Matt McAvoy Book Review

It’s a rare thing indeed that I am able to read a book for no other reason than I choose to and, having found myself in this unusual position of late, I chose Pooch Problems – and I am delighted that I did.  It is a marvellous, lovely book, which is also incredibly informative and very useful.  But for the most part, I love dogs, and after a while without one I find myself now ready to bring another canine into my family – in this respect, I don’t doubt this book will be a huge help, should I ever need it.

Pooch Problems is basically a collection of true-life dog/owner anecdotes, shared by a dog trainer and handler, each to then introduce a relevant dog training lesson.  It is, at the very least, a fantastic resource and a must-have for any dog owner or fosterer.  There is every doggy behavioural problem you can think of presented here, followed by tried and tested training techniques to address, eradicate or indeed achieve them for your own pet – for they are not all negative behaviours; some are genuine hero stories, with lessons in how your dog can become equally heroic.  But, best of all, and thankfully, each story is accompanied by a colour photo of the featured star – what is more cheery than looking at pictures of dogs?

Christopher is a fine author, and a very articulate and easy to follow instructor – I’m sure that applies to both his human and canine clients.  Although it is perhaps geared slightly more toward the American reader, with references to various official bodies, animal welfare organizations, etc., I would have absolutely no qualms about referring to this book any and every time I might find myself in a similar situation, with a similarly troublesome dog in my life.  Furthermore – and this might be a bit of a cheek with an ARC submission – I fully intend to keep a copy of this book permanently on my shelf for that very instance.  If you are, or are soon to be a dog owner, I highly recommend that you do the same.  A wonderful, charming book by Christopher Poston.