4 comments about A New Owner's Guide to Boston Terriers.

1. This book seemed to be more about the author and his acquaintances rather than about the dog itself. I was hoping there would be a lot more meat: sources other than the author's opining and the penchant towards show dogs. I was looking for a functional manual on living with, training and caring for a Boston. What I got instead was a testament to the breed and pictorials of various show dogs and what seemed to be the author's friend's dogs. This book was a fair treatment of the breed but not at all what I would recommend for a practical "owner's guide."



2. As a cat owner who is looking into getting one of these wonderful dogs, I have found the information in this book to be excellent - much above the rest (I think I own every book about Bostons). Not only does the book discuss how to pick out an appropriate Boston, it also discusses the good and bad characteristics of the Boston Terrier. I found the section on raising a puppy to be a wonderful resource, considering raising kittens is a much, much different experience. I would suggest this book to anyone who is considering adding a Boston Terrier to their family.



3. A very good book. It contained a lot of useful information, that I was unaware of. The time spent reading this book was well worth it, especially when you consider the time I saved by following the advise and tips it contains. I recommend it highly.



4. Bostons are alert, intelligent little dogs. This book gives an excellent overview of the history, care and training of Boston bulls. These hardy little dogs are known for their high level of energy.

   The authors, to their credit include a section on the special care of pregnant Boston bulls. More often than not, Bostons have to have their puppies delivered by C-section because the puppies' heads are too large for the dog to have a natural delivery. Special attention has been given to this aspect of Boston bull care.

   This book is worth having for people who own or love a Boston bull.

5 comments about Sparky Fights Back : A Little Dog's Big Battle Against Cancer.

1. I thought the book was excellent and provided great insight into the emotional ups and downs when caring for and treating a pet who has been diagnosed with cancer. It also provided invalueable assistance regarding treatment and options for treatments.



2. "Sparky Fights Back" was an award finalist (one of six nominees) in the annual Dog Writers Association of America (DWAA) writing competition held in 2006. The nomination was for best "General Interest" book, a highly competitive category.
   
   The authors were honored to be selected by fellow writers in this prestigious competition.



3. i thought the book was just ok.it really bothered me to feel that the authors felt the need to almost apologize for going to what they thought was great lengthsto help sparky. i dont mean to imply that they dont deserve credit for all that they have done..it is just that i think this should be a given for dog lovers. i have 2 dogs fighting cancer..one has bladder cancer and 3 months after that diagnosis another was digonsed with lymphoma. i thought i would gain more insight regarding the specifics of the treatment and supplements...i was less interested in the personal anecdotes regarding sparkys life although they were cute..i just wanted more information. i thought the better book out there was helping your dog with cancer...a story about a siberian husky with lymphoma...a lot of technical information that helped me make my decision regarding treatment. on the whole i found the book to be too generic and insulting to dog lovers who shouldnt feel the need to apologize for treating their lovable dog with everything possible.



4. I have a cat with cancer, not a dog, but there isn't much info out there about cats and cancer (and taking my cat to the oncologist, we have yet to share the waiting room with any other cats...just dogs) so I have been reading books like this and "Preventing and Treating Cancer in Dogs", to supplement the reading I can find that actually refers to cats.
   
   Sparky's story is very inspirational. The only other person I know who had cats with cancer...well...the cats died about four months after diagnoses, which didn't leave me feeling very hopeful. Reading this book was like having a friendly aquaintance tell you their positive story, which makes a nice change from what I usually get when people find out my cat has cancer...they get really quiet and act like she's basically dead already.
   
   This book is well written and is an easy and enjoyable read that caused me to tear up a few times. It reminded me that it's worth fighting for my cat rather than just giving up, and it also pointed out to me that, although many people I know think spending many thousands of dollars trying to save a pet is crazy...there are plenty of other crazy people like me out there that would do the exact same thing.
   
   The book was not really useful in terms of knowing what I was going to have to do with my cat...I thought it might be a sort of guide showing me the steps her treatment would follow, but it's probably a very bad idea to use this book that way because there are so many kinds of cancers and there are new research and protocols being developed all the time. My cat's treatment plan includes chemo and radiation and all that, but in a different order and it all seems very different. She also won't usually eat or drink on her own (she has a tumor in her nasal cavity, above her soft pallete and she can't smell anything or breath through her nose most of the time) and has to be force fed a few times a day and has had to have subcutaneous fluids a few times. She also sneezes out blood and mucus sometimes...really gross and scary. I'm glad Sparky never went through anything like that, but I wish more people would share their story like Sparky's owners did...maybe some cat owners, or at least some dog owners that had some different experiences. I'm sure there will be books like that eventually, and I do hope they are as well written as this one.



5. This wonderful book is a joyous read! My own dogs, now gone almost twenty-five years, were constantly in my thoughts (and, not a few tears) as I read about the authors' love for their Sparky and the courageous and intelligent approach they used to help him regain his health after a diagnosis of cancer. Every reader of this inspiring book will surely recognize the absolute honesty of the authors' story. Dog lovers will immediately feel validation of the love they feel for their own "best friends" and people who have faced profound medical challenges will be strengthened in their resolve to actively participate in their own care, seek out skilled professionals and seek to beat the odds. Most of all, those people fond of love stories will find love on every page of "Sparky Fights Back" -- the love of a trusting animal, the love shown by medical professionals who seek to treat and cure animals, the love of a community of friends and neighbors who shared in and gave support to the idea that the life of one small dog could be saved. I finished the book with renewed hope from Sparky's example, that we too can face our own challenges with new vigor, take great joy in small things and find our own way to undiminished dignity no matter the difficulty of the battle to be fought.

2 comments about The Simple Guide to Showing Your Dog (Simple Guide to...).

1. Excellent way for beginners to know how to dress, what to do and learn the best way to start showing your dog.



2. This is a good book for the novice dog person. it will really help you understand how a dog show works. it does not discuss training which is what i was hoping for when i bought it. it is still a great book to own.

No comments about The Life Cycle of a Wolf (The Life Cycle).

3 comments about Puppy Parenting: Everything You Need to Know About Your Puppy's First Year.

1. This book was not in very good shape. I was chewed on which was okay I knew that but it has a lot of markings and highlights in it. I was disapointed.



2. How many times Ive picked up a book about dogs to read, and by the third chapter got bored.......not with this book! I find it charming, funny, USEFUL, and so entertaining! Im not looking for gossip about Movie Stars, I leave that to The GOSSIP Magazines. My interest is in Puppies, and they have more than satisfied that issue. Good luck to you guys, keep up the good work!!!



3. Jan Greye and Jesse Smith, who are professional dog sitters, have written a delightful book that manages to be full of useful information--things such as which breeds will run up your vet bill and how to get a puppy to take a pill--and is at the same time a joy to read. Lots of very funny anecdotal stuff about their experiences with their doggie clients and the dogs' owners. A nice departure from all those dry, encyclopedic how-to-raise-your-puppy-from-A-to-Z volumes.

1 comments about Mastiffs (KW Dog).

1. This may be a good book for someone that knows nothing about the breed and doesn't want to make much of a financial investment to learn some of the basics in order to determine if they want to pursue it further. It appears to me that the first section of the book is the only part directly related to mastiffs. I could be wrong, but after the first section every comment focuses on "your new puppy" and doesn't specify the breed. It tells you general health concerns that a new "parent" should be aware of no matter what breed the puppy is. A much better book (in my opinion)that is in the same price range would be "Mastiffs: A Complete Pet Owner's Manual," by Kim Thornton. It's a "Barron's" book. This book at least alerts potential owners of health concerns SPECIFIC to the mastiff breed so that new "parents" know what to watch for.

5 comments about Runner's World Complete Book of Running: Everything You Need to Know to Run for Fun, Fitness, and Competition (Runners World).

1. Well written book on all the aspects of running. I highly recommend it for people just starting out or seasoned runners.



2. As other reviewers have stated, this is a good book for beginning runners. The tone is positive--in the introduction, the author states that she wants to be your cheerleader--and presents a "you can do it!" attitude throughout. One of the book's strengths is its emphasis on starting out gradually if you're a beginning runner. The author is well aware of the pitfalls of beginning runners, one of which is getting discouraged and ultimately abandoning running because of unrealistic expectations. She presents a clear running program that just about anyone should be able to start with. Inspirational stories--including a now-dated piece about Oprah's first marathon--support the idea that pretty much anyone can train to run competitively (or just for fun). Well, at least if they're millionaires who can train for a total of four hours a day.
   
   Also included are the obligatory diet recommendations, including a curious plug for vegetarianism. This is where I think the book starts to lose its focus. I realize that many people reading about running are likely looking to lose weight and incorporate vigorous exercise into a healthier lifestyle, but how many times--and in how many publications--must we read about carbs and fats? We get a brief intro to healthy eating, and then the book jumps into diet choices of runners. The organization of the book suggests that you'll go from novice runner to carbo-loading marathoner in a matter of pages.
   
   I think that the injury section, perhaps incorporated into a larger chapter about running and its effects on various body systems and health generally, could be expanded. How to best deal with shin splints, which affect nearly all beginning runners at some point and to some degree, is barely touched on. Compartment syndrome (which is uncommon, grated) isn't mentioned at all. I think that more could be said about strength training as a complement to running, as well as detailed information about effective stretching and cool-down techniques.
   
   Major content gripe: An entire section in the Women's Running chapter (which constitutes about a quarter of the book, so male readers may want to keep this in mind!) is devoted to avoiding the various ways that you can become a crime victim if you're not careful. It's a tired rehashing of all the "safety and security" stuff that women are exposed to on a regular basis, usually in women's magazines or on freak-out local news reports. A cop's contribution to this section details how to avoid getting pulled into a car and ultimately murdered (his solution: don't get near the car). I'm not advocating a head-in-the-sand approach; any solo runner should be alert, particularly when running in an isolated area. But jeez, do we really need a whole section to remind us to run in well-lit, populated areas? The number of pages given to this subject suggests that you're more likely than not to be the victim of a bad-intentioned male at some point during your runs.
   
   My main problem with the book is its format. It is heavy (literally), with a glossy format consisting of giant margins, big text, and dozens of pointless photos. I understand that the book is attempting to be true to its roots: it is published by Runner's World, after all, and its page design is similar to a magazine. But it's a book and should look like a book. Even though it's paperback, it's printed on heavy stock paper and isn't the type of book you'd toss into a beach or vacation bag. And the vast majority of pictures are completely unnecessary. Page after page of very fit people in 1990s running garb (it appears that the images weren't updated for the 2004 edition) are meant to be inspiring but get really old after the first chapter: three young chicks running on a track, a fit middle-aged guy energetically moving along in front of a sunset backdrop, a forty-something gal lacing up in a park. Most of us know what fit runners look like. Do we need to see full-color photos of them on every other page? In the nutrition section, literally half a page is taken up with the image of a banana and something that looks like oats. In the footwear section, we see generic pictures of white leather running shoes with the laces undone. Zzzz....
   
   I realize that this review is a big negative, so you may be wondering why I've given the book three stars. There is a lot of good information for people new to running, and indeed fitness and nutrition. But I'm glad that I got this book out of the library--I'd be annoyed if I paid good money for this. The Complete Book of Running for Women by Claire Kowalchik, and the old standy, Jim Fixx's The Complete Book of Running, are better choices in my estimation.



3. Nice update to the hard copy version from several years ago. Well worth the $$



4. I'm training for my first half marathon and I picked this book up at the library. It's simple, easy to read and has excellent advice. It's easy to criticize books that are reader friendly--too many pictures and graphics, not much text per page. I find, though, that books like that are easier to pick up and read and keep reading. I recommend this book to everyone serious about running.



5. This is a very complete book that summarizes many aspects of running for beginners and intermediate runners. It is very well edited and is full of nice pictures which makes it a very pleasant reading experience. I only found it a little repetitive in the chapter about psychological aspects of running and a little bit shallow regarding the last chapter on marathon training. Overall, it is worth reading and buying. It should not be used as a reference book, but as a motivational tool to start, keep or improve your running experience.

5 comments about Your Purebred Puppy, Second Edition: A Buyer's Guide, Completely Revised and Updated.

1. The reason this book is different and better than the rest is that it gives HONEST dog reveiws as opposed to a dog glorification books that descibe every breed in the most delightful way calling bad traits delightful words like a "little daredevil" - translation - does not follow commands. This author seems to say it all in a way no other website or book I have seen does. Yeah he/she does not put in the beautiful pictures - but if you want a table coffee book of dogs buy some other book. If you want the brass tacks truth before you invest in a 10-plus year commitment and plenty of vet bills - this is the book and this is the author



2. This book covers just about every kind of dog, and has a great system for rating the type of dog that's perfect for you (for example, do you hate shedding? How much activity do you want the dog to have indoors? How much exercise will he need?) The one thing I have missed is "availability". For example, my ratings put "Labrador Retriever" at the same level as "Keeshond", but where on earth am I going to find a Keeshond breeder? And who knows anything about that kind of dog if he has behavioral or health problems, other than a specialist? This is really the only problem, and is one of practicality - on the the other hand, it is good to be thorough when deciding on your breed of dog.



3. Your Purebred Puppy
   
   Reasonably well done. Should help many new owners toward getting a dog that better fits into their lives.
   
   Could be improved by emphasizing and being more in depth on negativities.
   
   Tim Violett



4. has great info about buying from good breeders. im much more comfortable buyig a dog now.



5. This book is very well written and the perfect guide for picking the right breed for you. My thanks to the author for doing the research for me and making it understandable.

No comments about Just Vizslas 2009 Calendar (Just).

2 comments about Cow Dogs: A Cowboy's Best Friend.

1. This book is a must for anyone who shares their life with a Border Collie or Cattle Dog. The photography is spectacular. You won't be disappointed.



2. Cow Dogs by master photographer David R. Stoecklein is a captivating treasury of full-color photographs featuring a cowboy's dog. Each page has a striking visual image of capable animals who are indispensable canine companions for working cowboys, accentuated with a tongue-in-cheek quote. A joy to page through especially for dog lovers, Cow Dogs is a unique and welcome addition to personal and community library photography collections -- as well as recommended browsing for dog lovers on or off of a cattle ranch.