Three Years of the Animal Book Club

-
If you’re looking for some great reading about animals, look no further than the Animal Book Club.

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club Turns 3
Photo: Anna_Andre/Shutterstock


By Zazie Todd, PhD

This page contains affiliate links.

The Animal Book Club is three years old this month, which means we’re on book number 31: Beyond the Brain: How Body and Environment Shape Animal and Human Minds by Louise Barrett.

We’ve read some great books over the last year, from Our Dogs, Ourselves: The Story of a Singular Bond by Alexandra Horowitz to What the Dog Knows: Scent, Science, and the Amazing Ways Dogs Perceive the World by Cat Warren, Cat Sense: How the New Feline Science Can Make You a Better Friend to Your Pet by John Bradshaw and The Genius of Dogs: How Dogs Are Smarter Than You Think by Brian Hare. (for a full list, see the animal book club page).

This past year I’ve also been honoured to interview some amazing authors about their books:

On the blog, I shared my summer reading list while others shared the animal book that made a difference to them (part 1 and part 2).

If you like chatting about animal books but don’t want the commitment of reading every month, you might like the Animal Books facebook group (make sure you answer the question if you want to join). New members of the book club are welcome at any time, but must commit to reading and commenting on 7 of the 10 books each year.


Zazie Todd, PhD, is the author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy. She is the founder of the popular blog Companion Animal Psychology, where she writes about everything from training methods to the human-canine relationship. She also writes a column for Psychology Today and has received the prestigious Captain Haggerty Award for Best Training Article in 2017. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband and two cats.

Useful links:
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. As an Etsy affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Comments

Post a comment

Popular posts from this blog

Don't Punish Your Dog for Peeing in the House

-
Image
Why punishment is the wrong approach for house training mistakes, and how you should house train your dog or puppy instead.


By Zazie Todd, PhD

How should we house train puppies, and deal with the inevitable mistakes that puppies and adult dogs can have? Suppose your dog suddenly starts to pee in the house. You clean it up the first time but it happens again…. And then again.

Or your new puppy keeps having accidents indoors even though you take her outside often.

In this situation, some people will yell at their dog. Some might even try physical punishment like hitting the dog or an alpha roll. And we’ve all come across the advice that you should rub their nose in it.

Don’t do it.

Whether you're toilet training an adult dog or house training a puppy, here’s why that’s the wrong approach, and what you should do instead.
This page contains affiliate links.
Punishment can make things worse First of all, let’s think about it from the dog’s perspective.

Suppose they pee in the house and y…
Read more

Eight Tips to Help Fearful Dogs Feel Safe

-
Image
The most important things to know if you have a fearful dog.


By Zazie Todd, PhD
1. Recognize that the dog is fearful The first step is, of course, to recognize the dog is fearful in the first place.

If you know that already, well done for recognizing the signs. Hopefully you will find the following tips helpful.

If you aren’t sure, you might like to read how can I tell if my dog is afraid? If the answer is yes, come back here for some tips. It's important to know, because one study found that 72.5% of dogs have at least one form of canine anxiety.
This page contains affiliate links.


2. Help the dog feel safe Your first priority with a fearful dog is to help him or her feel safe.

That can look different depending on what the issue is. Maybe the dog needs a space of their own (like a crate or bed) where they can choose to go if they don’t want to be around any children or strangers in the house.

Maybe it means telling other people they can’t pet your dog, because your dog wouldn’t lik…
Read more