Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds
Reviews (168)
A great book for the children
As librarian in a Pre-K through 8th grade school library, I am occasionally asked by students to buy certain kinds of books. The number one request this year was a dog breed book, not a book about dogs, but specifically dog breeds. I looked at all the books available on Amazon and discovered that "Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds" best met our needs. From the time the book was processed and checked out to the boy who requested it, the waiting list remained steady. Once checked out, the book was relinquished only because of threats by the Library Dragon. All of the preceding paragraph is background to say how valuable this book is and how much students love it. If you or your family are ready to obtain a dog, this book certainly will provide you with information in making good choices. The first chapter begins with the Dog Family and moves to the Family Dog, asks how good the breed is with children , and how to use the Breed Profiles. Then most of the book is taken by the specifics of the various breeds of dogs. Divided into classes, dogs belong to the sporting group, hounds, working dogs, terriers, toys, non-sporting group, and herders. When a book contains over 150 breeds of dogs, the viewer will see almost infinite varieties of some breeds. For example, American Staffordshire Terrier and the Bull Terrier resemble each other. Do you know the Glen of Imaal Terrier? Or the Kerry Blue Terrier or Irish Terrier, Lakeland Terrier? The Manchester Terrier looks like a small Doberman Pinscher. The Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier is one of those with long hair covering his eyes. He's from Ireland. The Working Group are "those dogs that put their bravery or brawn into the service of humans." They can be guard dogs, protectors, sled dogs, cart dogs, and rescue dogs. They are known for their intelligence and hardiness (105). Each breed gets a two-page spread. Here's the Komondor, the large dog that has cord-like tassels for fur. The breed originated in Hungary, where it is still plentiful. It was used as a sheep herder and is being bred for that use in the United States now. However, because of its cords, it must live in a cool climate. Its positive qualities are affection, friendliness, good watchdog, and a great protector. Its negative qualities are its unfriendliness toward other dogs and strangers, and low heat tolerance. Each two-page spread contains sub-articles on history of the breed, temperament, upkeep, health, form and function, At a Glance chart, an illustration showing the standards of the breed, plus a posed, competition-like photograph and a close-up showing the nature of the dog. The last section of the book contains a glossary of medical conditions, illustrations of dog anatomy, and an index. This is a book to sit down with and spend an hour at a time, just browsing the interesting articles, looking at photographs, and picking up useful information for now or later concerning dog breeds. "Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds" is simply a great book to have!
Great
I had an older edition of this book and because I looked at it so often, it began to wear. I ordered this one and was pleased to find everything in the same format. The dogs are categorized by breed and group, but once you find the breed you're looking for, its great to have full color pictures. Each page offers a background of the breed, as well as comparisons on behavior, size, grooming, etc. I think this book is wonderful, I use it often to determine health expectations for dogs and what to look out for. I highly recommend anyone in the market for a new friend to use this book as a tool in deciding the best pooch for you and how it will fit into your lifestyle, as well as to gain advice for long-term care. The ONLY drawback to the book is that it only contains AKC registered breeds, and there are several other familiar breeds not recognized by the AKC. It also does not offer "designer" breeds, i.e. Labordoodle, however, by looking at each breed in the mix individually you can gain a pretty good idea of how one of these mixes would be.
Good breed information, but lacking in presentation
I have an older version of The Encyclopedia of the Dog by Bruce Fogle, and here's how they compare: Dr. Fogle's book has many more breeds, but one complaint I heard was that the information it provided on the breeds was not always accurate (I can't verify this, I'm not a vet). This book here by Dr. Coile is supposedly very accurate, but has fewer breeds (only the AKC it seems); however, I knew that before I bought it so I can't complain. Very few people own or can obtain non-AKC breeds, so reading about them would just be for pleasure for most people. That said, Dr. Coile provides more information for each breed, giving 5-scale ratings for 13 different characteristics (tempermant, grooming, heat/cold tolerance, exercise needs, etc), health concerns, breed history, etc. However, the pictures they provide aren't nearly as professional looking as the ones in Dr. Fogle's book, if that matters to you. Also, the binding is cheaper in this book. One important difference, though, is that this book contains no other information aside of about the breeds. Dr. Fogle's book, in contrast, provides the history and use of types of breeds (such as hounds, herding dogs, hunting dogs, etc, not just a particular breed), anatomy, evolution, care, training, etc. Dr. Coile provides none of that. So, if you just want a book to help you pick out an AKC breed and need accurate, more detailed breed information then this book is the better choice; but for general interest and pleasure, Dr. Fogle's book is better.
5 year old loves this!
Promised my daughter a dog... But said we'd have to research it thoroughly first, to make sure everyone in the family is on board, including a mom who remembers sweeping/vacuuming after my previous shepherd/husky mix, and a bird we've acquired since then. She's been slowly reading through it... She doesn't like reading the bigger blocks of text, but enjoys the summary/breakdown charts, and is happy to share which breeds shed less to mom, or need less attention/exercise, etc. There are a lot of pictures, but it's also VERY even-handed... She also likes trying to recognize the breeds she's read about on the street, and runs home to try and figure out the unfamiliar ones some days. No breed gets more attention/pagecount than the rest, so once she's narrowed in on a specific dog she wants, we'll probably get a second book specific to that breed/group to confirm/assist in training/etc.
Excellent guide when choosing a breed
When my daughter wanted to get a puppy I bought her this book and asked her to read it and find a breed that would work for us. A decade later I still enjoy perusing the book for its concise, accurate, descriptions of the breeds.
Perfect! Very Detailed!
I owned this book as a child and I loved reading it for hours. At some point, we must have lost and I wasn't reminded until recently now that I've graduated from college and living with my boyfriend. We contemplated pets and this book came to mind. It's PERFECT. It's very detailed and cohesive. It's not overly wordy. It tells you exactly what you need to when considering what breed of dog to get - temperament, major and minor health issues for each breed, their origin, how much exercise they need, how well behaved they are with children, other animals, and strangers! All on a quantified scale. It's really one of the most detailed and comprehensive book on dog breeds. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone.
beginners guide to breeds
i'm a long time cat owner who's recently become interested in dogs. i know nothing beyond the behavior of my friends' pets, and didn't know what to attribute to training vs. characteristics of the breed. This book is very helpful for newbies who want to learn various characteristics to look for in a breed, and what to expect in general. the needs of the animal are presented as paramount, which i appreciate. For example, each breed is identified by how much exercise they need, how much they bark, and how affectionate they are. As an apartment dweller, it helped me eliminate many breeds using useful criteria, rather than availability and cuteness, which seems to be a common default among first time owners i've met.
For dog lovers
I bought this for a friend who is a dog sitter and she loves it! Nothing she likes better than dogs, she liked all the pictures. I got to read some too and I like how they rate each breed for friendliness, gets along with people and other dogs, trainability, watchdog ability, energy level. It also gives suggestions as to what home situation would best suit each breed. A fun book. My only disappointment was the condition of the book itself. The ad said "Very Good" condition, it was a lot messier than that, not so good for a gift.
Best loved book in our houses
My 3 girls have been reading this book weekly for the past 5 years. It surprises me how much they still love it. They’ve memorized so many facts about the breeds., and they use it in planning their someday farm. It’s one of the most loved books in our house. If you have a little animal lover, this is a great gift.
Fabulous Used Book!
I bought a used copy that was a wonderful price and condition! It had minor damage to the spine, which I was already told about. Love that I was able to save money and get a newer looking copy than mine that my puppies chewed up years ago! Will buy from seller again.
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