[.ca] Illustrated Guide to 140 Dog Breeds (ISBN 0764113402)

VERY COLORFUL PICS:
The pictures are nice, and the quality of the dogs presented there is great, AND THERE IS MY FAVORITE BREED IN IT!!! If you read my other reviews, you know what my favorite breed is... COCKER SPANIEL!!! Cockers are great, and it's true a million times the stuff written about them there. And I also find other breeds interesting. But there are some important breeds missing, like, the Sussex Spaniel, Brittany, Welsh Springer Spaniel, American Water Spaniel, and Tibetan Mastiff. But it's still great.

PRETTY PICTURES-- HORRIBLE MISINFORMATION:
I have worked for many years in greyhound rescue so I naturally turned to the greyhound entry of this book first. I was absolutely struck dumb to find the book claiming that retired racers need frequent 13 MILE runs next to a horse or bike! This is total insanity. In truth, there is not a racer alive who is able or who desires to walk more than 1 or 2 miles a couple of times a week at most. These guys are SPRINTERS NOT MARATHONERS. Where on earth did the authors get this information? A quick check into any greyhound book or a call to any adoption agency would have set them straight instantly regarding greyhounds' very low exercise requirements-- they are truly couch potatoes. What is most upsetting is that these "facts" could scare off potential adopters. If the rest of the entires are as accurate as this one then this entire book is worse than useless.

More research needed ...:
Pretty book, but sadly coloured by personal beliefs which are out of place here, and badly researched in at least one area - the one I always turn to first: my favourite breed. There is gross misrepresentation in the Greyhound section, which would put many people off owning one of these lovely dogs. Having kept greyhounds for ten years, I can tell you these dogs are NOT long distance runners - they're bred for sprinting. Running beside a bike/horse would be quite inappropriate for most greyhounds, particularly ex-racers who may have old racing injuries. They are sensitive to both heat and cold, too, which may cause further distress on long runs. My dogs get a long walk of between one and one-and-a-half miles a day plus a short 15 minute lead walk and they are pretty tired after that. Most greyhound rescues/adoption agencies recommend two twenty minute walks a day. Also, it is misleading to say their coat requires no attention. All dog coats require attention and the greyhound is no exception. And far from being unsuitable for city living, the greyhound is one large breed that can be a good apartment dog because of its 'couch potato' character. To find such inaccuracy in one section rather puts me off using this book as a reliable guide in other areas.

Excellent Dog Book, Though Incomplete for U.S. Readers:
Very useful book for learning about the personality traits of different dogs. Includes easy to use tables showing grooming needs, exercise requirements, and suitability for apartment life. Also notes whether the breed is suitable for first time owners or is better for experienced owners. Prospective buyers should be aware that the book is a translation of a text originally published in Germany. Many of the breeds profiled are German breeds, presumably popular in their country of origin, but little known in the U.S. (And because so many German breeds are covered, many AKC breeds are omitted.)

Delightful, informative, useful:
Miss Von Der Leyen makes the personalities of dogs as clear as Dicken's characters. Half-psychologist, half-stubborn observer, she sees dogs in a clear-eyed, no-nonsense manner, that never loses its loving appreciation of each breeds peculiarities. Her charts about ease of care are a very useful antidote to impulsive ownership, giving clear eyed and objective data about how suitable each dog is for the owner's life-style. Her writing is breezy and humorous. I loved the book.