Best books for dog owners (Our favourites)
If you're one of the thousands of people who have bought a dog during the lockdown, the likelihood is that you've struggled a bit as things begin to open up. Your dog maybe isn't used to the streets being so busy, and might be playing up. This can seriously affect your anxiety, as we've discussed before. If this sounds like you then fret not - there are lots of excellent books out there which can help you understand and train your dog, the best of which we've included in this list. Let's get into it:
The Book Your Dog Wishes You Would Read by Louise Glazebrook - best for a dog's perspective
As Louise Glazebrook outlines so brilliantly in this book, your dog is trying to communicate with you all the time, and you're probably understanding next to none of it. So often we focus on telling our dogs what to do, but we should remember that a relationship goes 2 ways, and listening to what your dog is trying to tell you via body language and noises is really important. The writing style is really direct and to the point, giving you the information you need in a concise and simple manner. We love this book!
You can buy Louise's book from Amazon here - amazon.co.uk
Doggie Language: A Dog Lover's Guide to Understanding Your Best Friend by Lili Chin - best for practical tips with beautiful illustrations
The problem with some of the dog-related books that we've looked at over the years is although they might be packed with useful information, they tend to be written in an unengaging and frankly bland manner. That is why we absolutely love Doggie Language: A Dog Lover's Guide to Understanding Your Best Friend by Lili Chin - not only is the information really practical and actionable (plus conveyed in a digestible manner) but it is paired with Lili's fantastic illustrations. Aside from being fun to look at, we think that the illustrations actually help with information retention. This is key because when your dog is being frantic and misbehaving, you need to be able to recall information easily. You'll learn how to read your dog's body language, and how to interpret their behaviour. Our final point would be that we think the book would make a great gift too.
Check out the book for yourself here - amazon.co.uk
Behavior Adjustment Training 2.0 by Grisha Stewart - best for anyone with a reactive dog
Grisha Stewart is a globally renowned dog training expert who has published several books and has helped hundreds of thousands of dogs. What we love about her book, Behavior Adjustment Training 2.0: New Practical Techniques for Fear, Frustration, and Aggression in Dogs, is that is packed with practical techniques that will help owners deal with dogs that become scared or aggressive easily. Although the techniques explained in the book are coming from an expert, they're outlined and broken down into simple and easy-to-understand terms. The photo charts in the book are also really useful. We highly recommend this book!
You can buy the book directly from Grisha's website here - school.grishastewart.com
We hope this guide helps you to find an excellent book to help you look after your dog. If you have a younger dog then check out our guide to the best books for training your puppy.
Finn H
Finn is the editor of You Well and has been writing about travel, health, and more for over 10 years.