The monks of New Skete sell the dogs, too, and business is heavenly. There’s a one-year waiting list for their $800 purebreds. The monks are also becoming the Dr. Spock of dog rearing, with two successful books on the subject. The latest, “The Art of Raising a Puppy,” is already in its second printing. The monks took to breeding German shepherds when they were running a farm in Cambridge, N.Y., in the 1960s. Their writing career was launched when Little, Brown and Co. editorial director Roger Donald purchased one of their puppies. Donald asked the monks to recommend someone to write a dog manual; they volunteered.
The monks’ secret? It’s the “innate respect” they have for dogs, says children’s book author (and New Skete shepherd owner) Maurice Sendak; that means “not thinking of the dog as an adversary.” Both books tout what the monks call “inseeing,” or, " standing inside your dog’s psyche." The monks declined to be interviewed, but associates say success hasn’t gone to their heads. “The monks,” says Donald, “are not driven by the usual things authors are driven by: ego and money. " Just by love of a monk’s best friend.
