English Cocker Spaniels

Rating:
Summary: english cockers have a mind of their own
Review: Just got a new puppy and found that english cockers are not only expensive, but have a mind of their own. I would like to have seen more on health issues like common problems among cockers or removing ticks. It goes into detail on identity matters and differences in cockers. It needs a lot more detail for me to give a higher rating.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: There is very little useful information is in this book. A tenth of the book is about the English Cocker breed specifically, and the rest is dubious filler about dogs in general.

I wonder about the author's credibility when he makes statements like this, "Many people think of their local pet shop as the first source for buying a puppy, and very often they're right." All of the other books I own on dogs say to NEVER buy a dog from a pet store because of their possible connection to puppy mills.

Here's another gem, "Dogs are like people. They come in three weights: overweight, underweight, and the correct weight. It is fair to say that most dogs are in better shape than most humans who own them. The reason for this is that most dogs accept exercise without objection-- people do not!" This is not only untrue (many pets are overweight) but also not very nice.

The one positive about the book was that it was loaded with nice photos of English Cockers, although they had a dated look to them. The cartoon drawings scattered throughout the book, though, are hideous. There has got to be a better book on English Cockers out there.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: While I was able to find considerable material on American Cocker Spaniels, there were few books available on English Cocker Spaniels. Some may say, "a spaniel is a spaniel," well, yes and no. The information provided in this book was definitely helpful from history and grooming to medical problems and basic care. However, I did find many areas could have been expanded upon in more detail. All in all, it is still one of the few books available specific to English Cockers, and for that reason, well worth reading. Since the book is a 1990 edition, it would be nice to see it updated; additional information may have been made available during the past eleven years that would keep us up-to-date on any new health concerns, popularity, breeding statistics, etc.

Rating:
Summary: HELPFUL BOOK
Review: While I was able to find considerable material on American Cocker Spaniels, there were few books available on English Cocker Spaniels. Some may say, "a spaniel is a spaniel," well, yes and no. The information provided in this book was definitely helpful from history and grooming to medical problems and basic care. However, I did find many areas could have been expanded upon in more detail. All in all, it is still one of the few books available specific to English Cockers, and for that reason, well worth reading. Since the book is a 1990 edition, it would be nice to see it updated; additional information may have been made available during the past eleven years that would keep us up-to-date on any new health concerns, popularity, breeding statistics, etc.