Introduction: Three Cheers for Puppies! Dogs are very popular household companions -- it is estimated that over half of all households in the U.S. own dogs. This accounts for more than 90 million dogs in these parts of the world alone. Although all these puppies sprang from different backgrounds and many have different roles to play, I am sure that most owners hope that the puppies that we bring into our lives will remain our lifelong companions. Often they become as attached to us as human family members. PARTNERSHIP Dogs have not become this involved in our lives by accident. Historically there were significant advantages in living and working together for mutual benefit.

Over thousands of years dogs have evolved to become superbly suited to our many different lifestyles and it would be hard to visualize a world without them. Aside from the working aspect of dogs, we must also recognize that living with a dog brings emotional and physical benefits to humans too. Dog ownership encourages adults and children to be more active, and it has been linked with lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Dog ownership can reduce the severity of anxiety disorders and has been shown to increase positive social contact for humans with various forms of physical or sensory impairment. Over recent years, exciting research has shown that dogs can detect by smell and alert us to very early signs of cancer and other conditions including diabetes and seizures. Dogs too have benefited from increasingly improved health care and diet, and owners will go to incredible lengths to ensure their pet has the best of everything with a dizzying array of products available for all income levels. MUTUAL BENEFITS It pays to maximize your relationship with your puppy in order to improve its health, reduce training and socialization issues and to keep the puppy as happy and stimulated as possible. By doing this, behavioral problems should be reduced and, if they do crop up, the puppy/owner bond should be strong enough to remain positive through a behavior modification program.

I firmly believe that having fun with your puppy and playing Brain Games is part of a healthy owner-dog relationship. I hope that after reading this book, you will agree with me.