Planet Dog: A Doglopedia

The English Bulldog is the third most popular dog in South Africa, but doesn't rate in the top ten in Britain. The Labrador Retriever, meanwhile, occupies a top-ten slot in every country surveyed in this one-stop information clearinghouse and sprawling shrine to all things dog. The husband-wife authors of this book have compiled over 300 dog-centric lists (""11 Helpful Books on Dog Care,"" ""8 Weird Laws About Dogs,"" ""66 Great Dog Movies"") containing troves of trivia, training techniques and pointers on nearly all aspects of the dog-human dynamic-from picking a pup to coping with a dog's death. The authors erred on the side of comprehensiveness when putting together this book; while ""20 Tips for Preparing Your Dog for a New Baby,"" offers great advice, ""Why Dogs are Better Than Cats,"" on the same page, does little more than take up space. Given the book's staggering volume of Fido facts, it will appeal to those already smitten by their own hounds (and possibly seeking to justify the lengths to which they go to please their dogs) and those looking for a wide-ranging resource to consult before taking the pooch plunge.