Reviews (4)

All you need to know!!
This book has the answer to any question that you are ever likely to have regarding the well being of a Potbellied Pig.

A Must Read for all Pet Pig Owners
Kathleen really did it right with this book! It is a great source of everything you'll need to know about pet pigs and their mental and physical health. If you have a pet pig, you MUST have this book.

A Must-Have for Pig Owners
As the two-legged mom of 3 potbelly pigs, the oldest of which is now 10, I find this book a wonderful wealth of information that every care-giver of pet pigs should have on hand.Laid out in a very easy to use format, this book will take you from the history of where potbellied pigs came from; help you decide if a pet pig is right for your family (as they are not for just anyone); and then moves on into what to look for when choosing a pet pig; how be be prepared for it's homecoming and the proper living environment required for these special little pigs; the medical need-to-know information that is specific to pet pigs; along with various other chapters which will put you and your companion pig on the road to a happy, healthy and long relationship.Information on pet pigs and their care is sparse at best.This valuable text helps fill that void in the pet pig market and I promise you'll have many pages dog-earred or marked with post-its by the time you're done reading it.No pet pig home should be without The Complete Guide for the Care and Training of Pet Potbellied Pigs. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Animals, Training of    2. Handbooks, manuals, etc    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Pigs    6. Potbellied pigs as pets    7. Miniature pigs as pets   

Reviews (53)

Great Book
If you are about to bring a ferret into your life, or already have one, GET THIS BOOK. This is the only book you'll ever need. Buy this book, and check out the sites mentioned in this book, and you are ready to give the best care possible for your ferret.

A must have for anyone who has or wants a ferret in their life!!
I recommend this book to anyone who has or wants a ferret in their life. It is the ONLY book on the market with current, accurate, safe information. Not everyone who writes a book on pets is an expert, but Kim Schilling is one helluva ferret connoisseur.
The only ferret book you'll ever need
I bought this book more than a year after getting my first two ferrets, and learned more from it than from anything else (except from the ferrets themselves). Although I eventually gave the book to my local humane society, I borrow it back whenever one of the critters gets sick or surprises me with some new kind of ferret insanity.I should just go ahead and buy another copy! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - Animal Husbandry    2. Ferrets as pets    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Reference    6. Domestic animals & pets    7. Pets / General   

Reviews (2)

Know How to Tell When Your Rabbit is Sick
Since rabbits are prey animals they hide illness really well. That's why its important for rabbit keepers to know how to see even the faintest signs of illness and what they mean. The book educates the reader on common illness and their treatments and more chronic illnesses. The author covers drugs, how safe they are, and what they do and discusses alternative medicine. The book has also been reviewed by a vet before publishing so the information can be trusted. This goes beyond what a standard rabbit care book, this is a rabbit health book. Use it as a supplement to a good rabbit care book like the House Rabbit Handbook or Rabbits for Dummies. I recommend this over the Rabbitopaedia, which has incorrect information in it.

Great Read About Common Medical Problems in Rabbits
This is a wonderful book for any bunny parent who wants to learn more about specific rabbit illnesses. I have referred to this book quite often when one of my bunnies seems "out of sorts". The chapters include Being Prepared, Common Rabbit Health Issues, Chronic Ailments and Aging Bunnies, Care of the Chronically Ill, Diagnosis and Conventional Treatments, Alternative Medicine, Knowing When to Say Goodbye, and Coping with Loss. When you know more about common rabbit illnesses, the more prepared you'll be if something does happen to your bunny. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. General    2. Mice, Hamsters, Guinea Pigs, Etc.    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Reference    6. Domestic animals & pets    7. Encyclopaedias & Reference Works   

Reviews (13)

Great Crabby Book
With there not being out the in pet stores on how to care for your hermies, this book is very helpful for the novice owner or even for a brush up for someone more experienced.I like to try and read as much as I can.It explains the background of the species as well as how to care for them properly.Thru that, it shows that they are NOT just a disposable pet to live in a little plastic container w/ a 1/4 inch of sand :-(hopefully someday that philosophy will change.They are so interesting and can live a very long time if taken care of properly.It is only a lot of work if you do not have the time.

Very Informative Book on Hermit Crab Care
This book has everything that the novice hermit crab owner needs to know to take care of and enjoy their hermit crabs!Information on food, water, environment and behavior can be found easily.This book really helped us learn about our new pets!

AWESOME GUIDE
I bought this book and WOW, it totally helped me take care of my hermit crab Sidney. It tells you all that you need to know to let your hermit crab live safely and happily ever after! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Hermit crabs as pets    2. Miscellaneous Other Pets    3. Nature/Ecology    4. Pets    5. Reptiles, Amphibians & Terrariums    6. Domestic animals & pets    7. Pets / Fish   

Reviews (3)

Good Book
This book has been extremly helpful. Recommend to all who have or plan on having Tarantulas.
Greatintroduction book for the hobby
If you are interested in owning a tarantula or are new to the hobby I highly reccomend this book.It is well writen to the point and covers a lot of BASIC care information without getting to scientific or to historical.Great pictures and it has a pretty good section on different tarantulas in the hobby (talks about the temprement, housing, etc,) which will help you to choose what tarantula is right for you. This is a must for any tarantula hobbyist.Well worth your money.

A Great Book
Whether new to having a pet tarantula, or a little further along in the hobby, this is a great book to have on hand. All the basic questions/concerns about keeping a tarantula are well-covered in this book. There are also many beautiful color photos of tarantulas that will make you want to keep expanding your collection! There is far less information on keeping other spiders and scorpions, but it is still very helpful if you are starting out. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - General    2. Arachnida    3. Insects & Spiders    4. Miscellaneous Other Pets    5. Pets    6. Reference    7. Spiders    8. Tarantulas    9. Tarantulas as pets    10. Domestic animals & pets    11. Pets / General   

Reviews (18)

An owner's care book and will appeal to any goat owner who needs a basic reference at hand
Any who would own a goat must have THE GOAT HANDBOOK as a home reference: written by two DVMs, THE GOAT HANDBOOK covers everything from the initial purchase and housing to health and behavior, including care of pastures and meadows so goats stay healthy. Color photos peppered throughout add interest, but THE GOAT HANDBOOK is primarily an owner's care book and will appeal to any goat owner who needs a basic reference at hand.
how are goats kept in Germany, but not in the US
This book is great if you want to know how to raise goats in Europe, please don't get me wrong, I am from Germany and I have nothing against how things are done there, but the way the book discribes the keeping of goats is not the way it is done in the U.S. There is a big different in how goats are raised for meat versus how people raise them for show/milk or even just a for pets with or without horns. No real serious breeder of a Dairy goat in the U.S. would keep horns on a goat or even let the kids nurse. On the other hand most Meat goat breeder will not dehorn their goat and are upset if they have a goat they have to bottlefeed. There are many different ways to keep goats in the U.S. and they are not adequately discribed in this book.
Good read for the novice
Since I am a complete novice and know nothing about goats, this book was very helpful and consistent with other books I am currently reading. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - Animal Husbandry    2. Animals    3. General    4. Goat Production    5. Goats    6. Miscellaneous Other Pets    7. Pets    8. Technology & Industrial Arts    9. Animal husbandry    10. Goats; farm animals    11. Pets / Reference   

Reviews (6)

THE BOOK for those new to scorpions
Despite a few inaccuracies and errors described elsewhere by another reviewer, this book will offer anyone new to keeping scorpions or who is curious about these most remarkable of animals an easy to read offering covering many diverse aspects of scorpions.
Gem of a Resource for the Beginner -Advanced
Wonderful resource for those who are looking for information on these amazing invertebrates. Basic care and important warnings about the collection and maintance of these new additions to the pet world. A resource for the beginner to the advanced .

Read BEFORE you buy
Or, before you allow your son to buy. heheheRead more

Subjects:  1. Animals    2. Miscellaneous Other Pets    3. Pets    4. Reference    5. Scorpions as pets    6. Pets / General    7. Wild animals   

Reviews (6)

Wonderful information & very thorough!
This book has loads of wonderful information!I am going to become a leader with a 4-H sheep club and it has lots of wonderful, valuable information!

Great for kids, prime candidate for free ebook!
A subtitle on the front cover claims this is a complete owner's manual. Well.....I guess the operative word is manual, not book or text. A GREAT book for beginners interested in purchasing sheep.
Would highly recommend this book to anyone who has no experience in the sheep industry.For the beginner who has yet to purchase sheep, it covers everything from how to make your first purchase, care and housing, feeding, illnesses, breeding, products of sheep and more.A small, inexpensive, yet informative book that will give the reader an idea of what sheep require in order to remain healthy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - General    2. Handbooks, manuals, etc    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Sheep    6. Technology    7. Farm & working animals    8. Pets / General   

Subjects:  1. Animals / Pets    2. General    3. Hermit crabs as pets    4. Miscellaneous Other Pets    5. Pets    6. NATURAL HISTORY, COUNTRY LIFE & PETS    7. Pets / General   

Reviews (3)

Very Bad Book
I would not reccommend this book to anyone! A lot of the information was wrong and completely inaccurate! Uptodate and insightful!
I couldn't disagree with the previous reviewers anymore!This book is simply smashing, I mean how often does a chap come across a book about Hedgehogs, and then how often do you find a book with this much information.Really, a bang-up job!As for Cedar wood chips, I will have you know I have raised 5 consectutive hoggies on cedar beds, and they still chase my cat around the house like a whirling dervish.This book is smashing, and I would advise anyone interested in raising hoggies to read it.

Outdated and inaccurate
I don't know where to start.This book recommends activities that I consider to be catastrophically bad for hedgehogs, like keeping them on cedar shavings, which can cause respiratory failure.I just can't recommend. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. African pygmy hedgehog    2. African pygmy hedgehogs as pet    3. African pygmy hedgehogs as pets    4. Miscellaneous Other Pets    5. Pets    6. Reference    7. Domestic animals & pets    8. Pets / Mice, Hamsters, Guinea Pigs, etc.   

Reviews (4)

Everything and more in a Ferret Book
The best ferret book that I have ever bought or read. Has so much more than the other books out their. You will find more on ferret colors than anyplace else. More on health and care and feeding that I have found. And the best is the Understanding Ferret Behavior!! cant go wrong with that. The book jacket (on the back)says it allThe Ferret HandbookThe Information You Need to Raise a Happy and Healthy Ferret.Facts, advice, and fascinating insight tell you all you need to know and much more..

A Great Beginners Book
If you've never owned a ferret before or feel like you're not knowledgable enough with the fuzzies you have now, this is a great book.It covers all the basics one needs to know when caring for a ferret, or multiples.Including ferret proofing your home, basic training technics with multiple suggestions for different behavioral problems since no two ferrets are a like and will respond differently and many many other topics.I enjoyed this book and found it very informative since at the time I purchased it I felt I needed to learn more about my sweet little fuzzies and sure did!A great book.

The best
This book tells you about everything you need to now about Fuzzies, carpet sharks, or Ferrets. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - Animal Husbandry    2. Ferrets as pets    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Reference    6. Pets / Mice, Hamsters, Guinea Pigs, etc.    7. Rabbits & rodents as pets   

Subjects:  1. Animals    2. Miscellaneous Other Pets    3. Pets    4. Rabbits & rodents as pets   

Subjects:  1. Calendar    2. Calendars & Diaries    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Non-Classifiable   

Reviews (3)

The best exotic formulary available
This is the must-have formulary for any veterinarian who works with exotic animals. Don't work on bunnies/rat/birds/etc. without it!

Exotic pet owners need this book, too
I'm not a vet, nor in the veterinary field. I'm the owner of (or slave to, if you prefer) several species of exotic pets. I bought this book because I saw it in my vets' office, and thought it would be a good way to learn more. Indeed it is. I'm lucky, in that my vets happen to be extremely good exotics vets, but many people live in places where the only vets are cat-and-dog vets. If you own a guinea pig or rabbit, getting it treated by a cat-and-dog vet can be chancy. Excellent Formulary
The KState crew does it again... pocket pet drugs galore from thepocket pet Gods. This nice little book took a while to come out, but it was worth waiting for.The book is extremely comprehensive and well referenced, easy to use and gives you multiple options on the different treatment regimes. However, there are some misprints on drug dosages which the acute veterinarian will pick up, so be careful... All in all, you must buy this book!! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dosage    2. Exotic animals    3. Fish    4. Ichthyology    5. Medical    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Miscellaneous Other Pets    8. Pharmacology    9. Reptiles & Amphibians    10. Veterinary Medicine - General    11. Veterinary Pharmacology    12. Veterinary drugs    13. Veterinary Medicine    14. Veterinary Medicine - Small Animal   

Reviews (4)

Excellent Book
This book provides the reader a great overview of ferret care, health, diet, and many other topics such as the food they eat and the type of cages they should have. The only thing I did not like about the book is on page 31 quoting, "If your ferret plays too roughlt, a sound thump on the nose with your forefinger, accompanied by a sharp "No", will soon advise your ferret that this is not acceptable behavior". I have to disagree! Out of all ferret reading I have done, books, magazines, and Internet researching, I always read that nose thumping is not appropriate to teach a ferret of his/her errors. This is only book that suggests that it is okay. Otherwise all the other topics are great and make sense. Despite the disagreement, I give 4 stars for great overall well rounded book.

FUZZIES!
Owning a ferret is a little like owning a child - they require your full attention and a great deal of time, especially when they're young. When we bought our first ferret, Tycho, my wife and I had already done a little research and so we had some idea of what to expect. We should have done more, however. They're a handful, but ultimately worth it, because most ferrets are not only cute and cuddly, but smarter than most dogs and like cats, genuinely curious in most things in their environment. Before bringing your little carpet shark home it is important to know what you're getting into. Prospective ferret owners should do plenty of research before taking the plunge and buying one or more of the little cuties. A helpful back up for the new owner.
I recently became co-owner of a baby ferret, Tycho--after the astronomer.Just lately Tycho has exhibited a rather alarming weight drop.Morton's book suggested itself as a useful resource for the nervous ferret "parent," and indeed it has been.In reading the section on weight cycles, we learned that the ferret tends to gain and loose weight according to the seasons and light intensity.What a relief!The little guy has been a dear and amusing pet, full of bouncing, peppy mischief, and we'd hate to loose him.It's nice to know we'll be better able to care for the newest member of our household with this new book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ferrets as pets    2. Miscellaneous Other Pets    3. Pets    4. Reference    5. Pets / Mice, Hamsters, Guinea Pigs, etc.    6. Rabbits & rodents as pets   

Subjects:  1. Animals    2. Marine Life    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Nature    5. Nature/Ecology    6. Pets    7. Reptiles, Amphibians & Terrariums    8. Domestic animals & pets   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Horses - General    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Domestic animals & pets   

Reviews (5)

James McKay , the man in the know.
I purchased both James McKay's books and two ferrets from Mr. McKay when I lived in England and know first hand he is the man in the know! This book is better than any other book out there (US or UK). It details proper husbandry techniques and practices. I find the UK method of modern ferret keeping superior to US, in most US homes the ferrets are kept by themselves in crampt cages; in this magnificent book it informs you of their gregarious nature and need for a somewhat large cage. GOOD WORK JAMES!

Little good information
In "The Complete Guide to Ferrets," by James McKay, we're first treated with evidence of a big ego with such statements like, "The first historical mention of a ferret _that I can find_..." (emphasisadded) as if he were the last word on ferret origins. This immediatelyraised the warning flags-big egos tend to carry misinformation. Which getsdemonstrated within a few pages when we see how naive James McKay is aboutthe ferret situation in the United States. Later we are treated to such"deeply informative" statements as "Treat with the utmostsuspicion anyone trying to sell adult ferrets." Though there is someelement of truth to the caution, typically, sweeping statements that aren'tqualified also tend to ring false. I've seen many adult ferrets in shelterswho are very nice animals that would make great pets. Indeed well-mannered1- to 2-year-olds are often recommended for beginners for they tend to beeasier to handle and train than kits. Another "winner" is"...there's no such thing as a bad ferret, simply too many bad ownersof ferrets!" Nice quaint line, which again has some element of truth,but also lacks depth of insight in the range of behavioral tendencies thatferrets can attain. Breeders often seek ferrets that don't bite in pursuitof more docile offspring, just one of many indications that"badness" can stem from both parties. There are many otherproblems with this book-a tendency for leaden writing that isn't engaging,and some of his methods for raising ferrets seem barbaric, even if theywork for him. The only reason that I even give this book two stars isbecause James McKay makes a good effort at the biological details offerrets, including his Appendix I, "Ferret Facts and Figures"which would do well in any ferret book, and he lists a nice bibliography.

A UK & European perspective
As the author of this book, I tried to leave the "ratings" field free, as I am obviously biased, but the system will not allow me to. However, the real reason for this "review" from myself is tocorrect the review from "A reader from central California", whoobviously has never read my book! Firstly, this reader obviously believesthat he knows a lot about ferrets, and yet cannot even get the specificname correct.He gives the name "Mustela furo", when, in fact,it is Mustela putorius furo.As he/she cannot get this proven scientificfact correct, readers would do well to give little or no credence to any ofhis remarks. He/she states that, in my book, I refer to ferrets as"vicious wild animals".Having written the book, and thenre-read it looking specifically for this phrase, all I can find is mycomment that "some would have us believe that ferrets are vicious, butthose of us who really know this animal will know otherwise". Clearly, the Californian critic is misquoting me. In the book, I give muchspace to factual information on genetics, breeding, exhibiting/showing,racing and pet ferrets, and yet your correspondent states that I merelydismiss them as having no real value!As to my mixing up the species, Isuggest that your correspondent remember the old saying that Brits andYanks are "two nations separated by the same language".While toAmericans a "turtle" is any chelonian, we Brits use three termsto separate them, viz (marine) turtles, (terrestrial) tortoises and(semi-aquatic) terrapins.Here in England (where we invented the Englishlanguage) we NEVER use the term "ermine" for any animal, merelyfor the fur of the European stoat.True, many ferret owners (and I do notcount myself among them), erroneously and confusingly do refer topolecat-coloured ferrets as "polecats", which the Americanfanciers refer to as "sable", a word which is actually the nameof an arctic relative of the ferret - VERY confusing for those of us whospeak English and have a zoological training. Here in the UK, pet ferretkeepers DO keep their animals (ie ferrets) indoors, giving them free run ofthe human home.I am also informed by several US ferret keepers that thepractice is fairly common in the US, too.My book was written specificallyfor the UK and European markets, in the same way as US books are writtenfor the US market.Very few Brits would want to spend time, effort andmoney abusing their ferrets by dressing them in human style clothing, eventhough a US compnay is now trying to persuade us to do so. Ferret keepingin the US and in the UK are different.Consequently, our books aredifferent.My book represents the best practices of this country, whileone has to assume that US books do the same for the US market.I havealways purchased and read every book on ferrets and ferreting that I canfind, including American books.I read these foreign books not to learnabout the UK ferret, but to learn about the way in which this littlecarnivore is thought of any treated in the US.I am not at all happy withmany of the seemingly common US practices detailed in most US books, buthave to shrug these concerns off as "cultural differences".Icannot reconcile the fact that California will allow its residents tolegally own a wide range of firearms and many truly exotic animals, and yetban the keeping of the domestic ferret. Perhaps readers should consider thefact that, here in the UK, we have not overbred our ferrets to the degreewhereby we have developed many deleterious conditions in our stock; theAmericans have.The average lifespan for a ferret in the UK is over tenyears (many upto 14 years), while US veterinarian publications state thatthe average life expectancy for an American ferret is often less than halfof that.That is obviously one reasonwhy the US ferret fancy has had toimport ferrets from all over the world, including many from myself. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Animals / Pets    2. Ferret    3. Ferret as pets    4. Miscellaneous Other Pets    5. Pets    6. Reference    7. Rabbits & rodents as pets   

Reviews (1)

Good introduction to several exotic pets
The Exotic Pet Handbook introduces you to a variety of exotic pets - canaries, finches, budgerigars, snakes, lizards, tortoises, frogs, newts, goldfish, tarantulas, scorpions, and freshwater fish to name a few.Each chapter provides an introduction along with descriptions of the various species, housing, feeding, general care, health, and breeding information.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Exotic animals    2. General    3. Miscellaneous Other Pets    4. Pets    5. Reference    6. Wild animals as pets    7. Birds, including cage birds    8. Insects as pets    9. Reptiles & amphibians as pets   

Reviews (1)

Its ok
I got this book for Xmas, and was super excited.I am a little scared to try the massage, as it sounds like I could hurt the bunnies, some of it seems rough.It is a good book, but I think most people can figure out how to massage their bunnies, but for me, I like to have instructions. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Mice, Hamsters, Guinea Pigs, Etc.    2. Miscellaneous Other Pets    3. Pets    4. Rabbits & rodents as pets