Legacy of the Puppy: The Ultimate Illustrated Guide

As pet shop owners, we are always asked our opinions about the various dog breeds we sell in our store. "What will the puppy look like as it matures?" "Are there variations of the breed?" "How will this puppy interact with my other pets?" "I have heard of this breed, can you show me pictures of it (if we don't have that breed of puppy in our store)." We use this book as a reference book for our customers and we also sell copies of it in our store. You will love the photographs and can use them as a representation of the particular breed when contemplating the purchase of a puppy from a breeder or a pet shop. Never, ever buy a puppy from a Seller over the Internet. You must see the puppy, hold it and play with it before finalizing your purchase. This book provides much of the information you will need in making this life affecting decision.

Adorable with a capital, bold-faced "A" -- this is one of my favourite books to look at. The pictures are classy and whimsical, and the book is loaded with fun and unique facts about dogs; for instance, did you know that Westies are known to be "geniuses" of playing? I did not know that until I read this book. Fun for all dog lovers, and who doesn't love dogs/puppies? Get this book and enjoy it.

This book is wonderful for those who are into puppies in general. This is a great learning guide for children, or people of any age that can appreciate the playful innocence of young pups. This book as an informative reference falls somewhat short, but gives a decent overview of each breed. Each page has a generous amount of pictures of a specific breed of puppy, then a picture of the corresponding breed as an adult, which is nice. The photographs are well taken and the silly poses the puppies fall into will definitly draw a smile or laugh from any reader. It's undeniably adorable and a fun book to have on the shelf. Caution: this book will create an overwhelming desire to buy a dog! ;)

The information about the various puppies is fairly simple and probably a good start for deciding which breeds to look into. The pictures are excellent. The text by "Tadaaki Imaizumi, zoologist" makes me question whether the person actually has a degree. Unlike the authors claims, dogs do indeed share morphological traits with wolves, seeing as how dogs technically share some morphological traits with humans. The information about raising puppies at the back of the books is also fairly helpful. If children are reading the book, especially ones interested in dogs and wolves, parents may need to explain that, contrary to what the book seems to imply, dogs are indeed canids. Not just descended from them but are actually in the Canidae family.

Several years ago I bought "Legacy of the Dog"; yesterday, I bought "Legacy of the Puppy," having instantly recognized it as the follow-up to the first--same style, same beautiful glossy book, another picture of a terrier on the cover (this time Airedale instead of Irish). The primary reason I like this book is that it's a good one to coo over with your dog-loving friends; normally we don't get to see much of what all these breeds look like as puppies. At least, not all in one book. Not as many breeds are represented, but with over 200 pages, enough of them are, and not all are AKC-recognized. Basically, every set of pages shows pictures of a mother dog with a variety of beautiful, representative-of-breed puppies around with their ages next to them; most of the breeds follow this general format. The text is essentially the same as you'd find in any dog-breed book but is useful nonetheless; I haven't found major errors in it so far. The text also centers, of course, around the puppies of each breed but also covers what they will likely grow up to be and what to expect. Also, it includes new features like words from actual owners of each puppy breed, offering insight into what it's like to really live with one, & a handy 'diseases by breed' chart. Looking through these pages and choosing a puppy based on which one you think is cutest is NOT the way to do it and not what the book's intended for, but when used responsibly, or just for fun, it's a great book. The maltese, Great dane, and Brittany puppies look just like my current dogs when they were tiny. My very favorite breeds--afghan hounds, borzois, salukis, and Bedlington terriers--are all represented. The book is wonderful for seeing the whimsy and curiosity of young puppies. Some of the pictures are truly excellent; the little border collies and beagles and Irish setters, for instance, are gorgeous. The Dachshunds are portrayed in a variety of uncommon and common colors, including my favorite adorable long-haired brown and blue merle combination. The Lakeland terrier 'group shot' looks like they're all smiling. One of the 55-day-old Akita puppies looks like Angel from "Lady and the Tramp 2," proving how seeing the puppy version of a breed can change your perception of how a dog will look full-grown; I'd never considered her an Akita pup before! The husky pups have sapphire blue eyes, the Shiba Inus play with pinecones, one of the French bulldogs has the greatest expression on, the Bichons and Schipperkes are precious--well, they all are, ne? This book is the ultimate look at the cute, happy playfulness of puppies. The kind you leave out and guests will want to go through. It's great, I recommend it.