1 MINUTE DOG TRAINING

Mitchell draws on his decades of experience as a dog trainer to simplify the process in this guide.

The author distills his dog-training program down to a handful of basics: sit, stay, and come. In his years of doing one-on-one, in-home dog training, Mitchell frequently heard from clients that they hadn’t done the “homework” he’d assigned them because they didn’t have the time. He then developed a process in which basic dog-training could be done in very short sessions (the author’s idea of “micro sessions” amounts to an incremental training program). In brief, colorfully illustrated chapters full of engaging graphics and bulleted text, Mitchell takes the reader through his program. He broadens his advice to include many training-adjacent subjects, like dog cognition, leash training, nipping and biting, and even the nuances of picking the right food. The book is full of color photos illustrating the positions—dog’s and human’s—that Mitchell has found to generate the best results when teaching dogs skills like waiting unrestrained to go outside (or leave the car) and remaining composed instead of jumping up on strangers. Mitchell writes with energy and a good deal of empathy. The foremost strength of the book lies in the inherent compassion underlying all of these micro sessions of training—the assumption (running throughout the book) that dogs are separate, complex beings, far more intelligent and intuitive than most humans give them credit for being (“Like us, each dog has a one-of-a-kind personality. And with it comes a unique way of understanding the world”). Most of the training advice is the kind of self-evident counsel included in many dog-training books: pay attention to your tone of voice; don’t overload your dog; offer frequent, step-by-step small food rewards. But even basic reminders, when made by a smart and caring guide, can be very helpful.

A compassionate, brief-interval method for training dogs.