Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog

by Ted Kerasote

book data

1,137 ratings, 4.17 average rating, 498 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		43%
4		34%
3		16%
2		3%
1		1%

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published

July 2nd 2007 by Harcourt

binding

Hardcover, 361 pages

characters

Merle, Ted, Merle & Ted mostly

isbn

0151012709 (isbn13: 9780151012701)

description

While on a camping trip, Ted Kerasote met a dog - a Labrador mix - who was living on his own in the wild. They became attached to each other, and Kera...more

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03/07/08

Kathleen rated it:

(review of isbn 0156034506)

Okay, I was suckered in by the cute dog picture on the cover. But I found myself really caring about the players in this extraordinary human-dog relationship. Granted, Merle had such a great life and so much freedom because he lived in a dog-friendly town on the edge of Grand Tetons NP. And he got to do great dog stuff like hunt elk and ski snow-covered slopes. Most dogs don't have those opportunities.

The book dragged when author Kerasote waxed on about scientific research into why ...more

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02/03/08

Chrissie rated it:

(review of isbn 0156034506)

bookshelves: fauna, favorites, kirkus-ok-d, text-checked

Read in July, 2008

MARVELOUS!</> I give this book 5 stars without a second thought! You cry, you chuckle, you laugh out loud, you read again sections of other dog books mentioned in the text that one has^previously read, you search Wikipedia concerning subjects that the text brings to your attention and about which you realize you really have to know more. This book has everything for anyone that truly loves their dog.

OK I have to say one thing and I would really like to discuss this with others....more MARVELOUS!</> I give this book 5 stars without a second thought! You cry, you chuckle, you laugh out loud, you read again sections of other dog books mentioned in the text that one has^previously read, you search Wikipedia concerning subjects that the text brings to your attention and about which you realize you really have to know more. This book has everything for anyone that truly loves their dog.

OK I have to say one thing and I would really like to discuss this with others...... I don't like how the book ends, in that I really don't agree with how the author deals with the final stage of a dog's life. Quite simply I think he dog suffered too much at the end of his life. The the author should have euthanized the dog. On the other hand, I was not there. I did not see Merle. Ted thinks Merle remained happy. OK, if he was really sure then I agree with his actions. BUT this was a thinking dog. He was intelligent and he had emotions. One must also consider the dog's emotions. How did Merle react emotionally to having to go through what he went through. The degradation of soiling one's self. I do believe that Merle could understand that he could no longer do what he enjoyed doing best in life, that he would have to accept doing a bit less for the sake of being with Ted who he loved. Just maybe the suffering went on too long. Again, I wasn't there so maybe I am completely off mark. Ted was a marvelous dog owner and I in no way critize him.

I have an old dog. A curly coated retriever of 12.5 years. He too has arthritis. He takes the same medications and he loves his massages. I do not do acupuncture. My dog has not been able to have the independence that Merle has had, but he is dam, dam smart, and my husband and I love him so very, very much. He can no longer do everything whith me any more. He doesn't like being left at home so I change my life, as much as I possibly can to accomadate his needs. And who want to play God - I certainly don't. I don't want to end his life. I will continue to help him as long as I can. He will stay with us as long as I believe he can enjoy life. (less)

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01/23/09

Elaine rated it:

Read in January, 2009

I love just about all books about animals, and adore dog books, from chatty anecdotal ones to highly scientific one. For me to despise a dog book, it really has to be bad, and this is bad. It aspires both to tell us how remarkable Merle is and also to show off the author's readings about the history of the species and its behaviors. That, in itself, is not a bad thing, but what is bad is that in a book supposedly grounded in science, the author is nauseatingly anthropomorphic and he presents ...more I love just about all books about animals, and adore dog books, from chatty anecdotal ones to highly scientific one. For me to despise a dog book, it really has to be bad, and this is bad. It aspires both to tell us how remarkable Merle is and also to show off the author's readings about the history of the species and its behaviors. That, in itself, is not a bad thing, but what is bad is that in a book supposedly grounded in science, the author is nauseatingly anthropomorphic and he presents the science haphazardly and without any judgment, giving the discredited Konrad Lorenz the same credence as the highly respected biologist Raymond Coppinger.
At the same time, Kerasote ignores scientific explanations altogether, for instance, citing an 18th century sailor's diary which claimed that Polynesian women breast fed dogs, not for a minute questioning how a dog could suckle at a human breast, or why alactating mother would waste her milk on a dog. It never occurred to him that, Polynesian women not covering their breasts, might have been supposed to be suckling when, in fact, they were merely cuddling. Kerasote also claims tht prehistoric women, for some unknown reason, entered wolf dens to steal cubs which they then suckled. Any prehistoric person who entered a wolf den would be mauled to death. They didn't have guns.

One other absurdity is Kerasote's claim that Merle existed on bison calves which he killed before soliciting Kerasote to be his master. However, he describes Merle as skinny. Moreover, few if any modern dogs can kill a bison or even a deer as dogs' teeth are too small and their jaws too weak to rip through hide. Also if Merle was living off bison calves, why did he solicit Kerasote for food? Merle did chase cattle, but Kerasote not once withnesses the dog killing anything larger than a squirrel. It is well-know that dogs abandoned in the woods usually starve to death.

Just a few examples of the cloying "conversations" that Kerasote has with this stray shortly after he adopted him:

Kerasote: "Let's go. You're a Wyoming dog now-if you want." A warm,sloppy grin spread across his (Merle's) face. "Me? You mean me?"
Kerasote: "Yep, I mean you." I said gently. "Come on, let's go home." He bounded in.

Or, how about this, after the dog slid down a snowbank. K: Are you a ski dog as well?
By way of an answer, he galloped to the top of the snowbank...[and gaveme an expression that said:]
"That was the best" What a dog! He understood "ski dog" and demonstrated it by going back up and he also understood that the pronoun "that" could refer to an activity. At other times he translates Merle's body language as meaning, "This is amazing! Who would have believed it-playing with coyotes?"
As a linguist, I know that dogs communicate with humans, but their messages aren't couched in such uniquely human terms. The things they do say are interesting enough without this anthropomorphizing nonsense.
(less)

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12/25/07

Christen rated it:

bookshelves: discussion-books, non-fiction, to-re-read

Read in October, 2007

recommended to Christen by: Colleen E.
recommends it for: Animal Lovers

***After meeting the author (5/12/08) the other night and hearing him read passages from the book, I've decided I want to read the book again. What a neat dog!***

I LOVED this book. I still can't figure out who the luckiest character in the book is: the dog or the owner. Ted was so lucky to find such a wonderful dog and Merle was lucky to have such a neat owner who lived in such a neat place, that allowed him to be a free dog! I hate always crying at the end of dog books, but I h...more

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07/30/07

Manduca Sexta added it

bookshelves: dogs, partially_read_then_abandoned

Read in August, 2007

I didn't like the tone of this book. There's a smugness about the author's supposed ability to communicate with dogs. The author generally anthropomorphizes his dog and assigns entire conversations to the dog. In my mind, this deeply detracts from the credibility of the science he reports because there is a great deal of crummy research by people who want to believe in various mystical animal attributes. I am not confident that he is rigorous enough to distinguish the wishful results from the r...more

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01/06/08

Donna rated it:

Read in October, 2007

recommended to Donna by: Reggie
recommends it for: dog lovers, and people sho enjoy the outdoors

This is a humurous, heartfelt book about a wonderful dog named Merle. Although there were sections which became too technical regarding the evolution of the dog, it is easy to scan over those pages and get back to the beautifully written story. If you love dogs, you need to read this book. It covers Merle's entire life with Ted, and yes, it includes his last day. Get the tissues out! If you don't cry, you were absent the day they passed out hearts. If you don't have a dog, you will want to go ge...more

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12/09/07

Susan rated it:

Read in January, 2008

I felt like I shouldn't have wasted my time on this book. It is the antithesis of "Marley and Me", the story of a much loved but terrible dog. This dog is too good to be true. The narrator/owner supplies the dog's side of the conversation (something I do all the time) but without any sense of irony. He believes it's true!

It takes a lot for me to think a story about a wonderful dog is over the top. This one is. That doesn't mean I wouldn't love to have a dog like Merle...more

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03/12/09

Marrble rated it:

Read in April, 2009

If you loved Marley & Me you will LOVE Merle's Door. The story follows the life and adventures of the "freethinking" Merle from the time he adopted his human, Ted, until his death 14 years later. Splendidly written this story made me cry. Anyone who loves dogs and the outdoors will enjoy this book. I now look at my own dogs in a different way.

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12/22/08

Lynn rated it:

Read in December, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Like this review? yes (1 person liked it)

5 comments

03/08/08

Cayr rated it:

bookshelves: biography-memoirs

Read in December, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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.

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 ow...more

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02/09/09

Trevor rated it:

Read in February, 2009

I'm a dog person- so you've got to take that into account- but I really enjoyed this book. Like Ted, I take my dog just about everywhere I go, and I'm constantly sorting out how to let him live life to the fullest. Not an easy task since he lives in a small apartment with his grad. student food guy.

Some of the dog psychology sections were more skimworthy than others, but Kerasote's research adds a lot to his story. If you're interested in learning about how to give your dog a more u...more

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07/18/07

Claire Poissonniez rated it:

bookshelves: currently-reading

I'm not quite halfway through this book, but it is positively gripping and right up my alley. Its outdoor setting is reminiscent of good Jim Kjelgaard novels (Big Red, Haunt Fox, etc.) and, on top of that, this author has done his research. Throughout the novel, Kerasote has cited scientific and archaeological research on dog origins and psychology. Having done my honors thesis on this topic, I can vouch that his citations are both accurate and fascinating.

Of course, it might be the...more

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02/15/09

Laura rated it:

Loved this book!!

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01/12/09

Diane rated it:

Read in September, 2008

Probably the very best book I've read in a long time. It is not just a dog book, but a story about imperfect love, which makes it a best seller instead of just a cute dog story. It lived with me for weeks after I finished it, and I finally wrote the author, and he wrote back, twice. There are sort of scientific insets during the tale which I did not think added to the story but the rest was a really good read. On the human relationship level, people often jump into close human relationships with...more

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01/02/09

Kurtbg rated it:

Read in January, 2009

recommends it for: Friends of Animals, Dog Lovers, Amateur Zoologists

This dog book follows the standard format for most authors hommage to a special dog they have known. The book recounts personal experiences about hid dog, Merle, intertwined with what he learned and the latest information among dogs.

The big difference in this book is the quality of dog the author was fortunate to have in his life. Merle was an individuated working dog.
Individuated, what does that mean? It means he wasn't a pet dog bought to be a possession. Merle was engaged fu...more This dog book follows the standard format for most authors hommage to a special dog they have known. The book recounts personal experiences about hid dog, Merle, intertwined with what he learned and the latest information among dogs.

The big difference in this book is the quality of dog the author was fortunate to have in his life. Merle was an individuated working dog.
Individuated, what does that mean? It means he wasn't a pet dog bought to be a possession. Merle was engaged fully into pursuing his interests in loves hunting as a dog. A stray who sniffed one of four people who stopped by the roadside he chose the elk-smelling author. Simply, he loved elk and chose a hunting partner who had the same likes. From then in they developed a relationship of partners instead of owner and property.

This book is fabulous for showing what a dog can be when it's allowed to experience nature as a dog.

Can a dog think? Does a dog know what it wants? can it problem solve?
Does a dog have feelings? Of love, of shame? It can be easy to dismiss if one never had a relationship with a dog.

Roger Fouts studied Chimpanzees and in his book "Next of Kin" he touched on how humans establish a criteria to decide if an animal is human-like (sentient and self aware) or just an automaton with a preset response to specific stimulus. One of the test includes the use of tools. When it was proved Chimps did use tools (long blade of grass to "fish" ants in anthills) he posited that a better definition will be honed, but there will always be a barrier between animals and human qualities. Of course, he's a believer in the sentience of chimps.

Whether it's elephants, dogs, cats, chimps it's hard to say "oh, they're just doing that, but they don't know why" when you can observe firsthand the feelings we say are human being expressed by animals.

Roger Fouts taught sign language to chimps. When funding ran out the
chimps were sold off to labs. He took a job inspecting the labs for cruel animal conditions. 10 years later he came upon a chimp he had taught sign language. The lab attendant mentioned that every time he passed the chimps cage the chimp would make gestures with his hands. Roger said the Chimp was signing to have his cage cleaned.

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12/06/08

Janie rated it:

Read in August, 2008

Ted Kerasote begins his book about his dog Merle by describing what Merle must have sensed when the dog approached Ted’s river-running group. A canine reads olfactory signatures, in this case, the odors of sweat, pizza, wild game, and the outdoor life these people led. Merle must have liked the way Ted smelled, because he stuck with him through the river trip, and afterward, for a 14 year life together.
Throughout the book, Ted interprets Merle’s thoughts and feelings in a way that is ...more

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06/17/09

Karla rated it:

Read in March, 2009

I love dogs, and this book absolutely touched my heart. It is the story of Merle, a yellow lab dog who is living on his own in the wild when he meets Ted who is on a raft trip on the San Juan River with his friends. Merle decides to trust Ted (maybe) and Ted decides that he needs a dog (maybe) and their relationship evolves from there. I had so many smile-memory moments of the interactions I have had with our dogs through their lives. Ted Kerasote (author and companion to Merle) weaves inform...more

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06/06/09

Serenac rated it:

Read in June, 2009

So far this is so interesting. About a dog, a stray that happened into the author's life and how they grew to be such a great team. He also adds a lot of information about how dogs became domesticated, research studies on communiating with dogs. Really interesting.

Okay, I finished it. This guy lives very close to nature in Wyoming near the Teton National Forest, or maybe even inside it. His dog had the best life any dog could ever hope for, and they developed an amazing relati...more

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02/07/09

Tami rated it:

Read in January, 2008

Yowza. I love my dog, but I also understand the reason for a leash (because I LOVE MY DOG). And there's a little too much canine closeness here, even for me. Altho I will admit, I've attempted to sniff along with my best furry friend into the wind once or twice - some of Teds adventures with Merle are a little too 'grape-nuts' for me. Maybe I need to live in the mountains with the thin air to fully understand . . .

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01/23/08

Angie rated it:

Read in January, 2008

I loved this book! And I have to admit that I cried all the way through the last chapter. I know, I'm a pushover!

Ted Kerasote does an excellent job exploring the relationship between humans and animals, especially dogs. While sharing the story of Merle, a stray dog who becomes Ted's best friend, he also includes research on animal behavior to illustrate his points. The book is very insightful and is a must read, especially for animal lovers.

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