Member Reviews
Such a great story about a lovable dog and her detective companion! People will fall in love with Molly and Colin, and all the cat lovers will rejoice that these felines have been found.
Are you an animal lover? This is your book! The true story of a cocker spaniel named Molly and her owner retired Royal Navy and police constable Colin Butcher. Though Molly was young and inexperienced when Colin first got her, but after months of training Molly became a man (and feline's) best friend.
Colin was particularly interested in helping people find their lost pets being an animal-lover himself and due to his experience on the police force. Often, helping someone with their pet helped build a connection, and it was much easier to assist them in other matters.
Molly has outstanding olfactory senses and also a determined spirit. The book chronicles their first year together helping to rescue lost cats and reunite them with their owners.
A sweet story that will definitely be a favorite for the pet lovers out there!
Thank you to Celadon Books for my copy. Opinions are my own.
I received this ARC from Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Netgalley.com, to Celadon Books, and to Colin Butcher for this opportunity.
3.5 Stars
This was a fun read about how Molly came to be a scent dog trained specifically to find lost cats. We learn about Colin's struggles and his successes in following his dream of having a pet detective agency. We hear about some of Molly's most exciting cases and meet some amazing pets and pet owners. Overall, this was a sweet read. I recommend it for dog and cat lovers.
This is an interesting book, that will certainly be very popular with both cat and dog lovers, it is
true story of a remarkable dog who rescues cats, an uplifting story of a how a man and dog team form a Detective Agency.
As a veteran of the Royal Navy and longtime police officer, Colin Butcher was no stranger to dangerous situations. But a career in uniform can wear anyone down, so, in 2003, Colin left the force to start his own private detective agency, specializing in helping reunite people with their missing pets. And yet, despite his hundreds of successes, there were still heartbreaking cases where Colin couldn’t find the missing on his own. He knew he needed a partner.
Molly was the perfect partner to Colin in his business. However, she has become more than a business partner, as the black cocker spaniel has wormed her way into his and his family’s life and hearts. They are a wonderful team together, which is one good reason they have such success in their searches. I had not thought of a pet detective agency before reading this, but, with how important pets have become in our lives today, I can easily understand how the agency would be the resounding success it is.
I was really impressed by the thought, research, and training Colin put into this book. Of course, Molly and the lost cats stole my heart away. I think every person who has ever owned and loved a pet dog or cat will certainly love this book. It a definite must-read for them.
I have never heard whether such an organization exists in other countries, but, after reading this, I will be looking for more information. I would like to thank NetGalley for the opportunity of being able to read and review this interesting book..
It is amazing how dogs can track scents (in this case of lost cats)! Although I've previously read about SAR (Search and Rescue) dogs and how they are trained, I'd never heard about canine skills being used to rescue lost cats. This is a great idea. I think older students who love animals will enjoy this book, too.
Sweet story! I think having an agency that actually looks for lost cats (dogs, too?) is a great idea! Colin and Molly are a great team. Both needed something to important to do as work and they found each other. we need a service like this in the states. I like that Molly can locate and rescue lost cats and get them returned to their families. I know cat and dog lovers will enjoy this book, but I am sure it would please any animal lover!
I loved this story. I'm a cat owner and also grew up with dogs as pets my whole life, so this book was a perfect blend of both. My favorite parts were obviously the actual cases of searching for and finding lost cats, despite some outcomes not always being happy. How dogs are trained for scent recognition is fascinating, and I could feel Colin's genuine love for these animals, which I completely related to. Cons: The beginning did feel a bit long though, and wish some of the chapters were shorter. His girlfriend, Sarah, really annoyed me with her rude comments about Molly, but I'm glad she warmed up to her eventually. Overall an adorable story and I loved it!
Molly by Colin Butcher is a cute memoir that is appropriate for any animal lover. Butcher does a wonderful job telling their story with the ups and downs, the difficulties of finding the right working dog, the challenges of training a dog for a specific job, and what it is like to live with a dog that is both your pet as well as your coworker. While there are a couple rather sad endings to his searches, Butcher still does a great job showing what he and Molly learned from them and how they still brought closure to their clients. This book is a great view into the dog working world, even if it is a not as popular dog job as some others.
Molly is the true story of a dog that helps find cats! Along with her owner Colin Butcher, they form The United Kingdom Pet Detective Agency.
Colin was a police officer who decided to retire and open his own agency to help people find their missing pets.
He had a lot of success reuniting owners with their animals, but he still brooded about the failures.
He began to have a vision of scent training a dog to help him. He researched what breeds were most suitable and decided on a cocker spaniel. But he wanted it to be a rescue dog, a passion of his from a young age.
Eventually he found Molly, and the Center for Medical Detection Dogs agreed to help train her. His dream finally became a reality.
Molly and Colin have made an incredible team recovering lost pets, especially cats.
The book follows their cases through happy reunions and heart rending disappointments.
This was a well written, charming and delightful book. A perfect read for animal lovers.
Thank you to Celadon Books for the e-ARC via NetGalley.
This is a fascinating story about Molly, an unusual dog who works with a pet detective to find missing cats. After author had a long history in the Royal Navy and as a police officer, the author was no stranger to figuring out what happened when someone went missing. After starting a detective agency to find lost pets for clients, he moved into the specialized area of finding lost cats. When he first saw Molly, the dog he decided would help him in his endeavors, friends thought he was making a mistake. Yes, she was young, inexperienced, strong willed and stubborn. Colin saw this, but he also saw a keen intelligence as well as a certain charisma. Molly was trained by top canine training experts to find lost cats, using the cat’s unique scent signature. Colin describes in detail how he started his pet detective agency, how he moved in the specialty of finding lost cats, the training he and his team (to include Molly) went through to become effective, as well as providing several anecdotes of events that have occurred during his many searches.
This is an interesting book. It is probably going to be a must-read for both cat and dog lovers. Molly was the perfect partner to Colin in his business. However, she has become more than a business partner, as the black cocker spaniel has wormed her way into his and his family’s life and hearts. They are a wonderful team together, which is one good reason they have such success in their searches. I had not thought of a pet detective agency before reading this, but, with how important pets have become in our lives today, I can easily understand how the agency would be the resounding success it is. I was impressed by the research, thought and training Colin put into this effort. Of course, Molly and well as the lost cats stole my heart away. I think every person who has ever owned and/or loved a per dog or cat will love this book. It a definite must-read for them. Not sure if such an organization exists in many places, but, after reading this, I will be looking for more information. I received this from NetGalley to read and review.
From early childhood, we are taught that felines and canines never ever mix. Well, in the UK, the "star" of UK Pet Detectives, an adorable cocker spaniel named Molly, proves the exception to the rule. Along with her handler Colin Butcher , formerly in the Royal Navy and a long-time police officer, Molly has participated in over 100 searches with a high success rate.
Thanks to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the advanced copy of Molly in exchange for my honest opinion.
I requested this book because I am an avid dog and cat lover...put the two together and it has to be a great story right? Honestly, I didn't even read to see what it was about. The title and the picture grabbed me right away. Once I started to read, I was really happy I requested it. I had never heard of the UKPD agency and didn't really knew anything like it existed. Author Colin Butcher was a detective in his previous career and had come to know that cocker spaniels were often used as sniffer dogs in some of the drug cases. I didn't know that either...I always thought German shepherds were used for police cases because it seems like that is all you ever see. Colin starts his own detective agency with Molly, a rescue dog (which was very important to the author) who is trained to sniff out lost cats. I had never even given a thought to dogs being able to find lost cats but I think it is a great idea. I can see it happening through luck but this dog repeatedly has success after success. There were even a couple of cases where she found other dogs. What a great idea!! People probably have no clue just how many dogs and cats go missing on a daily basis...at least I didn't until I started volunteering at an animal shelter and monitoring their social media pages. I think we need agencies like this around the world.
This was an easy to get into book and a fast read. I would totally recommend it to any animal lover out there.
There are dog people and there are cat people. This book will give both groups a new appreciation for each other. Molly is an amazing dog and she helps find cats. The best of both worlds. Colin Butcher gives us the background on the birth of this idea to develop the cat-finding division of his pet detective agency. After extensive research on the habits of cats, he determines the best breed for the job. Then he patiently searches for a rescue dog to fill the position. I love that! Also included are stories about Molly and her work with Colin. It fits the feel good button for pet lovers and I wish Molly continued success in her efforts.
Thank you to Celadon books and NetGalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Great Memoir About A British Search Dog
Molly is a Cocker Spaniel rescue dog who has a real aptitude for finding lost animals. The book is filled with wonderful tales, happy endings and not so happy endings. As expected, the book is very British which slows the reading down considerably.
It is quite interesting to get inside the action of training and working a scent/search dog. Animal lovers are sure to enjoy this book, I know that I did. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.
A profoundly touching, life-reaffirming tale of a very special dog and her very special human. Yep, I even got misty-eyed here and there. In today's rough world, it's a wonderful thing to remember that there IS beauty still left to enjoy. I recommend this book for anyone who needs a spiritual and emotional uplift.
*My sincere thanks to NetGalley and this book's publisher for making this book available to me, at no cost, in exchange for an honest review."
Colin Butcher’s memoir about how he became a pet detective is interesting, entertaining, and informative. I was intrigued reading about the selection and training of his canine partner, Molly, and enjoyed reading about some of their many cases finding missing pets. I appreciated all of the detail regarding how Colin and Molly work, and I think this knowledge could be useful for any pet owner in the event a pet goes missing.
Note that this is written in the British vernacular, and Americans may be unfamiliar with some expressions.
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys animal stories or is curious about how a pet detective works. The audiobook, narrated by the author, would also be a great listen when you want something light and entertaining.
Celadon Books provided me with an ARC through NetGalley that I volunteered to review.
This was a heartwarming story about the difference one man and his dedicated dog could make for so many distraught cat owners. I enjoyed learning about how Colin trained Molly and created his pet detective agency. He showed his process for detecting and using Molly to brilliantly track down cats who are notoriously hard to find. This story will appeal to all pet lovers, as an owner of a dog and a cat, I love knowing that people like Colin are out there helping lost cats.
Colin was in the navy and is a former police officer. He decided to start The Pet Detectives, a private detective agency with a focus on finding missing pets. He decided adding a dog to his agency would help so he started searching for one. After doing a lot of research, he was looking for a cocker spaniel and wanted it to be a rescue. Puppy Molly was found and spent many months being trained with Medical Detection Dogs. Not only did Molly become his colleague but she also was his pet and companion. Together they hired themselves out to find missing pets ... sometimes they were successful in finding the pet and sometimes not.
I love reading books about animals. I liked the writing style and found the book interesting. It's good that Colin is of service to many and it's obvious he loves animals. You can tell, though, it's written by an English author because there were so many expressions that were unfamiliar to me ... like moggy, nineteen to a dozen, bolshie, crack on, etc. and he kept calling his dog "missus".
It seems like a lot of pet owners in Colin's area let their cats outside. I have two cats and they don't ever go outside. Maybe if cat owners didn't let their cats outside, they wouldn't run off and disappear and they wouldn't need Colin's services.
I wasn't crazy about Sarah, Colin's girlfriend, at first. She wasn't a dog lover and seemed to have no tolerance for Molly. But it didn't seem like Colin really consulted her in bringing Molly into the household. It was nice to see her mellow and bond with Molly in the end.
I will leave a review on Amazon on Oct 8, 2019
I received an ARC of Molly from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my fair and honest review.
This is a new author for me, and for me normally you can never go wrong when the book contains dogs. Having said that I found the book to be very well written, and a entertaining read, just one that I never got attached too. I know it had many 5 star reviews, but I also know not every book touches every reader in the same way. Overall it was a good read, just not one that I truly enjoyed. I would same if you enjoy dogs or other animals in your story that you very well may enjoy this book.
This book was a joy to read!! If you love reading about cats and dogs, grab this book. It is a heartwarming story about lost cats being reunited with their owners thanks to Molly and Colin. Thank you Celadon Books via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this wonderful book. All opinions expressed are my own.