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 enlarge | Authors: Paul Loeb, Suzanne Hlavacek
Publisher: Atria
Category: Book
List Price: $22.00
Buy New: $0.99
You Save: $21.01 (96%)
New (9) Used (33) Collectible (1) from $0.20
Rating:  107 reviews
Sales Rank: 1583077
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 272
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.2
ISBN: 0671001728
Dewey Decimal Number: 636.70887
EAN: 9780671001728
ASIN: 0671001728
Publication Date: March 1, 1997
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: clean inside and out, dust cover nice
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 21-25 of 107
 Easier Than You Think October 3, 2005
Terri Fedorco (Baltimore, MD United States)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Easier Than You Think -
I'd give "Smarter Than You Think" 10 stars if I could. Every dog owner must read this amazing and enlightening book. In summary, it's the easier-than-you-think guide for helping your dog become truly your best friend and companion. I will be eternally grateful to Paul Loeb and Suzanne Hlavacek for writing it. This book did exactly what the cover promised - help me to teach and understand my dog in just a few hours. The proof that it works are the results - immediate results. With Paul's technique, there is no "practicing" until you get it right. You get it right immediately - in a humane, simple, effective way that simply lets your dog know his position in the family pack. I now totally believe dogs need to know this. I'll admit, when I first read about Paul's throwing technique, I was a little skeptical. But thankfully, one frustating day when my dog was totally ignoring my calls to "come," I did what Paul advocated in his book. I threw the leash at her and couldn't believe the response. Not only did she stop what she was doing and come to me instantly, she had a look of awe and respect on her face that I never thought I would see. This was astounding to me because prior to this, I had hired several other private trainers - all with great credentials - and read very other dog training manual on the market. But nothing worked. My dog knew all the commands, but obeyed them only when she wanted to and definitely thought she was in charge. Now, suddenly things were different. I credit this book for helping my dog and I to develop the best possible relationship that any two creatures can have. She is truly my best friend and a most loveable, well behaved companion that I'm proud to take with me everywhere. "Smarter Than You Think" is not just another training manual. It's light years ahead of any other advice out there. Plus, it's written in a fun, easy-to-read style and packed with priceless advice that will help you develop a better relationship with your dog that you ever dreamed possible. After reading this book, you will never say, "my dog won't listen to me" again. And your dog will love you for it.
Terri Fedorco
Baltimore, MD
I love this book! September 22, 2005
L. McLelland
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
This is in response to the other "trainer" in nyc who gave Mr. Loeb a bad review. I am sorry you find this book laughable I find it brilliant. It has helped me and countless others. Mr. Loeb has been working with animals for a long time. He has trained animals to comfort the sick and elderly. He has trained animals at the ASPCA so they can get adopted. I have never heard of you, but I have heard of Paul Loeb. By the way, as for your disclaimer, I am sure not for one moment did he view you as competition! That, sir is laughable. By the way, why are you reading a training book anyway?
Insightful & Unconventional August 29, 2005
satisfied dog owner (new york, ny)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I was unsuccessful with training my dog with the widely accepted feed your dog and they will obey method (right this worked in the house, but take him outside with all the distractions...you could offer my dog a steak and he was and still is uninterested).
One morning while walking my dog in Central Park, I came across a trainer (working with a dog and it's owners) who used my dog as an example of what a dog should not act like (pulling, barking incessantly, etc.). I watched him for a while and it turned out to be Paul Loeb. I asked him if he would consider working with my dog and I, and he recommended I read his book first. I did and was immediately intrigued by his methods.
His methods are a good balance between the "old method" of beat your dog into submission and the "new method" of food and praise. He believes in praising for good behavior and punishing (not physical violence) for bad behavior. Seriously a great read and his methods have tamed my unruly, not neutered Jack Russell Terrier.
I would recommend to any dog owner who is frustrated with the praise and feed method that most trainers use these days.
 Dogs: A Lot Smarter than Certain Authors August 25, 2005
Lee Charles Kelley (New York City)
4 out of 14 found this review helpful
You might enjoy reading this book, if you like a good laugh. Paul Loeb is so OFF about so many things, and yet writes with such utter conviction about them, that you have to wonder what mental institution he escaped from.
His theory of "the magic hand" is preposterous. Does throwing things at dogs get their attention? Of course. Will the dog then go over and sniff the object? Nine times out of ten, sure. Does that mean he's made a "mystical connection" between the object and the person who threw it, thinking that his owner has a "magic hand" that follows him wherever he goes? You're kidding, right? He sniffs it because he wants to know what it is and why it just scared the bejebus out of him. Will having an object thrown at a dog make him immediately come back to you? Maybe, sometimes. But it's pretty unreliable. Plus, you could just teach the dog to do it on command. (When I call the dogs I've personally trained, they'll turn on a dime and run back to me, even while in the middle of chasing a squirrel or a rabbit; it's easy and fun and doesn't involve thrown objects--except maybe a tennis ball or two.)
Loeb says his technique was "invented" when, out of frustration at not being able to control his own dog, he threw the leash at her. She sniffed it and came running back to him. His feeble imagination put two and two together and came up with oranges. A "magic hand?" Heck, it seemed to me, when I read his description, that the dog was frightened and came back to the relative safety of being by his side. As for Loeb's contention that he invented this technique, why is it that many dog trainers have been using what's called a "throw chain" for years and years before Loeb ever wrote this laughable book.
Oh, and his OTHER favorite training strategy? Spanking the dog! (Yep, that's really intelligent.)
Will his techniques work with some dogs some of the time? Of course. Most techniques do. That's why you have the Monks of New Skete on one side, claiming that their way is right, and Jean Donaldson and Patricia McConnell on the other, claiming, no, our way is best. The thing about dogs is that they have a wonderful, innate capacity for obedience. They like it. It's what they're built to do. The mistake is in thinking it's the technique you use when it's simply part of the dog's nature.
However, I've tried both dominance training and "operant" conditioning and I've found that, since the prey drive is the organizing principle behind almost all canine behavior, the only method that works equally well on all types of dogs, under all conditions, is some form of play training, where you stimulate the dog's hunting instinct and use it as the focal point of training. This approach is described by Patricia Gail Burnham in PLAYTRAINING YOUR DOG, or by Kevin Behan, in the more comprehensive, NATURAL DOG TRAINING. Another good book is SCHUTZHUND: THEORY AND TRAINING PRACTICES by Susan Barwig and Stewart Hilliard. Max Von Stephanitz, who invented the sport of schutzhund, said, "Before we teach the dog to obey we must teach him how to play." Meanwhile, Paul Loeb, tells you NOT to play with your dog because they can't tell the difference between play and aggression. (Like I said, he seems to have escaped from a mental hospital.)
DISCLOSURE NOTICE: You should know that Paul Loeb and I live in the same part of Manhattan. And although I've never felt that I was in "competition" with him for dog training clients, he and others might view it that way. My comments here are only a review of SMARTER THAN YOU THINK and the "ideas" contained inside it.
NEW REVIEW THAT SHOULD REPLACE THE LIBRARIANS REVIEW August 4, 2005
Not a Libraian (NY, NY)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I AM NOT A LIBRARIAN, but this review should certainly replace the librarians 5 year old review.
I have read this book and Paul Loeb is a genius. I followed his advise and ideas....and my rescue dog who had many undesirable habits and behaviors, is now GREAT thanks to this book and Mr. Loeb. He is so well behaved and can be taken anywhere. He is fully house broken and adapts to any changes and situations very easily.He is a happy, healthy, loving, toast of our neighborhood kind of dog.... thanks to this wonderful book.
I am amazed that amazon put this 5 year old whining librarians review up at the head of the list...they should go in chronilogical order and in fact they do, with this one exception. hmmmmmm!!!
This book is the only book that any dog owner should buy/read...with the exception of any future books Mr. Loeb may write.
THIS BOOK IT THE BEST DOG BOOK EVER!!!!!!!
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