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Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog

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Release the hounds. -
Heart warming account of a man and his dog. Loved the conversations with Merle. For those with dogs you can understand the level of communication that goes on. Only downside is that this is an atypical man/dog relationship in that Merle is allowed (and encouraged) to roam freely through town, etc. For most of us, even those living ruraly, this is neither an option or a good idea. It is wonderful though to see and live such freedom through others (dogs). Loved it.

Excellent Guide to Healthy Dog Partnering -
Not all of us are as fortunate to live in an environment that affords the perfect dog-human arrangement. But, this example of what dogs really want and need provides us all with a guide as to how we can be better canine companions.

Must read for any dog-lover -
Anyone who has ever had the privilege of being loved by a dog must read this book. The story of the symbiotic relationship between Merle and his owner Ted is a story of true love, friendship and compassion. Unconditional love in its purest form. In addition, there is a lot of scientific information regarding the innate traits of dogs and other non-human species that left me wondering who, really, is more evolved.

Touching, tender and true, this book continues to reside on my bookshelf along with other classics that I will never give up and I have gifted it to several of my canine loving friends.

A Lucky Dog and an Even Luckier Man to Have Known Him. -
In this true, honest, and touching novel, Ted Kerasote tells the story of Merle, an intriguing stray dog that chooses Ted as a lifetime companion. The two of them live a wild and adventurous life in the mountains of Wyoming, which Kerasote recounts with vivid details.

Kerasote makes scientific detours during the telling of his story to explain how dogs evolved and why they have certain attributes. The factoids are at times so interesting, and Kerasote's observations so astute, that I realized how little attention I pay to my own dogs' idiosyncrasies, and how shallow my own observations are.

While the recounting of Merle's life is very entertaining, I do take issue with one of Kerasote's tenets. He discusses at great length how whenever possible, dogs should be given as much freedom as possible in order to become all that they can become, and he seems to attribute Merle's personality and intelligence to the fact that Merle had tons of freedom and he never forced his will on Merle. Mr. Kerasote, I have news for you: Merle is an extraordinary dog. He would have been extraordinary even without all that freedom, and whether or not you ever tried to force your will on him. He was, simply, an amazing dog.

Although some readers have taken issue with the "conversations" that Merle and Ted have, and at times it seems somewhat anthropomorphic, I have no doubt that they understood each other that clearly. I have shared my life with more than fifteen dogs, and each one of them was unique. One, in particular, was stellar, like Merle - and that single dog was an astute communicator. He never had the type of freedoms that Merle did, and I did, on occasion, impose my will on him -- yet he was still brilliant and amazing.

This book was a very enjoyable read, but don't try the last couple of chapters without a box of tissue handy.

C.A.Wulff, author of Born Without a Tail

Omaha Facts -
I enjoyed the book very much. It's a good read and well written. However, I was disturbed by the author stating that the squirrel Merle caught in Omaha was a Grey. As far as I know Omaha Nebraska only has Fox Squirrels of brown or black color phase. I am surprised the author didn't know this. Perhaps he used Omaha as his girl friends' home town to mask her true residence and identy and has never really been there. For a noted and well published naturalist and outdoor writer as Mr Kerasote, I find this lack of attention to detail disturbing. It actually made me question some of his other observations.