breakthrough Guide to Living with the Animals You Love
Amazing Gracie: A Dog's Tale
by Dan Dye and Mark Beckloff
Workman Publishing Company, Inc., 2003, 256pp, $10.95
Amazing Gracie is a beautiful tribute to the lonely, deaf, and partially blind puppy who was the inspiration behind the famous Three Dog Bakery. Written by co - owners Dan Dye and Mark Beckloff, Amazing Gracie allows us to drop in and hop along on their incredible journey— one that led to great success in many ways.
In 1989, Dan Dye was stuck in a dead end job when he adopted the dog he called “the loneliest pup in the litter,” a deaf and partially blind albino Great Dane.
Writing with humor and great emotion, Dye and Beckloff highlight the important, often hysterical events of their lives. Through this deeply personal book we live life with Dan, Mark, and their three dogs, Sarah, Dottie, and Gracie. We learn how this wonderful empire began, and most important, why.
This inspiration packed book invites even die hard dog aficionados to marvel over Gracie's antics and the author's delivery of her actions. Amazing Gracie tugs at our heartstrings with crystal clear authenticity. It is a story about love; a tale of two guys and their canine family.
As Dan Dye so eloquently states, “This isn’t a book about ‘making it’, this is the story of a dog, born with all the cards stacked against her, whose passionate, joyful nature turned what could have been a dog’s life into a victory of the canine spirit— and in the process, saved two guys who thought they were saving her.”
Dedicated “For Gracie and for every other best dog in the world,” the book is a personal testament to the important role our dogs’ play in our lives.
Sending the clear message, “Life is being in the life lived, and not in the loss,” the book celebrates the human - canine connection.
Amazing Gracie will leave its stamp—a wonderful Great Dane sized paw-print right on your heart.
All royalties from Amazing Gracie benefit the Gracie Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose funds help abused and neglected animals. - R. Bildner
Amazing Gracie: A Dog's Tale
Animals and the Kids Who Love Them: Extraordinary True Stories of Hope, Healing, and Compassion
by Allen & Linda Anderson
New World Library, 2011, 272pp, $14.95 (pap.)
This heartwarming anthology tells the stories of the bond between animals and kids. These animals all helped the children in the book conquer a problem whether it is the rabbit who helps a foster boy sleep through the night or the golden retriever who surfs in charity events to raise money for children with disabilities or Snazzy, a black pony, who helps a boy learn to talk. Allen and Linda Anderson cofounded Angel Animal Network. A portion of the proceeds from their books is donated to animal shelters and animal welfare organizations.
Animals and the Kids Who Love Them: Extraordinary True Stories of Hope, Healing, and Compassion
Animals in Translation : Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior
by Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson
Scribner, 368 pp. 2004. $25
I have a real problems with this book and with Temple Grandin, a designer of humane handling facilities for livestock and Colorado State Professor who sees herself as an animal advocate. For decades she has been trying to straddle the vast divide between agribusiness and animal advocacy, and as a result, in my opinion, she’s made life easier for factory farmers and worse for farmed animals. She’s improved living and dying conditions for the victims of factory farming (the animals) at the expense of allowing the industry to feel less guilty and increase its profits, thus perpetuating a system that has wreaked havoc on the environment, on human health, on slaughterhouse workers, as well as on the animals who are imprisoned and murdered by the millions every year to keep it all going. It is irresponsible of Grandin, if she really considers herself an animal advocate, to enable a system that is so harmful on so many levels.
On the last page of her book, she reflects on her career choice:
“After I developed my center-track restraining system, I remember looking out over the cattle yard at the hundreds and hundreds of animals milling around in their corrals. I was upset that I had just designed a really efficient slaughter plant. . . . Cows are the animals I love best. Looking at those animals I realized that none of them would even exist if human beings hadn’t bred them into being.” (!)
So in other words, bioengineered animals should be grateful to humans for their existence, even if it’s a miserable and short one ending in slaughter? I find that a strange rationale.
In the area of pets, although I agree with Grandin that mixed breed dogs are the best bets for people to adopt, she also insists, several times, that pit bulls and Rottweilers are more aggressive dogs than other breeds-although she stops short of calling for a ban on them-even though it should be clear to anyone familiar with dogs that ANY dog is capable of being dangerous, depending on its environment and how it’s treated.
Bizarrely, Grandin also implies that insects and humans aren’t animals. Maybe she feels that insects are too lowly to be called animals and humans are superior to other animals.
I get the feeling, after reading this book, that Grandin is schizoid about our fellow animals. She obviously is attracted to them, has great admiration for their extraordinary abilities, and believes that she as an autistic person has a lot in common with them, yet she can talk about the ghastly experiments of Harry Harlow with baby monkeys without bothering to point out how sadistic they were. And she only mentions in passing her brief experiment with ethical vegetarianism that ended in failure because she felt ill, apparently causing her to conclude that she needed meat to survive. As a vegan for seven years, I know that no human needs meat to survive. It takes some getting used to, but anyone can do it. Although she does present some original and thoughtful ideas about animal behavior, as an animal advocate I can't recommend this book. - A. Baxter
On Amazon: Animals in Translation : Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior
On Dogwise: Animals in Translation : Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal BehaviorAutobiography of a Georgia Cat
by Michael Cowl Gordon
Author House, 2004, 160pp. $12.95
Black Jack, a unique indoor/outdoor cat, narrates the story of his African-American family in rural Georgia and his cat life in the world outside his house. Archie, Jack’s guardian, sinks ever deeper into alcoholism causing disruption in the family. Archie’s wife, Cora, with ailments of her own, cares for her centenarian mother, Mama. Jack also talks about the relationship with their daughter, Lexie and her Jewish husband, Lenny, who battles an addiction problem of his own. Lexie battles cancer which affects the whole family but especially Lenny and their daughter, Emily.
A lengthy section of the book deals with “feline” mythology. Black Jack goes to the cats’ Summer Gathering to listen to Talks with Wolves, the most spiritually advanced cat among them, tell the ancient stories. Following catnip purification rites, they hear the tale of First Cat. Through his heroic quest the world is saved and the cat becomes God’s favorite. I loved the explanation of how cats gained the power to see in the dark. Jack also spends considerable time meditating. Some of his best meditation is done during the day on Mama’s bed while gospel songs pour from the radio.
Jack discusses every aspect of daily life from Archie’s addiction to Cora and Mama’s physical ailments. He also has opinions on dogs, hairballs and life in general. How Jack goes through life and his observations of it give the reader a glimpse into a cat’s mind and rural life in the Georgia. This book brings hope and understanding to readers coping with grief and loss as well as those who are going through addiction, codependency and recovery.
Due to the subject matter of the book and the possibility of using it in classes and groups dealing with loss or addiction, the author will provide a detailed study guide called “What Life Teaches a Cat” to be used in conjunction with the book. This would also be helpful for book groups.
I enjoyed this book and loved Jack. It will make every animal lover look more thoughtfully at their own animal and wonder just what is going on behind those eyes. I highly recommend this book. - N. Marano
Autobiography of a Georgia Cat
Barkley: A Dog’s Journey
by Al Martinez
Angel City Press, 157 pp. 2006. $14.95
For those of us who’ve had the privilege of sharing our lives with pets, there are usually one or two with whom we bonded more tightly and who will always shine brighter in our memories. LA Times columnist Al Martinez and his wife had that in Barkley, an ebullient Springer Spaniel who was a beloved member of their family for nine years. “Barkley: A Dog’s Journey” documents a 3,000-mile road trip tailor made for Barkley up California and Oregon and back down to LA during a period of remission from the leukemia that killed him prematurely, with philosophical musings, local color, and recollections from the author’s long life thrown in for good measure. Thoughtful and lyrical, it encourages readers to contemplate their own lives and loves, but without being maudlin or indulging in over-sentimentality.
In the final chapter, Mr. Martinez explains that since Barkley’s death, they have not seen fit to replace Barkley with another dog because that would be too difficult. Instead, a feisty cat named Ernie is now attempting to fill some of the vacuum Barkley left behind. So life goes on, and the journey continues. Small book, big message.
- A. BaxterBelle's Star
by Connie Gotsch
Artemesia Publishing, 2009, 125 pp., $7.99 (paperback)
We first meet Belle when she is smashed between Bonehead Johnson and his son Toby on the front seat of Bonehead’s truck. The Heeler mix puppy has suffered much abuse on the farm where she was born. Toby continues the abuse by dumping her at a convenience store where she is rescued by Darcy and her Aunt Ellen.
Belle’s abusive background makes it very difficult for her to trust anyone. At Ellen’s house she meets Painter and Misty, the dog and cat, who live there. They try to convince Belle that people can be all right but their wisdom doesn’t fit with Belle’s experience. After Ellen’s husband says he doesn’t want another dog, Belle is taken to Darcy’s house.
The story is told from Belle’s viewpoint but the situations she faces hold many lessons for children, too. Belle fears new situations, she doesn’t trust new people and she doesn’t really believe that life can be good for her. Darcy patiently teaches Belle what she needs to know to be a good dog but Belle can’t trust Darcy yet. Belle always figures out how she can escape if she needs to.
When Darcy is threatened, Belle realizes how much she loves Darcy and learns what loyalty means as she comes to Darcy’s rescue. Belle learns she belongs in Darcy’s family and that the world can be a fine place for a dog.
The book can be used with children who have been in abusive situations. It will help them regain their confidence and learn to trust others again. It is written for children 8-12 years old. There is a free activity guide on the publisher’s website to be used by teachers, parents or counselors in connection with small group discussions of the book. It has questions and activities tied to each book chapter.
Connie Gotsch has published two award-winning adult novels but this is her first novel for young people. Belle’s Star won a Silver Mom’s Choice Award, and a First Place for Juvenile Fiction in the New Mexico Press Women Communication Contest in 2010. In 2009, Belle’s Star was a Finalist for a New Mexico Book Award for Juvenile Fiction. Connie Gotsch is a resident of Farmington, NM and works for KSJE, Public Radio for the Four Corners. She serves as Program Director and hosts the award-winning morning classical music show, “Roving with the Arts.” She also produces a segment entitled “Writers of the Four Corners.” She works with the Farmington Public Library on a story time program for children.
I highly recommend this book for all children who love animals and especially for children who have suffered abuse, bullying or other difficult situations in their homes and who need to learn to trust. - N. Marano
The Bump on Lucy’s Nose
by R. Thomas Berner
www.marquettebooks.com, 2008, 34pp. $8.95
Lucy was two-years-old when Sarah’s parents adopted her. She and Sarah celebrated their two-year birthdays together. They were inseparable. Then, on Sarah and Lucy’s 10th birthday, Sarah discovered a bump on Lucy’s nose. Sarah and her parents took Lucy to the veterinarian. Dr. Garcia said Lucy must stay at the veterinary hospital for surgery because she had a fibrous carcinoma – cancer – on her nose. The tumor needed to be removed. Even when Lucy came home, with stitches in her nose, no one knew whether the cancer was completely gone. It would take a year before they were sure. Sarah gave Lucy lots of love and treats. Life went back to normal for Lucy and Sarah. Finally, the year is over and Dr. Garcia calls to say the cancer is gone. Lucy is fine again. She compliments Sarah for taking such good care of Lucy, for noticing the lump so quickly and for bringing Lucy to the veterinary hospital. She told her that helped save Lucy’s life. Sarah and Lucy write the book together to tell their story to others.
The message of this book is an excellent one for children, and adults, too. Because Sarah and her parents consider Lucy a member of the family and pay such close attention to her, they handled a potentially deadly health problem immediately. This allowed Lucy to be cured. It isn’t a bad lesson to heed with humans, either. I also enjoyed the fact that the book is dedicated to Ed, Lucy’s boyfriend.
R. Thomas Berner is Professor Emeritus of Journalism and American Studies at Pennsylvania State University. The story is based on what happened with Lucy, a Golden Retriever they rescued. - N. MaranoCalico Tales…and Others
by Betsy Stowe
Infinity Press, 109 pp. 2004. $14.95
When poetry is good it touches your mind and intellect. But, for me, great poetry grabs my heartstrings and emotions. It won’t let me go even when I close the book. That is how I felt after reading Calico Tales…and Others. No cat lover could read this book of poetry without a tear, a laugh and a smile of recognition. The incidents and emotions portrayed in the poems perfectly reflect the personality of cats. The author has captured the playfulness, aloofness, warmth and love cats share with their chosen people. But you get more than graceful, effortless poetry, although that would have been enough. Each poem is balanced by a beautiful black and white photograph showing cats in the mood of the poem. The two together make it an outstanding book. My personal favorite poems were “Jump the Moon,” “Sleeping Cat,” “The Street” and “Flat Out.”
Whether you like poetry or photography or you just love cats, this is a must have book. I know I will look at these photographs and re-read these poems whenever I need to touch the essence of what a cat is all about. This would make a wonderful gift for any cat lover on your list. - N. Marano
Careers for Your Cat
by Ann Dziemianowicz (author) and Ann Boyajian (illustrator)
Ten Speed Press, 2010, 96pp, $9.99
Are you ready for some role reversal? Help find the proper career for your cat so Fluffy can get a high-end job and you can catnap all day. Careers for Your Cat provides you with a convenient in-home Meowers-Briggs Career/Personality Test that gives your cat the tools to identify skill-sets that will help him make the correct career choice. This book matches the cat’s personality to the proper career just as the Myers-Briggs test does for people. Perhaps your pampered Persian is really an interior decorator at heart. Or maybe your adventurous Abyssinian should be a pilot. Your tuxedo cat might have the soul of an opera star. Find out the answers by establishing your cat’s “type” – outgoing or reserved, self-effacing or self-confident, witty or witless. After the personality type is determined, Dziemianowicz provides thirty-four career matches for those types. This book is fun in every way and highly recommended.
Careers with Dogs: The Comprehensive Guide to Finding Your Dream Job
By Kim Campbell Thornton
BowTie, Inc., 2011, 488pp, $24.95 (pap.)
Are you thinking of what career you might like to pursue or perhaps reinventing your career path in the current economy? If you are crazy about dogs and think you might like to work with them, this is the book for you. Thornton profiles 120 jobs that involve working with dogs. There is everything from veterinarian, veterinary specialties and vet techs to dog groomer and behaviorist. Maybe you’d like to be a pet massage therapist or a search-and-rescue handler? Dog trainers, animal communicators, humane educators – all are described along with interviews of people doing that job, “barkworthy bites of advice” and “barkworthy tips” to give you a thorough idea of what each of these professions is like. Thornton has authored or co-authored more than 30 books on cats and dogs. This is the ultimate guide to animal professions. While it is written for people who want to work with dogs, much of the advice could apply to those who wish to work with cats, too.Careers with Dogs: The Comprehensive Guide to Finding Your Dream Job
Cat Calls: Wonderful Stories and Practical Advice from a Veteran Cat Sitter
by Jeanne Adlon and Susan Logan
Square One Publishers, 2011, 144pp, $14.95 (pap.)
Thirty-five years ago Jeanne Adlon became the first cat sitter in New York City. Since then, she has seen it all and recounts many of her experiences with the wonderful cats she has cared for over the years. Tips for making cats lives better and for helping people do the best for their furry friends are written with love and fun. Her co-author, Susan Logan, is the editor of Cat Fancy magazine. You will find out about keeping kitties kosher, feeding pampered cats from Waterford goblets or the time John Lennon bought a cat tree from her shop window – cat hair and all. This is an excellent book with good advice written in an interesting way. A portion of the book sales will be donated to animal rescue, rehabilitation and preservation organizations. Excellent gift for cat lovers.
Cat Coming Home (Joe Grey Mysteries)
By Shirley Rousseau Murphy
William Morrow, 2010, 368pp, $19.99
Put this 17th Joe Grey mystery on your Christmas list for all your cat loving friends. The holidays in Molena Point may not arrive with joy this year because the town is dealing with a series of brutal assaults. A team of criminals is breaking into homes to hide their stalking and brutal attacks of single women. So far the police haven’t been able to come up with anything and the cat sleuths, Joe Grey, Dulcie and Kit, haven’t called in any tips either. Several new characters arrive in town to make everything more interesting. Maudie Toola and her orphaned grandson, Benny, come back to her childhood home of Molena Point when her son and daughter-in-law are murdered in Los Angeles. She is unaware that the killers have followed them back. Misto, a wise prison cat in town from Soledad Prison, provides the connection between the mysteries. Joe and the gang help solve the crimes by Christmas Eve and find Misto a new home. When you read Murphy’s Joe Grey series, you’ll understand why she has won so many awards for her books.Cat Coming Home (Joe Grey Mysteries)
Cat Confessions: A “Kitty Come Clean” Tell All Book
by Allia Zobel Nolan
Harvest House Publishers., 2010, 64p., $9.99
It’s not easy to confess our sins and shortcomings whether we’re human or feline. However, these brave felines are coming clean in Nolan’s new tell-all book. Nolan’s own cats have enlisted their feline friends to feel the cathartic effects of getting their misdeeds off their chests and starting fresh.
We meet cats who lick the salt off Mom’s potato chips, hack into Dad’s computer to start a social networking fan site, land a super hairball smack in Dad’s shoe, use his razor or tell their Mom’s date how old she really is.
Each confession is accompanied by a photo of the cat who is baring his soul. The pictures are excellent and will make the reader go “Ahhh” even while being horrorstruck at the confession.
Nolan is the author of seven other cat books and more than 150 children’s and adult books. She lives in Connecticut with her husband and three cats.
Cat Confessions: A Kitty Come Clean Tell-All Book
Cat House Sonnets: 100 Poems Celebrating Cats
by Margy Ohring
Jorlan Publishing 116pp. 2006 $14.95
Margy Ohring has captured the true essence of cat in this wonderfully touching book of sonnets. Her poems celebrate ordinary events - feeding time, using the litter box, sleeping sitting on a windowsill, or playing with a toy. Yet the reader sees every nuance of the scene in great detail. It would be difficult to pick favorite poems here because each of them works. It is nice to see a classic poetic form used with a modern subject to such good effect. Ohring manages to get inside the minds of the felines she so lovingly describes. I felt I knew the personality of each cat in the book. This is a wonderful achievement that any cat lover would enjoy dipping into frequently when a smile, a laugh or even a tear is needed. Bravo for such a delightful read. - N. Marano
The Cat Lover’s Book of Days
by Peg Silloway
Ursa Books, 2010, 384p., $24.95
What a charming book for any cat lover. When I first saw the book, I flipped to February 7, January 6, September 3 and other dates that marked friends’ birthdays. I wanted to know what cat wisdom could be found for that day and I wasn’t disappointed. There is a page for every day of the year including Leap Year.
Every day has information that may include photos, history, folklore, humor, quotes and commentary about cats. There is much about the naming of cats and the stories behind the names. In the very center of the book is a special section. It includes a copy of the original 1876 New York Times article on postal cats. Very interesting, if hard on the eyes. Then there is an article called “The CAT User’s Manual” which is fun and useful.
This would make a wonderful gift for any cat lover on your list or for yourself. Put it on your bedside table and dip into it at will. You will always come up with a tidbit about cats that you didn’t know before. And you’ll have the joy of looking at cats every day of the year. Congratulations to Peg Siloway for collecting all this feline trivia and for putting it together in such a fun, readable way. - N. Marano
The Cat Lover's Book of Days: A Year of Cat History, Lore, and Laughter
The Cat Master
by Bonnie Pemberton
Marshall Cavendish, 2007, 260 pp. $16.99
Buddy, the pampered, rescue cat who lives indoors, and Jett, the feral who has survived life in the alley, may just look like cats to the average person but in reality their intertwined fate will play out the age-old clash of good vs. evil. They are locked in battle to be the next Cat Master, spiritual leader of all felines. Which one wins is at the heart of this book.
The old Cat Master is dying. He sends out a message, “Rise from the alley, my son. Of all my blood, you are the Chosen.” But his message is telepathically interrupted so Buddy hears only, “Rise from the alley…” The feline world plunges into darkness waiting for the next leader.
Buddy was badly hurt, when The Boy found him and nursed him back to health. Now Buddy lives the life of an Indoor with two other cats, Pris and Zekki. They are young and look up to Buddy for training and guidance. Buddy is haunted by the message that keeps playing over in his mind, “Rise from the alley…” and the arrival of Jett in his yard. Even though he doesn’t want to leave The Boy, he knows he must return to the alley to meet his fate. He warns Zekki and Pris to stay indoors where they are safe. But, like most cats, who are burdened with endless curiosity, they don’t listen and wander out the front door instead. Jett lures them into the dangerous world of the Outs where they become bait in his trap to lure Buddy into his web.
It takes the help of five cats, two dogs, a lizard, a possum and a mockingbird for Buddy to fulfill his mission. Of all the minor characters, Orie, the lizard, is the most satisfying. His actions turn him from a timid lizard into a lizard who is special indeed. The heroic German Sheperd, Tenba, continuously demonstrates the courageous loyalty of her breed.
Pemberton uses exciting, vivid descriptions to describe the animals, their surroundings and the perils they face on their adventures. Some of the fight scenes are filled with gore leading to death, which might be a bit strong for younger readers. But Pemberton depicts the bonding of animal to animal and animal to human beautifully. When I finished, I felt I these characters were part of my family.
I would recommend this book for older children and adults. Pemberton gets into the animal mind and gives her readers access to the mysterious feline world. -N. Marano
Cat Playing Cupid (Joe Grey Mysteries)
by Shirley Rousseau Murphy
Avon, 2009, 368 pp., $7.99 (paperback)Cat Striking Back: A Joe Grey Mystery
By Shirley Rousseau Murphy
William Morrow, 2009, 336 pp., $19.99
Shirley Rousseau Murphy has been writing the delightful Joe Grey mysteries for many years. These are the 14th and 15th books in the series. When an author has a continuing series, the books can become a little stale and predictable. That is not the case with Joe Grey and his band of talking cat detectives. They remain as clever as ever. Molena Point, CA would not be nearly as safe without their help.Yes, I said talking cats. Ordinarily I wouldn’t be interested in a series where the animals can talk but here I believe Joe Grey, Dulcie and the others definitely do talk. If you can’t surrender to the fantasy and mystery of talking cats, these books aren’t for you. But, if you give them a chance, Joe and his talking friends will win you over.
Cat Playing Cupid begins on Valentine’s Day with the wedding of Joe’s human, Clyde Damen, to Ryan Flannery. There is hardly time to concentrate on the wedding when a body turns up that needs to be identified and a long cold case re-emerges that begs to be solved. Not only must Joe solve the cases, but there is the discovery of a book of folk tales that reveals the secret of the talking cats – Joe Grey, Dulcie, Kit and a clowder of ferals living in the hills.
Cat Striking Back, the latest in the Joe Grey series, finds Joe discovering a crime scene as he is doing a good deed by providing food for a nursing mother cat. He smells the trail of human blood at the site of the muddy swimming pool and follows it to where the body disappears. Then there is the matter of four burglarized homes where the owners are all on vacation. Joe, Dulcie, Kit and two local ferals figure out how to thwart the killer.
Molena Point is modeled on Carmel and the Monterey Peninsula. It is a charming town with interesting people. Some people know the cats can talk and others don’t so there is always the tension of keeping the secret unless the cats decide to reveal it for their own reasons.
Shirley Rousseau Murphy is a multiple award-winning author who has written children’s books and fantasy books as well as the Joe Grey series. She and her husband live in Carmel, CA where they serve as full-time household help for their two demanding felines.
I highly recommend this series for its setting, characters, humor, and storytelling. You will come away from the books believing these people are your friends. And, even better, you will have met a remarkable group of cats who actually keep the order in Molena Point. It might help to start with Cat on the Edge, the first book in the series, to get an idea of how the characters change and grow throughout the books. But anywhere you start will be a good beginning. - N. Marano
Cat Striking Back: A Joe Grey Mystery
Cat Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook
by Delbert G. Carlson, DVM and James M. Giffin, MD
Howell Book House, 448 pp. 1995. $24.95
This is one of those books every cat guardian should keep, for informational purposes, alongside their books on complementary veterinary medicine. It's an allopathic encyclopedia of what can go wrong with cats written in layman's language, and furnished with photos and other graphics as well as other interesting tidbits about cat physiology and anatomy.
The authors also wrote “Dog Owner’s Home Veterinary Handbook”, which is equally informative. - A. Baxter
Cat Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook
Cats/Canines Can Communicate
by Patricia Murphy, Ph.D.
JPM Publishers, 107 pp. 1998. $9.00
The possibility of mental telepathy between animals, plants and humans is fascinating, and there are animal intuitives and psychics who have made a career out of it. This book, with its somewhat misleading and awkward title (she talks about more than just cats and dogs), would have been much more effective had it been better organized and written more carefully. As it is, it's a far too short introduction to the world of animal/human communication, with a number of anecdotes included to illustrate how people can "talk" to their pets, wildlife and even plants to find out how they feel and what they need.
It's part how-to book and partly a story of Murphy's and other's experiences with animals. Some of the incidents she describes and the advice she gives strain the edges of credibility, but if you suspend your disbelief and open your mind to the magical, you'll get a kick out of this book. You may even find yourself giving and getting telepathic messages back from your pets and plants. As for me, I'm still working on it. - A. Baxter
The Complete Cat’s Meow: Everything You Need to Know about Caring for Your Cat
By Darlene Arden
Wiley, 2011, 224p., $19.99 pap.
This is the book every first-time or twentieth –time cat owner needs to have. It is concise and lets you know everything about bringing a cat into your home. Arden gives the information in a chatty, personal manner that lets the reader know she has been there and knows what she’s talking about. I’ve had many cats and still learned things I didn’t know from this book. She uses boxes to provide quick points that are interesting such as, “Cats purr when they’re content, but they also purr as a way to release stress and comfort themselves. There has been some research done… that shows the frequency of the purr is healing.”
The book begins before the kitten is born and explains how a professional breeder prepares for each litter. Arden uses respectable breeders as examples of how much thought goes into making everything ready for new kittens. One of the things I particularly like about this book is the respect Arden has for shelter cats and the rescue groups who help strays and abandoned cats. To Arden each cat is valuable and important whether purebred or mixed breed. Each needs the same type of care and attention. Arden puts a spotlight on volunteering by saying, “Volunteers are invaluable to any shelter or rescue group. If you’re not quite ready to bring home a cat, you might think about volunteering at a local shelter or humane society.”
There is an excellent survey section on feline health concerns. This provides the reader with behavior and symptoms to watch for and helps you know when the cat must go to the veterinarian and possible treatments.
The author is a certified animal behavior consultant and gives the reader the benefit of that knowledge in several chapters. She explains cat behavior in great detail and has another chapter on the importance of training your cat, using clicker training as a fast, effective means of training and the importance of interacting with your cat on a regular basis.
Her appendices are useful and fun. There are so many products available for cats from toys to cat trees to scratching posts that Arden gives the reader a quick shopping guide to the some of the best available. She also lists a variety of web sites that cat lovers might not be aware of such as The American Association of Feline Practitioners, Cornell Feline Health Center and Winn Feline Foundation. All of these organizations have helpful information on cats. She also has a list of how to find a behavior consultant and some books that will get you started on a more complete understanding of your cat.
I highly recommend this book for cat people and libraries. If you buy one cat care book this year, this should be the one.
The Complete Cat's Meow: Everything You Need to Know about Caring for Your Cat
The Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog and Cat
by Juliette De Bairacli Levy
Faber & Faber, 323 pp. 1991. $16
European natural rearing advocate De Bairacli Levy is clearly a highly respected and very knowledgeable herbal and natural pet care expert, and I have no problem with her advice in these areas. However, her negative comments about spaying and neutering (i.e., that it's a bad idea, and that humans do it for their own convenience, not for the benefit of their pets) are off base. She has a great respect for ancient lore, but in this case, I think that she's gotten old wive's tales and true wisdom confused. I don't know where Ms. Levy resides, or what the pet population statistics are for her area, but in the U.S., some six million dogs and cats are killed every year because there are not enough homes for them all. Is there any benefit to the animals in having to destroy entire litters? Has Ms. Levy ever seen a pile of just-euthanized shelter dogs and cats, killed merely because there were too many of them? In New Mexico, dogs and cats, kittens and puppies are routinely dumped like garbage because those responsible for their existence are not willing to care for them. We took these animals out of the wild and domesticated them thousands of years ago, and they can no longer live as if they were still wild. I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of having pets, but I believe that since we've created them and made them dependent on us, we have to take responsibility for their care. And that includes spaying and neutering to prevent their numbers from getting out of control and preventing the suffering of so many of them who are forced to live on the streets, or who are abused or neglected, or euthanized because of lack of space. That's the real suffering, to me.
In an ideal world, dogs and cats could live as nature intended--with gonads intact--if their guardians would only be willing to control their roaming behavior. But this is far from an ideal world. Because of the gross irresponsibility of pet guardians who allow their unaltered animals to run around and freely breed because they've decided it's inconvenient and too expensive to have them spayed and neutered--and because of professional breeders who add to the problem by perpetuating their favored breeds, as well as puppy mills and backyard breeders who produce millions more animals, the U.S. has ended up with a tragic overpopulation problem. I wonder what measures Ms. Levy would suggest to deal with that, if not spaying and neutering.
Otherwise, I found the book fairly useful and educational. - A. Baxter
The Complete Herbal Handbook for the Dog and Cat
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Designer Dogs
by Margaret H. Bonham
Alpha Books, 2005, 238pp. $14.95
This is the only book I’ve seen on the new concept of “designer dogs.” It is a subject that needs some discussion. Bonham provides a lengthy section devoted to listing the various designer dog combinations, telling breed characteristics, history and personalities. This section is quite helpful for people who are deciding which designer dog is right for them. The rest of the book is standard information for dog ownership. She covers the field from choosing a puppy to nutrition, training, health, grooming and safety concerns.
While the book would be helpful to anyone thinking about adding a designer dog to their lives, it poses a dilemma for this reviewer.
People usually want these dogs because they are advertised as being hypoallergenic, non-shedding and trendy. But what you get for a large price tag, sometimes as high as $3,500, is a glorified mutt who may not live up to all the advance hype. His parents are purebred dogs, but he isn’t considered a purebred because the AKC doesn’t recognize his breed. He still may cause allergies for people with allergen sensitivities, and the trend may fade away as trends usually do.
With so many desirable mixed-breed dogs languishing in animal shelters, I have a hard time rationalizing the need for “designer dogs.” But if you are considering such a purchase, this book will be helpful to you.
- N. Marano
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designer Dogs
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Dog Health & Nutrition
by Margaret Bonham and James J. Wingert, DVM
Alpha Books, 298 pp. 2003 $14.95
If you don’t have the time or the inclination to really study these areas of dogology, this book is not bad to have around. However, I do have a number of issues with it. Number one is that one of the co-authors, Margaret Bonham, is an aficionado of dogsled racing and even puts in a plug for the Iditarod, the most brutal and canine-cruel race on earth, in my opinion.
Another is that the co-authors seem to be prejudiced against the “holistic crowd”, as it’s termed at one point, and harbor a grudge against them for successfully crusading against the use of the chemical ethoxyquin as a dog food preservative. They also feel that “meat by-products” and “meat meal” are perfectly good sources of nutrition for dogs. Nutritionist Gary Null, whose book, Natural Pet Care, I’ve reviewed below, writes that most commercial dog food is made of dangerous and toxic stuff, including rendered shelter dogs, road kill, and flea collars, and that no dog should eat it. In contrast, the authors seem to believe that if a dog food is certified by AAFCO (American Association of Feed Control Officials), a self-policing group run by pet food manufacturers, it’s perfectly healthy to eat. It’s interesting that the only blurb on the book is from a pet food manufacturer.
Other prejudices that I uncovered are an anti-soy milk bias (the book states parenthetically that children who drink soy milk often develop rickets!). As a vegan, I know that soymilk contains sufficient calcium for any human. They also seem to be against what they term “fad” diets: the vegetarian as well as the BARF (bones and raw food) diet, both of which have been fed to dogs with no apparent ill effects for a number of years.
The authors also claim that today’s dogs live longer and healthier lives than they did before commercial dog foods were available, and that home-cooked diets are usually inferior to commercial diets. Although admittedly this is hard to prove one way or the other, authors like Gary Null and Ann N. Martin (see Protect Your Pet book review below) believe that most dogs are actually sicklier than they once were, largely because of the commercial diets they’re put on and the frequent vaccinations they get. They contend that cancers and autoimmune disorders are showing up in increasingly younger dogs, and that average life spans are actually shorter than they used to be.
To their credit, the authors are pro-spay/neuter and anti-obesity, and the medical chapters are written in layman’s terms.
Having said all that, I certainly can’t recommend this book with any degree of personal enthusiasm, but it does contain the bare bone basics for busy dog guardians. - A. Baxter
Complete Idiot's Guide to Dog Health & Nutrition (The Complete Idiot's Guide)
The Covenant of the Wild: Why Animals Chose Domestication
by Stephen Budiansky
Yale University Press, 216 pp. 1999. $18
Science writer Stephen Budiansky attempts to prove against all evidence to the contrary that man and domesticated animals (farm animals, horses, dogs, cats) are willing partners in a mutually beneficial pact, and that agribusiness/factory farming is just part of the evolutionary process. He cites the fact that the (free) wild counterparts of cows, horses, etc., are languishing while their (enslaved) domesticated cousins are flourishing as a justification for domestication! (Reminds me of cattle chute designer Temple Grandin's response, when asked if cows should even exist, that at least they have a life, even if it's a miserable one). He presents anecdotal "evidence" that chickens and sheep enjoy confinement. He believes there are so many surplus pets that shipping them to labs isn't a bad idea, and that adopting a shelter cat may not be wise because it kills birds. He also attributes the current human-engendered, accelerated rate of species extinction to (what else?) evolution. (Darwin must be turning over in his grave.)
The author, a small-time farmer, waxes romantic about hunters, farmers, and ranchers- that they're closer to nature than pampered, ignorant city slickers, and connect spiritually with those whom they kill. He includes many cheap shots at animal rights activists (simplistic, sentimental, squeamish, seeking a return to a nonexistent Eden). He ridicules progressive towns such as Berkeley, CA, which "encapsulates America's loss of knowledge about the real world"; and Takoma Park, MD, a nuclear-free zone with a socialist mayor and a vocal animal rights community- apparently three strikes against it.
Mr. Budiansky apparently believes it extremist to liberate lobsters from a supermarket, but not to boil them alive for a taste treat; extremist to rescue hens for a farm sanctuary, but not to debeak them, force moult them, and then kill them at 1-2 years of age, despite their 15-year life expectancy; extremist to free minks from a commercial farm to fend for themselves, but not to electrocute, gas, poison, or strangle them so their fur isn't damaged for fashion mavens; and extremist to remove toxoplasmosis-infected cats from a "research" lab, but not to continue to exploit them with Machiavellian experiments and then kill them as a reward for their service. And he apparently doesn't think it extremist to create more and more drugs and vaccines to help humans survive and live longer (at last count we number SIX BILLION), while destroying millions of "lower" animals in the process.
Agribusiness pollutes the environment terribly, and it pollutes human beings who feed off meat products. In evolutionary terms, I say Budiansky is wrong; Homo sapiens are gradually moving away from the exploitation of domesticated animals and toward compassionate veganism. I see mandatory spay/neuter laws and the elimination of breeding programs in our future. After all, if we're part of the evolutionary problem, we should be part of the solution. Richard Dawkins states in The Blind Watchmaker, "Our legal and moral systems are deeply species-bound.” A book such as this only contributes to that speciesism and anthropocentrism. But it's worth reading just to know what we're up against. - A. Baxter
The Covenant of the Wild : Why Animals Chose Domestication
¿Cuantos Perros? How Many Dogs? NEW!
by Bam Schlidkraut, Illustrated by: Steven Katz
Operation Outreach-USA Press, 2011, unpaged, $7.95
Just how many dogs does it take to have fun? How many dogs does it take to dig a hole or role in the dirt? You’ll learn the answer when you read ¿Cuantos Perros? How Many Dogs. This read-out-loud bilingual book helps children learn to count in both Spanish and English.
The fun begins with uno/one, perro/dog who loves to run and continues to diez/ten napping dogs tired out from their adventures. There are big dogs, little dogs, shaggy dogs and fluffy dogs. In between the dogs paddle and dive in a pond, march in a line and roll on the floor. Children will have fun finding the cat in each picture. All the interactions between dogs and children are happy and positive. Everyone is having fun and the colorful drawings by Steven Katz add humor and joy to this book. By the time children finish ¿Cuantos Perros? How Many Dogs, they will be counting in Spanish and English and woofing along with the dogs.
The author, Bam Schlidkraut, PhD, is an animal behaviorist, writer and educator. She writes the Casa Canine column on dogs as well as feature articles for PETroglyphs Animal Resource Magazine. She also writes short stories. She is a member of the Dog Writers Association of America and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
¿Cuantos Perros? How Many Dogs? is published by Operation Outreach-USA (OO-USA) which provides free literacy and character education programs to elementary and middle schools across the country. Schildkraut’s first book, Goodbye, Jake, was also published by OO-USA. Goodbye, Jake deals with the death of a beloved dog and how to explain this tremendous loss to a child. [See our Goodbye, Jake review.]
I would recommend this as a good counting book for beginning readers and as a fun book to read aloud with your child. - N. Marano
¿Cuantos Perros? How Many Dogs? (English and Spanish Edition)
Curious Creatures, Wondrous Waifs: My Life with Animals
by Ed Kostro
Publish America, 216 pp. 2003. $9.00
Many animal lovers have probably thought about writing a book similar to this, an affectionate family memoir starring the animals we have known and loved. Ed Kostro, a middle-aged, self-confessed animal person and the owner of a truly prodigious memory (most people wouldn't vividly remember an incident from when they were three years old), reminisces about pets and wildlife he has encountered and lived with.
I was prepared to really enjoy the read, and for the most part I did. Some of his stories brought tears to my eyes, and a few made me laugh. However, I had some problems with it, including Kostro's enthusiastic description of buying parakeets to fly around the house just so he could drive his bird-phobic sister crazy, or the hypocrisy of his fishing activities set against the assertion that he loves and respects all animals (but not fish, apparently). To Kostro's credit, in the last pages he does say that eventually he gave up fishing because he found himself releasing more of the fish than he caught.
As a writer, Kostro leaves a bit to be desired. The book could have been improved with a good editor in tow to control his addiction to certain adverbs (e.g., merrily, hysterically) and, too often, his indulgence in soupy oversentimentality. - A. Baxter
Curious Creatures - Wondrous Waifs
Dog Blessings: Poems, Prose, and Prayers Celebrating Our Relationship with Dogs
By June Cotner
New World Library, 2008, 192 pp., $16.00
“Dogs invite us into their world and through that our lives are deeply enriched,” writes June Cotner in the introduction to this book. “The poems and prayers in Dog Blessings celebrate our love and devotion for dogs which in turn is reciprocated many times over by their love and devotion for us.”
This statement sums up this book. It is an anthology by famous and lesser known voices devoted to various aspects of a dog’s life and the canine/human bond. It honors the way dogs touch our lives. Divided into sections called “A Dog’s World,” “Puppies,” “Our Bond,” “Devotion,” “Aging Gracefully,” “Partings,” “Reflections” and “Prayers, Blessings and Inspiration” it takes us through the life of a dog and gives us words of wisdom for each stage in the passage. This book will make you laugh and cry but you definitely will recognize your dog in many of the passages.
Cotner celebrates the love every dog person feels for his/her canine companion. How can you not recognize your dog in:
THE GREETING by Joan Noëldechen
I open the door./ You are already/ bounding to the door/ with a wagging tail,/ flashing teeth,/ and four prancing paws./ Your healing power dissolves/ the most difficult day/ from memory./ A cold nose/ and warm kisses/ trigger a child’s laughter/ from my heart./ I am a better human/for having you/ in my life.
Or agree with Roger Caras when he says, “If you don’t own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life.”
Dog Blessings is the right book to give to all your dog-loving friends. Whether you dip into the book a little at a time or read it from cover to cover, it will make you appreciate the dog who shares your life. But most of all you’ll want to hug your dog and plant a big kiss on his forehead to thank him for sharing his love with you. -N. MaranoDog Blessings: Poems, Prose, and Prayers Celebrating Our Relationship with Dogs
Dog Eat Dog: A Very Human Book About Dogs and Dog Shows
by Jane Stern and Michael Stern
Fireside, 192 pp. 1998. $13.95
A more apt title might be "Human Eat Human" because the dogs in this book are civilized. It's the people who are vicious. This book is meant to be a light-hearted romp through the wacky world of dog shows, but I found it downright depressing.
Dog show human participants are a strange breed themselves. They seem to look upon dogs as decorative objects born to win them ribbons (and to suffer whatever consequences go along with that). The people involved in dog shows are closely akin to those who drag their kids around the country in order to compete in beauty pageants: cold-blooded, calculating, and often back-stabbingly competitive. Show dogs lead an unnatural, lonely life stuck in a kennel when they're not on the road in a trailer headed towards the next competition. There might be some merit to it if the contests were honest, but there's back room politics involved and it seems to have more to do with seducing the judge, putting the right makeup on your dog, or getting a judge that happens to like your dog's body type or breed than honest competition.
Mimi, the main human character in the book, works at her local animal shelter and visits retirement homes with retired show dogs. So you would think she should know better because of her exposure to the plight of homeless animals. But apparently not. She supposedly loves her dogs, but I suspect she loves them for what they can do for her ego in the show ring. And if they fail, as Rusty did at first, she has no qualms about giving him away to another trainer at very short notice.
The obsessive mating (or artificial inseminating) of so-called "purebreds" (the bullmastiff, the main focus of this book, has been so genetically manipulated that its lifespan is only about nine years) in order to sell puppies to equally obsessed clients who have a "thing" about the look of a certain breed reminds me of the Master Race theories of the Nazis. And considering the huge number of healthy, available dogs in shelters and with rescue groups in this country, it's insane that breeders continue to produce often physically and psychologically impaired purebreds for the market (as well as to appear on the dog show circuit), especially when you consider the fact that at least 15% of surrendered shelter animals are purebreds.
At one point, frustrated in her attempts to produce a healthy litter, Mimi has a moment of enlightenment: "I am thinking of getting out of this business altogether. Purebred dogs are nothing but heartache. I just want nice mutts from the pound who live forever." Unfortunately, at the end of the book she doesn't follow up on this wish. - A. Baxter
Dog Eat Dog : A Very Human Book About Dogs and Dog Shows
Dog Tags of Courage: Combat Infantrymen and War Dog Heroes in Vietnam
by John C. Burnam, MSG (USA ret)
Lost Coast Press, 2006, 338 pp, $29.95
John Burnam does an excellent job of recounting his personal story as an Army soldier and dog handler in Vietnam and Okinawa in the late 60s, as well as giving an overall historical view of the war-dog team situation in that war and others. As a 19 year old Burnam joined the Army and soon found himself in Vietnam. At first he performed regular infantry duty, until he was injured in battle and sent for an extensive recuperation period to a hospital in Japan. There, he became interested in learning to be a dog handler and trained in Okinawa with a sentry dog named Hans. But he grew bored guarding classified military installations, and against all advice, applied to return to Vietnam as a foot soldier, even agreeing to extend his service so he would be accepted.
On his second tour of duty in Vietnam Burnam again came in contact with dog handlers and ended up training with war dog Clipper, a German shepherd and his beloved companion for the remainder of his service. In his book, he also talks about war dogs from past conflicts and how they were often honored and adopted after the war, but not so in Vietnam, where they were classified as military spare parts and discarded (that is, either euthanized or left behind for the South Vietnamese, whose culture regarded dogs as a potential meat source). He also provides lists of all the war dogs and war dog handlers in Vietnam who were killed in action.
Burnam speaks sensitively of how deeply war dog handlers became attached to their highly trained dogs, and how vital the dogs were to the survival of troops. The founder of the National War Dog Team Memorial and past president of the Vietnam Dog Handler Association, he is still haunted by the fact that he had to leave Clipper behind. These days he’s involved with helping soldiers bring war dogs home from Iraq. “Dog Tags of Courage” is a well-written, informative and touching book. - A. Baxter
Dog Tags of Courage: Combat Infantrymen And War Dog Heroes in Vietnam
Dog Talk: Lessons Learned from a Life with Dogs
by Harrison Forbes with Beth Adelman
St. Martin’s Press, 280 pp., 2008, $24.95
Animal behavior has intrigued Harrison Forbes from the moment his grandfather taught him how to lure timid squirrels into his kitchen in Tennessee. As a dog trainer and behaviorist, he has spent two decades trying to learn why dogs do what they do. His book is meant to help people understand that they are a lot more in control of their dog’s behavior than they think. First of all, he stresses, “It’s really important to understand that dog behavior is about 75 percent genetic and 25 percent environmental,” with some variation from breed to breed.
The dog owner also needs to understand that each dog wants to be part of a pack with its owner as leader, who sets the tone for the dog’s behavior. Any good dog trainer will tell you that your energy travels down the leash just like an electric cord, and your dog’s energy travels up the leash. A calm, mellow dog owner gives the dog calm energy and confidence.
“It works both ways. That’s the biggest curse or gift owners give their dogs.”
Forbes has built his reputation on finding ways to deal with difficult-to-handle dogs in his work with six hundred of the world’s toughest police and protection dogs. Each chapter tells the story of a memorable dog that has passed through his life with lessons learned. Even his four-year-old daughter’s shih tzu taught him a couple of tricks. The toughest dog he ever trained, Akbar, was minutes away from euthanasia when Forbes rescued him. His stories are warm and interesting, emphasizing problems and solutions that most of us wouldn’t even think of.
One chapter describing his adoption of Diablo, a pure blooded wolf, proves the important point that wolves, and wolf hybrids, cannot be pets. They are so different from dogs with different needs and temperaments. He realized he couldn’t keep Diablo as a pet and, after much research, he sent him to live at a large wolf reserve in North Carolina.
Forbes says that all the dogs that have passed through his life seem to be saying, “You respect me, and I’ll respect you.” - J. Litz
Dog Talk: Lessons Learned from a Life with Dogs
The Dog Who Met the Queen & Other Stories
by Bernard Wasserman, DVM
Bennington Press, 153 pp. 1999. $12.95
After a short spell during which he was an assistant professor of animal pathology, the co-director of a diagnostic laboratory for animal diseases, and a researcher on viral diseases, Bernard Wasserman, AB, DVM, turned to the practice of small animal medicine. In 1957 he opened his own small animal hospital in Brooklyn Heights, NYC, and stayed with it for 30 years. The Dog Who Met the Queen & Other Stories tells the tales of those animals and their people who came and went at the Hicks Street clinic.
Not one of the 25 stories that make up this small book failed to hold my attention. From cleaning up birds after an oil spill to treating Truman Capote’s dog, the subjects of the stories are wonderfully diverse. If I had to say something un-glowing, I would say that I would have felt better, as a reader, if Wasserman had arranged the tales in chronological order and if the very first one had not been about animal hoarders. That tragic and important subject was a bit off-putting as an introduction to what was to come. I was tempted not to go on but am glad I did.
For those readers who have vicariously traveled the Yorkshire dales delivering calves in mid-winter or have stooped next to the vet looking for patients under the bed, these tales of running a veterinary practice in the middle of Brooklyn will be a treat. The scenery is different, but the delight in helping people care for their animals and the compassion Wasserman shows for the animals in his care remain the same. - S. DeWitt
The Dog Who Met The Queen and Other Stories
Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy
by Matthew Scully
St. Martin’s Press, 464 pp. 2002. $27.95
Let me say at the outset that it's about time a born-again, conservative Christian wrote a pro-animal rights book. Matthew Scully is a former speechwriter for George W. Bush and an ethical vegan of many years’ standing. I recommend this book highly; the riveting chapters on Scully’s close encounters with Safari Club International and the North Carolina pig factories are alone worth the price. But I do have a few problems with it.
One of Scully's 'bêtes noires' is the utilitarian philosopher Peter Singer, who wrote the groundbreaking “Animal Liberation” that defined the animal rights movement. As a Christian, Scully seems to mistakenly believe that, first of all, atheists like Singer have no moral grounding and think life is basically meaningless. The fact that Singer believes we should be kind to animals just because they are sentient and they suffer doesn't seem to be as important to Scully as their 'souls', and the 'souls' of the humans dealing with them. And he gratuitously discusses Singer's controversial ideas about euthanasia of humans, infanticide and the treatment of retarded humans as if to imply that Singer can't be trusted on animal issues if he holds such views about the treatment of humans. That's like throwing the baby out with the bathwater (so to speak). I could just as unfairly point out that Scully has worked for and admires George W. Bush, who is anti-environment, anti-animal rights, and pro-corporate ranching, and thus Scully should not be trusted to write on animal rights issues.
I also have a problem with Scully's insinuation that one cannot be pro-choice/abortion as well as an animal advocate without being a hypocrite. I disagree. In my opinion, birth control or abortion for humans and domesticated animals (cats, dogs, etc.), who are overpopulating the planet and severely straining its resources is absolutely vital for the sustainable future of the planet and its residents--all of them, both plant and animal. It's far more humane to control the number of births and abort unwanted embryos and fetuses than to allow too many humans and domesticated animals to be born, only to suffer or starve because of competition for food (in the case of humans), or (in the case of dogs and cats) to be rounded up and “humanely” euthanized because there are too many of them and not enough homes. Scully apparently does not agree.
Despite my quibbles, I urge everyone interested in animal and environmental issues to read this book. It's beautifully written, well-researched, thoughtful, and clearly comes from Scully's heart. - A. Baxter
Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy
Fabulous Felines: Health and Beauty Secrets for the Pampered Cat
by Sandy Robins
TFH Publications, 2008, 191 pp., $18.95 (paperback)
Fabulous Felines is devoted to current trends in feline well-being and lifestyle. It includes tips on health, grooming, and beauty treatments that are currently available.
Robins’ delightful guide helps owners create more comfortable lifestyles for cats of all ages. There are tips on stress-free bathing, choosing the right shampoos and conditioners, getting the right haircut and treating skin conditions with specially formulated kitty facial masks. When she says “pampered cat,” she isn’t kidding. You will find daily care routines for nails, eyes, hair and teeth. She also tackles special care topics such as anti-aging regimens, sun damage protection, cosmetic surgery and dentistry.
This book is packed with practical information written in a fun way. Robins has a talent for presenting topics in a way that makes them fun. Let’s face it brushing your cat’s teeth isn’t easy but this book will help you achieve that daunting task. There is a section on special services that highlights what to expect when your cat goes to the spa for the day. It includes information on massage, pedicures, aromatherapy, chiropractic and acupuncture.
Robins is an award-winning pet lifestyle writer whose work appears in national and international publications, as well as MSNBC.com and MSN.com. She hosts a pet travel segment called “Pets on the Go” for a syndicated radio show and writes a cat lifestyle column in Cat Fancy. She lives in California with her family and furkids.
I highly recommend this delightful book for first-time cat owners as well as experienced cat people. I guarantee you’ll learn something you didn’t know before. Your cats will thank you for reading this book. - N. Marano
Fabulous Felines: Health and Beauty Secrets for the Pampered Cat
For Every Dog an Angel
by Christine Davis
Lighthearted Press, 2004, 32pp., $9.95
For those of us who have multi-pet households or who have had several pets throughout our lives, there is no doubt that we love them all. Often though, we’ll find that there is one who captures our heart and soul just a little bit more than the rest. For me, that animal was my dog, Remi, who I called my “soul dog”. After Remi died, the book, “For Every Dog an Angel” by Christine Davis, found its way into my hands. The back cover calls it “A magical little book for those who have found their forever dog, or hope to.” I couldn’t agree more and I’ve found myself reading it over and over. The words are comforting and the illustrations delightful. Davis talks about your “forever” dog in a way that makes you know that your beloved companion will always be with you. I’ve shared this book with many people and they’ve all said they got the same warm feeling that I got. This book makes a great gift for someone who’s just lost a furry family member. If the love of your life is a feline, her book “For Every Cat an Angel” is just as enchanting for those of us who also love cats. - K. Winters
Flawed Dogs: The Year-End Leftovers at the Piddleton “Last Chance” Dog Pound
by Berkeley Breathed
Little, Brown, 2003. 37pp. $18.95
Berkeley Breathed brings his own unique twist to the overwhelming problem of animal overpopulation. The creator of the Bloom County and Opus comic strips has created a book of cartoons and poems describing some of the inhabitants of the Piddleton Last Chance Dog Pound. While these dogs may not be beautiful in the conventional sense, they are waiting to find their soulmate in you. Multiply the Last Chance Dog Pound by thousands across the country and you see why your search for an animal to share your life should start at your local animal shelter.
Last Chance was founded by Heidy Strüdelberg, a one-time judge of the Westminster Best-in-Show Award. She caused a riot when she chose a three-legged dog as the winner and left the dog-show world for the quiet of Piddleton, VT, where she took to finding homes for the unloved.
As Breathed sums up: So in this world / Of the simple and odd, / The bent and plain, / The unbalanced bod, / The imperfect people / And differently pawed, / Some live without love…/ That’s how they’re flawed.
That says it all for me. As a fan of Breathed’s quirky sense of humor, this book has a center spot on my bookshelf. - N. Marano
Flawed Dogs: The Year End Leftovers at the Piddleton "Last Chance" Dog Pound
Flower Essences for Animals: Remedies for Helping the Pets You Love
by Lila Devi
Beyond Word Publishing., 2000. 237 pp. $14.95
Flower Essences for Animals talks about the use of flower essences, which are herbal tinctures “for strength and balance”, for pets as well as their persons. The book is well written and organized, and it certainly got me interested in trying some of the remedies for various problems my pets have. But not having done so yet, it requires a leap of faith to believe that tinctures made from ordinary nuts, fruits and vegetables (almond, apple, avocado, banana, blackberry, cherry, coconut, corn, date, fig, grape, lettuce, orange, peach, pear, pineapple, raspberry, spinach, strawberry, and tomato) can actually improve the behavior of both animals and humans, often quite rapidly.
For example, lettuce is supposed to calm an animal down. Cherry makes him more cheerful, banana more humble, peach more selfless, pear more peaceful, and tomato more courageous.
Ms. Devi talks about the theme essence, a particular positive behavior which each animal and person possesses. In other words, an animal or human might have the theme essence of raspberry or coconut. Plot essences, on the other hand, are particular needs, lessons, or challenges that require a particular essence or essences to treat.
She also includes a chapter about how flower essences can help you and your pet deal with impending death, as well as after death issues.
For those who want more specific guidance, there are extensive lists in the back of the book of plot qualities and theme qualities of animals as well as their guardians and the appropriate essences to apply.
I don’t know if any of the claims or case histories in this book are valid or not, since I have not tried any of the essences. But since I have used other herbal tinctures before successfully, I would be willing to give these essences a fair shake, so to speak. - A. Baxter
Flower Essences for Animals: Remedies for Helping the Pets You Love
Forever Friends
by Barbara S. Cohen, illustrated by Dorothy Louise Hall
Smallfellow Press, unpaged. 2002. $16.95
Forever Friends is the story of Petey and Skip, a dog and his boy. Petey has a big job showing Skip how make new friends, get enough exercise, get to school on time or enjoy nature. But the biggest lesson they teach each other is the importance of having a forever friend who will be there whenever you need a little help and who will love you no matter what. Turns out this doesn’t have to be a human friend. It might just as easily be the dog who shares your life. Love definitely can come from both ends of the leash.
Forever Friends is a picture book for children 2-8 years old. Dorothy Louise Hall’s whimsical, naïve illustrations add humor to the story.
This book will make you want to give the Petey in your life an extra hug. - N. Marano
For the Prevention of Cruelty: The History and Legacy of Animal Rights Activism in the United States
by Diane L. Beers
Swallow Press, 2006. 312 pp. $19.95
Diane L. Beers is a historian who decided to take on the challenge of writing about the history of animal rights in the United States. I thought I knew a lot about this subject, but after reading her book, I realized that there were serious gaps in my knowledge. Not an animal rights advocate herself, but clearly sympathetic to the cause, Ms. Beers writes in an even-handed manner about the impact of animal rights on society, and vice versa, from its beginnings in the 19th century to 1975.
She discusses the courage of the early pioneers, including Henry Bergh, George Angell, and Caroline Earle White, and how animal advocacy originated in the white middle and upper classes. She explains the enthusiasm of women who joined animal groups and did a lot of the dirty volunteer work, not ascending into positions of importance until after World War II. She talks about the early and continuing tension between the moderate animal advocates who were willing to compromise with factory farmers, research labs, hunters, and other animal exploiters, and the more radical, all-or-nothing advocates, and how that has weakened the movement.
Among the many things I learned is that Mark Twain, an avid animal advocate, wrote two short stories, one condemning vivisection ("A Dog’s Tale") and the other criticizing bullfighting ("A Horse’s Tale"). And that Jack London was passionately against using animals in entertainment and wrote two novels illustrating his feelings. He also started an anti-circus movement that continued after his premature death, until the beleaguered Ringling Brothers actually suspended its animal acts for five years.
These and other little-known facts make this book a fascinating read for anyone who wants to understand animal rights in its historical context, in particular how early animal advocates pioneered methods to get the attention and sympathy of the public that modern advocates have since adopted. I look forward to a second book by Ms. Beers covering the period from 1975 until the present. -A. Baxter
For the Prevention of Cruelty: The History and Legacy of Animal Rights Activism in the United States
Four Paws Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs
by Cheryl Schwartz
Celestial Arts, 412 pp. 1996. $27.95
I first checked this book out at the library, then checked it out again, then realized that I really needed to buy it because there was an awful lot of useful information packed into it. As the guardian of nine dogs and cats, I predict this book will be nearby for a long time to come.
For those of you who look askance at so-called "alternative" or "holistic" veterinary medicine, you will get a new slant on Chinese medicine as applied to dogs and cats through this book. Written by a DVM, it's the kind of medical book that is interesting enough to be read from cover to cover (and then returned to again and again for specific help on various conditions). It's not just a how-to book; it also explains the philosophy behind Chinese medicine so that you understand why specific herbs, or diets, or acupressure points are used to treat particular conditions. This book serves as a great introduction to the complex world of Chinese medicine.
I recommend it for anyone with dogs and cats who has an open mind. - A. Baxter
Four Paws Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs
Funds to the Rescue: 101 Fundraising Ideas for Humane and Animal Rescue Groups
by Susan C. Daffron
Logical Expressions, Inc., 2009, 177 pp., $19.95 (paperback)
This is a must have book for every animal rescue group. Raising money is a necessary activity for every nonprofit organization. Without funds there is no way to continue helping animals. Coming up with ideas and new ways to do that isn’t easy and fundraisers take a lot of work from your team of volunteers. What can you do to maximize your return for the amount of work done on a fundraiser? How can you best use your volunteers so they don’t get burnout but feel proud of what they’ve done for the animals?
Susan Daffron has done the legwork for you. The first section of the book is a detailed explanation of the hows and whys of fundraising. She walks you through how to structure a fundraiser, the basics of marketing, how to select your team, and how to plan a fundraiser from idea to the final deposit of donations in the bank.
The major section of the book is comprised of 101 ways to raise money through various projects. One of the things I particularly liked about the projects she suggests is that she gives you an idea of the level of difficulty, planning time, upfront costs, and personnel needed to make the idea a success. This way you don’t go blindly into a fundraiser only to find out that it’s going to cost you more than you thought and you’ll need many more helpers than you have.
Some of the fundraisers she mentions are standard such as dog washes, pet costume shows, and raffles. Others are more unusual like running a cooking contest with local chefs or one called “Walking Naked” and variations of it. Daffron lists simple fundraisers such as “Paw Prints for Sale” to more complicated events like “A Fur Ball” or “Artists for Animals.” These last two raise more money but are more difficult to accomplish because of the amount of time you must spend, the upfront money and the number of people who must be involved.
Susan Daffron is the founder of the National Association of Pet Rescue Professionals (www.naprp.com). She is the author of 10 other books and is the president of Logical Expressions, Inc. She has worked as an animal shelter volunteer, board member and employee.
This book is a terrific reference book for every rescue group. It is written in an easy-to-read style and gives you invaluable information. Many books talk about fundraising, this book is actually a practical guide on how to do it. After reading Daffron’s excellent book, you’ll never struggle to think of fundraising ideas again. - N. Marano
Funds to the Rescue: 101 Fundraising Ideas for Humane and Animal Rescue Groups
Ginger’s Gift: Hope and Healing through Dog Companionship
By Michelle Linn-Gust
Chellehead Works, 2007, 127 pp., $20.00
Hope and healing through dog companionship is an idea every dog lover can understand. If you have ever had a physical or emotional problem, you know that your dog will be there for you until you are well again. Dogs focus on and tune in to every feeling you have. Their unconditional love is a strong positive force to help a person heal. The Linn-Gust’s were to learn how true this was in their lives.
When Chaco, a charmingly neurotic mutt, came to live with them he was the first of many dogs who gravitated to the warmth of their home. Shortly after Chaco’s arrival, Joe suffered a traumatic brain injury when a drunk driver smashed into his truck. They continued to find dogs whether Michelle was running a road race or Joe was doing relief work after Hurricane Katrina. Soon their family grew to four dogs, the maximum number allowed in Albuquerque where they live. This didn’t stop the dogs from finding them, though.
Michelle decided her mother needed a dog and set out to get her one as a surprise Christmas present. She found the perfect yellow Labrador retriever at Albuquerque’s West Side shelter. Michelle’s father died before Ginger, the dog of the book’s title, could make the trip to her forever home in Naperville, IL. Ginger’s role quickly changed from dog companion to friend, listener and confidant. She helped heal through her love, silliness and doggy kisses. Her generous love helped Michelle’s mother make the transition after her husband died.
Michelle Linn-Gust is an international author and speaker on suicide prevention and postvention issues. She received her doctorate in Family Studies from the University of New Mexico and currently serves as President of the American Association of Suicidology. Her first book was Do Bad Days Happen in Heaven? Surviving the Suicide Loss of a Sibling. She is working on a new book based on her dissertation topic of how people use a dog to help them cope with the death of a human loved one.
This book is a good read for anyone who loves dogs or who knows a dog’s unconditional love helps a person heal. If you purchase a copy, $1.00 from each sale will be donated to the Alliance for Albuquerque Animals (www.abqanimalalliance.org) and the Association for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (www.aspca.org). You may visit the author at www.gingersgift.com or www.siblingsurvivors.com. - N. MaranoGinger's Gift: Hope and Healing Through Dog Companionship
Good Cat! A Proven Guide to Successful Litter Box Use and Problem Solving
by Shirlee Kalstone (illustrations by John Martin)
Wiley Publishing, Inc., 120 pp. 2004. $7.99
I've been trying to figure out for years why my spayed female cat Karma and, to a lesser extent, my neutered male cat Tao, have taken it upon themselves to urine mark our house in a number of places. I had always heard that spaying and neutering eliminated that problem. But after reading this informative book, I think I may have the answer. My tentative conclusion is that it's the social pressure of having five cats. Karma and Tao, who are siblings, were the first to inhabit our house as kittens. So they both believe they're better than the three johnny-come-latelies, who were all adopted as adults, and they're out to prove it. The added stress of four dogs probably doesn't help.
The number one reason for cat guardians to abandon their cats at a shelter is litter box problems. But since doing that is of course not an option, what do I do? Shirlee Kalstone explains the choices, including cleaning with an enzymatic cleaner, spraying with the pheromone product Feliway, changing the type of litter, having enough litter boxes and keeping them clean, or even putting Karma and Tao on anti-anxiety medications. She includes tips on specific products and where you can buy them.
But there's much more to this book than just litter box talk. Ms. Kalstone discusses the social dynamics and complex psychology of cats, keeping cats healthy, how to introduce a new cat or a new baby into the household, how to move without freaking out your cat, and how not to react when she marks or house soils. She also offers practical suggestions on how to clean up and protect your floors and furniture. It's a good book to have around when you're frustrated at that enigmatic and independent creature you call your cat.
I also like that one of the pet supply houses she lists in her appendix is my favorite: Drs. Foster and Smith - A. Baxter
Good Cat!: A Proven Guide to Successful Litter Box Use and Problem Solving
Goodbye, Jake
by Bam Schildkraut
Operation-Outreach-USA Press, 2007, 45pp, $7.95
How do you deal with the death of a pet? And how can you explain that death to a child? These end-of-life issues are difficult for all of us to understand and even more so when a child is involved. Goodbye, Jake tackles them head on.
Jake, his grandparents’ beloved greyhound, is dying, and Cole is trying to understand what it will be like to say goodbye to him and to have him die. On Saturdays he visits Grammy and Pop but this Saturday is marred because he knows Jake is very sick. Following his usual Saturday activities, Grammy takes him in to visit with Jake, who is lying on his fuzzy, blue bed. She helps him say goodbye to a dog he knows he won’t see again. On the following Saturday, Cole is sad that Jake isn’t there, but Grammy takes him to visit the Memory Garden, where all her dogs are buried. She explains that every time she has a good memory of a dog she puts a stone on the dog’s grave. She invites Cole to think of a good memory he has of Jake and then put a stone on the grave. The next week Cole brings a special stone to put on Jake’s grave to honor a special memory. Then Cole can run off with a lighter heart to breakfast on his favorite chocolate-chip waffles.
Schildkraut approaches the issue of a pet’s death with sensitivity and warmth. She gets the child involved with the animal, honors the boy’s feelings and fears, and then shows him a way to turn his sadness into something positive. The idea of using ritual to help heal after a pet’s death is beautifully handled and provides parents with a coping mechanism they can use when they talk with their children about this difficult subject. The soft, watercolor illustrations by Whitney Martin set the perfect tone for the story and add texture to the words. Written for young children, it is a book that will touch adults as well. Goodbye, Jake is an outstanding addition to children’s books on death and how to discuss it. I highly recommend it to parents, libraries and anyone facing the trauma of a pet’s death. - N. Marano
On Dogwise: Goodbye, Jake
Gotta Love Cats!
by Fran Pennock Shaw, Photos by Silvia Lualdi
Barron’s Educational Series., 2010, 144p., $9.99
This charming book is a great gift for any cat lover. It is chock full of cute pictures of cats and kittens set off by clever poems, sayings, quotations, and cat attitudes. It will make you smile, laugh and pause to think about the cats in your life and how accurate these sayings are.
The vivid colors in the photos set off the gorgeous cats they feature. One photo has three cats sitting in buckets that are hanging by ribbons. The quote is, “We’re just hangin’ out…” Or you have two sweet kittens you just want to hug saying, “Cats speak from the heart…if you know how to listen.” One fluffy white kitten is coupled with “A dog may idolize you but a cat understands you!”
Throughout this book you’ll find yourself giggling and smiling. Now go hug your cat or give this to the catlover’s you know. Better still do both. - N. Marano
Happy Cat Day
by Tiger Hample
Willow Creek Press, 80pp. 2004. $14.95
Tiger Hample is a cat with vision. His bigger-than-life idea is CAT DAY, a special holiday just for cats. Tiger, a “Go-For-All-The-Marbles kind of cat,” thinks a three-day holiday for everyone - except dogs - would be ideal. Assisted by his human co-conspirator, Stu Hample, an illustrator and author of over 20 books, Happy Cat Day gives you all the particulars on why Cat Day is a must and what you can do to celebrate the day in style. In Tiger’s mind a parade akin to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade would be just about right. The cartoons are appealing and take the reader on a romp through Tiger’s fantasy life. The book made me laugh and look at my own felines a little differently. How would they feel about a Cat Day parade? If I see them marching through the house with signs saying, Celebrate August 15, I’ll know they take the idea seriously. - N. Marano
Happy Cat Day: A Manifesto for an Official Cat Holiday
Have Dog Will Travel, California: Comprehensive Guide to over 2,200 Dog-Friendly Accommodations [Have Dog Will Travel Series]
by Barbara Whitaker
Ginger & Spike Publications 432 pp. 2005 $19.95Have Dog Will Travel, Northwest Edition: Hassle-Free Guide to Traveling With Your Dog Over 2,100 Dog-Friendly Accommodations Throughout the Pacific Northwest [Have Dog Will Travel Series]
By Barbara Whitaker
Ginger & Spike Publications 399 pp. 2003 $19.95
This series of guide books to dog-friendly lodgings will be welcomed by those traveling in California or the Pacific Northwest. At the beginning of each volume is a series of chapters covering the necessities of traveling with your dog. Whitaker gives you tips on what you need to pack for your dog, what you need to do before you start to make sure your dog is well-trained and well-behaved and first aid information so you can treat your dog’s minor problems. There is a helpful section on what to do if your dog gets lost. Another useful section lists animal emergency clinics in the areas covered by the book.The main body of the book is a listing by city. Under each city are entries for all the hotels or motels that allow dogs. Within each listing is the name, address, and contact information for the hotel or motel. Whitaker also gives the fee-per-dog and the rate-per-room as well as the amenities offered. You are advised to check with the lodging before going there to be sure the rates are still the same. One of the indexes lists lodgings by name so you can fine a place even if you don’t know the city where the hotel is located.
There will be an updated version of the Pacific-Northwest edition by the end of 2006.
If you’re traveling with your dog, take advantage of Barbara Whitaker’s 20 years of experience traveling with her dogs. Make your travel planning easier and have good trip. - N. Marano
The Healthy Pet Manual: A Guide to the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer
by Deborah Straw
Healing Arts Press, 288 pp. 2005. $14.95
The most frightening thing a veterinarian can say is that your beloved companion animal has cancer. The word hangs in the air, and you don’t even hear the rest of the conversation. As our animals live longer, more of us will face that diagnosis. Deborah Straw’s book, The Healthy Pet Manual, will help you understand what you can do to help your friend live with cancer.
Straw, l an established animal, health and lifestyle writer, lost four pets to cancer. Frustrated at the lack of information she found on what caused the disease and how to make crucial decisions affecting her animals, she wrote her own boo on the subject.
The reader will find a tremendous amount of information in this revised and expanded version of that first book. It helps fill the gap that is left if your veterinarian does not communicate well enough with you about what is happening to your companion animal and what you can do to help. Straw has done extensive research on the causes of the disease, and how it manifests in dogs, cats and other small animals. This includes environmental, dietary, and vaccine-related agents that may cause cancer as well as the preventive measures that can be taken to help ward off this disease in the first place.
If your companion animal has been diagnosed with cancer, this book gives a well-balanced approach to various forms of treatment both conventional and alternative. She covers everything from chemotherapy and laser surgery to herbal treatments, flower essences, touch therapy and the latest in pain relief. Straw doesn’t limit herself to a dry explanation of treatments, though. She explains how to care for a sick companion animal and delves into the grieving process that needs to take place if all the treatments fail and the animal dies. In addition to the excellent material presented in the book Straw gives an in-depth section at the end of the book containing notes and references so the reader can pursue particular points more fully.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who has received the diagnosis of cancer for a companion animal or to anyone who is interested in the latest research on animal health issues. The reader will come away feeling that a cancer diagnosis may not be the end of the road for a beloved companion animal. Packed with wisdom and options this book is an excellent basic resource for any animal lover. - N. Marano
The Healthy Pet Manual : A Guide to the Prevention and Treatment of Cancer
Hey Bossie, You’re a Spokescow!
by Mickey de Rham, illustrated by Leigh Gusterson
Plaidswede Publishing, 24pp. 2004. $9.95
In this children’s picture book, Bossie takes her job as spokescow quite seriously. Bossie lives at the White Mountain Animal Shelter in New Hampshire. A former dairy cow, Bossie’s new job is to travel throughout New Hampshire telling children, and their families, to spay and neuter their pets so there won’t be so many homeless animals. Bossie has a mark on her shoulder that looks like the Old Man of the Mountain, a famous rock formation that is still seen on the New Hampshire state quarter. When she marches in parades and goes to schools, Bossie wears a necklace made of 100 New Hampshire state quarters. Leigh Gusterson, a Taos resident, has provided catchy, colorful illustrations to accompany the text. They show Bossie at a school, playing cow flop bingo, and marching in a parade. The book’s spay and neuter message is admirable and one that people need to hear in as many ways as possible. - N. Marano
Hey Bossie, You're a Spokescow!
Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs: Small Doses for Small Animals
by Donald Hamilton, DVM
North Atlantic Books, 482 pp. 1999. $25
Before I read "Small Doses," written by a New Mexico holistic veterinarian, as far as I was concerned the jury was still out on homeopathy. It seemed a little too "out there" to accept. But Dr. Hamilton's book, with his explanation of why and how he thinks it works, along with case histories, a materia medica, and a review of body systems, convinced me that there's something very powerful going on in a homeopathic cure. And his argument against routine vaccinations is cogent and convincing.
Dr. Hamilton uses a combination of allopathic (modern) and homeopathic as well as other modalities like herbs in his treatment. I admire his willingness to go the extra mile with his clients. He is someone I would trust with my animals. - A. Baxter
On Amazon: Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs: Small Doses for Small Animals
On Dogwise: Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs: Small Doses for Small Animals
topImplementing a Community Trap-Neuter-Return Program
by Bryan Kortis
The Humane Society of the United States, 2008, 87pp. $9.99 + $3.00 (shipping and handling)
This book put out by HSUS includes all the background, forms and information needed to set up a community TNR program to control feral cat populations. To cover the needs of a community program means establishing effective collaboration, creating and maintaining community relationships, allocating limited resources, fund-raising, data collection, training, equipment, liability concerns and more. This book provides the basis for this type of operation and would be very useful to any feral cat caregiver who wants to expand the community TNR program.
Purchase the book by ordering from:
The Humane Society of the United States
Feral Cat Materials
2100 L Street NW
Washington, DC 20037
Ask for the book by title and include the purchase price and shipping and handling with your order. They accept cash or credit cards. - N. Marano
Irreconcilable Differences: The Battle for the Heart and Soul of America’s Animal Shelters
by Nathan J. Winograd
CreateSpace, 2009, 210pp, $13.95 (pap.)
This is a follow-up to Winograd’s controversial book, Redemption, and covers the same themes of the no-kill movement versus those shelters that kill animals as a way of ending animal overpopulation. These essays are thought out and give the basic tenets of the no-kill movement. There is more reasoned argument here and less anger then in Redemption. It is a good overview of this movement for those who are not familiar with it.
Irreconcilable Differences: The Battle for the Heart & Soul of America's Animal Shelters
Just This Side of Heaven
by Timothy Glass
Platinum Paw Press, 2008, 156pp, $21.95
If you like Snoopy, you’ll adore Penny. This book is first and foremost the love story of a family and their dogs. It is mainly Penny’s story. Glass shows how this beagle influenced many lives, inspired a series of children’s books, shared her life with Panda, Gunner and Tyler and, when she died, left a space in everyone’s heart much larger than her beagle size.
Glass was hooked on beagles from the time he rescued his first beagle in high school. The love affair has continued through several beagles and even led him to meet his wife through an online beagle group.
We are taken into their family and watch as they move from the East, where his future wife lived, to New Mexico. Penny flourished in New Mexico. She thought prairie dogs were made for her amusement and the daily sunshine meant for her pleasure. Through this time life is goes along on a normal course of ups and downs for the Glass family.
Then Penny became ill. Through many trips to the vet and the oncologist in Santa Fe, Penny tried valiantly to overcome her disease but that wasn’t possible. The loss of this precious beagle was devastating to the whole family – dogs included. Each dealt with the loss in their own way. Glass does not shy away from the pain of losing Penny or the difficulty of finding the right place for her remains. He deals honestly with the terrible loss a person feels when a precious companion animal is gone. But, in the end, the facts of Penny’s life, the joy she showed in living it and the happiness she put into the dash – the time between her birth and death – meant everything.
Penny lives on in this book and in the Sleepytown Beagle series of children’s books. I highly recommend Just This Side of Heaven to anyone who has ever faced loss or grief. Pet loss is dealt with respectfully, lovingly and seriously in this heart-warming story of a life well-lived.
Timothy Glass is a resident of the Albuquerque area. He has written many articles, several books and a screenplay. He also writes for a newsletter put out by OurDogHouse.com. The Glasses commitment to their beagles has made them want to help homeless beagles as well as other breeds. A percentage of the profits from his books go to animal rescue groups. - N. Marano
Just This Side Of Heaven
Keri Tarr Cat Detective
by Wendy Lement
Breakaway Books, 2004, 96pp. $9.95
Keri is a bright, daring girl who discovers that she has the ability to talk with cats. One morning her cat, Sally speaks to her and Keri understands every word. As the news spreads about her talent, people began asking for her help in finding lost cats. Keri becomes a cat detective, with Sally’s help of course.
Her detection abilities take Keri and Sally to Paris to rescue her aunt’s cat. She and Sally stow away in a plane’s baggage compartment where they meet the “baggage cats” who regularly fly around the world. Since cats are very gossipy, Keri learns all she needs to know to rescue the wayward cat from great peril in the Paris catacombs. Keri becomes an international celebrity for her exploits and the way is left open for a possible sequel.
This is a fun book for children who love cats or who just like a good story. -N. Marano
Kinship with the Wolf: The Amazing Story of the Woman Who Lives with Wolves
by Tanja Askani, Sabine Lutzmann (photographer), Douglas Hayes (translator)
Park Street Press, 2006, 144 pp. $19.95.
Translated from the German, this lovely, wise book is replete with wonderful photographs of wolves and the author’s interactions with them. Associated with a wild game park in Germany and with an academic background in animal science, Tanja Askani looks upon wolves differently from other so-called wolf experts. You might call her the wolf whisperer, except she’s not trying to train them-she respects their wildness. Askani treats wolves with great respect, and as animals that are absolutely vital in the food chain, not as fairy tale monsters that humans need to fear and eradicate. And the many wolves she has raised have responded in kind, considering her one of their pack.
Askani deals with the specific (her own personal experiences with wolves), expanding it into the general (wolf myths; world-wide wolf protection projects; how wolves respond to death, other species, living in captivity; pack life as she has observed it, and more). She also discusses wolf hybrids and half-breeds-a topic of interest to me, because my neighbor raises wolf dogs and wolfhounds-warning that wolf hybrids are a sin committed against the dog as well as the wolf and highly unpredictable in their behavior.
I finished the book with even more admiration and compassion for wolves than I began with. -A. Baxter
Kinship with the Wolf: The Amazing Story of the Woman Who Lives with Wolves
The Language of Miracles: A Celebrated Psychic Teaches You to Talk to Animals
by Amelia Kinkade
New World Library, 332 pp. 2006. $15.95
Amelia Kinkade is passionate about what she believes. That’s for sure. An actress, dancer, artist and animal psychic (and niece of Rue McClanahan, the actress/animal advocate), this young woman (she’s in her early 30s) has written her second book on a controversial field: communicating telepathically with animals. Her first, which I have not yet read, was a how-to for people who want to learn to do it themselves (“Straight from the Horse’s Mouth: How to Talk to Animals and Get Answers”). This book takes it further and presents a multitude of case histories supporting her thesis. And what a thesis that is!
Kinkade manages to meld quantum theory, wave/particle physics, religion, spirituality, reincarnation, and life after death into a not-quite-seamless whole (she’s still working out the details) to explain why it is possible for animals, even insects, to “talk” to us, and vice versa. Her mother is a medical professor, and she clearly has great respect for the role of science in her work. One of her heroes is Edgar Mitchell, a former astronaut and egghead, as well as scientists like Albert Einstein and Nils Bohr. But at the same time, the importance of God, love and positive thinking in successful psychic communication is repeated over and over throughout the book.
Anyone can learn to be psychic, Kinkade claims, but it requires lots of practice and dedication. She includes a number of practices in the book on how to develop the ability to locate lost animals, analyze an animal’s health and behavioral problems, “talk” to both live and dead pets, figure out if a deceased pet has returned to you in the form of a new animal, etc. This book requires a suspension of disbelief and a willingness to go along on her mental rollercoaster ride, but it’s an intriguing read and the author clearly has an agile and original mind.
Kinkade comes out strongly against animal experimentation and wearing fur and includes a chapter describing her animal rights heroes, but I have a problem with her obvious pride in being hired by Buckingham Palace to “talk” with King Charles’s hunting horses to try to discover the source of their discontent. Any animal advocate worth her salt should not be encouraging horses or humans to participate in such a repulsive blood sport, no matter how illustrious they are.
Despite some misgivings, including the fact that so far, I can’t seem to get my dogs and cats to respond to my telepathic chats with them, I enjoyed this book. It occasionally teeters on the brink of mania, cutesiness and breathless idealism and definitely strains credibility, but all in all, it was well worth my investment of time.
- A. Baxter
The Language of Miracles: A Celebrated Psychic Teaches You to Talk to Animals
Lessons in Stalking… Adjusting to Life With Cats
by Dena Harris
Spotlight Publishing, 2005, 128 pp., $9.95
If you’ve ever been owned by a cat and if you’re looking for laughs, run, don’t walk to your nearest bookstore (or amazon.com) and get a copy of “Lessons in Stalking…Adjusting to Life With Cats” by Dena Harris (Illustrations by Linda Santell.) This hilarious book will keep you in stitches from beginning to end. Harris starts with “It’s happened I’ve finally become that woman. The one obsessed with cats…How cool is that?“ She paints her husband as a patient, long suffering man who frequently rolls his eyes at her antics with her kitties. One chapter starts: “I am engaged in a battle of will against the cat. The upsetting part is that I’m losing.” Another chapter is named, “The Great Cat Butt Wiping Adventure”. (Need I say more?) Other chapters include, “Kitty Jihad” and “Bath Time”.
Harris’ writing style is so conversational that you’ll feel like she’s a comfortable old friend who can regale you with her stories. If you don’t find yourself laughing through this whole book, you need to have your funny bone examined! - K. Winters
Lessons in Stalking... Adjusting to Life with Cats
The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick’s Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption
by Jim Gorant
Gotham Books, 2010, 287pp, $26.00
This is a true crime story and its aftermath. The story alternates between Vick’s Bad Newz Kennel dog fighting ring, which cruelly used pit bulls to fight for money, and the rehabilitation of some of the dogs rescued from the premises. Gorant doesn’t shrink from the horrible abuse suffered by these dogs but the dogs who were successfully rehabilitated went on to better lives. Some dogs became service dogs, Jonny Justice participates in Paws for Tales, a reading program using dogs to encourage kids and Leo works with cancer patients and troubled teens. While some of this story is difficult to read, it is worth seeing what it takes to rehabilitate a damaged dog and hearing the pleas against the horrors of dog fighting. Well worth your time.
The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption
The Lost Pet Chronicles: Adventures of a K-9 Cop Turned Pet Detective
by Kat Albrecht with Jana Murphy
