Home Care

By the time life had finished hitting Rick Crandall from all sides, he was at the lowest point of his life, both personally and professionally. His wife, Pamela, makes an astute and life-changing suggestion: "Let's get a dog." So begins the story of Emme, a 200-pound Saint Bernard trapped in the body of a five-pound Australian terrier puppy. Soon, Emme and Rick hit the hiking trails around Aspen, Colorado. While she is groomed to be a show dog, it's soon obvious that her heart is in the hills and with Rick, who decides to add more challenging hikes to the mix.

This is a book for the enlightened dog owners - a groundbreaking, "whole-dog" approach to raising a puppy, from the halls of one of the most prestigious and pioneering veterinary schools in the world. Nowhere else will readers find this whole-dog approach, a unique combination of training, behavior, and health care.

From the very beginning, Orson was a misfit. Like all border collies, he needed to work. But since there weren't any sheep available for herding in the New Jersey suburbs, Orson instead tried to corral school buses, garbages trucks, and skateboarding kids. So Katz pulled up stakes and moved to a farm in upstate New York. There, Orson improved dramatically - until the day he started nipping people. The nips soon turned to bites, forcing Katz to face an incredibly painful decision.

In the snow country of Japan during World War II, we meet Morie Sawataishi, a fierce individualist who has chosen to break the law by keeping an Akita dog hidden in a shed on his property. By the time of the Japanese surrender in 1945, there are only sixteen Akitas left in the country. The survival of the breed becomes Morie's passion and life. Devoted to the dogs, Morie is forever changed.

In beautiful prose that is a joy to read, Sherrill opens up the world of the Dog Man and his wife, providing a profound look at what it is to be an individualist in a culture that reveres conformity, and what it means to live.

Aquarium fish are one of the most popular pets in America, with close to 150 million fish owned in nearly 13 million households. They seem like easy pets to care for, but there's more than meets the eye when it comes to keeping your freshwater friends healthy and happy! In Freshwater Aquariums for Dummies, you'll find basic information to start your own freshwater aquarium, purchase and maintain healthy fish and plants, and find tips and tricks on how to introduce new fish and systems into your aquatic family.

At the height of his show career, this beautiful Appaloosa's majestic stature, strength, and willingness to work made him the perfect partner. But when an injury cost Joey his show career, he moved from one owner to the next, ultimately experiencing severe abuse and neglect. A rescue group found Joey nearly dead from starvation - and blind. Then he came to Hope Reins - a ranch dedicated to helping hurting kids who had been abused, emotionally wounded, or unwanted.

Based on Cesar's own detailed experiences raising individual puppies from some of the most popular breeds, How to Raise the Perfect Dog is like having Cesar right beside you, as your own personal expert, coaching you and your dog from the first day of your life together.

Oscar the cat has a very special skill. An otherwise ordinary cat—he'd sooner give you his back or a sideways glance than curl up on your lap—Oscar has the uncanny ability to predict when people are about to die. Adopted by staff members at Steere House nursing home when he was a kitten, the three year-old cat has presided over the deaths of more than twenty-five nursing home residents thus far.

Horses have a story to tell - one of resilience, sociability, and intelligence and of partnership with human beings. In The Horse, journalist and equestrienne Wendy Williams brings that story brilliantly to life. Williams chronicles the 56-million-year journey of horses as she visits with experts around the world, exploring what our biological affinities and differences can tell us about the bond between horses and humans and what our longtime companions might think and feel.

There is no denying that the emotional bond between horses and the humans who love them can reach mystical proportions, and nowhere is that relationship more evident than in these 24 true-life accounts of horses rescuing people. Many of the stories recount incidents where death or physical injury was imminent, and only because a horse intervened are the narrators alive to tell the tale.

The Other End of the Leash shares a revolutionary new perspective on our relationship with dogs, focusing on our behavior in comparison with that of dogs. An applied animal behaviorist and dog trainer with more than 20 years of experience, Dr. Patricia McConnell looks at humans as just another interesting species, and muses about why we behave the way we do around our dogs, how dogs might interpret our behavior, and how to interact with our dogs in ways that bring out the best in them.

Rodney Habib and Karen Becker, DVM, travelled the world collecting wisdom from top geneticists, microbiologists, and longevity researchers. They also interviewed people whose dogs have lived into their 20s and even 30s. The result is this unprecedented and comprehensive guide, filled with surprising information, invaluable advice, and inspiring stories about dogs and the people who love them. The Forever Dog prescriptive plan can be tailored to the genetic predisposition of particular breeds or mixes.

In this illuminating book, brain scientist and horsewoman Janet Jones describes human and equine brains working together. Using plain language, she explores the differences and similarities between equine and human ways of negotiating the world. Mental abilities—like seeing, learning, fearing, trusting, and focusing—are discussed from both human and horse perspectives. Throughout, true stories of horses and handlers attempting to understand each other—sometimes successfully, sometimes not—help to illustrate the principles.

In a powerful blend of history and contemporary reporting, New York Times reporter David Philipps traces the rich history of wild horses in America: their introduction by the Spanish conquistadors, their role in the epic battles between Native Americans and settlers, their vital place in American self-mythology. He travels through some of the most remote parts of the American West, known as Wild Horse Country, to investigate the wild horse's current dilemma, caught between the clashing ideals of ranchers, scientists, and more.

Hutton has now written a fascinating full biography of Sergeant Reckless, who earned two Purple Hearts for her heroic efforts, among other military decorations. Hutton has spoken with the marines who fought alongside Reckless and tells the complete and captivating tale of how a would-be Korean racehorse became one of the greatest Marine Corps wartime heroes. Sgt. Reckless brings the legend back to life more than half a century later.

This heartwarming collection includes more than 30 true, contemporary stories told by a variety of writers, including Melody Carlson, Lauraine Snelling, and Kristin Billerbeck. Each feel-good story involves cat rescue, some in a typical way and others in surprising - even miraculous - ways. Sometimes the question becomes: Really, who rescued whom?

This is an up-close look at the lives and work of the brave men, women, and dogs who serve and protect citizens in America and around the world. An acclaimed poet, Rachel Rose never expected to spend her nights careening along the roads in high-speed chases or searching the woods for armed suspects. Yet once she decided to meet the people who devoted their lives to police K9 units, she found herself signing up for the ride-alongs, training runs, and other challenges faced by these courageous people - and canines - on a daily basis.

Set against the backdrop of the war in Afghanistan, Saving Cinnamon chronicles the love story of Navy Reservist Mark Feffer and a stray puppy he bonded with while stationed outside of Kandahar. When Mark is about to return stateside, he decides to adopt Cinnamon and sets up her transport back to the United States. But the unthinkable happens: Cinnamon is abandoned by the dog handler who was supposed to bring her home and disappears without a trace.

Approximately 200,000 years ago, as modern humans began to radiate out from their evolutionary birthplace in Africa, Neanderthals were already thriving in Europe - descendants of a much earlier migration of the African genus Homo. But when modern humans eventually made their way to Europe 45,000 years ago, Neanderthals suddenly vanished.

Giving up her successful career as a CPA, Maureen Maurer took a leap of faith to pursue her childhood dream: teaching dogs to help people with disabilities. She founded two nonprofit organizations, Assistance Dogs of Hawaii and Assistance Dogs Northwest, and unleashed the potential dogs have to help people with special needs. In Wonder Dogs, Maureen shares her story of discovering God's true purpose for her life and the amazing adventure that followed.