Merle’s Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog is a fascinating good read. Kerasote mixes history, science, speculation, and personal story together to create a book about a particular dog while exploring ideas about dogs in general.
A departure from most dog books, which stress how you need to be the alpha and always controlling every aspect of your dog’s way of life, Kerasote lets Merle make decisions. As the man and the dog learn about each other, they also teach other. This “dog as partner” view is filled with respect for the differences between us and dogs–and some interesting similarities.
He finds Merle as a 10 month or so old puppy in the desert in Utah on a rafting trip. From that point, Merle and Kerasote share many outdoor adventures, from skiing to elk hunting. You may find some of this ideas on dogs a bit controversial. They’re certainly a departure from the norm. But if you like dogs, you’ll enjoy the story of the dog and the man getting to know each other and sharing a life together.
~Courtesy of reading-addiction.com
