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National Geographic Complete Guide to Pet Health, Behavior, and Happiness: The Veterinarian's Approach to At-Home Animal Care
In National Geographic's comprehensive and easy-to-use illustrated pet reference, a renowned veterinarian offers expert advice on common health, behavior, and training for cats, dogs, and other domestic pets.
Combining first aid, medical reference, and tips and tricks of the trade, here is your go-to-guide for at-home animal care, focusing on dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, and more! Building on more than two decades of veterinary experience, Dr. Gary Weitzman covers topics including upset stomachs, house training, physical ailments and behavior tips. The president and CEO of the San Diego Humane Society and former co-host of the weekly NPR show The Animal House, "Dr. Gary" brings a wealth of experience to essential veterinary questions, revealing basic first-aid techniques, when a trip to the vet is necessary, dietary recommendations, simple training techniques, necessary supplies, essential behavior cues, and much more.
Combining first aid, medical reference, and tips and tricks of the trade, here is your go-to-guide for at-home animal care, focusing on dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, and more! Building on more than two decades of veterinary experience, Dr. Gary Weitzman covers topics including upset stomachs, house training, physical ailments and behavior tips. The president and CEO of the San Diego Humane Society and former co-host of the weekly NPR show The Animal House, "Dr. Gary" brings a wealth of experience to essential veterinary questions, revealing basic first-aid techniques, when a trip to the vet is necessary, dietary recommendations, simple training techniques, necessary supplies, essential behavior cues, and much more.
- GenresNonfictionAnimals
400 pages, Paperback
Published April 2, 2019
4 people are currently reading
61 people want to read
About the author
Gary Weitzman
11 books15 followersDr. Weitzman is president of the San Diego Humane Society and the former CEO of the Washington Animal Rescue League. During Dr. Weitzman's tenure at WARL, it became a recognized leader in physical and behavioral rehabilitation and a national resource for helping animals after natural disasters and puppy mill rescues. Dr. Weitzman is also a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and an expert in non-profit sector work and international public health. Weitzman is the author of several books including "How to Speak Dog: A Guide to Decoding Dog Language."
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 15, 2019
When I was approached about reviewing this book, I had recently adopted three cats; one adult and two kittens. I already knew I love National Geographic books for their comprehensiveness and beautiful photographs. It was a win-win!
Complete Guide to Pet Health, Behavior, and Happiness is replete with a veterinarian’s advice on health, behavior, and training for cats, dogs, and other domestic animals. This book is a wonderful reference to have on hand when you have a concern.
Dr. Gary Weizmann, DVM, writes in an approachable and easy-to-read style. I LOVE that he is the president of the San Diego Humane Society (we adopted our cats from our local humane society).
My favorite aspects of the book are the tips about when to take your pet to the vet. I tend to err on the side of worry, and I have been known to needlessly take my cats to the vet. Who wants to do that? The cats definitely don’t want to go! 😂 I’m grateful to have some advice on where to draw the line. I also appreciated the dietary tips and behavioral information (there is tons of help and understanding here!). All in all, this is a sound and helpful resource for any pet owner to have on hand.
As an aside, my little Harper looks like the cat featured on the book cover! It’s giving me an idea of what she may look like as an adult! ♥️
I received a complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com
Complete Guide to Pet Health, Behavior, and Happiness is replete with a veterinarian’s advice on health, behavior, and training for cats, dogs, and other domestic animals. This book is a wonderful reference to have on hand when you have a concern.
Dr. Gary Weizmann, DVM, writes in an approachable and easy-to-read style. I LOVE that he is the president of the San Diego Humane Society (we adopted our cats from our local humane society).
My favorite aspects of the book are the tips about when to take your pet to the vet. I tend to err on the side of worry, and I have been known to needlessly take my cats to the vet. Who wants to do that? The cats definitely don’t want to go! 😂 I’m grateful to have some advice on where to draw the line. I also appreciated the dietary tips and behavioral information (there is tons of help and understanding here!). All in all, this is a sound and helpful resource for any pet owner to have on hand.
As an aside, my little Harper looks like the cat featured on the book cover! It’s giving me an idea of what she may look like as an adult! ♥️
I received a complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com
November 9, 2019
This is a great compilation of what pet owners need to know about caring for their pets through all stages of their pets’ lives. The book focuses on dogs and cats primarily, since that’s America favorite pet animals. Along with extra sources provided for further info or reading. Highly recommend.
April 21, 2019
It's Good & It's Bad
This book is mostly geared towards dogs. Cats seem more like an afterthought & small critters are hardly mentioned at all. Some advice was just plain wrong. For example he states that you shouldn't purchase over the counter dewormers because they don't work. Really. Is that so? Funny, because I've been using them with excellent results for my cats, goats, & rabbits. There are great dewormers available online & some are even available at local stores. You just have to make sure you get the right dewormer for it to work. Telling folks they don't work is just plain wrong. I live on my own small family farm in rural Appalachia. A lot of folks don't have money. They want to do right by their pets. They may not be able to afford to take their pet to the vet for every tiny thing. And really, if you know what worms your pet has, you don't have to! So instead poor folks, may not bother to buy a dewormer because "it doesn't work" & also not take their pet to the vet because they are so strapped for cash & will only go for emergencies. Folks, over the counter dewormers work! Use them with confidence!
Another idiotic statement was that you shouldn't rub a cats tummy because cats don't like that. Really? I had no idea. My cats & kittens roll over for a tummy rub all of the time. They love it. There are other similar incorrect statements about behavior in the book that drove me nuts. I've never not had cats/kittens in my life. I have been surrounded by them since birth. Now I even rescue wee teeny things & bottle feed them. I know kitties. I get the impression that the authors only experience with cats is as a vet, not as a pet, that the author has only ever had dogs for pets & is clearly crazy about them. If you want great advice on how to care for kittens including bottle feeding visit The Kitten Lady website.
Another problem with this book is constantly recommending you visit House Rabbit Society. Now, I'm not saying they are bad. They have the best of intentions, but everything isn't black or white. There are grey areas that House Rabbit Society doesn't want to acknowledge. For example, Angora rabbits need to be kept on wire. Resting mats/pads are fine, but if you don't want wool full of urine & poop, you will put them on wire. Putting an angora rabbit on a non wire bottom all of the time is the real cruelty. Also, I'd like to hope that if you have an Angora rabbit or two or three... that you take them out of their wire bottom home daily for plenty of grooming & play time on the ground, grasses, wherever. They don't need to be on wire 100% of the time, but they do need wire bottoms. It's not mean, it's necessary. Take a look at an angoras feet, they have a crazy amount of wool on their feet compared to short haired bunnies, which means extra padding. You can provide your bunny with good care & still put them on wire. If you want great advice on how to care for angora rabbits visit the Running Bug Farm website.
This book also assumes that everyone has access to the internet. I can tell your right now, that in this day & age, it simply isn't true. There are still a surprising amount of folks who do not have internet access & plenty who don't even know how to use it. They buy a book to care for their animals rather than searching on Google like those of us connected. Now the book tells them to go online rather than tell them what works in the book. Not helpful. Not helpful at all. Both my grandmother & my father for example, would be most disappointed with this as would many people here in rural Appalachia. Guess what? If we want internet we have to get satellite. It's slow, & really flippn' expensive or we have to drive over wrecked roads due to all the big Oil & Gas fracking traffic to get to the library that is over a half hour away. I understand that most people have internet, but most is not all.
If your bird breaks a wing feather & it is bleeding (a blood feather this is the part of the feather that is alive, like how the pink part of your nail is alive & the growing part is not) the author says to get to the vet. If you don't panic & know what you are doing, you can easily avoid a trip to the vet. If the wing doesn't stop bleeding, get a pair of blunt tweezers or needle nose pliers. Grasp the feather as far down the wing as possible & yank it out quickly. Problem solved, no risk of your bird bleeding out. Just get it over quickly. To reduce the likelihood of this happening, keep your birds wings clipped. I can't show you how, so either find someone who does this or go to the vet to learn. Properly clipping the wings is 100% painless & harmless. It's just like cutting your hair or nails.
Okay, I feel a little better now that I got some of that off of my chest. If you noticed, I rated this at 3 stars, not 1. It's not a bad book. It's just not as good as it should have been. If you have never owned a pet & are looking for a dog or puppy, this isn't a bad book. If you are considering a cat or kitten or other small furred, feathered, or scaled creature, you will want to get a book about that type of critter, rather than this book. Buying this book for anything other than a dog is a waste of time.
This is a very basic book about a little bit of everything. It just gives you an idea of what you might expect but no real solutions other than to go to the vet. It is not in depth. There is really no how to. You know the saying about giving a man a fish or teaching a man to fish? This book doesn't teach you how to fish, it gives you a fish. The fish is the Vet. Teaching you how to fish would be you learning how to deal with situations at home & going to the Vet when this isn't realistic or possible.
The author clearly loves animals, which is great. He does have some good points, & the book does have good info. However, if I could have looked at this in a book store rather than online, I would have given it a pass. It is simply too basic for me, a person who has not only had pets for the entirety of their life, but who also runs their own farm & has had to deal with emergency situations without a vet & yes, the animals survived. I'm not saying don't go to the vet, please do. I have a beloved pet cat who is on compound immune suppressing medication thanks to an autoimmune disease more commonly known as Rodent Ulcer. There is no mention of this health problem in cats in this book. Perhaps if dogs got it, it would have been mentioned...
Overall, this book is just okay - for dogs.
This book is mostly geared towards dogs. Cats seem more like an afterthought & small critters are hardly mentioned at all. Some advice was just plain wrong. For example he states that you shouldn't purchase over the counter dewormers because they don't work. Really. Is that so? Funny, because I've been using them with excellent results for my cats, goats, & rabbits. There are great dewormers available online & some are even available at local stores. You just have to make sure you get the right dewormer for it to work. Telling folks they don't work is just plain wrong. I live on my own small family farm in rural Appalachia. A lot of folks don't have money. They want to do right by their pets. They may not be able to afford to take their pet to the vet for every tiny thing. And really, if you know what worms your pet has, you don't have to! So instead poor folks, may not bother to buy a dewormer because "it doesn't work" & also not take their pet to the vet because they are so strapped for cash & will only go for emergencies. Folks, over the counter dewormers work! Use them with confidence!
Another idiotic statement was that you shouldn't rub a cats tummy because cats don't like that. Really? I had no idea. My cats & kittens roll over for a tummy rub all of the time. They love it. There are other similar incorrect statements about behavior in the book that drove me nuts. I've never not had cats/kittens in my life. I have been surrounded by them since birth. Now I even rescue wee teeny things & bottle feed them. I know kitties. I get the impression that the authors only experience with cats is as a vet, not as a pet, that the author has only ever had dogs for pets & is clearly crazy about them. If you want great advice on how to care for kittens including bottle feeding visit The Kitten Lady website.
Another problem with this book is constantly recommending you visit House Rabbit Society. Now, I'm not saying they are bad. They have the best of intentions, but everything isn't black or white. There are grey areas that House Rabbit Society doesn't want to acknowledge. For example, Angora rabbits need to be kept on wire. Resting mats/pads are fine, but if you don't want wool full of urine & poop, you will put them on wire. Putting an angora rabbit on a non wire bottom all of the time is the real cruelty. Also, I'd like to hope that if you have an Angora rabbit or two or three... that you take them out of their wire bottom home daily for plenty of grooming & play time on the ground, grasses, wherever. They don't need to be on wire 100% of the time, but they do need wire bottoms. It's not mean, it's necessary. Take a look at an angoras feet, they have a crazy amount of wool on their feet compared to short haired bunnies, which means extra padding. You can provide your bunny with good care & still put them on wire. If you want great advice on how to care for angora rabbits visit the Running Bug Farm website.
This book also assumes that everyone has access to the internet. I can tell your right now, that in this day & age, it simply isn't true. There are still a surprising amount of folks who do not have internet access & plenty who don't even know how to use it. They buy a book to care for their animals rather than searching on Google like those of us connected. Now the book tells them to go online rather than tell them what works in the book. Not helpful. Not helpful at all. Both my grandmother & my father for example, would be most disappointed with this as would many people here in rural Appalachia. Guess what? If we want internet we have to get satellite. It's slow, & really flippn' expensive or we have to drive over wrecked roads due to all the big Oil & Gas fracking traffic to get to the library that is over a half hour away. I understand that most people have internet, but most is not all.
If your bird breaks a wing feather & it is bleeding (a blood feather this is the part of the feather that is alive, like how the pink part of your nail is alive & the growing part is not) the author says to get to the vet. If you don't panic & know what you are doing, you can easily avoid a trip to the vet. If the wing doesn't stop bleeding, get a pair of blunt tweezers or needle nose pliers. Grasp the feather as far down the wing as possible & yank it out quickly. Problem solved, no risk of your bird bleeding out. Just get it over quickly. To reduce the likelihood of this happening, keep your birds wings clipped. I can't show you how, so either find someone who does this or go to the vet to learn. Properly clipping the wings is 100% painless & harmless. It's just like cutting your hair or nails.
Okay, I feel a little better now that I got some of that off of my chest. If you noticed, I rated this at 3 stars, not 1. It's not a bad book. It's just not as good as it should have been. If you have never owned a pet & are looking for a dog or puppy, this isn't a bad book. If you are considering a cat or kitten or other small furred, feathered, or scaled creature, you will want to get a book about that type of critter, rather than this book. Buying this book for anything other than a dog is a waste of time.
This is a very basic book about a little bit of everything. It just gives you an idea of what you might expect but no real solutions other than to go to the vet. It is not in depth. There is really no how to. You know the saying about giving a man a fish or teaching a man to fish? This book doesn't teach you how to fish, it gives you a fish. The fish is the Vet. Teaching you how to fish would be you learning how to deal with situations at home & going to the Vet when this isn't realistic or possible.
The author clearly loves animals, which is great. He does have some good points, & the book does have good info. However, if I could have looked at this in a book store rather than online, I would have given it a pass. It is simply too basic for me, a person who has not only had pets for the entirety of their life, but who also runs their own farm & has had to deal with emergency situations without a vet & yes, the animals survived. I'm not saying don't go to the vet, please do. I have a beloved pet cat who is on compound immune suppressing medication thanks to an autoimmune disease more commonly known as Rodent Ulcer. There is no mention of this health problem in cats in this book. Perhaps if dogs got it, it would have been mentioned...
Overall, this book is just okay - for dogs.
May 9, 2019
Although I think this is an overall excellent pet reference book, covering so many areas of pet ownership, I am giving it three stars, due to the author's failure to provide any worthwhile suggestions about what to do about vet costs many can no longer afford. Dr. Weitzman even states in the beginning of the book he is aware of the crisis situation involving affordable vet care, but then soon after that states getting a new pet should be seen the same as buying a new car. Well, no, getting a new pet should not be seen the same as buying a new car unless you are getting a horse!
He later states it is often wealthy clients who are responsible for high vet prices because they demand expensive treatments. Not where I come from. It's the vet who own the hospitals who are responsible for the high fees they charge for everything, including fees like $100 for worming one cat, or $100 for a rabies shot since they haven't seen the pet in a while. The good doctor further suggests those who don't want expensive type treatments should consider finding less expensive veterinarian hospitals. The only problem with that is in many cities there is no longer even one vet hospital for peons and their pets. They have to drive out to the counties, where vets do the same exact things as the city vets at a fraction of the costs. Or get vet treatment from animal welfare groups. Groups that the vets condemn and try to shut down, because they are taking too much business away from them.
Finally, Dr. Weitzman states all vets care about animals and don't want to charge any client an amount of money he or she cannot afford. Is he kidding? Or maybe he is naive. There are more than a few vets who are not animal lovers at all and are in it strictly for the money. I suspect they failed to get into medical or dental school. Long gone are the days when all vets did care about animals and ran animal hospitals, where fees were decided after the animals were treated, and payments could be made. Now, most vets seem to be running animal hospitals where a tremendous amount of time is spent kenneling and grooming animals, plus pushing pet food such as Hill's Science Diet, that the vet hospitals obviously make a lot of money selling. Maybe one day a vet will write an honest account of what goes on in expensive animal hospitals. Maybe one day the mainstream media will start doing articles on the matter, as opposed to only articles where vets are always seen as wonderful, saintly, caring individuals who courageously save the lives of pets every day.
(Note: I received a free copy of this book from Amazon Vine.)
He later states it is often wealthy clients who are responsible for high vet prices because they demand expensive treatments. Not where I come from. It's the vet who own the hospitals who are responsible for the high fees they charge for everything, including fees like $100 for worming one cat, or $100 for a rabies shot since they haven't seen the pet in a while. The good doctor further suggests those who don't want expensive type treatments should consider finding less expensive veterinarian hospitals. The only problem with that is in many cities there is no longer even one vet hospital for peons and their pets. They have to drive out to the counties, where vets do the same exact things as the city vets at a fraction of the costs. Or get vet treatment from animal welfare groups. Groups that the vets condemn and try to shut down, because they are taking too much business away from them.
Finally, Dr. Weitzman states all vets care about animals and don't want to charge any client an amount of money he or she cannot afford. Is he kidding? Or maybe he is naive. There are more than a few vets who are not animal lovers at all and are in it strictly for the money. I suspect they failed to get into medical or dental school. Long gone are the days when all vets did care about animals and ran animal hospitals, where fees were decided after the animals were treated, and payments could be made. Now, most vets seem to be running animal hospitals where a tremendous amount of time is spent kenneling and grooming animals, plus pushing pet food such as Hill's Science Diet, that the vet hospitals obviously make a lot of money selling. Maybe one day a vet will write an honest account of what goes on in expensive animal hospitals. Maybe one day the mainstream media will start doing articles on the matter, as opposed to only articles where vets are always seen as wonderful, saintly, caring individuals who courageously save the lives of pets every day.
(Note: I received a free copy of this book from Amazon Vine.)
August 20, 2019
This extremely informative book gave me so much help with some various problems I've been experiencing with our three cats; a.k.a. 'The Evil Plan Bureau'. It gives info on health, behavior, and miscellaneous problems a caregiver can encounter with their beloved pets.
And it not only covers cats & dogs, but also provides valuable info regarding rabbits, hamsters, reptiles, etc.
I thought I would only need to borrow it once, but I ended up keeping it for another 3-week stint. And I'll borrow it again until I can afford to purchase it. It's that good.
And it not only covers cats & dogs, but also provides valuable info regarding rabbits, hamsters, reptiles, etc.
I thought I would only need to borrow it once, but I ended up keeping it for another 3-week stint. And I'll borrow it again until I can afford to purchase it. It's that good.
September 4, 2019
Very informative. 4 stars because I think it would be more useful to have separate books for dogs, cats and then small “other” pets.
November 18, 2019
Everything you need to know about pets is here; from selection to nutrition and how they should match your lifestyle.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
September 16, 2025
A very detailed guide in how to look after your fur baby.
November 30, 2019
This book came to me LITERALLY following an injury my 11-month-old kitten suffered. Poor thing got her paw caught in my bedroom door as I was closing it, and my entire world collapsed. The next day she was distant and ran to hide when I tried to pet her. I thought I had lost her trust forever, or worst yet, she was badly injured. I was able to find the answers I was looking for (and a couple I didn't even know I was looking for) in this informative guide.
I have qualms though, but it's not the kind that comes from thinking the content is incorrect or lacking (I just haven't been a pet owner long enough to have really experienced many situations the book lists), but rather that I wish the book was sectioned by the pet. As it is, there are simply sections such as "Grooming" or "Behaviour", but then one must search to find their respective's pet information within those sections. It followed a formula of, "a little dog info, a little cat info, some more dog info". With that said, I also feel like dog owners will benefit a lot more from this guide.
Overall, I'm a bit biased based on the fact that this guide really helped to ease the fear I felt about my poor kitten, and I look forward to consulting it in the future (though, hopefully for something more positive!).
I have qualms though, but it's not the kind that comes from thinking the content is incorrect or lacking (I just haven't been a pet owner long enough to have really experienced many situations the book lists), but rather that I wish the book was sectioned by the pet. As it is, there are simply sections such as "Grooming" or "Behaviour", but then one must search to find their respective's pet information within those sections. It followed a formula of, "a little dog info, a little cat info, some more dog info". With that said, I also feel like dog owners will benefit a lot more from this guide.
Overall, I'm a bit biased based on the fact that this guide really helped to ease the fear I felt about my poor kitten, and I look forward to consulting it in the future (though, hopefully for something more positive!).
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews