ABANDONED. picture book about a dog who has no confidence because he lives with cats and thinks he is one too, and so can't protect them from a bully!

[Peter]

Good people! I am searching for a children's book I loved in the early 1970s. A junior fiction picture book about a dog who lives with cats and thus thinks he is one - and thus he can provide no protection for the cats when a mean dog - Ivan? A Dalmatian? - moves into the street and is a mean bully.

Our hero dog's owner takes him to a psychiatrist, who teaches our hero self-esteem. A few days later, Ivan? tries to bully our hero and his cats, and - just as our hero works up the confidence to bark at the bully, the sky screams with thunder and Ivan? believes that our hero's bark is the thunder, and runs away, tail between his legs, never to bully again.

The final picture is our hero in the rain with all his cats protected under his belly - safe from the elements, and he is a very happy pooch indeed.

It was a red, hardcover, medium sized book with no dust-jacket. The pictures were all black and white, nicely invoking the scenes I have described above. While visiting the therapist, I distinctly recall a picture of our hero looking in a trick mirror that makes his chest look bigger than it really is!!

My brain keeps returning to the name Digby or Gilbert or such, for our hero - and I think it might've been the Title of the book...

Fingers crossed and warm wishes to all readers!

[Mai]

I think I found it! Searching Abebooks this one came up:
Gilbert by Eric Gurney. It was published in 1963.
I found this description online:
Gilbert is a dog who has been raised by cats, and finds himself with some identity issues. After visits with Dr. Schnauzer, the psychiatrist, Gilbert finds himself again face-to-face with Ivan, the bully. How will Gilbert face this crisis?

You have a great memory!! You remembered all the names!

[Kris]

No response, moving to Abandoned folder.

Peter (OP) was last active on the site in July 2019.