The Dog in Action: A Study of Anatomy and Locomotion As Applying to All Breeds

Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: I first saw this book when my friend brought over a library copy. I didn't have time to read it, but I read the chapter on single tracking.

Let me explain. I'm an engineer. And conformation vs. performance as always been a hobby of mine. Mostly for horses. I always wondered why horses single track. Now I know. Based on that chapter I scoured the used book market until I found my own copy. I found this book to be thought provoking and credible. I bought a copy for a friend of mine who is a professor at one of our state universities and who heads up the collage's judging team (horses again).

I found that by studying dogs, whose conformation could be much more diverse than horses, I could better understand how more subtle conformation differences affect the horse. I will never give up my copy. They will have to pry it from my cold dead fingers.

Rating:
Summary: The Dog in Action By McDowell Lyon
Review: This book is like a bible for those that study the mechanics of animals as they move, especially dogs. It details the coordination of every bone with the corresponding limb as the dog moves and then ties it all together with images of how the whole dog should move as a unit. It justifies every aspect, supporting the information with examples of the survivors in nature. For anyone aspiring to judge dogs or already judging or breeding it is a must. Although written over fifty years ago, the information is still relevent and stands up to recent high tech studies done with slow motion and stop action cameras. The book is presented in a way that makes it easy to understand the mechanics of the dog as it moves, the importance of efficiency, which is such an important part of assessing the value of one dog as compared to another. After reading this book, watching dog shows will become more meaningful, whether one has been breeding and judging for years or is just getting started. Years ago I lent out my copy and never got it back so will order a copy in paperback.
Gordon Garrett

Rating:
Summary: Not Required Reading
Review: This is a difficult book to get through. The author tries to compensate for that fact by starting out with some "stories" of his own, but it can't make up for the difficult reading ahead of you. You're going to need a dictionary to read this and don't read it when you're bored, you'll fall asleep!

The structure information is good, it's just not an easy read.

Rating:
Summary: Not Required Reading
Review: This is a difficult book to get through. The author tries to compensate for that fact by starting out with some "stories" of his own, but it can't make up for the difficult reading ahead of you. You're going to need a dictionary to read this and don't read it when you're bored, you'll fall asleep!

The structure information is good, it's just not an easy read.