In a nation where our love of dogs keeps growing and dog ownership has reached an all-time high, confusion about dogs and their behavioral problems is skyrocketing. Many dogs are out of control, untrained, chewing up furniture, taking medication for anxiety, and biting millions of people a year. Now, in this groundbreaking new guide, Jon Katz, a leading authority on the human-canine bond, offers a powerful and practical philosophy for living with a dog, from the moment we decide to get one to the sad day when one dies. Conventional training methods often fail dog owners, but Katz argues that we know our dogs better than anyone else possibly could, and therefore we are well suited to train them. It is imperative, he says, that we think rationally and responsibly about how we choose, train, and live with the dogs we love, and the more we learn about ourselves, the better we can recognize their wonderful animal natures. Misinterpreting dogs is a profound obstacle to understanding them. Katz believes that both people and dogs are unique–a chow differs from a Lab just as a city dweller differs from a farmer–and he describes how such individuality isn’t addressed by even the best and most popular training methods. Not every training theory is for everyone, notes Katz, but almost anyone can train a dog and live with him comfortably. Katz on Dogs is filled with no-nonsense advice and answers to such key questions as: • What kind of dog should I have? Is there is a specific breed or kind of dog for my personality, family, or living situation? • What is the best way to train a dog? • Can I trust my vet? • How often (and for how long) can a dog be left alone? • Is it preferable to have only one dog, or are more better? • What are the secrets to successful housebreaking? • What are my dogs thinking, if anything? • How can I walk my dog instead of having her walk me? • Is it ever okay to give away a dog you love? • When is it time to put my dog down? Katz draws from his own experience, his interactions with thousands of dog owners, vets, breeders, dog rescue workers, trainers, and behaviorists, and he has tested his approach with volunteer dog owners around the country. Their helpful and often inspiring stories illustrate how all of us can live well with our dogs. You can do it, Katz contends. You can live a loving and harmonious life with your dog.

The book presents detailed, step by step, reward-based training methods as well as information on how to assess a dog's potential to be a dog detective and what you need to know as a prospective handler. Whether you desire to perform this service professionally or as a hobby, you can help people suffering from the trauma associated with a lost pet.

Understand, oversee, and develop a police-dog program that excels Learn: - The five fundamental factors for running a successful unit, and why some K9 units fail - How to mitigate liability issues - How to select the right dogs and handlers - How to handle budgets and deal with police-dog vendors - Current training trends and how to develop a positive K9 unit culture K9 units are on the front line for every dangerous and in progress call, and it’s up to the unit manager to ensure officers have the best possible dogs, equipment, and training for them to do their job and help mitigate the related risk. Robert Eden, a retired 28-year police veteran with extensive experience as a K9 handler and trainer, provides police departments with a template for the successful development and supervision of police-service dog operations. It provides a wealth of information for supervisors who have limited or no experience with police dogs, as well as new ideas and expert recommendations for those with an extensive K9 background.

BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Jon Katz's Going Home. “People who love dogs often talk about a ‘lifetime’ dog. I’d heard the phrase a dozen times before I came to recognize its significance. Lifetime dogs are dogs we love in especially powerful, sometimes inexplicable ways.”–Jon Katz In this gripping and deeply touching book, bestselling author Jon Katz tells the story of his lifetime dog, Orson: a beautiful border collie–intense, smart, crazy, and unforgettable. From the moment Katz and Orson meet, when the dog springs from his traveling crate at Newark airport and panics the baggage claim area, their relationship is deep, stormy, and loving. At two years old, Katz’s new companion is a great herder of school buses, a scholar of refrigerators, but a dud at herding sheep. Everything Katz attempts– obedience training, herding instruction, a new name, acupuncture, herb and alternative therapies–helps a little but not enough, and not for long. “Like all border collies and many dogs,” Katz writes, “he needed work. I didn’t realize for some time I was the work Orson would find.” While Katz is trying to help his dog, Orson is helping him, shepherding him toward a new life on a two-hundred-year-old hillside farm in upstate New York. There, aided by good neighbors and a tolerant wife, hip-deep in sheep, chickens, donkeys, and more dogs, the man and his canine companion explore meadows, woods, and even stars, wade through snow, bask by a roaring wood stove, and struggle to keep faith with each other. There, with deep love, each embraces his unfolding destiny. A Good Dog is a book to savor. Just as Orson was the author’ s lifetime dog, his story is a lifetime treasure–poignant, timeless, and powerful.

The most famous enemies in the animal kingdom finally meet face-to-face... and the fur is about to fly! Oscar is a rowdy pooch who loves everybody – except katts! His family of down-to-earth doggs enjoys giving those snooty katts a hard time. Molly is a pretty kitty who's destined for fame and fortune as an actress. Her family of well-bred katts thinks all doggs are dirty and disgusting! But while on family camping trips, Molly and Oscar get hopelessly lost in the dangerous woods. The only way for them to survive is for the mortal enemies to work together... Yeah, not gonna happen!

Introduces the dogs of Bedlam Farm that inspire the author's books.

In this invaluable guide and touchstone, New York Times bestselling author Jon Katz addresses the difficult but necessary topic of saying goodbye to a beloved pet. Drawing on personal experiences, stories from fellow pet owners, and philosophical reflections, Katz provides support for those in mourning. By allowing ourselves to grieve honestly and openly, he posits, we can in time celebrate the dogs, cats, and other creatures that have so enriched us. Katz compels us to consider if we gave our pets good lives, if we were their advocates in times of need, and if we used our best judgments in the end. In dealing with these issues, we can alleviate guilt, let go, and help others who are undergoing similar passages. By honoring the animals that have graced our lives, we reveal their truly timeless gifts: unwavering companionship and undying love. With a brand-new Foreword by the author.