Overview

You’ve heard of the Horse Whisperer – now meet the woman who uses similar methods to train dogs. Jan Fennell’s remarkable gifts have earned her the nickname “the dog listener”. Her unique understanding of the canine world and its instinctive language has enabled her to bring even the most desperate and delinquent of dogs to heel. This easy-to-follow guide to understanding Jan’s simple techniques draws on her countless case histories of problem dogs – from biters and barkers to bicycle chasers – to show how we can bridge the language barrier that separates man from his best friend. In The Dog Listener Jan shares her secrets, telling us how she grew determined to find a more compassionate alternative to standard “obedience” training techniques and ultimately how to communicate with canines.

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9780006532361

Table of Contents

Reviews

The Dog Listener tells how to make dogs listen. --Parade

Jan Fennell is a dog owner who had always subscribed to the 'obedience' school of training. But two things happened to make her reassess her methods. First Purdey, her Border collie-whippet cross, pushed Fennell's small son through a glass door, then bit her daughter and had to be put down. Then she met the famed Monty Roberts, author of The Man Who Listens to Horses. Fennell's attitude to dogs and her life changed entirely on that afternoon in 1990. Enthused by what Monty could achieve with horses, she decided to try to apply his principles to canines. Watching videos of wolves, dingoes and wild dogs, she saw exactly the same behaviour replicated in her own home by her pack of five dogs. The light dawned when she realized that obedience training meant trying to impose a human framework on the dogs. Instead, it was necessary to look at things from the dog's point of view as it operated within a pack mentality. The dog, unless convinced otherwise, believes it is the leader of a pack in which its human partner is a subordinate. Once the author had learned to understand the dog's way of thinking everything else fell into place. A dog jumping up at a visitor was attempting to establish hierarchy, a dog barging in front while walking to the door was protecting the den. Gradually she developed a technique called Amichien Bonding. This consists of four separate elements that need to be repeated constantly day in, day out. Following the success of her technique with her own dogs, Fennell was increasingly called on by friends to help with their dogs. The second half of the book is devoted entirely to sorting out dog problems: fussy eaters, car chaos, fear of noises, difficult puppies and soiling in the home. The author's ideas are not entirely new. The same philosophy can be found in John Fisher's Think Dog, and Amir Avnit also bases a similar training programme on years of researching wild canines. But Fennell wins hands down for the simplicity of her technique and the easy-to-follow instructions. In a number of case histories, she sets out exactly what has to be done if certain negative types of behaviour occur. The book is extremely well written, recording setbacks and triumphs along with details of her family life. The techniques are still so revolutionary to most of us that even non-dog owners will find it a fascinating page-turner. (Kirkus UK)

Author Information

Born in Fulham, England, Jan quickly found an affinity and a respect for other animals. Many of her happiest moments as a child were in the company of horses, dogs and other furry friends, and living in London meant that these were not as often as she would have liked. In fact, there was a long period of time when she found herself without their company, in particular the time spent in the Royal Navy as a teenager. However, this was to change after marriage and a move to the quiet countryside of Lincolnshire, situated in the Midlands of England. A rescue dog called Purdey, Jan’s first dog since her childhood pet Shane (an impressive Border Collie) had joined her, her husband and children not long before. Those who have read Jan’s inspirational bestseller ‘The Dog Listener’ will know that this situation did not end happily, and although for a while it did put Jan off ever having a dog again, she was soon convinced by her husband to get a Springer Spaniel, whom they named Kelpie. This started a love affair with the breed, which remains undiminished to this day. Jan’s interest in training dogs began with Kelpie, and although she even ran classes in obedience during the late seventies and early eighties, she always had reservations about the methods used. She would often object to what she saw as the more “confrontational” aspects of dog training. It was not until she saw a demonstration by Monty Roberts, the world famous “Horse Whisperer”, that she finally realised the direction she must take. Taking on board the Robert’s ideal of gaining trust and cooperation from horses by communicating with them in their own language, Jan set out to do likewise with dogs. This involved years of studying; wolf behaviour, that of her own dogs and the teachings of Monty, all of this while studying at University and raising two children on her own. She began to realise that the similarities between her own dogs and wolf packs were astounding. Once she established the importance of the lead wolves, or Alphas, she looked for the same in her own house. She discovered that Sasha, her beautiful, black German Shepherd, was fulfilling that role. Jan tried to mimic Sasha’s behaviour, and found to her amazement that her dogs changed. Whereas before they would pull her around when on the lead, they were much calmer. Similarly, the tendency to run off and not come back diminished greatly. All those who knew her would often comment on how “well behaved” her dogs were. A lot of her work was done by trial and error, but after a few years she had created “Amichien Bonding”, a technique that started out with humble beginnings, with some friends asking her to help them, but which is now being used all over the world. The book “ ‘The Dog Listener’ ” and its accompanying television series have earned her praise and respect from people everywhere. The method is simple, yet highly effective, and even the most sceptical cannot argue when they see the proof with their own eyes. Jan, together with her son Tony, have saved the lives of countless dogs, and the sanity of countless dog owners. Her method is a revolution, and her personality and enthusiasm are matched by her respect for the animals she loves and works with every day. She has just finished writing the follow-up book to the bestseller ‘The Dog Listener’ – which has already been translated into several languages – entitled ‘The Practical Dog Listener’. In all this, Jan’s feet remain firmly on the ground; her goal has always been the improvement of the already special relationship between Man and his best friend.

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