Easy-to-use 20-word language of commands. Clear, simple hand signals. Many helpful illustrations.

Find out what your dog is really saying -- and talk back! Jean Craighead George, Newbery Medal -- winning author of over 80 books about nature and animals, demonstrates in words and photos how to communicate with your best friend.

Dogs express themselves in a "secret language" that relies on expressions, body postures, barks and growls. The Secret Language of Dogs shows you how to interpret what your canine is telling you through their behaviour, and it explains how they, in turn, interpret our body language and attempts to interact with them. Known as "man’s best friend" for a reason, dogs are scientifically proven to enhance our quality of life. The Secret Language of Dogs helps return the favour by providing insights into why dogs act as they do. It also contains practical advice for training, addressing common health and behavioural problems and strengthening the bond with your canine friend. The book contains useful and important Canadian resources regarding breed information, adoption and rescue, and training. The Secret Language of Dogstakes the mysteries out of dog body language, giving you the insight to gain a better understanding of your much-loved pet.

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER An incredible, revolutionary true story and surprisingly simple guide to teaching your dog to talk from speech-language pathologist Christina Hunger, who has taught her dog, Stella, to communicate using simple paw-sized buttons associated with different words. When speech-language pathologist Christina Hunger first came home with her puppy, Stella, it didn’t take long for her to start drawing connections between her job and her new pet. During the day, she worked with toddlers with significant delays in language development and used Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices to help them communicate. At night, she wondered: If dogs can understand words we say to them, shouldn’t they be able to say words to us? Can dogs use AAC to communicate with humans? Christina decided to put her theory to the test with Stella and started using a paw-sized button programmed with her voice to say the word “outside” when clicked, whenever she took Stella out of the house. A few years later, Stella now has a bank of more than thirty word buttons, and uses them daily either individually or together to create near-complete sentences. How Stella Learned to Talk is part memoir and part how-to guide. It chronicles the journey Christina and Stella have taken together, from the day they met, to the day Stella “spoke” her first word, and the other breakthroughs they’ve had since. It also reveals the techniques Christina used to teach Stella, broken down into simple stages and actionable steps any dog owner can use to start communicating with their pets. Filled with conversations that Stella and Christina have had, as well as the attention to developmental detail that only a speech-language pathologist could know, How Stella Learned to Talk will be the indispensable dog book for the new decade.

Animal communicator Gail Thackray believes that everyone can learn to talk to their pets. Gail leads you through specific exercises to develop this skill and guides you step-by-step to connect and communicate. You'll learn the most voiced "pet peeves," solutions to common behavioral issues, and how to know what your animal wants. Gail teaches you how to perform energy healings, do body scans for health, and how to connect to lost pets. With Gail's down-to-earth style and hilariously funny stories, you'll get a firsthand look at how animal communication works and just how cute these critters really are.

Imagine being able to ask your poodle, “Who’s at the door?” and having her respond, “It’s Katy.” Or asking your golden retriever, “Do you want a treat?” and him responding, “No, water.” Or asking your Border collie, “Which toy do you want?” and getting the response, “Stick.” If you’ve ever wondered what dogs would tell us if they could, now you can find out. The K9Sign system teaches dogs to communicate to us–making it a first in any dog training book category. Dogs Can Sign, Too is the first book dedicated exclusively to the K9Sign system for teaching dogs to communicate to their human companions using a vocabulary of gestures. This extraordinary education tool, developed by the creator of AnimalSign Language exclusively for the canine community, teaches people and their pets a unique mode of communication that employs an extensive lexicon of specific signs. Sample signs range from general concepts, such as “Food” or “Play” to identifying special treats, such as “Liver” or “Cheese” and specifying a favorite toy, such as “Ball” or “Frisbee.” Signs also include useful questions such as “Who’s that?” or “What type?” to naming a particular friend or family member, or even indicating a stranger. Learning and practicing K9Sign is a fun, challenging, and rewarding experience for both you and your dog that is sure to deepen the human-canine bond while expanding our ideas about interspecies communication.

This book will teach you the reasoning behind so many of the common problems dog owners experience and how you can prevent these troubles. We've interviewed dozens of trainers who all stressed the importance of establishing two-way communication to ensure a pleasant and stress-free relationship between you and your dog. This book also has information from dog owners who have overcome problem behavior by understanding what their dogs wanted and working with their pet to remedy the problem. How to Listen to Your Dog will provide you with everything you need to know to learn what your dog is trying to tell you and ways to establish a close, healthy bond with man's best friend.--BACK COVER.