My book, Beyond Flight or Fight: A Compassionate Guide for Working with Fearful Dogs won FIRST PLACE in the “How To” category in the international CIPA EVVY Awards of 2016! We also placed in “Editing.” The competition was stiff–hundreds of books from around the world were submitted. The judging was complicated and tough.

I hope this honor again brings to the forefront of reader attention the plight of the timid dog; puppy mill survivors, dog-fight confiscations, those raided from hoarders, and poor temperament breeding by amateurs. Fearful dogs are the most common personality type to be rejected and euthanized by shelters and pounds. But they can be saved.

My book tells the tales (er, tails!) of real dogs who were on death row,  that I was able to reach and pull back into trusting relationships. Individualized tips on how we accomplished their turn-arounds follow each poignant story. Each was re-homed (except my own two, Bailey and Jessie, whom I kept and love more every day), and each did well in their loving adopted human families.

People are a confusing species, with behavioral inconsistencies, unpredictable  moods, complex foreign language, intimidating body postures, and garbled vocal sounds. These idiosyncrasies can result in a black hole of emotional conflict for an intelligent but simpler brain of a dog. I try to explain how to clarify our relationships with our pet companions so that trust can grow and time together can be peaceful and of quality.

Hopefully, the more books that sell will translate into more dog lives saved! For additonal information go to my website: www.sunnyweber.com, see my LinkedIn Profile, and follow me on Facebook and Twitter. To order Beyond Flight or Fight go to Amazon.com.

Beyond Flight or Fight: A Compassionate Guide for Working with Fearful Dogs was endorsed by: the famous Temple Grandin, PhD, author of multiple books on animals and autistic people; Faith Maloney, original founder of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary; Michele Burchfield, Marketing Director of National Mill Dog Rescue; Dixie Loosi, Editor-in-Chief of Companion Animal Magazine; Kelsey McClellen, Director of Humane Education, Dumb Friends League Shelter, Ann R. Howie, LICSW, ACSW, CEO of Human/Animal Solutions; and more professionals in the animal welfare field.