Animals and Teens: The Ultimate Teen Guide

by Gail Green

Overview

Teens live in an imperfect world where people judge each other on looks, popularity, bank accounts, or clothing styles-a world where people are not always treated fairly. But animals do not care about poor test scores or bad skin; they simply love unconditionally. Such devotion makes the human-animal bond so special.

In Animals and Teens: The Ultimate Teen Guide, author Gail Green illustrates various situations in which young adults become involved with animals, including providing foster care, pursuing career opportunities, or simply raising pets at home. Green shows how animals can enhance teens' lives and how teens can improve the welfare of animals that face abuse or live in shelters and wildlife preserves. Green discusses what is involved in the handling of service animals, such as dogs that provide physical assistance or horses that help with therapy. Animals and Teens also covers such basics as caring for animals and dealing with the loss of a pet.

The voices in this book come from a large cross section of teens and young adults whose stories will resonate with anyone who loves animals. From helping with animal rescue to overcoming learning disabilities, these heartwarming experiences demonstrate how each of us can make a difference through the incredibly rewarding human-animal bond.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780810866560
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	01/19/2009
Series:	It Happened to Me Series , #22
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Gail Green is an author and illustrator, whose previous works include The Cat and Dog Lovers' Idea Book.

Table of Contents

Introduction vii

1 Companion Animals: What They Mean to Us 1

2 Understanding Animals; Understanding Ourselves 35

3 Friendship 63

4 Choosing Our Companion Animals 91

5 Defending the Innocent: Animal Abuse and Environmental Concerns 111

6 The Bonds of Trust: How Animals Help with Emotional and Social Issues and Interactions 139

7 Life Changes: College, Country, and Careers 165

8 Overcoming Health Problems, Pet Loss, and Other Adversities 195

9 At Your Service: Assistance Animals and Therapies 225

Appendix: Online Resources for All Things Animal 247

Bibliography 251

Index 253

About the Author 259

Editorial Reviews

Gr 7 Up

This oversize title is a mixed bag. It covers traditional as well as nontraditional pets, and offers a clear, teen-centric perspective, which can wear thin at times. Green introduces a topic, and then quotes several teens whose experiences illustrate her point. While this is a useful approach, it makes for choppy reading. Companion animals, working animals, and the various issues involved with having close contact with animals are addressed. The focus on the emotional aspect can be somewhat tiresome. Green also touches on concerns of special interest to teens regarding their animal companions-going away to college, dealing with illness and/or death, and career advice. Overall, the book seems to cover the material adequately, but it's often quite dry. The line drawings, many of which were done by teens, are amateurish and uninspired. Purchase for large teen nonfiction collections or die-hard animal lovers.-Lisa Crandall, Capital Area District Library, Holt, MI

School Library Journal

Illustrates through first-hand accounts how positive interactions with animals can contribute to higher self-esteem in teens, helping them break social barriers and develop compassion for other living creatures, and even reduce obesity.

Chicagoland Tails

Offers some effective anecdotes by teens on how their own interaction with animals has enhanced their lives and provided them with a greater sense of responsibility, maturity and self-esteem....Teens will feel involved and moved by the heartfelt and sometimes saddening stories of animal care. A much more personal book.

June / July 2009 VOYA

Illustrates through first-hand accounts how positive interactions with animals can contribute to higher self-esteem in teens, helping them break social barriers and develop compassion for other living creatures, and even reduce obesity.

June 2009 Chicagoland Tails