Breeders Books

Super fun mystery book with great characters and wonderful dog elements. Jo Beth Sidden is a true Southern spunky lady! Want to read all of the other books by this author (this is the second one I have read). Our online "mutt group" at SparkPeople voted this book as the one for reading two months in a row!

I have read all 7 of Lanier's books (she unfortunately passed away in 2003) and never regretted one penny spent. (I'm hoping her heirs come across some finished manuscripts squirreled away somewhere). The characters come alive (human and canine alike) and every situation totally believable. I have worked with dogs for many years and see many of my charges in her hounds. Anyone who likes adult (but not trashy) mysteries and loves animals will enjoy these novels.

Virginia Lanier's bloodhound series opens pretty convincingly in this book which has enough plotting and subplotting to fill three books. We're introduced to feisty JoBeth Sidden, a near-thirtyish trainer of bloodhounds who also has her own company which does search and rescue operations for local police authorities. In this debut, JoBeth is involved with an abusive ex-husband; the mysterious will of her deceased artist father; a handsome new lawyer in town; escaped criminals; missing children; a handsome private investigator; and lots more. JoBeth is even framed for the attempted murder of aforementined Bubba, her ex! While it takes a little patience to get into this book, once you do, you'll find yourself rewarded. Lanier has a flair for Southern life, and her characters are sharply drawn and developed.
I'm looking forward to further adventures with JoBeth and her hounds!

"Death in Bloodhound Red" is the first in the Virginia Lanier "Bloodhound Series." It is a great book and so different from most mysteries that I am surprised that I had not heard of the series before.

This is a series to buy all at once because once you start reading = you will not want to stop.

"Death in Bloodhound Red" is difficult to classify even though it is a mystery. It is not a superficially light book and there are parts that will make you laugh and parts that are very somber.

Jo Beth Sidden raises and trains bloodhounds and utilizes them for tracking in a small county in Georgia. Her life is rather interesting. Her deceased father became a famous artist when she was a teenager, while most of her childhood was spent in dire poverty. Her childhood though, is in many ways very mysterious.

Yet by working continually, Jo Beth has built a kennel and bloodhoumd business. Businesses and law enforcement agencies hire her and her dogs to seek out drugs and criminals.

Jo Beth is rather a tough woman because she has had to be. But she is working at addressing the vulnerabilities in her life and this dialogue is reflected as well. She is a very ardent feminist because she has had to confront countless prejuidices in her life of work.

Virginia Lanier has topped my list for new authors.

The sub-genre of "dog mysteries" is not nearly as extensive as "cat mysteries" for reasons I will never understand. (After all, do cats really care what human beings do to each other? I don't think so.) In this specialized arena, Virgina Lanier's Bloodhound books are definately best in show. "Death in Bloodhound Red" is one of the best novels -- in or out of the mystery genre -- I've read in a long time. Yes, the plot is meandering and convoluted, the conversations are of a length only southerners can aspire to, and the language is as dense and atmospheric as the scent of jasmine on an early summer day. But what matters in the end is how completely Lanier manages to submerge us in the swampy world of southern Georgia and the wonderful profession of search-and-rescue with her beloved bloodhounds. If all the following books aren't always as over the top excellent as the first, who cares? They are all great and the bloodhounds get even more time on stage as the series goes on. What more could you want?

Excellent resource on the care of newborn puppies. It is written in a very understandable and clear manner. Invaluable information from a breeder that has years of experience. Worth every penny!

Black-and-white photographs illustrate Puppy Intensive Care: A Breeder's Guide to Care of Newborn Puppies is an in-depth how-to manual written especially for breeders, though aspiring veterinarians may also find it a useful reference. Chapters discuss in depth how to prepare and use all the tools that one needs to give a puppy the best possible chance of survival, even if it is born midnight on a weekend or holiday when the local vet's office is closed. Statistically, roughly thirty percent of puppies born die in infancy; with the proper equipment and knowledge to remedy environmental factors (as opposed to genetic factors, about which little can be done) this can ideally be reduced to ten percent. Chapters cover how to build and maintain a warming box, how to properly use a bulb syringe on newborn puppies, umbilical cord care, why puppies must ingest colostrum (an immunity boosting substance produced by the mother) or a suitable substitute early on, how to treat a sick newborn pup if veterinary care is not immediately available, remedying a puppy that becomes chilled or dehydrated, and much more. "If your puppy isn't breathing well, assume that he has large amounts of body fluid in his lungs, throat and nasal passages... FIRST, use the bulb syringe on the back of the throat; NEVER suction the nostrils before the throat. Syringing the nostrils first will cause the puppy to take a breath, inhaling fluids into his lungs". A 30-minute DVD accompanies this absolute must-have for anyone expecting a litter of puppies.

Having had a series of problems with newborn puppies, we found this book and accompanying DVD to be clear, specific and very informative on assisting us with newborn puppies where the bitch was unable to care for her puppies for any reason, or where we encountered problems with the puppies. I would recommend this book to anyone contemplating breeding their bitch.

Great book, wished I had it before my last litter. It is a terrible feeling not knowing what to do. This book at least has ideas to try. Thanks Myra Savant harris!

Just finished the book last week. It was well written and I am glad that I purchased it as my dog is due to have her first litter in 3 weeks. It gave a lot of practical advice and planning tips for just in case something goes wrong. I feel much more confident as a doggie midwife having read it.

Ms. Lanier grabbed my attention with the very first book I read of hers in this wonderful series of mysteries starring her beloved bloodhounds. Her details of how they are trained could be boring, but she cleverly puts them into the story, showing why she picks a particular hound to do the tracking required in each case. Almost makes me want to own one of the wonderful breed. I couldn't wait until I could get my hands on the next book in the series, and now I have all of them. Hope she writes more very soon.

I hope nothing has happened to Virgina. this a great series. A new book would be great.

I just learned that my new favorite Author has died. I had just finished a Brace of Bloodhounds and was looking for the next installment. Mrs. Lanier died while I was reading this book. I was late in finding this great series and I will miss this character greatly. Thanks Mrs Lanier for a great series.

This is *NOTE* the third book of a series. It is well done enough that you can pick up the series here but it will be more enjoyable if you start from the beginning. The books are; 1996-Death in Bloodhound Red, 1997-The House on Bloodhound Lane, 1998- A Brace of Bloodhounds, 1999-Blind Bloodhound Justice, 2000-Ten Little Bloodhounds. I'm not sure why we don't have books for 2001 and 2002, but after you read the first book and then run out and buy the next four that continue without dropping the pace and excitement, you'll mourn the gap in the series. I have a review in on the first book that gives you an idea about the series, which I won't repeat the basics.

It took the first two books to teach me to REALLY not start them on a work night because no matter how hard I try I am NOT going to sleep until its done and it's hard to debug unix on four hours sleep. This time I managed to wait till friday night to read it, and did i mention these are a healthy sized book, the kind a serious reader who reads very fast needs. A thin or medium sized book I can read in a couple hours and is more like an appetizer to me, and you'll see me always score short story collections as 4 or less because there just isnt time to do a 5 story in one. While not a thick as 'Dune', all her books are a serious read and very satisfying to the mature bookaholic with a substantial habit going. Speaking of addiction, this is not the first but one of the cream of crop of books that makes me sigh that I can only read a few thousand words an hour , I scored six hundred with 100% retention in high school, 30 years ago and am several orders of magnitude faster now though I don't know exactly HOW fast. This kind of book makes you regret you cant IV it directly into your veins!

The reason I call this a 'friday night only' book is that she achieves the kind of realism where the idea of having to get up in three hours for ten or twelves hours of work, even vigourous brainwork, is a vague and unimportant concept once you start reading. Virginnia Lanier's books are filled with such a wealth of information and such an interweaving of the elements that after reading 1, then 1 again, then a pause before I found 2, and read 1 and 2, then 2 again, that it was only a few weeks before I found 3, and then read 1, 2 and 3! And im VERY ADHD so I get bored easily, but not with these books. Like only a few authors Virginnia Lanier manages to hold onto several themes at the same time (like life) and weave them in together so well that anytime you hit a low point at one you hit a high point elsewhere and the book never lets you go without being artificially extravagent, which never works for me. The story has to hold together well for things to happen within the realm of possibility of the definition of the characters and the environment and these stories definitely do that.

The main theme of this book is a murder. But what makes this a different murder mystery? One reoccurring theme that comes up is here is a mystery that has clear warning signs come up that a SMART woman would back off. However while Jo Beth is smart, she is both stubborn and ruthless in her way. There is just a point where she don't give a rat's behind and goes on anyway cause it's RIGHT, which is why I **LIKE*** the character. And no matter how compelling the story is otherwise I can't stand reading a story about someone I can't stand. Well, unless they are in a serious hailstorm of.. you know. But even then they can't be the main character or I just won't want to bother reading it. I know enough of THEM in real life.

So anyway, this book the main theme is a murder, but there are many others and skillfully woven in. Like life, nothing else waits while you work on your biggest priority. The lightning just keeps coming. And sometimes Jo Beth has to bail her boat pretty hard in the rain, which makes me like her and the series MORE. I've had to do some serious bailing myself, more often then not in fact I've been bailing out more then one leak and so does Jo Beth. I like Jo Beth because she has made herself a sucess AGAINST all odds, not because things just worked out her way easy. Also because she is smartmouthed ... tough broad that is willing to take the consequences of speaking her piece, even if they can be fairly serious.

Of course by the strict definition of success a lot of people would not think she is a sucess, she works dang hard, long hours and doesnt have fast cars or serious jewelry (funny, like me). She does have a house (at the edge of a swamp) but then she did have an inheritance I didn't. But Jo Beth has none of the icons of success in the current world, most especially a husband. To a lot of the world she is just more white trash. But **I** think she is a success and that is all the thinking that **I** care about even if I am just 'more shanty Irish'. And if Jo Beth and I both blew some chances because we just had to tell someone where to go, sure but we're still laughing at the look on his or her face years later, not crying cause I'm 'trapped' in my nice house and wasn't 'allowed to be myself'. Which is actually something Jo Beth had and walked away from. I never had it so I don't know if I'd meet the test and give it up, but then Jo Beth is fiction and I STILL really LIKE her. I don't know what kind of background Ms Lanier has, but she sure created a tough gal that this 'worked her way up alone from minimum wage' reader can appreciate without rolling her eyes at the lack of realism.

The intrepid Jo Beth Sidden and her lovable, talented bloodhounds continue their daring exploits in this third suspenseful mystery of the series. This time our heroes deal with the kidnapping of a child, a murderous judge who's carrying on nefarious deeds in the woods, a bank robbery perpetrated by two drunken locals, and a rampaging alligator. And, yes, psycho ex-husband Bubba is still around. Add dangerous treks through the Okefenokee Swamp and stakeouts in the forest, and you've got an absorbing, unputdownable thriller. Unconventional characters, exciting subplots, vivid descriptions, humor, Southern atmosphere and, above all, those irresistible canines make for a most enjoyable read.

The book is exceptional reference for the home breeder.

However it could have been a little more detailed in a few sections.

It is the best Marine Breeders reference I have came accross to date.

Excelent, well writen book, a real must-have one for people who wants to breed marine fish. A complete and updated source of info. Lots of aplied techniques for specific families, like clowns, gobies, blenies, sea-horses, pseudochromidaes and a very good chapter on new, chalenging, pelagic egg's species.

Complete, full of ideas, easy to read, well structured.
Great book, specially if you're starting at small or home-scale. It brings you from the general approach to a common and not so common marine species details. It covers jawfish, grammas, bettas, gobies, blennies, cardinals, dottybacks and many more... even pelagic spawners, providing insight into how future acheivements might be reached. The book is very useful as a reference for hobbyists, but also for researchers in the field. This book is a must.

It's a great book covering the basics of how to set-up larva rearing systems, plankton cultivation, and what species would be the best for a beginner to take on.

This book was written for the hobbyist not the commercial aquaculturist.

Great breeding book, It's complete, easy to read, with nice pictures and drawings. I love the Genus section who display a specie specific caracteristi for breeding easy al aquarium fish.

PERFECT CONDITION. I THOUGHT IT WAS NEW AND PRICE WAS GREAT, SHIPPING TIMELY. EXCELLENT RESOURCE

I first read this book approximately 8 years ago when I was first becoming involved in purebred dogs. I found her words of wisdom inspiring and it really pushed me to do the very best that I could to fill my head with knowledge of the breed standard, find the best foundation that I could and make the tough, critical decisions necessary to become a truly good dog breeder. If more new people would follow the advice in this book there would be a lot fewer "five year wonders" in the sport.

This book really helped give me a clear idea of how to select foundation stock, plan breedings and execute a breeding plan, as well as offering other advice about how to succeed in the world of show dogs. I have raised only a few litters of my chosen breed, but I have already produced group winners, group placers and specialty show winners, thanks in no small part to some of the advice found in this book. I hope some day to be like one of the "master breeders" she describes in her book. Truly a gem for every breeder's bookshelf!!

Interested in breeding? This book should be the first thing you purchase and study it good! It is amazing! It packed with so much information on breeding, kennels, showing, picking puppies, raising puppies, behavior and I could go on and on. I have a lot of books on breeding and showing and I know I could have this book only and a book on canine genetics and would be just fine! Study this book, your breed standard and genetics and you will be WAY ahead of the rest of the pack!

Of note,the print is small (and pages are filled top to bottom-there is that much info), but if it is hard for you to read small print, then just bear that in mind when purchasing.

Laymans genetics is a good term for this book. I am 4 years new to the dog world and this book laid out important information in a way that kept me interested! Most books are either so complicated as to be boring or so simple that you come away with nothing but verification of something you've already read. Not this book - it is perfect and the advice is invaluable. I will keep this book forever!

Patricia Craige, who ranges from top Norweigan Elkhound breeder to top dog show competitor, shares her insights in the canine field to a new audience eager to eat her every word. Why do I give this author such high acclaim? For three simple reasons:

a). Mrs. Craige shows the reader many examples of dogs who have succeeded inm both the show ring and the whelping box. Many dogs, ranging from the top-producing dog of all time to the dog with the most Best-In-Shows (the highest honor at any dog show), are shown, with in-depth study on how the greatest of dogs made their way to the top.

b). The book is very well understood thanks to the authors' personal experience. Mrs. Craige is an owner-handler, the lowest on the totem pole in the canine realm. However, one of her glorious Elkhounds became the top dog all breeds in the year 1970. This astounding tribute to the hard work and dedication she put into breeding and raising top dogs is followed up with a string of top dogs of any breed. She also bred, owned, and handled the top Elkhound of all-time and one of the top winning hounds of all-time with sixty-six all-breed Best-In-Shows. Her last big winner was shown from 1993-1995, daughter of the top winning Elkhound and two-time Westminster Hound Group winner (Winning at Westminster is the highest honor any owner, handler, or breeder can aspire to). Despite all of this, the author's down-to-earth writing style solaces the reader, allowing the reader to thoroughly enjoy the book.

c). Why don't you tell me? THere are so many reasons to applaud this book. I am sure that if you were to add it to your collection, you'd find your own reasons to back up the notion that this book truly is BORN (err, published) TO WIN!!

I loved everything about this book but the title. It has little to do with fishing. I would strongly hope that this "coming of age" novel replace "Catcher in the Rye" as required reading. Hard reality hits time and again,like the flooding of the river. One can only clean up the mess, then begin again.
Life on a show horse farm isn't easy, and this is an accurate rendition. Indeed the relentless grind of chores may be rewarded with agonizing show nerves, disappointment, and dispair over bad rulings. Rarely, everything comes together, and one has the ride of a lifetime when spirits soar and join. Recognition, with awards to commemorate the ride, can be even sweeter.
This novel is about many sorts of love, and several sorts of showing that love. If the book can get the readership it deserves, it should be among the timeless classics. I logged on, hoping to find more books by this talented team.

This was a good book. It kept my interest although a little slow getting started. There were several typographical and geographical errors in the book, however, it was a good read. The insight on the Quarter Horse industry was well done.

"Wine, Dine and Death Down Under" takes the reader on an exciting international adventure involving a mysterious murder in the Australian outback, and introduces a Sherlock Holmes for the 21st century, Chet Lake.

Multiracial, multicultural, multilingual, and multitalented, Chet Lake is an urban planning consultant of Native American, African-American and Mexican-American background who speaks Spanish, French, and Arabic. Born in Oakland, California, Lake was a star athlete at Oakland Tech and later at UC Davis -- where he majored in economics and anthropology -- enjoys the Napa Valley and Chez Panisse, sometimes sports an Oakland A's baseball cap, and maintains his offices for urban planning consulting in a location on the Oakland-Berkeley border.

But that's just Chet's storefront and day job. Under the cover of overseas consulting, Chet is an operative on foreign missions for the CIA, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the State Department. Danger is no stranger to this urban planner.
Chet's undercover work brings him to the Australian wine country, where an old, multi-million dollar wine fortune has become the center of family infighting, international plotting, and murder. The twists and turns of the plot are ripped from today's headlines, mixing the old, traditional world of the Australian outback with the new, dangerous world of biowarfare and terrorism.

Through Chet's eyes, the reader experiences situations loaded with racial and sexual tension that often span different classes and cultures. In these situations, Chet Lake is a maestro. Mustering to his advantage his varied educational and professional experiences and training along with his multifaceted personal background, Lake moves like a chameleon across cultures and classes. That skill, combined with his familiarity with and access to modern spy technology, gives Chet a remarkable ability to navigate situations that would confound others.

Again and again, the Chet Lake character delights the reader with his ability to solve difficult problems in unconventional ways.

I loved the way the story played out in this book! Completely unexpected turns--I could not put the book down. Great job building the characters. I feel like I know them. Waiting for the second book in the series....

While I've always loved horses and love to ride, this book was my introduction to the world of showing horses. Everything in the book was written in a way that was easy to understand. The book did NOT read like some frilly novel steeped in fantasy. It was very real to me and grabed me right into the world the authors had created. I'm really looking forward to the next book by these two. I certainly hope that they haven't put their pens to rest. The only problem I did have was having to put the book down to go to work. I wish I had started it on the weekend.

I wish that I had read this book 15 years ago. Our last puppy, now 18 months old, would have been much easier to work with. An excellent book.

I breed German Shepherds. The methods talked about in this book work. I have been using most of them for years on my own litters. Even so, I found some of the ideas were new to me and I plan to incorporate his ideas in my upcoming litters. I also plan on adding this book to all my future puppy buyers who are either already breeders or are buying show/breed prospect puppies from me. Great job, easy to understand and read. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to understand this book.
Red Rock German Shepherds redrockgsd.com

This is a wonderful, much needed book for all dog lovers, breeders and trainers. Mr. Hope has taken many of the in-depth studies and compiled them into an easy to read and understand format. While the information in the book is the cutting edge of research and scientific study, anyone can understand the methods, concepts and principles outlined in this book. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to have a well adjusted, well behaved dog. I strongly suggest that anyone who plans to purchase a dog in the future, study this book and then use it as a guide to select a quality breeder.

As a volunteer with dog rescue, I often see the results of breeders who haven't read this book. Because of my rescue work, I have been reading up on canine behavior, psychology and mental processes. This author's recommendations are consistent with my research. Mr. Hope covers exposing the puppy to essential stimuli and experience so it will grow into a confident, well-balanced, dog that gets along well with people of all types, other dogs, and other animals. It is sad to think of the number of dogs who are resigned to sanctuary care or euthanized because they did not have the proper puppy upbringing. Sadder still that it could all be avoided by following Mr. Hope's method. I wish every one who ever thought about breeding would read this book first and commit to its principles.

Jerry Hope's carefully laid-out program for Raising Superstar Dogs belongs in every breeder's library. When carefully followed, each puppy will be better prepared to face the world and it will help create a better human-animal bond with the dog's new family. For the potential puppy buyer, this is a blueprint for understanding what a truly responsible breeder does with their puppies to prepare them to enter your home. Then it's up to you to continue what the breeder has begun, to build on that foundation. I think some very minor adjustments would have to be made for the Toy dog puppy but these are very few. I recommend this book. Buy it for yourself, buy it for a friend.

Very informative book. I just had a litter of 9 pups and through using this book I was better prepared to deal with any issues. The whelping went very well. I would definately recommend this book to anyone.

With so many titles to choose from, I am happy to simplify your search by recommending this book.
This has an easy to find index, complete information for each phase of the breeding process, and an in depth discussion of problems, remedies, and the total cycle of choosing the mate for your dog, to happy healthy puppies.

If you breed dogs once or many times, you need to have this book in your library. Our vet receommended we purchase it prior to our 10th litter. Even though we have many books on breeding, this by far is the best. It is no nonsense & very specific. I am very glad we purchased it.

in a well cross referenced format. It is easy to find what you need in a hurry. It is very detailed with just enough physiology and anatomy for the details to make sense. I used it during my last whelping and found it very useful. It was also useful for breeding timing and care of newborn pups.

This is a good book that covers a wide range of subjects in aclear & concise manner. The beginner will learn a lot and the more advanced reader will still benefit from reading this book.

This book was exactly what it claimed to be in it's description. I would have no problems ordering from this vendor in the future.

Very informative, easy to read and has pictures to explain events. I find this a valuable assest from beginning of the book until the end.

Over the last ten years, my husband and I have had several Boston Terrier litters, each time we not only consulted this book, but have read it from cover to cover multiple times. Each time we seemed to learn a new technique or lesson. This book takes you from a natural conception to an artifical conception to whelping naturally to c-sections. We saved many babies because of the author's ability to write exactly what needed to be done to tube feed, bottle feed or keep the baby warm. This book is a MUST for any breeder

This book is the best you will find for any breeder. Whenever I have a problem or question any situation related to breeding and whelping I'll rely on this book to help me

This is a WONDERFUL book! It covers more than any other book on reproduction, and I won't have a litter without it by my side. I have read all the others, and they sit in my library. I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS OUT OF PRINT! It is such a GREAT book! Get it if you can, wherever you can, if you ever plan to breed. What COMPLETE information, for ALL breeds.

My son read this book from cover to cover before he purchased his corn snake from the author, who is also a breeder. It helped a great deal to prepare him. I would highly recommend this book to anyone unfamiliar with corn snakes, which are a great pets (we are dog people...it took some convincing on my son's part to add a snake to the family!)

This is certainly one of the best books in the market about cornsnakes - very lucidly written and with excellent photos. The writer is obiously an expert but the layout will be appreciated by even a first time Cornsnake keeper. If you want to buy only 1 book before you start on Cornsnakes this will be the one to go for.

In recent years, a number of corn snake books have come along, including manuals from such notable folks as Kathy & Bill Love as well as Patricia & Richard Bartlett. I have no particular basis for preferring Soderberg's book except for my experiences talking with him and buying or trading snakes with him, and that I think the information is excellent. Hence, this is a "slightly biased" review.

Soderberg provides thorough and careful guidance for the beginner throughout the book. For example, in chapter one he provides a checklist, including researching their care, getting the cage, talking to corn snake owners, getting a supply of frozen rodents, etc. before choosing a corn snake.

It is not just a book for beginners. I learned things or was challenged to think further about things as I read the book. For example, he discusses a rationale for using perlite along with vermiculite as an incubation medium. I had not heard of using this combination. He also talks about avoiding chlorinated tap water in water bowls. Maybe some have thought about this, but I had not, and it makes sense to me that using filtered water would be preferable.

There are chapters on selecting the corn snake, housing, receiving your corn snake, feeding and watering, shedding, breeding, genetics, escapes, and diseases & disorders. Each chapter includes information that would be needed by the first-time corn snake keeper, and additional information for more advanced herpetoculturists. The book never seems to "talk down" to the reader, nor does it leave specialized terms like dysecdysis (problems with shedding) or dystocia (inability to pass an egg) undefined.

While Soderberg goes into considerable detail about what is necessary to breed corn snakes and successfully incubate eggs, he does not go into detail about how to produce particular color morphs. It is probably true that a full discussion of Mendelian genetics was beyond the scope of the book. What he did do was provide a link to a program on the internet referred to as "Mick's Progeny Predictor," which allows the user to enter details about the parent snakes and get a prediction about the kinds of offspring that will be produced.

In the chapter on diseases, Soderberg covers the range of typical problems, including mites, respiratory infections, and digestive problems. He has a great discussion of regurgitation syndrome and how to re-introduce feeding in its aftermath.

My slightly biased recommendation: get this book!
(from a review published in the April 2009 issue of the Cross Timbers Herpetologist, newsletter of the DFW Herpetological Society)

This is, quite simply, the best book on corn snakes in print. I'm astonished that Amazon seems not to have it in stock (as of Jan. 06). Don't be deceived by the series title (Professional Breeders)--this is a book that all corn snake owners (or prospective owners) should have, including those who have no interest in breeding methods (although the breeding section does a better job of describing the various morphs to prospective buyers than any other corn snake book I've seen). The author--Don Soderberg, one of the most prominent breeders in the field--walks the prospective owner through the process of preparing for and buying a corn snake in great detail--I can't think of anything that has been missed here. Every contingency (including illness and escape) has been covered, and even experienced owners will find this volume to be useful. A good example is the author's discussion of vivarium temperatures. Most corn snake books (and online resources) simply say there should be an 85* warm side and a 75* cool side. But rarely do these sources say where the temperature reading should be taken--and when they do, they often provide contradictory, or illogical advice. This volume not only provides a detailed explanation for how to establish temperatures in your vivarium, it also provides a strong argument for why such a method is best. After spending six months reading everything I could find on corn snake care before purchasing my first snake, I have found this book to be more useful than anything else I have looked at.

I purchased this book in my research for information before purchasing my first snake with my grandson. This book is a MUST for anyone looking for information on care, feeding, housing, breeding and anything else about corn snakes. After reading this book I purchased our first corn snake from the author. It answered just about all of my questions and the author helped me with everything else so I was really prepared when our snake arrived. Interesting book even if you don't own a snake!