Tender Paws: How Science-Based Parenting Can Transform Our Relationship with Dogs

Tender Paws sheds fresh light on dog care, not found in other dog training and behavior books, by asking: What if you could parent your dog the way experts approach raising a vulnerable child?

When award-winning journalist Wendy Lyons Sunshine adopted her first puppy — rescued from behind a gas station, separated from the litter too soon, anemic, and overwhelmed — she struggled to cope with the chaos.

Standard training guides failed her, and in desperation she turned to an unlikely resource: a bestseller for adoptive families. Suddenly she saw the puppy not as a problem to correct, but as a young creature with invisible, unmet needs, and their relationship blossomed.

In Tender Paws, Sunshine shares what she discovered about the essentials for supporting a dog's body, mind, emotions, and relationships—and ultimately why getting to the root of a dog's needs and behavior can make all the difference.

The book features dozens of fascinating cases and introduces the HEARTS framework — six practical, research-backed caregiving habits that help any dog flourish, whether you're living with an 8 week-old puppy who's all teeth or a 10 year-old adult rescue with a mysterious history.

You'll discover:
 

• Simple, gentle methods that support a dog's body and mind, based on research into neurobiology, attachment, child development, learning, and trauma
   
• Dozens of real cases — the spaniel pushed to the brink, the high-drama border collie, the adult rescue facing behavioral euthanasia — to show you what genuinely helps
   
• The unmet needs and nervous-system stress underneath many behaviors, and how to build the sense of safety a dog needs before training can take hold
   
• How to choose equipment and training methods that serve your dog best
   
• The HEARTS chart that readers tell us they photocopy and use daily — a simple way to pinpoint what your dog actually needs when behavior goes sideways 
   

"Lots of positive, gentle methods for working effectively with dogs." — Temple Grandin, author of Animals Make Us Human

Winner of the 2025 ASJA Book Award and the 2024 Maxwell Medallion for Best Rescue/Adoption Book.

Frequently Asked Questions

I adopted a rescue with an unknown or traumatic past. Is this the right book for me?
It was written with you in mind. It applies trauma research and attachment science — the kind used with at-risk children — to puppies and dogs carrying histories of neglect, abuse, or early deprivation.

How is Tender Paws different from a regular dog-training book?
Most training focuses on obedience and control. Tender Paws gets to the root of why your dog behaves the way it does and what it genuinely needs to thrive. Positive, force-free training is one part of a comprehensive, science-led approach rather than the whole answer.

Do I need a background in science or psychology to follow it?
Not at all. Readers and award-judges consistently describe it as easy to read and immediately usable, with real-life stories, helpful visuals, and one simple framework. It translates research from child development and animal behavior into plain, practical steps.

Wendy Lyons Sunshine is the co-author of the bestseller The Connected Child and Raising the Challenging Child

Award-winning journalist Wendy Lyons Sunshine co-authored  The Connected Child, a bestseller recommended by child welfare organizations and adoption agencies, and Raising the Challenging Child. Her experience working on those books and raising a challenging rescue puppy inspired her book, Tender Paws.