Chaser

Unlocking the Genius of the Dog Who Knows a Thousand Words

By: John W. Pilley, Hilary Hinzmann

Narrated by: Peter Powlus

Length: 8 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

The amazing story of a very smart Border collie who is redefining animal intelligence.

Chaser has a way with words. She knows over a thousand of them—more than any other animal of any species except humans. In addition to common nouns like house, ball, and tree, she has memorized the names of more than one thousand toys and can retrieve any of them on command. Based on that learning, she and her owner and trainer, retired psychologist John Pilley, have moved on to further impressive feats, demonstrating her ability to understand sentences with multiple elements of grammar and to learn new behaviors by imitation.

John’s ingenuity and tenacity as a researcher are as impressive as Chaser’s accomplishments. His groundbreaking approach has opened the door to a new understanding of animal intelligence, one that requires us to reconsider what actually goes on in a dog’s mind. Chaser’s achievements reveal her use of deductive reasoning and complex problem-solving skills to address novel challenges.Yet astonishingly, Chaser isn’t unique. John’s training methods can be adopted by any dog lover. Through the poignant story of how he trained Chaser, raised her as a member of the Pilley family, and proved her abilities to the scientific community, he reveals the positive impact of incorporating learning into play and more effectively channeling a dog’s natural drives.

John’s work with Chaser offers a fresh perspective on what’s possible in the relationship between a dog and a human. His story points us toward a new way of relating to our canine companions that takes into account our evolving understanding of the way animals and humans learn.

©2013 John W. Pilley, Jr. (P)2014 Audible Inc.

Critic reviews

"This marvelous blend of good science and heartwarming dog story will inspire all of us to reexamine our canine friends." (Booklist)

"A delightful memoir that offers a challenge to behavioral psychologists and inspiration for pet lovers." (Kirkus Reviews)

This book proves how smart dogs really are

Years ago I read that normal dogs can learn a dozen words and a dog who knows 18 or more would be a genius, my wife said that my sons dog knew more than that. She then listed over 24 words that he already knew without any special effort to train him. She could also ask him where I or our son was and he would look in whatever direction we were.
Our next dog who was a border collie mix rescue also knew a lot of words. This book proves that these two dogs were not unusual and the person who wrote that dogs were limited to understanding only a dozen or two words was flat out wrong.
If I get another dog after retirement I know how much he learns is only limited by how much time and effort I put into it,

amazing

If you love dogs and enjoy working with them, you will love this book. Awesome!

95% The Story of My Life with My Dog, 5% Training

It's a decent book but I feel like it was written for fans of the dog Chaser to learn more about the owner. The content itself has very little to do with training dogs, so just be aware of that before purchasing. There are much better alternatives if you're looking for training advice. There's really nothing specific here that will allow you to train a dog in a similar fashion to Chaser.

Such a great book!

I loved everything- between the writing, the narrator, and the story...all of it was so great to hear. I was able to learn quite a bit and it gave me some ideas for my herding dog. And the story, overall, is so uplifting and sweet. I just want to give Chaser some pets and praises. I would listen to this again.

Uplifting and transforming

Makes you love K9s even more if you are such a person. Animals, especially our canine friends, are so much more intelligent than given credit for.

Spectacular!! (Just as expected)

I hoped and expected this long-awaited narrative would be imaginative, engrossing, educational, and not just a little emotionally charged. It was all those things and so, so much more. I am so glad that this author has taught Chaser to," speak English." In my life I have had multiple do
J

Read this & learn how to be a better human

Thank you, Dr. Pilley - for helping my dogs and me deepen our bond; for tirelessly working to enhance your and Chaser's lives, thereby opening up new possibilities for all animal lovers; for giving me new ideas for my "encore career;" for showing everyone how easy it is to be better humans - pay attention, consider others' perspectives, move and play. Voila!

Circle of life

As a puppy raiser of 24 dogs from 4 different Service and guide dog organizations, this read was heartwarming to say the least. We really can change the lives of our brave veterans as well as others facing challenges I can't even imagine. It helps us to complete the story , and start over with a new future hero. Thank you.

Recommended for those interested in Animal Cognition

As a Cognitive Psychologist, I was very interested in the story of Chaser. Chaser is a border collie, who appeared to learn and understand 1000 words. From a psychological point of view, her story is an interesting one. The reader should be aware, however, that this is not a regular dog story. There are many scientific references. With that in mind, if you are interested in the psychology of animal learning and cognition, you will likely enjoy Chaser. If not, you should probably skip this one.

Science in a charming tale

The story of Chaser is a story of an aging professors love for animals and science. It gives you an understanding of the field of language learning and problem solving in animals, but all the time feels like a happy story! As a animal lover and scientist myself, I enjoyed this book extremely!