A Member of the Family: Cesar Millan's Guide to a Lifetime of Fulfillment with Your Dog

Cesar has great ideas and is a awesome pack leader. We have a puppy and watching his show and this item has been very helpful. I would've definitely liked a DVD to watch instead but since it's not available yet, this worked great.

This was the perfect thank you gift for a friend who did a favor for me. She had bought a new puppy and this helped her know how to integrate that dog into her busy life.

This may be the best of the books that Cesar has written so far. While I do not have any of the Cd's I do have all the books. The main thing that is so helpful in learning from Cesar is he tells you what to look for when training the dog and the actions you need to take. He explains things thoroughly taking the guess work out.This book covers more training and why plus it also has some personal things about Cesar and how he has arrived at the point he is now in training and looking at the dog as an animal. There's a bit more in here about our favorite "Daddy" which we all like to hear about also. Good read and in my humble the "best of the best."
Rita

Cesar again Hits the nail on the head with this book. He goes through every aspect of the process from adopting the dog that is right for you to working through the loss of your dog that you love and when would be the right time to get your next dog. His family takes part in this book and that is very impactful especially for any wives or girlfriends taking part in the adoption of this new pet. Enjoy! I know I did.

(4.25 stars) Cesar Millan's books have shown a progression both in his ideas and in the ease with which he presents those ideas. This book is the easiest of the three to use as a guide for life with your canine companion(s).

MAJOR kudos for Mr. Millan's chapters on choosing the right fit for your entire family (other pets included!) and for how to evaluate a shelter dog. These chapters are the best of their kind I have read. Continued kudos for not shying away from the hot topics of food quality and vaccination shedules.

Other chapters that present his ideas for creating a balanced home and a balanced dog are easy to follow and contain sound reasoning, though he was still somewhat vague IMO. In particular, he fails to outline his concept of "corrections." He on occassion is explicit (I was especially pleased with the advice to withhold attention from a dog that jumps up, since jumping is usually an attention-seeking bevahior, and his caution that a pinch collar can simulate a bite and further arouse an aggressing dog). In other instances, he merely said "correct the dog." This vagueness leaves too much open to interpretation - is he talking vocal interruption, collar correction (which is what most people will assume), body blocking, what? Although I haven't gotten the impression from his books that he relies heavily upon collar corrections, because this subject causes him the most grief within the profession, he needs to be more specific.

There is a letter in this book from a couple who adopted an 85lb dog and, a mere one month into their relationship, put her into a down and held her there until she showed "submission." Earlier, Cesar acknowledged (hooray!) that submission is an offered behavior, not something one canine forces upon another. Does he still support a forced down? And for heavens sake, even on an 85lb dog that you barely know? His inclusion of this letter suggests he might, and that's unsettling. ("Surrender" is a more appropriate term in this context than "submission." Pinning is done in fights, not in ritualized dominance displays or disciplinary actions.)

Much as I enjoyed most of this book, I had the nagging feeling something was missing. It wasn't until Ilusion's chapter that I understood what - affection! Cesar focuses so much on excercise and discipline that - ironically, as he did with his wife so long ago - he neglected affection! By leaving out this third part of the equation, Millan has unfortunately created an "unbalanced" book.

Nonetheless, it is his best offering to date and a sound, comprehensive guide to provide dogs a balanced life (just don't forget the affection!).

p.s. For a more detailed and helpful discussion of body blocking ("claiming space,") Patricia McConnell's The Other End of the Leash: Why We Do What We Do Around Dogs can't be beat.