The Canine Good Citizen: Every Dog Can Be One, Second Edition

This little volume is pure gold. Some may criticize this book as not being advanced enough, or not containing new information - they are missing the point. Ultimately this is a book about educating people about how to help their dogs learn good people manners.While the context is preparing for the American Kennel Club's Canine Good Citizen test, really this book is for any dog owner. If you have a family dog that needs a little help in learning good people manners, this is the book for you. If you are already involved in competitive dog sports, such as obedience trials or have experience in dog training, this book has not really been written for you.The Canine Good Citizen test involves 10 individual tests, all of which allow the dog to show that she well mannered in everyday situations. For example two of the tests include the dog must sit politely while being petted by a stranger, and walk politely on leash through a crowd.Whether you ever test your dog or not, teaching these skills to your dog will result in a dog that is well behaved, a joy to be around. Isn't that what everyone really wants for their family dog?For me, the best parts of the book are those that coach you on how to work with your dog, how to understand the dog's psychology - how dogs learn. This has been invaluable to me. Early in the book, the authors introduce the idea that dogs are, of course, pack animals. Our human family becomes their pack, and someone has to be the leader of the pack. For everyone's sake, the leader of the pack must be one of the people - not the dog. The Volhards help you understand how to be the pack leader. This is not hard to do and certainly does not require you to be unkind to your dog. Our dog has learned these lessons well enough that she even cheerfully takes commands from our 3 1/2 year old son.There is plenty of good advice here about preparing for the actual CGC test and what to expect. If passing the CGC test is your goal, the easiest approach is to enroll yourself and your dog in a hands on obedience class and use this book as the companion text book you almost won't get otherwise.For those without ready access to obedience classes, this book does provide guidance on how to train your dog by yourself. Having been through several obedience classes with our dog, I believe that if you followed the Volhards' advice carefully - and actually practiced the skills as they suggest - you really could train your dog on your own using this book.I have set myself a challenge - to have our family dog (a 2 year old shelter rescue Australian Shepherd mix) take and pass the CGC test at the local dog show in about a month. As the local dog show is VERY large, this will be an extremely distracting environment and a real challenge for our dog. I am convinced that when our dog takes the test she will pass. This book has helped me understand how to get her ready and how to help her be pretty much the perfect family dog.In the year-and-a-half since the kids wore me down and convinced me we really "needed" a dog, I have bought several dog books and skimmed many more at bookstores and libraries. This is the one book I would enthusiastically recommend for any dog owner in the early stages of teaching good manners to their dog, even if they never plan on having their dog take the Canine Good Citizen test.Great stuff, and highly recommended.Update - our dog has now taken, and passed the Canine Good Citizen test. I am still convinced that the Volhard's book is great stuff. Their advice equipped me to teach our dog to be a well mannered member of the family. Following their advice, she aced the test.

The things I like best about this book aren't in most other books. I found the personality test for the dog both interesting and helpful, and the distinction between dogs who react to fear with flight and those who react with aggression is important.The discussion of the test itself is detailed, and the training programs, particularly the ones that last several weeks, are helpful and practical. This test requires your dog to perform consistently, and that means practice! Learning how to structure a "Stay" program that will take 4 weeks to complete is critical if you really want a dog that can pass the test.However, the book was written more than 10 years ago, and the specific techniques rely heavily on physically moving the dog into place. There are some master trainers who can do that, but these days most humane societies and group trainers don't advise amateurs to use those methods unsupervised.For example, the book says that with some dogs, when teaching "Sit," "You may have to physically place them. With your left hand, stroke down the entire length of the back, over the tail all the way to the stifles, and with equal pressure of the right and left hands, fold the dog into a sit with the command 'Sit.'"I don't know of any book written in the last 5 years that would recommend this method for home training. Instead, the preferred method is shaping and patience--reward the dog for each effort towards the desired behaviour. Almost all dogs will eventually get there, and the shaping method is usually safer and more reliable for amateurs.This book uses similar physical manipulation techniques throughout. That's really the only reason I can't give it a higher rating.I recommend that you get any other good recent book on training for ways of teaching the individual Sit, Down, Heel and Stay behaviours. Then use this book for working out a training schedule specifically to prepare for the Canine Good Citizenship Test.Most other books are going to talk as though your dog will have Heel mastered in a session or two. And it's true the dog will learn the basic command that quickly. But to truly MASTER it, you will need something like the 8 week training schedule that the Volhards lay out in this book.There's a lot to learn from this book, and some very practical tips. But you'll also need a current book specifically for amateur trainers to teach the individual techniques--or take a class from your local humane society or work with a local trainer to get the basics.

I got this book a couple days ago not only to learn about the test but in hopes of finding a new way to try to get my dog to walk a little nicer on the loose leash. I have tried a lot of different styles for the past four years and hadn’t found anything yet to work. My dog isn’t a super puller but I’m disabled on my right leg so I need him to walk so I can hold onto my new mobility harness and train him to help me. Well last night I followed the directions from this book about how to begin training a little faster pace til he learns and body language and praise and the way not to touch the lash with my hands unless doing just a little correction and it literally started working within the first few minutes and by the end of our 3 mile walk he was heeling and in sync with my pace changes and turns!! It was the best walk We have had together!! I love this book! It has a lot of really good info about dog behavior and body language to help train your dog the easiest way and is it’s also very light reading which is great for a busy person. I would definitely recommend it!

I just received this book a few days ago, but sat down and skimmed it cover to cover. I realized a few things that we were doing with our 4 month old GSD puppy that we should change. The book was easy to understand. The drawings/images help demonstrate proper techniques. There is a great 8-week training schedule to help get any dog trained and manageable. The book also goes over the elements of how a dog is tested for the Canine Good Citizen test and ways to approach the 10 different elements to prepare him/her for the examination. Additionally, it lets you know what you can or cannot do during the test - such as constant verbal contact with the dog being acceptible and no use of food for motivation. I'm excited to start this training and hopefully get our girl her CGC certification.

My mistake, I didn't realize this book was from 1996. At the time, it probably reflected best practices, but the state of training has moved on since then and many of the techniques would now be considered aversive. Things that could be done easily with luring are done with physically pushing or moving into position. It also heavily leans into dominance theory. Not the worst you could do, but with so many other great resources out there, you can definitely pass on this one.

Great book! Very informative and written simply for anyone to understand. Lays out 8 weeks of training with details on how to do every single step. All owners should read this.

Of all the books I have read on puppy training (16) this one was the most useful. The book goes in depth and the instructions are easy to follow. I will buy a copy of this book for my sister as it was that good!

Me gusto por su sencillez y por que es muy practico. Recomendable para todo aquel que se quiera iniciar en la educacion canina