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 Give this one a pass Nov 19, 2009
There's something really strange about this book. Aside from the fact that it's supposedly written by a lawyer it's absolutely filled to the brim with spelling errors and bizarre misuse of words (a lot of which are unintentionally funny). But the real issue here is lack of breed-specific information. And any breeder who tells you that rather than rely on information from veterinarians and other trained professionals, one should seek out vital info from those who are really knowledgable such as pet shop owners and dog groomers (!!!) is just not to be relied upon. The fact that at least one of the glowing reviews is from his business partner (as identified on his web-site) is not particularly inspiring. The book is less than one hundred pages and on that basis alone could not be considered in any way "complete". Give this a pass: there are plenty of good, solid publications out there that while not English Shepherd specific, will give you far more useful, not to mention reliable, data. This noble breed deserves a lot better than this.
Good content; poorly edited Oct 09, 2009
Mr. Hammond obviously loves the English Shepherd dog, and his book has been valuable to us as we researched the breed. This seems to be the only text on this breed. We also found helpful information on the websites for the United Kennel Club and the English Shepherd Club. Our only criticism of the book is that it is very poorly edited because there are many words misspelled or simply used in the wrong context. Mr.Hammond says he is a lawyer, and we expect such a professional to know how to spell and write. In any case, we did purchase a puppy from an excellent breeder in Iowa, and so far our experience is entirely consistent with Mr. Hammond's writing.
 Not vanilla pudding readers Sep 10, 2009
The author is obviously an experienced dog breeder who does not march to the conventional drumbeat of the humdrum. It may be upsetting to some who expect the usual banal hackneyed drill about raising the typical dog. The usual and the commonplace, the ordinary and the prosaic, the facile and the trivial seem to be missing in this book.
Instead, there is a forthright common sense approach to dog rearing, which includes many nontraditional approaches to selecting, feeding, training, and healthcare that you won'tfind in most dog books.
I have owned several English Shepherd dogs over the years and found this book to be quite enlightening as well as entertaining.
From my experiene with this breed, it seems to be very comprehensive in dealing with its background and history, its breed standards, nutrition and training. The author is very thorough when he describes puppy selection, and even delves into the areas of breeding, caring for the puppies as well as marketing them. It is obvious that he has a large kennel and is quite successful with insuring the continuance of the several old bloodlines of the breed.
Along with the chapters on training and acclimating your new puppy, I was particularly impressed with his chapters on nutruition. Certainly a bit unorthodox, but revealing about exactly what counts as unadulterated canine nourishment and what is proper and safe.
In all, a different approach to raising your dog, and especially a dog as rare and intelligent as the English Shepherd. A very good read.
0 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Useless (and illiterate!) Aug 22, 2009
This 96-page publication contains little useful information about the breed, and to add insult to injury, it is riddled with grammar, syntax and spelling errors. The entertainment value, however, is undeniable. The examples of sheer illiteracy are myriad: e.g. "illicit" for "elicit"; "tombs" for "tomes"; "incredulous" for "incredible"; "perimeters" for "parameters"; "patients" for "patience"; "gage" for "gauge"; and my own personal favourite from the chapter on breeding, "seamen" for "semen". It goes on and on in this vein, with a particularly cringe-making section on marketing puppies.
This "tomb" is essentially more focused on the author himself and has little to offer current or prospective English Shepherd owners. I did, in fact feel like a dupe(or would that be "doop")for having purchased this book, and I am seriously suspicious of the few positive reviews printed here.
This is a beautiful, one could almost say a heritage, breed and is deserving of a literate, informed and comprehensive effort. This isn't it.
0 of 2 found the following review helpful:
English Shepherd Huide Jan 11, 2009
Nice little book. Gave me an insight into this breed and I am now getting ready to buy an English Shepherd puppy myself.
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