Just Dogs: A Literary and Photographic Tribute to the Great Hunting Breeds

My girlfriend and I purcahed a chocolate lab in May of 2000. This was my first dog. We searched long and hard and did a lot of research on how to choose the right pup... and we did. I had all intentions of training our new pup to be a champion hunter. I purchased many trainging items and spent many hours to make sure Bailey was going to be ready for the fall pheasant season. As the season grew closer so did the love for my new best friend. One of my co-workers at the time who also has a hunting a dog (a Llewyen Setter)gave me his copy of "Just Dogs" to read while I was away on buisness. As I strated to read the book, I couldn't put it down. After returning home, I ordered my own copy of it. It is probably one of the best bird dog books I have ever read. The more that I read the book the closer I feel to Bailey. He became my best friend the family pet and also a very good hunter. Through out the season Bailey and I were able to bag five birds (with the help of Sadie)which his first two I had mounted as a found reminder of a great day of hunting. The season has past I am sitting at home with about four feet of snow outside with my boy at my side and the MY copy of "Just Dogs" on my desk. When I get that itch and begin to think about the season to come, I begin to read the book all over again. I have probably ready the book cover to cover about five times since October of 2000. Every time I read the poems, I end up typing one of them up and framing it with a picture of my chocolate hunting partner. I recently purchased a copy of the book for my brother as a birthday present. My brother does not hunt but has two black labs, Coal and Chole, who mean the world to him. After reading "Just Dogs" he says that the book makes him feel even closer to his labs and makes him appreciate the friendship,loyalty and love that only a dog can bring. He thanks me all the time for the book and I have Gary to thank for lending me his copy along with a pheasant season that I will probably never forget. "Just Dogs" is worth every penny and more!!! You do not need to be a hunter to appreciate this book, you must possess a true love for just dogs.

This is a really beautiful book, I bought it for my husband as a Valentine's day gift. It's light reading, just stories by hunters and a poem or two. The photographs are excellent, some will just make you chuckle out loud and others are simply beautiful. If you love a hunter, who loves his dog, this is a great gift. My husband enjoyed it immensely.

Whether you have a dog (or dogs!) or just enjoy them, this book is the most touching portrait of the special relationship between mankind and its most faithful companion. From essays that make you laugh, to ones that will bring tears to you eyes, to the photographs that just warm you up inside, you will read this book more than once.