Companion Animal Psychology News October 2018

The latest news including an evidence-based guide to pets, what it's like growing up with wolves, and anxiety in pets and us.

Companion Animal Psychology News October 2018


By Zazie Todd, PhD

Some of my favourites from around the web this month

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The Psychologist guide to … pets. I love these evidence-based tips on pets put together by Ella Rhodes.

“Fido” or “Freddie”? Why do some pet names become popular? A fun and interesting post from Prof. Hal Herzog, complete with a quiz to test how popular your dogs’ names are.

Do you want to know what the umwelt of a dog is? And what canine science experiments look like? The Scientist Podcast interviews Dr. Alexandra Horowitz

“Treating my cat for depression caused me to question the state of anxiety in animals and us.” Can a cat have an existential crisis? by Britt Peterson.

Secrets of getting pee and poop samples from Fear Free. A tricky thing that many pet owners have to do sooner or later… what to do next time you need to take a sample to the vet.

Caring for senior and geriatric cats by Pam Johnson-Bennett.

“What Rodríguez remembers of his time living wild is that it was “glorious”” The story of Marco Rodriguez, abandoned as a child and raised by wolves. Available as a podcast and text version. By Matthew Bremner.

“Most of the students have had enough of nature red in tooth and claw and many lament, "Look where that 'I'm behaving like an animal' excuse got me."” Inmates and art Connecting with animals helps soften them. Dr. Marc Bekoff reflects on 17 years of his Roots and Shoots humane education class at the Boulder County Jail.

What’s wrong with anti-bark collars? Sylvie Martin from Crosspaws Dogs explains.

Do dogs forget their people? Scientists Sarah-Elizabeth Byosiere, Stefano Ghirlanda, Rachelle Yankelevitz, Lynette Hart, Ruth Colwill, Nicholas Dodman and Clive Wynne answer the question at Gizmodo. By Daniel Kolitz.


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Animal Book Club

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for October is The Dog: A Natural History by Adam Miklosi. It’s a beautifully-illustrated book about the evolution, anatomy, cognition and behavior of dogs.

The Dog: A Natural History is the Animal Book Club choice for October 2018


For those who want to chat about animal books without the commitment to read and comment on a book every month, I started a new Facebook group called Animal Books. Come and share new releases, interviews with authors and your favourite books (fiction and nonfiction) about companion animals.

I've set up an Amazon page with a list of all the books from the Book Club, as well as some other pet-related items too.


Here at Companion Animal Psychology


I’m thrilled to have a piece about dogs in the special issue of The Psychologist magazine on The Psychologist’s Tree of Life. It’s a fascinating issue from start to finish. Look in particular for pieces on dogs by Dr. Julianne Kaminski and Prof. Clive Wynne, but many non-human species are included.I recommend scrolling down to the bottom of the page and downloading the pdf to read so you can see the beautiful artwork commissioned for the piece from Adam Batchelor.

I spoke to Animal Radio about what pets want from people (scroll down to episode 981).

Overweight and obesity in pets is at very high levels. At Psychology Today, I wrote about a study that reviewed the effects of interventions designed to change owner behaviour. It turns out that for overweight dogs, owner behaviour matters

Also at Psychology Today, I wrote about a pilot study that investigated whether you should pet your dog before an absence. (Note the study was only with dogs who don’t have separation-related issues). Dr. Marc Bekoff responded to my post and shared some of his data in should you say goodbye to your dog before you leave them?

Here at Companion Animal Psychology, Survey shows changes as dogs age (and how you can help your dog) looks at research on dogs across the lifespan. One of the most interesting findings is about the apparent effects of trauma on canine behaviour.

Five fun things to do to make your dog happy is, well, about fun things to do with your dog

Do dogs and cats get along looks at a survey of people who have both a dog and a cat. It seems the cat’s level of feeling comfortable with the dog is an important factor in their relationship.

And a short petting session improves wellbeing in shelter dogs looks at a study that set out to answer a simple question: Is a 15-minute session with a trained volunteer who will pet the dog (respecting the dog’s wishes) good for dogs?

I've been working very hard on edits to my book and I'll be honest, I'm looking forward to a break soon!


A Better World for Dogs

It’s hard to believe, but this is the final image from the series about a better world for dogs and a better world for cats. Thank you to all the experts who shared their wonderful ideas!

Companion Animal Psychology News October 2018: A Better World for Dogs

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. 

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