A Very Good Old Leonberger Book

I recently finished reading “The Leonberger Hardcover version – April 1, 2000”, by Angela White. Currently it is only the hardback version that is available on Amazon, and it is 208 pages. I could not find it on Barnes and Noble or Chapters Indigo. The dimensions of this hardback are 7.25 x 0.75 x 10.5 inches, and the weight is 1.63 pounds, ISBN 978-1852790646, and on Amazon it currently costs between $4.95 and $91.85 depending on the quality of the book. It is currently out of print, so you have to buy a used copy. I bought mine for around $20.00 and except for a few scribbles on the inside cover it was in good condition.

In summary: Angela White is an experienced British author, an expert dog trainer and a Leonberger owner, well she was at the time. This book was great, much better than I expected. However, it is somewhat outdated and as I mentioned it is out of print. It does not have a great overall rating, but it seems like everyone who downrated it did so because it was out of print. I don’t downrate a book because it is out of print because that is a problem unrelated to the content of the book. Therefore, I gave it five stars.

Below is my review of The Leonberger by Angela White.

It’s Old but It Is the Most Professional Leonberger Book I’ve Come Across

I bought a used copy of the Leonberger by Angela White. Unfortunately, it is no longer in print. The author is a dog trainer and a Leonberger owner. As far as I can tell she is an expert dog trainer. In 208 pages the book covers, in detail, the origins and the history of the Leonberger breed, owning a Leonberger and the care of a Leonberger, showing your Leonberger, nutrition and health, breeding Leonbergers, and training Leonbergers. The author is British, so naturally the book is written from a British perspective. For example, she talks extensively about the (British) Kennel Club, but she does not mention the Leonberger Club of America.

The author is extremely knowledgeable, science oriented, and she knows and understands dogs, especially Leonbergers, exceptionally well. She is also a very good author and I think this book is very well written. It is jam packed with useful information, much of it I did not know. Therefore, I learned a lot from this book. It is well organized and there’s no repetition. I counted more than 180 colorful Leonberger photos that were all helpful and informative in their respective context, from whelping to old age.

I’ve read more than 30 Leonberger books, as well as other dog training books, and this book is hands down the best book on training a Leonberger that I’ve come across. The 80 pages on training Leonbergers is fabulously written with lots of helpful information. I think I can say with confidence that there is no better Leonberger book out there with respect to training. I was also impressed by the chapter on breeding Leonbergers. I am not very interested in this topic, but I’ve noticed that most Leonberger books that claim to cover breeding do not say much useful on the topic, if anything at all. This book gives a 32-page overview of the important aspects of breeding, how to do it, paperwork, etc., while referring to more in-depth sources for details.

The book was written a long time ago in 1998 (hardcover released 2000). Therefore, portions of it are outdated. This shows when the author writes about certain illnesses in Leonbergers. For example, Addison’s disease is no longer a considerable concern and some problems with Leonbergers are not mentioned. Perhaps most notable, the book states that Leonbergers should be neutered / spayed as soon as possible at the beginning of puberty. Since this book was written it has become clear that this will physically harm the dog and I see this as the major drawback of the book. Now a day it is recommended that you wait two years before neutering a Leonberger.

I am rating this book five stars despite it being outdated and despite the unfortunate advice on neutering / spaying, because the book shines in so many other aspects. I am not reducing my rating because the book is out of print since that is a problem unrelated to the content of the book.