ComPETability: Solving Behavior Problems in Your CAT-DOG household (Hardcover)

Can't We Just Get Along? Here's How!

Cat behavior and behavior of dogs puzzles the most savvy pet owners, and pet behavior problems lose dogs and cats their homes. Animal behavioral problems arise out of owners not understanding dog language or cat language, and misunderstanding normal animal behavior. Training a dog helps stop dog barking, for instance, while behavior modification redirects cat clawing but this book explains why dogs bark and the reason cats scratching behavior is normal. You’ll learn how to understand and manage the behavior of dogs and kitty behavior whether you have a single pet, a clowder of cats or canine pack, or one or more of both cats and dogs.

More than 30 million U.S. households double their pleasure by welcoming both cats and dogs into their homes. Yet mixing the two can mean trouble in paradise, especially if you treat your cat like your dog, or vice versa. Cats and dogs are two very different animals with distinctive animal behavioral needs and they cannot—and must not—be treated in the same way.

From conflicts over favorite sleep spots, sharing potty facilities, resource guarding toys or jealous pets when sharing your attention, adding new pets rubs fur the wrong way and creates hairy situations for everyone—including you.

This 3rd edition guide gives owners the ability to understand dog behavior as well as prescriptive how-to advice on the most common cat behavioral problems when cats and dogs live together. The book includes information about aggressive dog behavior, dog language, positive dog obedience training techniques, how to stop dog biting and prevent dog behavioral problems, understanding feline body language and cat hisses, dealing with cat litter box problems, cat nutrition and feeding challenges around dogs, and more.

Use these animal behaviorists fun techniques to learn about normal canine behavior, cat behavior modification techniques, and expert dog trainer tips to solve common dog problems and strengthen the human animal bond you share with your pets. Step by step cat and dog tips from this award-winning author and certified animal behavior consultant uses pet psychology to address:

• Recognize and diffuse cat aggression and aggressive dog behavior
• Stop cat bites and dog bites
• Settle disputes over territory
• Soothe cat stress and feline fear
• Address scared dogs and noise phobias to fireworks fears and thunderstorm phobias
• Stop bully behavior
• Solve hit and miss litter box problems
• Manage pet nutrition and meals
• Choose pet friends to reduce cat fights and dog fights
• Pet introduction and techniques
• Introduce cats or dogs to a new baby or kids
• Solving common pet peeves: eating poop, cat clawing, dog barking, meowing, destructive chewing, jumping up, countertop cruising, digging and more!
• Canine separation anxiety, dog separation behaviors, and dog destructive behaviors
• Dog resource guarding of toys, food and owners
• Puppy house training and dog marking behaviors
• Positive pet training tips including crate training, cat leash training, clicker training, lure training, and obedience training
• Solve common pet peeves: barking, puppy chewing, dog digging, puppies eating poop, dogs rolling in poop, dogs jumping up, and more!

Fun, practical, and eminently informative, ComPETability briefly looks at the biological, evolutionary, and behavioral differences between cats and dogs to devise strategies for owners that enable the two species to live in harmony within the same household. Written by one of America's premier pet experts, the book explains everything an owner of a cat and dog should know.