DogTown: Tales of Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Redemption
by Stefan Bechtel
List Price:
Our Price: $4.94
You Save: $21.06 (81%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Stefan BechtelEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-10-27
ISBN: 1426205627
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: National Geographic
Book Reviews of DogTown: Tales of Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Redemption
Book Review: Working for a better society, one animal at a time
Summary: 5 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Anyone familiar with Best Friends Animal Society will know what to expect from DogTown: Tales of Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Redemption. The Best Friends magazine and website are absolutely top notch in production values, and this book is equally effective. If you are a dog lover, prepare for a full court press on your emotions when you read this book. The techniques that have been so effective in spreading the Best Friends message are in evidence here, making for a highly readable book.
Best Friends is a leader in the no-kill movement and works on all fronts to rescue, rehabilitate and redeem animals. The Society was well positioned for rapid response to Hurricane Katrina and some of the dogs featured in the book came from that devastated area. Best Friends owns and leases nearly 38,000 acres of land in Utah, boundaried by some of the nation's most glorious national parks, in a canyon formerly used for filming Westerns. There they run the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, where 2,000 animals make their (hopefully temporary) homes and 4,500 people volunteer every year. The canine section, Dogtown, is well-known as the subject and site of National Geographic TV program of the same name.
The goal for all Best Friends animals is a "forever home"--in other words, adoption. Their basic principle is that no animal is too handicapped, unsocialized, aggressive, or unappealing to be rehabilitated and placed in a home. The stories are told by Best Friends workers, veterinarians, volunteers and supporters, and feature dogs from many backgrounds, many of them rescued from hoarders, puppy mills, or dog fighting operations. The book opens with the sad story of football player Michael Vick's fighting dogs. The reader's tears of sympathy for the dogs are tempered by the happy endings, and each story also highlights some aspect of the society's work. A highly effective mix, and a fascinating glimpse into the methods used to undo the damage some of these dogs have suffered.
There is a brief mention of Best Friends' origin in a group of seekers who "dropped out" during the 1960s. The history of the organization would be a story of its own, but this book is beautifully complete in its focus on today's work and the dogs who benefit from it. The society believes that kindness to animals leads to a better society, and this moving little book makes that goal seem both worthwhile and attainable. Well done, Dogtown!
Summary of DogTown: Tales of Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Redemption
Now in paperback, this companion to the hit National Geographic Channel show, DogTown, tells the moving stories of homeless dogs and their caretakers at the Best Friends Animal Society, evoking both the joy and the occasional, but inevitable, heartbreak that accompanies the important work of saving homeless dogs.Focusing both on the relationships between dogs and people and on the latest discoveries in animal health and behavior, the book features 12 of DogTown's most memorable cases. Each chapter follows one dog ?often considered unadoptable by other shelters ?from the first days at DogTown, through assessment and treatment, to the whether the dog finds a "forever home" outside the shelter. Photographs of each dog trace its entire journey and chart its progress from beginning to end. DogTown's veterinarians, trainers, and experts who are featured on the show contribute essays on their most meaningful moments in working with animals.
Book Description
From Marley and Me to Temple Grandin?s groundbreaking books to Cesar Millan?s television show, America?s many millions of pet owners eagerly seek new insights into animal behavior, and one of the most popular sources of compelling stories and practical advice is DogTown, the National Geographic Channel?s latest hit show.
A national rescue organization with more than 200,000 members, DogTown is the area where dogs live at the nation?s largest companion animal sanctuary run by Best Friends Animal Society. This informative, inspiring book presents representative stories of dogs considered unadoptable by other shelters. They come from many backgrounds: some were abandoned; some prowled the streets as strays; others suffer from mysterious illnesses, serious injuries, or antisocial behaviors that discourage potential adopters. But good fortune led them to Best Friends and the dedicated people devoted to helping them recover and find welcoming homes.
These compelling, winningly illustrated true stories, each uniquely moving and inspirational, draw upon the experience of veterinarians, trainers, and volunteers to probe a range of tough, touching cases that evoke both the joy and the occasional but inevitable heartbreak that accompanies this work. Each chapter follows a dog from the first day at Dogtown until he ultimately finds (or doesn?t find) a permanent new home, focusing both on the relationship between the dog and the Dogtown staff and on the latest discoveries about animal health and behavior. We learn how dogs process information, how trauma affects their behavior, and how people can help them overcome their problems. In the end, we come to see that there are no "bad dogs" and that with patience, care, and compassion, people can help dogs to heal.
A Look Inside DogTown
Click to see larger images
 |  |  |
 |  |  |  |
Dogs Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Dogs Books
The Seven Ages of Your Dog: A Complete Guide to Understanding and Caring for Your Dog from Puppyhood to Old Age. Jan Fennellby Jan Fennell
HarperCollins Australia; Published: 2005-08; Hardcover; Book
Price in other shops:
Collins Gem Dog Training: How to Educate Your Dogby Gwen Bailey
HarperCollins UK; Published: 2004-05-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.98
Price in other shops:
Collins German Shepherd: An Owner's Guide (Dog Owners Guide)by Peter Neville
Harpercollins Pub Ltd; Published: 1999-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $90.42
Collins Dog Owner's Guide Pb (Collins Dog Owners Guides)by Peter Neville
Harpercollins; Published: 1996-06-06; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $60.51
For the Love of a Dog: Understanding Emotion in You and Your Best Friendby Patricia McConnell
Ballantine Books; Published: 2007-08-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.99
Price in other shops:
Marley and Meby John Grogan
HODDER & STOUGHTON; Published: 2006-06-29; Hardcover; Book
They Moved My Bowl: Dog Cartoons by New Yorker Cartoonist Charles Barsottiby Charles Barsotti
Little, Brown and Company; Published: 2007-05-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.75
Price in other shops:
Living a Dog's Life, Jazzy, Juicy, and Meby Cindy Adams
St. Martin's Press; Published: 2006-03-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
Every Night, Josephine!by Jacqueline Susann
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2004-11-30; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $16.67
Marley & Me tie-in: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dogby John Grogan
William Morrow Paperbacks; Published: 2008-10-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Blind Hope: An Unwanted Dog and the Woman She Rescuedby Kim Meeder, Laurie Sacher
Multnomah Books; Published: 2010-07-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.59
Price in other shops:
The Cats of Kittyville: New Lives for Rescued Felinesby Best Friends Animal Society
Sellers Publishing; Published: 2008-09-16; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.94
Price in other shops:
Last Dog on the Hill: The Extraordinary Life of Louby Steve Duno
St. Martin's Press; Published: 2010-06-22; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.99
Price in other shops:
One at a Time: A Week in an American Animal Shelterby Diane Leigh, Marilee Geyer
No Voice Unheard; Published: 2005-12-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.00
Price in other shops:
Oogy: The Dog Only a Family Could Loveby Larry Levin
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2010-10-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.30
Price in other shops:
Rescue Ink: How Ten Guys Saved Countless Dogs and Cats, Twelve Horses, Five Pigs, One Duck,and a Few Turtlesby Rescue Ink
Viking Adult; Published: 2009-09-17; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.17
Price in other shops:
Dog Tips From DogTown: A Relationship Manual for You and Your Dogby Best Friends Animal Society Trainers, Michael S. Sweeney
National Geographic; National Geographic; Published: 2010-10-19; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops:
The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemptionby Jim Gorant
Gotham; Published: 2010-09-16; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.86
Price in other shops:
Dogtown: A Sanctuary for Rescued Dogsby Bob Somerville
Sellers Publishing Inc.; Published: 2008-06-17; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.00
Price in other shops:
Best Friendsby Samantha Glen
Kensington Books; Published: 2001-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.99
Price in other shops: