Maran Illustrated Dog Training is a beautiful large paperback with one or two photos on just about every page. It’s so pretty that you could call it a coffee table book, the sort of book that if it’s lying around, adults and children alike will pick up and browse a little.

 The text is organized in two-page spreads, making it easy to spend just a little time and to focus on the topic that is on your mind at present. I think anyone would enjoy this book, and people who learn visually would love it. It sells at a very reasonable price considering all the color photos and the size of the book.

With all these pluses, which are evident within five minutes of picking up the book, I wondered what approach the book would take to dog training. I was very pleased that it takes a positive approach. While it doesn’t cover clicker training, it does advocate similar methods and you could easily add the use of a clicker to their methods.

So what’s in it? The book has eleven chapters, and the top of each chapter’s pages is a color distinct from the neighboring chapters, making it easy to return to any part of the book. Each topic within a chapter is typically covered in one or two pages.

Here are the chapter topics:
1. Getting Started: Considerations before getting a dog, guide to popular dog breeds, where to get a dog, puppy development, your dog’s health and nutrition, the basics of grooming, finding a training class, your dog and car travel. dog walkers, day care for dogs.

2. Positive Dog Training Fundamentals: covers basics, equipment, rewards.

3. Housetraining: Includes crate training and paper training.

4. Socialization: What it is and why it matters, bite inhibition, dogs with children and babies.

5. Basic Commands: Getting your dog’s attention, releasing from a command, and how to teach sit, stand, down, settle, stay, let’s go, off, give, move, and come.

6. Beyond the Basics: Heel, wait, touch, go to your place, and more.

7. Fun Games: Puppy push-ups, trading game, front and center, how do you do, hide and seek, fetch, tug, recall game, mentally stimulating activities.

8. Cool Tricks: read, cookie on paw, catch, back up, hugs, speak, take a bow, shake a paw, wave, sit pretty, dance, spin, play possum, roll over, crawl, over, weave.

9. Working Off Leash: Progressing towards it, off leash parks, sports and activities for your dog.

10. Working with Problem Behaviors: Begging, jumping up on people or furniture, destructive chewing and digging, chasing cars or people, excessive barking, separation anxiety aggression, resource guarding, aging.

11. Recipes and Reference: Dog treat recipes you can cook, glossary of terms, index.

By its very nature a book like this may not get into a lot of detail about a specific issue that you are dealing with. But for an overview of dog training with a lot of information packed into some 250 pages, Maran Illustrated Dog Training is a winner.

As I said before,it would make a great gift. I’m repeating myself because I am so impressed with the book’s artistic quality. Click on the book cover image to find out more.