Successful Dog Adoption

by Sue Sternberg

Expert guidance in choosing the right dog—the first time
Written by a renowned expert in shelter adoption,  Successful Dog Adoption  delivers all the information you need to find the perfect dog at a shelter and make him part of your family. In easy-to-understand language, Sue Sternberg helps you decide if you're ready to adopt by evaluating your reasons and translating them into what you should look for in a particular dog. She shows you how to find a reputable shelter, prepare for the adoption process, and work with shelter personnel to make sure they have appropriately screened their dogs. You'll also learn about "rescue" dogs and why one might be right for you.
This practical guide covers all the vital issues you need to consider when adopting-choosing a male or female, a puppy or an adult; identifying fearful dogs or dogs who will bite; and seeking out a dog with the ideal temperament. Featured here are detailed tests and observations used by professionals to ascertain the temperament and compatibility of shelter dogs-now made available to the public for the first time. You'll discover how to determine risk factors in an unknown dog, gauge a dog's potential reaction to guests and strangers, and predict the compatibility level when you add another dog to your household.
This book also offers invaluable advice on training your new pet, including guidance in housebreaking, selecting a training class, and helping a dog who gets carsick or doesn't like to be home alone. And, if you still experience difficulties with your dog, Sternberg gently discusses the steps you can take.
Authoritative and friendly,  Successful Dog Adoption  is the one-stop guide for finding your own "superdog"—and keeping the dog-owner relationship fresh and rewarding for years to come.

Genres: Nonfiction, Dogs, Animals

244 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2003

Reviews

[Ellen · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was included as part of a dog training course I am taking. I am also a professional shelter rescue with over 10 years of dog rescue and have been working with, studying & training dogs my entire life. 


This book is one of the worse books I have ever read about rescued dogs. The author continually flip flops her stances throughout the book, claiming the archaic dominance theory as the justification for many of her stances. She strongly believes in nature vs nuture and states that if you have a "bad" dog there's pretty much no other option you have available than to put the dog down.


She claims you should just go to a shelter and "fall in love" with a dog regardless of age, sex, breed or temperment. Then she goes into a detail description on how to maintain a Spock-like approach to adoption to pick a dog that is right for your family. The "fall in love" approach is how so many families who work long hours and have kids (with sports, clubs, etc) end up with a puppy and why so many hyper undertrained adolescents end up in the shelters.


She claims that people are never to blame for a dog's behavior and that "good" dogs should simply be tolerant of whatever us humans do to him or her. The dog should have a high tolerance for any behavior. If an abused dog, and trust me there ARE actual abuse cases despite her saying most are just "sob" stories to gain pity, that dog is going to have some trust issues. We had a gun dog who still had burns on his neck from the shock collar, he'd flinch every time you moved & still fled at any sign of loud sound. A year later (too long in her book & cruel for us to have kept him "incarcerated" for so long) he now serves on a search & rescue team.


She claims that puppies can be aggressive from birth & these dogs are hopeless cases that are best to be euthanized. She then goes on to describe how young dogs are the best because they can so easily be trained. 


I can tell you in the 10 years in rescue, my shelter (based in the midwest) has had only a handful of aggressive dogs. Most of which were adopted, eventually by a skilled owner & none were returned or had any incidents after adoption. To read this book, I would have assumed almost all dogs in shelters were aggressive and that aggression was the only reason people gave dogs up and all shelters were "masking" these traits maliciously to get their own dogs adopted.


She is failing to understand that dogs do what is most rewarding to them. If they guarded a food bowl and the other dog backed away, they were rewarded by a delicious meal. This doesn't make them a "bad" dog, it makes them a normal dog. Giving up food doesn't make any logically sense to an untrained dog. Stating these dogs are aggressive & need to be put down is a failure of understanding her part.


She also fails to grasp that dogs are terrible at generalizing behaviors, a dog who is food aggressive in a shelter surrounded by 30 other equally hungry dogs might be 100% fine in a home by himself. Failing & killing him for failing a food test is unjust.


Overall, had I read this book as a non-dog trainer & someone who wasn't fascinated by & studied dog body language, I have never gotten any dog from any shelter, because who would want to adopt an aggressive dog who'd like bite & kill people. Apparently that's all she thinks are there. Very disappointed.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dog expert Sternberg advocates a point of view that once would have been considered entirely commonsense and inarguable: Animal shelters should do everything in their power to avoid releasing dangerous dogs into the community, and dogs who are demonstrably violent should only go to professional trainers who can handle them or be humanely euthanized.

However, those who actively follow the dangerous dog issue will know that this is no longer the reality in the canine community. Today’s environment is littered with social media campaigns on behalf of dogs who maul and kill other pets or people, and those vicious dogs who are caught before they can do significant harm are bemoaned and eternally memorialized. Meanwhile, the tens of thousands of stable, non-dangerous animals who are euthanized annually receive little to no mention from this crowd.

It should come as little surprise, then, that Sternberg is a controversial figure, for simply saying that violent aggression is not an OK behavior trait in companion dogs. It is not difficult to find naysayers who actually go as far as to publically wish for her death.

For more level-headed individuals, this book offers a through and well-written examination of why to choose a shelter dog and how to adopt a pet who will be the best match for you and your household. Choosing wisely will help keep adopted dogs in their homes and prevent them from being relinquished later on because of behavior problems. It will also help adopters avoid dogs who are aggressive, which is the most serious and difficult behavior problem of them all.

The directors and staff of animal shelters should read Successful Dog Adoption as well. Sadly, some shelters have weakened their hard-earned reputation by passing off aggressive dogs for adoption, hiding individual dogs’ behavioral history from potential adopters, and deliberately lying about dog breeds. If shelters want to remain trusted community services and steer customers away from puppy mills and backyard breeders, they will concentrate on the advice offered in materials such as this. No one wants to hear that the risky dog you released for adoption just because you wanted to keep your euthanasia numbers down has just scalped a child or disemboweled the neighbor’s beagle. Increasingly, shelters are being held liable for these tragedies, as well.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thorough, detailed guide to adopting a dog from a shelter. Its strength comes from the many pass/fail temperament tests sequentially Sternberg presents to determine a dog's sociability and aggression levels, as well as Sternberg's perspective that adopting a dog is about the adopter and not the dog.

[Jazz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this book to be somewhat dated in its approach to dog adoption and dog assessment. In fact, it might even scare people off from going to a shelter. The author seems to hand out advice that she herself does not take. The most valuable part of the book to me was the Dog Adopter's Pledge, a checklist of items that every potential adopter should be able to agree to 100% before adopting. Other than that, I think there are far better books currently available—less intimidating, too. Adopting a dog is a serious decision, but it should also be an exciting, enjoyable one, not frightening.

[Louise Chambers · Rating 5 out of 5]

BEST Temperment tests for the dog, for the dog interacting with other dogs, and especially the dog with CHILDREN. Also, cats. Styles of play: Four--who knew?! :) How to tell if the dog is playful or explosive. How to deal with an overly enthusiastic dog: the sort that you cannot even talk to while you are training them.

This woman, Sue Sternberg, is an expert in temperment testing shelter dogs to make the best possible placement for a forever home. She is the Executive Director of the Community Animal Shelter Association (CASA). Her work was the subject of the HBO documentatry, Shelter Dogs.

Highly recommend!

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to get a dog, read this first. Sue Sternberg goes into what kind of dog may be best for you, various ways to get a dog, what to look for in dog temperament, and what you need when you get a dog. Even if you have had dogs before, this book is helpful in discussing dog temperaments and the kinds of breeds that might be best suited in various situations. She discusses positive training, though this is not a training book.

[Bailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I agree with Sternberg's basic premise: "You should be most worried about adopting an aggressive dog." She's wise to tell her readers to study the dog's body language, but I don't think her descriptions are detailed enough for the novice to recognize a well-socialized dog. I also don't like her promotion of the one-shot temperament test as a live-or-die litmus test for shelter dogs.

I read this for my mom-- just in case she decides it's time to get another dog! :)

[Clif Brittain · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent, out of the mainstream, book. I found this book very helpful. Lots of do this, don't do that. No fence straddling. Sternberg knows what she wants to teach and teaches it. Very good coverage of lots of stuff. I found the testing dogs before adoption section unique in the literature. The book is worth it if only for the section "How do I meet the dogs?"

Much good information on training the dog as well.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most useful book I've seen to guide you in choosing a new dog. The author helps you evaluate the shelter or breeder -- you need to understand their motives and pressures. She outlines temperment testing that can begin outside a cage. A most valuable resource.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative book about making the decision to adopt a shelter dog and what behaviors to look for during your doggy "interview". Sue gives you specific instructions to test the dog for aggression and shyness.

[Elizabeth Frum · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best thing about this book is the recommended temperament testing for potential adopters. Most of the other information I would recommend getting in a more recently written book, as it is outdated.

[Laura Borger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book for getting dogs. I've checked it out 3 times from the public library. Well written, acessible, good tips for training.

[Lukasz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on the whole process of dog adoption from finding the right shelter, the right dog, to teaching the dog basic manners as well as how to generally take care of said dog.

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend! It has a LOT of things to look for in a shelter and with a dog for adoption. Strong, wise, advice on how to avoid falling for the "sad dog" that may not be right for your family.