Summer Reading: The Play Edition
Our summer reading list is all about play.
You might also like:
Six ways to entertain your dog indoors.
Does playtime for cats reduce behaviour problems?.
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By Zazie Todd, PhD
This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you.
This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you.
Why do animals play? In Dog Sense, John Bradshaw writes “In wild
animals, play must promote survival; otherwise, evolution would select against
it – a young animal that is playing out in the open is much more obvious to a
predator than one sleeping in its den. However, the benefits of play do not usually become apparent until months
later, when they emerge in the form of better social integration or more
sophisticated hunting techniques (to name but two, which vary from one species
to another). Again, the simplest explanation is that play is self-rewarding: in
other words – it is fun!”
Our summer reading list includes links to
articles on play in dogs, cats, rabbits, meerkats and humans. Enjoy!
Is your dog’s rough play appropriate?
Barbara Smuts and Camille Ward, PhD, explain the difference between play fighting and
real fighting at The Bark.
Do dogs understand play signals given by humans? Stanley Coren, PhD, writes that the play signal most commonly used by
humans often doesn’t work, while chasing and running away, bowing, and lunging
have the best success rate.
Julie Hecht covers research that finds a dog rolling over during play is a combat tactic, not submission.
Dog play: What’s the purpose? Jennifer Cattet, PhD looks at the different ways dogs like to play.
Dog play: What’s the purpose? Jennifer Cattet, PhD looks at the different ways dogs like to play.
How my dogs play, by Eileen Anderson
(with video).
Playing with your cat. Lots of tips from International Cat Care.
Cats have individual differences in prey types – and that means individual differences in play, says Mikel Delgado.
House rabbits like play too. Christina
Chivers has some great ideas for logic toys for rabbits (with video).
Lynda Sharpe writes about the difficulties of studying play in meerkats and other animals. So you think you know why animals play...
Lynda Sharpe writes about the difficulties of studying play in meerkats and other animals. So you think you know why animals play...
Why do people play horror video games?
Mathias Clasen reports on a recent study.
Watch this wonderful enrichment activity
for a dog. The bottle game at Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation (video).
A couple of interesting research papers
about play in dogs are currently open access at the links below:
Bradshaw, J., Pullen, A., & Rooney, N. (2015). Why do adult dogs ‘play’? Behavioural Processes, 110, 82-87 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2014.09.023
Norman, K., Pellis, S., Barrett, L., & Peter Henzi, S. (2015). Down but not out: Supine postures as facilitators of play in domestic dogs Behavioural Processes, 110, 88-95 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2014.09.001
Norman, K., Pellis, S., Barrett, L., & Peter Henzi, S. (2015). Down but not out: Supine postures as facilitators of play in domestic dogs Behavioural Processes, 110, 88-95 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2014.09.001
Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, writes The Pawsitive Post premium newsletter, and also has a column at Psychology Today. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, one dog, and two cats.
Useful links:
You might also like:
Six ways to entertain your dog indoors.
Does playtime for cats reduce behaviour problems?.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. As an Etsy affiliate and Marks and Spencer affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
