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Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds
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ASIN:
0764150979
Avg Rating
[3.5 Stars]
2 Reviews
Pub. 18-Dec-1998;
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£17.99
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Authors/Performers
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D. Caroline Coile;
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We bought this book to help us decide which breed would be best suited to us, and it was very helpful in that regard. It provides a two-page spread on each dog, discussing history, temperament, exercise requirements, health concerns, two photos, and a diagram pointing out aspects of breed physique (conformation). Finally, there is a chart that awards points from 1 to 5 according to how much a dog demonstrates, or lacks, a particular quality. The structure of the book is thus very sound.
However, I do have criticisms of the book, First, the ratings chart, awarding points for sociability, cold tolerance, trainability, and so on, does not always seem to match the written description of temperament or exercise requirements. This sense of disjunction is reinforced for me by my own knowledge (gained since choosing a Boxer last year) of specific breeds, since I often find myself agreeing with the written statement but quibbling with the number rating: I just don't think, based on my experience and other reading, that those numbers are especially reliable. To name one instance that I'm very familiar with, I think that Boxers are actually friendlier to strangers and other dogs than the number rating would suggest: it gives a 3 rating, where I would make it at least a 4 (and I live in a neighbourhood bursting at the seams with dogs, including several Boxers). Similarly, the Boxer rating for 'watchdog ability' is a 3, but I wonder why: my dog knows when a delivery has been put by the door, or when anyone approaches, or even when the local cats are across the street. If there is a degree of watchfulness greater than this, such that a 3 is merely average and 5 is extreme, how so? Being more of a barker doesn't seem to me sufficient to up a dog's score, and this could all be misleading to someone trying to make decisions on the basis of the ratings. Most people that want a watchful dog would be well pleased with a Boxer, but the rating suggests instead that they are just OK in that department. Again, suspiciousness by itself is not the same as watchfulness---and if that's a factor, perhaps it should have its own rating! But again, whether you agree with the specific ratings or not, they themselves don't seem to agree completely with the text.
Another flaw is that, while each breed has two photos to represent it, some breeds are represented by only one individual. Going back to the Boxer again as my example, only a fawn Boxer is shown--apparently the same dog. It would have been more helpful to have a second photo of a brindle coat (dark streaks) and/or different white markings (flashing). Further, many dog owners these days prefer Boxers with uncropped ears, but only cropped ears are shown, even in the diagram. That is just a refusal to show the dog as most non-show people see it! But the problem is not just with Boxers; several other breeds I think are not represented with sufficient variety of photographs.
In sum, this is a good book but it is far from being the best, and leaves much scope for competitors in a popular subject.;
[Rating: 3 Stars]
This book is a fine addition to a person's dob book collection. Easy to read charts on exercise, grooming, sociability etc are very useful and a quick way to narrow down the list of suitable breeds. The book covers all AKC breeds, which is not all that much. There are plenty of dog breeds outside AKC, several of which are popular and should in my opinion also be introduced. But except for this limitation the book in question is indeed a good one for anyone trying to figure out the ideal breed for themselves, for it offers plenty of the crucial information on temperament traits. Yet I would say that this book is not enough just by itself, but a buyer should consult other books as well to find more information on breeds - and to get to know plenty of the other breeds that FCI recognises, but AKC doesn't. Then again this goes for all books, no one book is enough when trying to find the ideal breed - no, a person should have the minimum of two, preferrably even three of four breed books, but this book is definately a good one to have as one of those books.;
[Rating: 4 Stars]
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