Rating: 
Summary: Truly fun and educational to read
Review: If you like the bottomline in dog training, this is it.
Among the other books I purchased over a course of few
months, I found myself going back this particular book
over and over again to seek remedies. There are not just
the lucid explanations on canine behavior, but also
interesting tidbits. For instance, our pup had lost some
pigmentation on his nose after the first few weeks. We
just weren't sure why. This book interestingly points out
that plastic bowls might cause such pigmentation, and
therefore recommends only stainless steel or ceramic bowls
for feeding. Even though our vet did not agree, we switched
to ceramic bowls, and the problem disappeared.I also read the book of the Monks of New Skete. When there
are differences in methods, I go by what Kilcommons says. If you'll get only one book on dog training, get this. The
only reason I gave 4 stars is because I felt that the
material for some sections (e.g. health care and diet) might
have been more detailed than they already were. That's where
the Monks' book (How to be your dog's best friend) come in.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrific book
Review: I received this book as a christmas gift. It was signed by the author. It is informative and fun to read. I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it to anyone who loves dogs.
Rating:
Summary: A Timeless Classic!
Review: "Good Owners, Great Dogs" and GreatPets.com are two of the best places to find information on raising and training your dog. "Fun, Fair, & Firm" training directions are what you'll find here from two of the best trainers around - Brian Kilcommons and Sarah Wilson.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Traditional Training Manual
Review: I bought this and the 'The complete idiot's guide to Positive Dog Training'. I've raised dogs earlier in life, but the training part was more the dog training me. Great insights in the book - and clearly the best at this type of training method. HOWEVER... The "idiots" book is my clear winner. I bought it with skepticism, and I'm an absolute convert. Not only does it make sense, I've experienced most of the "non-desirable" behaviors. One day, 9 week old puppy, using cheese, lots of praise, ignoring her when she wouldn't walk, she was walking steadily beside me - no pulling forward or back. Scents and distractions aside, I was in shock. When I put the collar and the leash on her, she acted like she was being led to slaughter. Yelping, screaming, doing flips to get away. I ignored the behavior and her, waited until she stopped and praised her immediately. One more "partial episode" and that behavior stopped. After one day, she responds to my call to "come" almost every single time. Usually, my mistake on how I've said it - like "come here", or "Keela", etc where it wasn't clear. I mean, it was only the first day. Anyway, buy three, one for you, one for your family, and one for the neighbor that knows all the answers about training a dog.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT BOOK!
Review: Kilcommons translates the human thought process to the canine thought process. I wish I had this book years ago. Once you read it everything suddenly makes sense.
Rating:
Summary: A must-have book!
Review: This is a great book! I've read a lot of books on puppy training since this is the first time we own a puppy and don't know anything about him. This book opened my eyes. Brian really understands dogs! I espeally like some of the tricks that puppy corrects his behaviour himself. I just need to setup the scene and praise the puppy when he stops wrong behavior. A must read book!
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: I have a Labrador puppy (Bo-Blizzard) and we love this book. It has opened our eyes on how to communicate with Bo, because he is a very important part of our family and we want to make sure that we are all on the "same page". I highly recommend this book to new/veteran dog owners as it will help you to understand your new best friend.
Rating:
Summary: Read this book, and you got all bases covered!
Review: This book is an awesome training book for owners of puppies and adult dogs alike. Brian writes in a conversational style, he provides plenty of examples and personal narratives, and his many black and white photographs are excellent for driving his verbal point across (after all, isn't it much easier if you see how you are supposed to put a dog into a down or sit position than reading about it in a lengthy paragraph only?) The book covers how to train dogs to sit, stay, down, heel and have door manners, what games to play with your dog (and which to avoid), how to use positive and negative reinforcement, how to make it safe for you to approach the food bowl, how to use a training collar correctly, and many other useful daily commands/activities. We like this book also, because it does not only address training, but also basic dog care (from puppy to adulthood to old age), dog development, and he addresses common problems that each dog owner faces when teaching each command or facing daily life with a dog. We read THE ART OF RAISING A PUPPY, HOW TO RAISE A PUPPY YOU CAN LIVE WITH, and PUPPIES FOR DUMMIES, but NONE of the books live up to GOOD OWNERS, GREAT DOGS. Brian knows what he is talking about and he opens your eyes to things that you do that give your dog the wrong message (dog barks, you look - Bam! YOu just taught your dog how to get your attention; dog stops and peeps down the street during a walk, you stop, BAM! You just taught your dog how to get you to stop and give up your leadership). Simple, when you think about it, but many times you don't, and so Brian really gets you thinking about all these little things your dog does and how to interpret them. We got an 8 week old Mini Schnauzer, never had a dog before. By 9 weeks, he knew how to sit, by 12 weeks he knew how to down, stay, place, and wait properly at the door, by 14 weeks he knew how to stand still on a groom table to be examined and combed/clipped. Granted, Mini Schnauzers are smart dogs, but we truly believe that our dog is so great in part because of Brian's wonderful expertise. We wouldn't want to be without this book and still use it on a regular basis for refreshers and quick advice. If you want to get your money's worth, buy this book. It will make your life and your dog's life a lot easier, and it will facilitate the communication that you both will be having with each other. Brian is like a translater, all you have to do is to learn the translation so you can be a good owner with a great dog.
Rating:
Summary: Good Owners, Great Dogs
Review: I have read alot of dog obedience books and this is the first one that really rings true for me. Some of his ideas were new to me, but make great sense. He explains dogs in a simple way and give alot of common-sense advice that is practical.
I wish more dog-owners would read a book like this.
Rating:
Summary: Don't own a dog without this book
Review: Kilcommons' book is terrific and funny too. Anything our dog does wrong can be traced directly to instances in which we didn't do what the book says ... and everything she does right (which is 98%, bless her heart) is because I trained her with the book. One invaluable command (see book for details): "Enough!" There are excellent sections on biting, and very important advice on the food bowl (take it away without warning periodically while she's a pup, or risk biting / snarling problems when she's grown). Excellent advice on jumping up -- never allow it, even though it's cute when she's a puppy, it's a disaster when she's grown. (Kilcommons is funny here: "dogs don't have fashion sense"). Great advice on names -- every dog needs two. The best overarching philosophical points I got from the book: 1) Never give a command more than once. Enforce it if she fails to follow the command. 2) Never give a command you aren't prepared or are unable to enforce. 3) Remember that you, the owner, is the alpha dog. She will "try out" for alpha dog from time to time. These tryouts must be squashed. Kilcommons tells you how to squash alpha dog behavior.
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