What Is My Dog Thinking?: The Essential Guide to Understanding Pet Behavior

by Gwen Bailey

There are probably times when you wish you knew what your dog was thinking. From tail wagging to growling, from play bowing to lip licking, this fascinating book explains why your dog behaves the way he does. What Is My Dog Thinking? covers six major aspects of dog behavior: the importance of hierarchy, food and fitness, staying safe, reproduction, social behavior, and people and dogs.

Genres: Dogs, Animals, Nonfiction, Nature

96 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Gwen worked for a leading UK national animal welfare charity from 1988-2002 and pioneered the use of dog behaviour knowledge in the rehoming of unwanted animals.

She was the first person to be appointed by a national animal welfare charity as a full time Animal Behaviourist, eventually heading a team of behaviourists.

Gwen has successfully solved behaviour problems in thousands of rehomed dogs, helping to prevent dogs with behavioural problems being passed from home to home and improving the rehoming success rate.

Gwen lectures at national and international conferences, runs training courses for staff at animal charities around the world and has written many books & education leaflets. She is a Trustee for Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

Reviews

[Iva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read for every dog owner because it gives us useful insight into dog body language and behavior which is often misinterpreted, in short this is a very helpful handbook because it makes it easier for our dogs to live with us and makes us better understand them, what they are doing and reasons behind their actions. I highly recommend it!

O čemu razmišlja moj pas? - Iskreno mislim da se svatko tko ima psa to zapita najmanje jednom dnevno, a oni koji imaju više pasa i češće... Ovu zanimljivu knjigu objavio je PROFIL, (više o knjizi), a ja sam ju kupila na Aukciji za pomoć udruzi Deseti život iz Splita (Aukcije za pomoć udrugama i pojedincima koji pomažu napuštenim životinjama su moj najdraži način nabavke knjiga pa ću kada god budem pisala o knjizi nabavljenoj na taj način staviti i link gdje sam ju nabavila s nadom da ćete kliknuti i pridružiti se). Ovu knjigu napisala je Gwen Bailey, stručnjakinja za ponašanje životinja.
Knjiga je podijeljena u veća poglavlja koja opisuju život pasa kao društvene životinje, život u hijerarhiji, prehrambene navike i spretnost pasa, slijedeći naraštaj (odnos pasa prema štencima), kako psi shvaćaju sigurnost te odnos pasa i ljudi. Unutar svakog poglavlja slikom su prikazani psi u položajima koji su nam uglavnom dobro poznati te su iscrpno objašnjeni nakon čitanja objašnjenja shvačam da iako su nam položaji dobro poznati ponekad ih tumačimo posve pogrešno, što nas može dovesti u opasnu situaciju ako pogrešno protumačimo ponašanje psa s kojim se ne poznajemo. Potom na kraju svake stranice postoji odlomak jeste li znali koji nudi puno zanimljivih činjenica o psima npr: Jeste li znali: Dio nosa za otkrivanje mirisa je 37 puta veći u pasa nego u ljudi, a dio mozga koji prerađuje podražaje koji dolaze iz nosa u pasa je mnogo veći i složenije građe od istog područja ljudskog mozga.
Ovu knjigu smatram iznimno zanimljivom i korisnom kao izvor boljeg upoznavanja pseće vrste općenito i kao izvor informacija te mislim da bi bila zanimljiva kako ljudima koje je već osvojio pas tako i onima koji još rzmišljaju o takvoj vezi ili onima koji se boje i samo žele bolje razumjeti pse u svojoj okolini. Za razliku od većine kinološke literature u knjižarama ova knjiga je prihvatljivija cijenom što je dodatan razlog da ju imate na svojim policama. Za kraj jedna zanimljivost: ova knjiga je tiskana i uvezana u Kini te ima poseban miris i nakon godinu dana što ju imam, korice i papir su također posebni na dodir. Nadam se da će vam ova knjiga pomoći da saznate o čemu razmišlja ne samo vaš pas nego svi te da će vam postati drag priručnik.

[Reb Brann · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish everyone who approached a dog had to spend 30 minutes with this book learning about dogs and how NOT to greet the animal. Filled with pictures and the behaviorist describes what the dog is thinking. Low rating from me is because while the book would tell you what was wrong, it didn't follow up with the correct approach recommendation.

[John Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written, well organized. Distinct chapters based on dog attitude, visual queues and behavior. Suggestions on how to be a better dog owner and pack leader.

[Carrie Daws · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough but simplistic book that covers a plethora of dog emotions and signals. Includes lots of pictures, the author takes readers through many of the most common situations that pet owners find themselves in and what the dog indicates through its behavior, body placement and more. This is a good start for anyone wanting to better understand dogs.

[Alessia Cima · Rating 4 out of 5]

What is my dog thinking? Is about Understanding what your dog is thinking and all the tricks and things your dog does, for example I leared that when other dogs sniff eachothers butts its away to say hello or see what they have been up to. I found the book Really intersting beacause I really learned what my dog is thinking... I had no idea about any of the stuff I read and now when I walk my dog I understand why dogs are doing the things they do. I would recamend this book to everyone who has dogs, or even people who don't I would have to say this book is really great!

[Cammie Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Short, concise bits of information with brightly colored photos to go along with each paragraph.

I was surprised how much I learned in this book. The 2 most interesting things I leaned is that an insecure dog may take their person's clothing, tissues, remote controls (because our dead skin cells fall into the gaps around the buttons) & spread them out around them to make them feel more safe. If there isn't enough "stuff" to put around them, they may tear the tissue or clothing and/or chew up the remote into small pieces & then spread those out to create a bigger barrier. - Ha! So this is why our dog ate our remote! ;)

Also did you know that a male dog can smell a female dog that's in heat up to 3 miles away!? WOW!

Good, easy book to read & enjoy.

[Jobie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simplistic guide to dozens upon dozens of dog behaviors, their meanings, and how to react to said behaviors, this book is easy to read and is organized in a clean manner. Interesting “Did you know?” sections give interesting facts about dogs that are not common, well-know facts.

Pictures—ranging from small to large—fill every page of the book (even the Introduction). Said pictures are professionally shot (by Steve Gorton) and of high quality, illustrating the simplistic language used by Bailey to describe any given dog behavior.

Recommended for new, current, and veteran pet owners. Suitable for both young and old pet owners.

[John Heise · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides helpful insight into dog behavior, along with suggestions to people as to how to approach dogs and how to properly handle them. It is written in anecdotal fashion allowing the reader to stop and start at any point in the book. There is also an index in the back to allow you to find various subjects.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book on understanding your dog. Short, pithy observations on dog behavior. Easy to read to get up to speed on the behavior of your canine companion.

[Jordana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Non fictions means a book that is true facts like an autobiography or a cooking book. My book is true facts about how dogs act and think. Its a reference non fiction book. My book is all about how dogs behave and their actions to something they like or don’t like. Here are a few fun facts that are in the book: Some dogs do not like you putting your hands near them when they're eating a treat or chewing on something. They'll show their teeth or some will bite. Has your dog ever did that swimming motion to there bed? Well there trying to get comfortable and thats thier way of making their bed. Your body sweats when you're hot. But when your dog is hot they pant. They stick out their tongue and bounce there trying to get cool. However far your dog sticks out there tongue thats how hot they are. If there tongue is all the way out that means there really hot if there tongue is in there mouth but there still panting that means there not that hot. In my book there are section, headings, titles, page numbers, and side bars. In my book there are pictures that are colored and in the picture it shows what there talking about in the passage. It depends on what they're talking about in the passage for how many pictures. There are sometimes 1 or 2 pictures sometimes more. In my book there is an index and table of contents there is also acknowledgements. Its a reference book because it gives information about dogs. Its not meant to be a story because it gives information about dogs and their behaviors. You do not have to read it cover to cover, the book is meant to be skipped around in because it is a reference book.

The intended audience is dog lovers because this book is all about dogs and their actions. They put cool pictures and facts that grabs you and makes you want to read that section. They use really easy words so that anybody who reads this book likes it. Its easy to follow because its laid out so you don't have to read cover to cover you can skip around. I think its laid out in the way that this type of book is supposed to be. The authors writing technique is interesting because you can jump around and just read the sections that seem interesting to you. The author actually is an animal behaviorist so she basically knows everything about dogs behaviors. The author does not seem biased because she doesn't seem against what she is saying or about dogs. Readers can expect to learn about dogs and their actions and behaviors. Personally I think she did great and I can’t think of anything she could do better. But one thing I liked was she gave little side bars on every page to let you know cool facts about that topic. There are many kinds of nonfiction. I don’t really like nonfiction unless its something about dogs or cooking. Anyone who likes dogs and is interested to learn more or about them should definitely read this book. It teaches you all you need to know and it even gives you fun facts along the way. I would give it the highest rating I could because I just love this book and even though I have a dog and I know most things about her there is still more that I can learn. This book taught me more about her actions and why she does weird things.

[Raul Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book titled: ¨What is my dog thinking? ¨ was written by Gwen Bailey. It is an expository nonfiction book because it explains facts about dogs behavior and body language. I chose this book because I have dogs, and I´m interested in understanding how to communicate better with them.
This is a book that helps you understand what your dog needs, feels, or dislikes by teaching you how to read its body language. Some people treat or expect the dog to act like a human. No matter what you do dogs are a different species than us… We can only have a good relationship with our dog if we treat it with love and respect of its instincts.
I learned that humans often misunderstand their dogs movements. People punish or praise them when they are not supposed to, reinforcing this way bad behaviors or discouraging them from doing the right things. As a result they stop liking our dogs and some owners even get rid of them.

I loved the book because it made me realize how important body language is for a dog, and it made me pay more attention to my dogs. Thanks to the book I now have a healthier relationship with my dogs. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who has dogs as pets, it is very important to understand our dogs so owners and pets don´t suffer because of each other.

[Dani · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a serious, simplistic and easy to understand book on the behaviors and body language ques of dogs (which are oft ignored or misunderstood, unfortunately),. I now find it easier to communicate (to use the term loosely) and or respond to my dog's physical expressions.

This is highly recommended for dog lovers or simply as a handy book for those otherwise less enthusiastic about dogs. Either way, I'm sure the knowledge would come in handy as the appropriate way to react if you come across an anxious rottweiler in an alley.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just a slim photo-essay book, "What is my dog thinking?" still manages to get across some very cool information in an easy-to-understand format. It's also an interesting side-note that, in Britain, Blue Cross is an animal protection group. Could you imagine flashing your insurance card over there?

Thanks for the gift, Ryan!

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book for basic understanding on why dogs behave the way they do. I found it pretty informative on some things that my dog does and hope to pay more attention to his signal in the future. I'll probably forget tho.

[Cynthia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rather simplistic but great for kids and adults to figure out what the dog is thinking. We discovered that our dogs are big attention seekers and need psychiatriac help but you probably had already guessed that.

[Mati · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) for the reading the basic expression, which can help you to understand your canine. The everyday situations are accompanied with photos of dogs doing this or that with short explanation of why.

[Χριστίνα · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ενας ενδιαφέρων οδηγός για νέους σκυλογονείς και σκυλολάτρεις γενικότερα. Δεν έχει τόσο συμβουλές εκπαίδευσης αλλά λειτουργεί περισσότερο σαν ένας μπούσουλας για να μπει κάποιος στο συναρπαστικό κόσμο των σκυλιών και να μάθει μυστικά της σκέψης και της συμπεριφοράς τους.

[Jesica · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is usefull for dog owners to understand our dogs better complete with helpfull pictures to compare. However, I think the contain in this book are basic knowledge and don't offer new informations much for me.

[Stephen Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice little book. Great pictures that go along with the explanation of what the posture and behavior indicate. Not as beefy with other books that discuss dog psychology, how to recognize behavior and then more on what to do with the dog, but nevertheless good for what it is.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Most of the doggy body language examined in this book is totally self-explanatory anyway.

[Sharon K. Mayhew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for any dog owner to read.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every dog owner should read this! It's quick and easy to understand with short chunks of information and catchy headlines. And I learned a lot about why my dog seems crazy sometimes!

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great, fast read. It covers most of the perplexing questions I had about why dogs do weird things, like eat feces or chew toilet paper.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read and good information. Great for all levels even kids.

[Maddy Muscat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the book is quite interesting and it helped me to understand my dog's behaviour a lot better. I would definitely recommend it to any dog owners.

[Amie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an OK book, but it would have bored some people. I liked all of the info on dog behavior.

[Tanja · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whether you have a dog or not, this is a great reference. It'll make you change the way you approach dogs you don't know and will hopefully help to understand them better.

[Kyra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, easy insights into dog behaviour, but the cues pointed out are difficult to see in the photographs, particularly when similar cues point to different behaviours.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would've gotten 5 stars if I now knew why my dogs ate coyote poop, but had a ton of random things I had never realized before.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good basic guide to dog body language. Less useful because I've read several others in the course of adopting our own, but the photos make it handy as a quick reference.