Customer Reviews

Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A wonderful book! One of the best dog books I've ever seen!! There are beautiful photos of each breed, and there are over 150 AKC recongnized breeds in the book! The author could have added more breeds, but the book only includes AKC breeds, so doing so would have been giving false info. There are two pages for each breed, so plenty of information is givin. There is a chart for each breed which includes Playfulness, Affection level, Cold tolerance, etc. Sections of the text are History, Temperment, Upkeep, Health and Form & Function. You can learn a lot just by reading a few pages in this book! The pictures show the dogs in all different positions, not just in show position, and in a variety of the breed's colors. The backgrounds resemble the dog's function (ex. Belgian Tervuren has a background that includes sheep) This is a great book! 5 stars!

If you are a dog person this is the book for you. It includes all of the important major and minor details and my favorite part is that it tells you the diseases and warnings for each breed. Thanks for making this book Barron. Your the best!!!

I picked this up at my university bookstore. I was pretty impressed on how much emphasis was placed on every single breed. Not only does this book include dog breed origins, but also its energy level, exercise requirements, playfulness, affection level, friendliness, trainability, grooming requirements, and much more. I would easily pay close to $50 for such an informative book. This book was VERY affordable, especially for what it had to offer. This book helped me to select a breed that suits my lifestyle. I recommend this book especially to potential dog owners who would like to get a thorough description of various dog breeds.

When I first reviewed this book in May 2001, I gave it 4 stars ... But 8 months down and several other Breed Type books later, I think this book rates 5 STARS ... It's a very good book ...

Its binding and quality (hardcover version) are excellent, the book has stood up to much handling and use, still looks like new. The book is seldom on the shelf and is constantly picked up, looked at, referred to - by friends, visitors and us.

328 pages of useful information, generally good photographs, with illustrations, the book is great value for money.
It's has proven to be a great reference source. (a) It's well printed, easy on the eyes. (b) Information sensibly set out under categories of History, Temperament, Upkeep, Health (including life span), Form & Function. The information provided is detailed enough for most purposes. (c) Provides effective quick reference boxes, setting out basic breed characteristics such as height/weight, energy level, exercise requirements, affection level, watchdog ability, protection ability, ease of training etc ... with sketch illustration of the breed standard.

The design of the book is just so well balanced, allowing for quick reference and well as encouraging detailed reading.
Just as important, we find the information to be reasonably accurate and correct.

Although we have found other books that cover more breeds (this books only covers 150 breeds), the wonderful design and information provided by this book more than compensates for that relatively minor lacking.

Maybe the next edition will include more breeds ... *fingers crossed* ...

I have tried and tried to find a realistic text to help me bring in a new large breed dog to my canine family when my Kuvasz passes. I use the Irish Wolf Hound as my guideline to see if an author tells the often unpalatable whole scenario. And this book does. The lavish pictures are a joy to behold but I am NOT unwittingly beguiled into adding a family member that statistically will pass on in 5 to 7 years, such as I know to be the case with the splendid Wolfhound. Other authors, whether through ignorance, lack of research or just plain not caring about the impact of lifespan on an uninitiated I.W. first time purchaser, routinely claim 11 years an I.W. lifespan. This book allows ME to decide based on CORRECT information for the breeds.I also like the distinction between watchdog and protection factors, one often blurred by other authors. HUZZAH!

I adore this book! I am a total dog nerd, and am always thirsting after the most complete and informative guide to selecting the breed for you, and this book is it!!! I feel so strongly about this book that I have even bought it for or lent it to family and friends that are contemplating owning any kind of dog. The pictures are lovely, the history is interesting, but the most important part of this book is the rating key that the author has included. It rates each AKC registered breed on a scale of 1 to 5 on maintenance, health, pet/human compatibility, and several other need to know categories. It shows each breed's popularity in the US by ranking it on how many new dog ownerships were registered when the author was compiling this book before it's publication in 1997. It also gives a health synopsis that tells you what to expect in terms of health problems and life expectancy. I have bought and read several similar books since purchasing this one, but every one of them has been a GREAT disappointment by comparison. After you own this book, you'll never need another dog breed encyclopedia or dictionary. If only the author would create an addendum every 5 years or so to cover new breeds!

This is the best book I have ever had on dogs. It gives a brief but very informative description of many different breeds. I loan this book to everyone I know that is thinking about getting a dog. It sums up all the basics and has good photos of the breeds.

In addition to this being a wonderful tome for the coffee table with its numerous color photographs, Baron's Encyclopedia is filled with useful information for the prospective owner trying to decide on a breed. There are paragraphs on temperament and health concerns (excluding cancer), but the most immediately useful feature is the five-point rating of characteristics such as trainability, affection, watchdog ability, grooming issues, etc. Dog lovers will want to own this book.

This encyclopedia is better than ten other books combined. A great book for dog lovers. GORGEOUS PHOTOS!! Arlene Millman, author of BOOMERANG - A MIRACLE TRILOGY (The tale of a remarkable Boston Terrier).

I have searched around book stores and read many different dog books, and I have found this one to be the all-around best choice. It gives ratings on several different qualities, (how much grooming it needs, energy level, etc.) and provides much more information, and it also has a lot of pictures for each breed of dog. I highly recommend this book!