Douglas Green considers his late pound puppy — a knuckleheaded dog named Shirelle — to be the greatest teacher he’s ever known. “If Shirelle were in a fancy restaurant,” he writes, “she might climb onto someone’s table and eat their food, but she would never, ever, insult the waiter.” The Teachings of Shirelle is the hilarious and uplifting true story of how this unique pooch taught her guardian to live life to the fullest.  

First published in 2015, The Teachings of Shirelle remains a touching ode to the human-animal connection — offering a lighthearted, philosophical, psychological, and spiritual bounty of lessons gleaned from the simple-minded brilliance of an unforgettable teacher. These lessons are as relevant and valuable as ever, showing readers how to look at the world through eyes that are not their own. Eyes that, in this case, belong to a dog.

This second edition includes an all-new foreword written by acclaimed veterinarian Dr. Barrie M. Sands, author of The Stupid Things My Human Does: True Stories From the Animal ER and winner of the AHVMA 2022 Holistic Practitioner of the Year Award.