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    Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog
    Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog
    Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog
    Audiobook13 hours

    Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog

    Written by Ted Kerasote

    Narrated by Patrick Lawlor

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    Ted Kerasote met and adopted Merle, a Laborador mix, while he was on a camping trip. Merle had been living in the wild, and after taking the dog home with him to Wyoming, Kerasote soon realized that Merle could not adjust to inhabiting exclusively in the human world. So he put a door in his house to let Merle live both outside and in.

    A deeply touching portrait of a remarkable animal, Merle's Door explores the issues that all animals and their human companions face as their lives intertwine, and presents the latest research into animal behavior as well as the origins and evolution of human-dog interaction. Merle showed Kerasote how dogs might live were they free; Kerasote suggests how they should be allowed to live, and the doors that should always remain open to them.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJul 15, 2007
    ISBN9781400173570
    Author

    Ted Kerasote

    TED KERASOTE is the author of several books, including the national bestseller Merle’s Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog and Out There, which won the National Outdoor Book Award. His essays and photographs have appeared in Audubon, Geo, Outside, Science, the New York Times, and more than sixty other periodicals. He lives in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

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    Reviews for Merle's Door

    4/5

    323 ratings37 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Very good and unique look, at life with a dog!
    • 5/5
      This is a wonderful celebration of the life of a pretty special dog and has to be the best dog book I’ve ever read....... Ted Kerasote is an outdoors sort of guy. He writes about outdoor places and pursuits - wilderness adventures and such like. This is the story of his relationship with Merle, a dog who he meets on a canoe trip with some friends. The young dog has clearly been surviving on his own and joins them on their trip. Ted ends up sharing his life with Merle and it is really a love story of man and dog. In truth, I fell in love with both of them. Once Ted got the measure of Merle in terms of just how bright he was and how much he could trust him, Merle was allowed to become a free thinking dog. In the main, he could come and go as he pleased through his own dog door; chose to spend time with Ted in whatever activity, be it hunting or hiking or go and lead his own life, off doing dog things with his own dog and human friends. There was a fair amount of dog psychology and animal behaviour-type references, but as a lot of this was to books or authors that I already really rate, I relished that. It was a book that made me think on all sorts of levels. I delighted in it and know that it is a book that I will probably read more than once.
    • 5/5
      This is a fantastic book for dog lovers. The story of the author and Merle is intriguing and emotional. They are partners in every sense of the word.

      In addition, the author provides a lot of information about theories and research in dog evolution and behavior.
    • 4/5
      I didn't think I would particularly care for this book, but, of course, I loved it - it's lovingly written about a dog, after all. The author is a bit holier-than-thou, but he has a valid point about how we treat our dogs in the 21st century west. And he quoted this, which was one of those lovely moments that books can give you:

      You do not have to be good.
      You do not have to walk on your knees
      for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
      You only have to let the soft animal of your body
      love what it loves.

      ~ Mary Oliver, Wild Geese
    • 3/5
      Ted Kerasote and his friends found a dog on a river boating trip, and Ted, who'd been looking for the right new dog for a while, fell in love.

      Merle was perhaps ten months old, a Labrador mix, perhaps born on an Indian reservation. Shy of people at first, he grew to trust Ted in the course of the river trip. He was wary of sticks, and wouldn't fetch. When Ted brought him home to Wyoming, both their lives change.

      This is both a fascinating and a frustrating book. Ted and Merle have a wonderful, rich relationship, and most of us with much-loved dogs feel pretty confident we can interpret our dogs' side of our interactions, just as Ted does. We've experienced the joy of getting to know a new dog in our lives, and growing into a relationship.

      But Merle was half-wild and had been surviving on his own for a while when Ted found him. He's got both survival skills and a committed habit of roaming his territory that a pup raised in a family would be far less likely to have. Full grown, he's seventy pounds. And Ted brings him home to Kelly, Wyoming, a tiny village inside the boundaries of Yellowstone National Park, a village with little vehicular traffic and an established custom of free-roaming dogs.

      Kerasote thinks that dogs who live inside full-time, walk on leashes, and are crate-trained only seem to be happy because they're suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. He goes on a long rant about how clicker training and positive reinforcement training reduce dogs to automata unable make their own decisions--and then, much later in the book, reveals that Karen Pryor, a major early proponent of clicker training, and a trainer of trainers in clicker training and positive reinforcement, is his favorite behaviorist.

      He's got two examples from Merle's life that, in his mind, demonstrate the failure of positive reinforcement training and why punishment works better. One involves Merle chasing cattle, a behavior which he has to be cured of quickly, and Ted uses a choke collar and a long line to convince him it's a Really Bad Idea. (Why does Merle have to be cured of this quickly? Because he's a free-roaming dog, and ranchers and farmers shoot dogs who harass the livestock.)

      The other instance is when Merle acquires the habit of making regular visits to a woman in the village who feeds him as much as he'll eat of extremely tasty foods, including meats prepared in extremely fatty ways. Attempts to talk to the woman about the harm to Merle's health that will result from the fact that the formerly lean and muscular dog is getting fat on this all-you-can-eat high-calorie diet are unproductive. So Ted finally resorts to using a shock collar to make visits to the woman's home seriously unpleasant.

      What Ted misses in discussing both these incidents is that, far from showing that positive reinforcement doesn't work, these two problem behaviors were highly self-reinforcing. And while there are other things that could have been done about the woman feeding Merle excessively, the cattle-chasing had to end immediately, or Merle would have been killed.

      Another amusing feature is that these appear to have been the only two occasions when he used anything that could be called punishment or correction on Merle, while he and Merle used positive reinforcement on each other for pretty much everything else. His admiration for Karen Pryor is more in accord with his real behavior than his contempt for all those other positive trainers.

      That doesn't stop him from scolding about the misguided fools who look at misbehaving dogs and recommend exercise, mental stimulation, and crate training for them because they are bored and under-exercised. He says there's something perfectly natural going on; that dogs are supposed to roam freely, live like dogs, and make decisions!

      He's right. There is something perfectly natural going on. And it's that dogs need exercise and mental stimulation, and if they don't get it, the excess energy and the mental boredom lead them to find something, anything, to do, and perfectly natural dog behavior, such as a love of chewing things, becomes destructive.

      And we don't all have seventy-pound dogs with wilderness survival skills, and live in a tiny village in Yellowstone National Park. Putting in a dog door and letting them roam isn't a viable solution for everyone, or every dog.

      But regular walks, visits to the dog park, involvement in dog activities, and provision of appropriate chew toys and food dispensing toys that let dogs use their brains to work out how to get their food provide the physical, mental, and social stimulation dogs need--the things Merle got by free roaming in a community where that was both safe and accepted. Correctly done, crate training makes the crate the dog's own space, a comfortable and secure space the dog can use when he needs a break from people and their antics. It also reduces a bit the inevitable stress when a dog has to be left at the vet's, if crating is already a known experience with some positive associations.

      For all those criticisms, though, this is a fascinating and moving story of a man and a dog who were truly soul mates. It's a beautiful relationship and a wonderful story. You'll love Merle, and Ted's relationship with him. Interwoven with that story is the research on dogs that Ted read and absorbed, while working to deepen his understanding and appreciation of a remarkable dog.

      Recommended.

      I borrowed this book from the library.
    • 4/5
      The story of a man (Ted) and his dog (Merle). It begins when Merle finds Ted and friends getting ready to go on a river trip and ends when Merle is about 14 years old. (He dies.) In between are stories of the adventures they have together (and sometimes separately): hunting, hiking, skiing, etc. Along the way, they both teach each other lessons about life. It made me want a dog--if the dog was an animated and expressive as Merle!
    • 5/5
      I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Ted's writing style is easy to read and interesting. This is about a dog and a man in unusual circumstances, delightful really. Oh that all dogs should have such a life in such a place. The story is true. Merle chooses Ted to be his person, his friend. They have adventures together and a mutual respect. I learned a lot about dogs. Everyone who has a dog or wants to have one needs to read this. Everyone else needs to read it for the life lessons that carry over to all animals and all people.

      Ted, if you read this, I'll be reading all your other books in time.
    • 5/5
      This is a true love story. Though it be between a man and his dog aka bestfriend. This kind of bonding is rare to find between two humans.
    • 5/5
      An excellent read. Sensitive without being sentimental, Merle and his owner learn much from each other. the human-animal bond is magical and mysterious.
    • 3/5
      This is more than just a book about a man and his dog. This is a journey of passion, dedication, and how to be in a relationship without keeping those you love on a tight lease. It is about freedom and sharing the journey of life with someone who really, truly understands you. It is a mix between a biography of Merle and an in-depth look at the lives of dogs including evolutionary history, psychology, anatomy, and social dynamics. This book is packed with information and as well as emotion as Kerasote chronicles the life of a truly amazing dog.
    • 5/5
      A Boy and His Dog in the West

      Combination memoir/history of dog-human relations. Although the author anthropomorphizes to excess, there are still nuggets of common sense that are refreshing in this age of The Dog Whisperer.

      (Confession: I bawled like a baby at the end.)
    • 4/5
      What's truly wonderful about this book is the voice that Kerasote gives to his dog Merle. He writes "dialogue" that rings true. Merle's panting translates as "Ha-ha-ha," and his facial expressions translate to complete sentences and conversations that reflect an enviable relationship between a man and his dog.

      Kerasote intersperses the narrative with a lot of research about the history of canine domestication, psychology and training. I'm very uncomfortable with a couple of the aversive training methods he uses, but he obviously loved his dog completely. Merle led a long, adventurous and charmed life, and Kerasote documents it well.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. I've been studying the habits of my dogs for years and I so agree that one can "dumb down" a dog or one can open their dog's eyes to the world. I don't talk baby talk to my dogs nor do I expect them to speak to me (even in my head). But we DO communicate, and quite well. Merle's Door may not be for everyone (especially those smug, scientific types with closed minds), but I thought it to be one of the best lay books on dog behavior I have ever read. Of all the books I've read in my long life, it is the only one that I feel comfortable with giving 5 stars. I love re-reading it from time to time.

      Well done, Ted!
    • 4/5
      Although "Merle's Door" was written first, I read Ted Kerasote's 2nd book, 'Pukka's Promise" first. It knocked me off my feet. The author is very knowledgeable about the care of dogs, their feeding and mental health, first and foremost. While he doesn't believe in standardized sort of training, he does believe that owner and pet should complement each other and enjoy their time together. Therefore there must be cooperation and respect between the two. As the owner of a pack of dogs, I am in agreement with the way he communicates with his dogs. We talk to our dogs and watch in amazement as they respond to the sound of our voice and possibly recognize the words we are using. I am not in disagreement with some formal training which provides a safer atmosphere for a dog you can prevent from running into the street or towards a dog fight.As Kerasote's companion, Merle led an adventure filled life, accompanying him on hunting and hiking trips. I particularly enjoyed that Kerasote recognized the spirit his dog had and tried never to flag it, but to find resolutions that respected canine behavior, and didn't require Merle to be ridiculed and reprimanded, in order to learn a lesson.'Merle's Door" is sadder than Pukka's book, but in the same way, it is filled with information about every aspect of dog care, from feeding and vaccinating, to teaching the animal the proper ettiquette upon meeting the huge moose that they occasionally were confronted with as they hunted.This book is not a quick, entertaining read. What it is, though, is a font of information, and quite soon after the reader begins the book, he will have to decide whether he wants a cutesy story about a pet, or to dig deeply with Kerasote, into animal behavior, as well as human behavior. Personally, I won't miss any dog books that he puts out, now or in the future.
    • 1/5
      Merle's Door is about lessons from a free thinking dog. It started off the book well but as i kept reading it felt like a drag to read. it was very boring for me to read. It was more about the past of dogs then the actually dog in the story.
    • 4/5
      Ok, so for much of this book I really disliked Ted. He is so pompous. He acts like everyone lives in a place were we can let our dogs run free. The was he looks down on the rest of us dog owners make be angry. But I can’t fault him on his love for this dog or how much he did for him to allow him a fulfilling dog life. I don’t fault him on letting Merle die naturally as Merle didn’t seem to be in pain. Of course, the tears just flowed and flowed. 9/7
    • 4/5
      A true story about a dog and dogs in general. The author discusses many aspects of dog behaviour based on research as well as his own dog's behaviour. Its an interesting book and worth a read if you have a dog or like dogs.
    • 5/5
      The best dog lover book EVER. If I had the heart to give my dog this much freedom I just imagine how much more he would love me.
    • 4/5
      This is a very thoughtful and well-written book. While not everyone will agree with the author's dog-raising decisions or his conclusions about dog behavior, I think the value of this book lies in its unique perspective. Many of us would envy the author's lifestyle -- he lives off what he hunts (as far as meat goes), has access to seemingly endless outdoor adventures, and has a job with a lot of flexibility. In turn, he is able to make unique decisions about and gain a unique perspective on his dog's life. While many reviewers have noted the "lifestyle factor" negatively, I think this unusual perspective leads the author to ask some very interesting questions and provide some very thoughtful responses about the dog-human relationship. For me, this is what makes it a stand-out read.
    • 4/5
      I'm of two minds about this book. Bad things first, I'm afraid Ted Kerasote is a little too involved in his macho ideal of the wonders of testosterone to do justice to the topic of the need for spaying and neutering of pets. He believes dogs should be able to exist in as much of their original "dogginess" as possible, which means leaving them intact. He morns the beautiful puppies Merle could have made with his Vizslacompanion knowing there would have been no problem finding homes for the offspring. At the same time he admits that Merle has "fallen in love" with the wrong type of dog, and being rather glad that they couldn't produce puppies he says if Merle had been intact he would have just hoped he got over his misguided love. Merle's a dog. He would have got over his love until the next time the inappropriate dog came into heat, then his fertile attentions would resume, and those puppies, and the many hundreds others a free roaming dog could produce would not have been so easy to place. Spaying and neutering, in the long run, is the healthiest way for both dogs and the humans they live with. Secondly, Kerasote expounds on the wonders of letting his dog run free while he mentions in passing the dog attacks and unnecessary deaths Merle and his companions have had to suffer from the practice. Now the good parts. Kerasote gives a very good alternative to the Cesar Milan idea of the necessity of a dog owner's always asserting him/her self as the alpha. He says that wolves in the wild are shown to live in a more egalitarian system that is healthier for all, and I think most intuitive dog owners would agree. We should strive for a mutually beneficial partnership with our animals rather than a dictatorship. Kerasote also mentions much research on animal nature, the nature and care of disease, and gives wonderful descriptions of time spent with his dog and they joy of the outdoors. He also has two of the most effective deaths, either of dog or human, that I have read.
    • 5/5
      This was one of the best dog books I have ever read, written by a pretty talented author about his amazingly sophisticated dog named Merle. The author begins the story with how he met Merle, on a camping trip in Utah. It shows how the two of them really clicked from the start, and Ted takes him home to his small town of Kelly, Wyoming. Ted learns so much from Merle, including how a dog is really an independent creature. His relationship with Merle gave each the best environment in which to be themselves. Ted did not think of Merle as his captive, he thought of Merle as his friend with a life of his own. He was able to do things with Merle that they both enjoyed, like skiing and elk hunting and taking long hikes. A pivotal point in the book was when Ted got Merle his own dog door so he could come and go as he pleased. At first, Ted was nervous, because he knew he needed to provide something more than food for this dog to continue to come back. Indeed, Merle could hunt very well on his own, but he always came back to Ted, and it seems it was Ted’s love that allowed Merle to be so brave and independent. The book is packed full of memorable anecdotes, interspersed with factual information about the origin of dogs, training of dogs, and the complicated social lives of dogs. As a great example of nonfiction, the reader is able to learn a vast amount of information about a certain topic, but it is not clunky and heavy. It reads like a great story, and is indeed riveting. There were some painful parts of the book to read, and yes, Merle does die in the end, but it was just so enlightening to read about this dog who became a different but equal kind of friend to Ted. This book was really wonderful. 
    • 4/5
      Took a while but I finally finished [Merle's Door] by Ted Kerasote. What a wonderful book about a man who went river-rafting with some friends and finds a stray dog. The dog started to accompany them on their journey and ended up following Ted home. What makes this a particularly compelling book is that Ted chronicles Merle's behavior over the 13 years that they shared. Ted also includes really good information on studies about animal behavior. It's rich with stories of their time together. There's a lot of funny stories and also some very touching stories. The book covers the wonderful relationship they shared.
    • 3/5
      Warning! Heartbreaking ending...
    • 4/5
      An in-depth narrative as to the natural science as well as emotional history of his owning a dog called Merle. Very informative.If anyone could explain to me how to read the last chapter with out crying,I would be most grateful to hear.
    • 4/5
      Lovely warm description of relationship between a man and his dog. Takes place in a fairly wild rural community. Lots of discussion about dog psychology. Beautifully written.
    • 5/5
      Dogs, love and grief - This is a long book. I know that sounds like a simpleton opening, but somewhere slightly past the middle of this tome, I started finding some of the corroborating scientific information about the relationships between men and other mammals just a bit "teedjus," ya know? I mean I bought the book because I love a good dog book, so I wasn't terribly interesting in learning about horses and chimps along the way. That said though, Kerasote has written an extremly thoughtful book about men and dogs, and why they love each other - or don't. There are several places in the book where Kerasote protests a bit too much, methinks, that he does NOT anthropomorphize Merle, or the other dogs in this book, then rationalizes like hell, using esoteric bits of scientific trivia to "prove" he doesn't. But hell, he does. He knows it, and so do we. And we don't care. Because this is just a great love story that any dog-lover cannot help but enjoy. I have a neighbor who has, over the years, owned three retired greyhounds. When he lost the second one, who died very suddenly of a twisted gut, I felt badly for Jim. But he acknowledged quietly the age-old problem that comes with loving a dog. He told me sadly, "Dogs. No matter how much you love 'em, it always ends in grief." And that is certainly how MERLE'S DOOR ends. Oh, I know that Kerasote tried to dress it up a bit with that last (anthropomorphic) line from Merle's spirit: "I dance! I DANCE!" But my God, that last chapter was just gut-wrenching, and it brought back all the tearful times of losing dogs of my own over the years. Yes, I cried. And because of that beautiful last chapter, Ted, I forgive you for all that pseudo-scholarly "teedjusness" in the middle of the book. That final chapter clinched the 5-star rating. Thanks for sharing your story. I know, of course, there'll never be another Merle, but I hope you've found - or will soon find - another golden pal.
    • 5/5
      This is the best dog book I have ever read. It has stayed with me for a long time after finishing it, I think of Merle frequently! Kerasote manages to humanize Merle so that you think you "know" him as a good friend! Great book, not to be missed by dog lovers.
    • 5/5
      Wonderful story about Merle and his human friend/companion. Told through Ted's eyes, the story is drawn with great respect for Merle's independence and intelligence; by the end of the book you will have felt as if you have walked through Merle's life and with a greater appreciation for life's journey with your own companions,
    • 5/5
      An absolute gem. The only reason I haven't given it a 5-star rating is because I would have loved to see some photos in the book. There is a section on the author's website dedicated to this subject "Merle's life in photos", with a delightful slideshow set to Merle's favourite music. A beautiful way to remember a never-to-be forgotten dog, a very special story about an amazing dog, and her human companion.
    • 5/5
      Not at all soppish about the usual human-canid tragedy. Candid, thoughtful, the human being is nearly as charming as the dog. Makes a great case for allowing dogs as much freedom as we are able in any residence environment.