Reading all the books at the library has been an adventure. I have never picked up a dog memoir before but found myself really enjoying book after book about beloved dogs and their owners. This is actually the first of the many memoirs in the dog section I read that I did not enjoy.
This came as a bit of a shock because I saw the author was a #1 New York Times Best Seller, so I was eagerly looking forward to a good book by an experienced author. This book reads like a long facebook post rather than a book.
The author, Dana Perino, wastes no time in insulting millennials, various political figures, and pretty much anyone else she doesn’t like. She even trained one of her dogs to help better carry off her insults, which don’t you know, are hilariously funny.
On top of this, it’s evident she could really benefit from some books on canine cognition and behavior. The pictures of her hauling her terrified dog to a soiled rug so she could better scream in its face was hilarious, per her, but it just made me feel sad.
Dogs don’t generalize. Poor Jasper didn’t understand that he is being yelled at for peeing on the rug. Peeing on the rug happened ages ago (probably due to his separation anxiety) and nothing happened when he did it. Therefore, being screamed at has nothing to do with peeing on the rug.
He does understand that when mom is dragging him to the rug he is going to be screamed at because this is what it means every time he’s dragged to the rug. His tucked tail and extreme fear are efforts to turn off the punishment.
It’s evident that Dana does love her dog. It’s also evident that she doesn’t understand dog behavior or potty training in the slightest. This was a painful read, and probably not one I’ll pick up ever again. Mercifully, literally half the book is made up of super cute photoshops by a person who goes as @FiveFanPhotoshops.
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