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Location: Home > Dog Books > Breeds > Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds

Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds

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Author: D. Caroline Coile Ph.d.
Publisher: Barron''s Educational Series
Category: Book

List Price: ~~$29.99~~
Buy New: $9.14
You Save: $20.85 (70%)

New (33) Used (19) from $9.14

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

52 reviews
Sales Rank: 20821

Media: Hardcover
Edition: 2
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 368
Shipping Weight (lbs): 4.1
Dimensions (in): 11.3 x 9.5 x 1.2

ISBN: 0764157000
Dewey Decimal Number: 636.7103
EAN: 9780764157004
ASIN: 0764157000

Publication Date: April 1, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 1-5 of 52

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The Ideal Resource Book August 2, 2008
This is a fantastic resource book on different breeds of dog. The descriptions are thorough, easy to read and are accompanied by color photos. Dogs are rated on energy level, exercise requirements, playfulness, affection level, friendliness towards dogs/other pets/strangers, ease of training, watchdog ability, protection ability, grooming requirements and tolerance toward cold and heat. I was able to really determine the best dog for my family using measures I hadn't even thought of! This book is the one for you if you are trying to decide the best purebred dog for your family and lifestyle. Check out "Hot Dogs" for excellent info on some of the newer mixed breeds.

5 out of 5 stars

A great book for the children July 20, 2008
21 out of 58 found this review helpful

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!

Note: Oh my, the powers that be allow this many no-votes for an encyclopedia of dog breeds? What next? Cyber stalking?

4 out of 5 stars

A great resource April 16, 2008
I found this to be very helpful as my family was searching for a new puppy. We were able to see and learn about breeds we had never even heard of.

5 out of 5 stars

EXCELLENT!!!!!!!!! April 6, 2008
IS THE BEST COMPLEMENT FOR PEOPLE LIKE ME, THAT NEED TO REMEMBER SEEING COLOR. IF YOU HAVE THE AKC BOOK AND NEED TO STUDY, THIS ONE IS A MUST TO ADD IN YOUR LIBRARY.

3 out of 5 stars

a question of clarity, accuracy, and visual completeness March 27, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

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 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. 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 and other dogs 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! 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.

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