A delightful chronicle of one man's search for the ideal canine companion--and of the inspiring lessons he learned about love, loyalty, compassion, and trust along the way. For many, life is a constant search for perfection--in themselves, their work, their families. For Gary Shiebler, life has been one long search for the perfect dog. In a poignant and immensely entertaining narrative, he reflects on the dogs that have touched his life--from the strays his mother adopted during his childhood to the myriad hounds he has owned as an adult and cared for as an animal shelter educator. With deep feeling and frequent humor, Shiebler vividly describes the joys, responsibilities, and heartbreaks of pet care and ownership. At the same time, he leads the reader on an inspiring journey of understanding and acceptance, for as Shiebler faces the challenges that each dog brings, he learns valuable lessons not only about being humane but about being human. Like the beloved books about dogs by James Herriot and Roger Caras, A Search for the Perfect Dog illuminates the special magic that exists between dog lovers and their four-legged friends--and the rewards that unconditional love can bring into all our lives. Vapid dog stories, prompted by Shiebler's own pets and a stint as ``humane educator'' at the Helen Woodward Animal Center in southern California. Shiebler has lived with a number of dogs and met many another at the animal center, and here he gives each one less than its due in fleeting profiles, often of no more than a few pages. Some of the dogs are his protectors, his confidants, friends, or heroes; one in particular is a ``gift from God.'' In others he finds reflections of people in his life: One smug golden retriever suggests his prima donna grandmother; a scared and timid orphan dog reminds him of a certain scared but haughty orphaned boy. Shiebler tenders little homilies on being nonjudgmental; prays for the little ``brown'' dogs without personality, forgotten and miserable; experiences the ``tiny miracle'' that happens when the most pathetic pooch at the animal center finds a home. With every canine experience, Shiebler becomes an ever worthier, more self-intimate soul. But these vignettes are too short for the dogs' personalities to shine through, though Shiebler's personality gets ample massaging: ``My modeling career had evolved into an acting and TV commercial career that was really beginning to take off''; Shiebler might understand why, in an instant of repose, one dog strikes him as ``the matriarch, the Indian elder, the wise one,'' but readers will need more than Shiebler's recounting of his sweat lodge experience to make the connection. And when the author spouts one of his frequent inanities- -``Raising a puppy is remarkably similar to raising a baby''- -readers may begin to question just what they are doing reading this book. (4 b&w photos, not seen) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. Gary Shiebler's beautifully written book "A Search for the Perfect Dog". I read it and I loved it. -- Liz Smith syndicated columnist Shiebler is known for his singing and songwriting but this collection of stories establishes him as a fine writer, too. -- Seattle Times a short, genuinely sweet and decidedly helpful primer for anyone ... contemplating bringing a dog into the home.... While there is no doubting Shiebler's uncanny empathy with his four-legged charges, at times his stories seem just a bit too pat and glib. His habit of putting words into dogs' mouths can become tiresome, as can his frequent anthropomorphic asides. -- Los Angeles Times Sunday Book Review, Selma G. Lanes chronicle of one man's search for the ideal canine companion--and of the inspiring lessons he learned about love, loyalty, compassion, and trust along the way. For many, life is a constant search for perfection--in themselves, their work, their families. For Gary Shiebler, life has been one long search for the perfect dog. In a poignant and immensely entertaining narrative, he reflects on the dogs that have touched his life--from the strays his mother adopted during his childhood to the myriad hounds he has owned as an adult and cared for as an animal shelter educator. With deep feeling and frequent humor, Shiebler vividly describes the joys, responsibilities, and heartbreaks of pet care and ownership. At the same time, he leads the reader on an inspiring journey of understanding and acceptance, for as Shiebler faces the challenges that each dog brings, he learns valuable lessons not only about being humane but about being human. &l Gary Shiebler, an award winning singer and songwriter, worked as a humane educator at the Helen Woodward Animal Center in Southern California, where he lives with his wife, daughter and two dogs and two cats.