Companion Animal Psychology

Chronicling the history of diversity within Animal Behaviour Science and the Animal Behavior Society. By Zazie  Todd, PhD I have a new post on my Psychology Today blog, Fellow Creatures. It looks at some new historical research by Dr. Danielle N. Lee on the contributions of under-represented minorities to animal behaviour science, and the people who showed leadership in improving diversity and inclusion within the field. The post includes the amazing contributions of Charles Henry Turner, the first African American to get a PhD from the University of  Chicago, through to the present-day scholars who are making their mark on the field itself and on diversity and inclusion within the discipline. You can read it here: Pioneers, mentors, and diversity in animal behavior science . Photo:  Tolu Bamwo/Nappy  This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Wag: The

Dogs helping with archaeological digs and understanding cats' body language in the latest news from CAP. By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. My Favourites This Month “Nonetheless, the archaeologists dug. And dug. They went down nearly three feet — and there they found a human toe bone more than 1,300 years old”. When cadaver dogs pick up a scent, archaeologists know where to dig by Cat Warren . “Fostering cats is one of the few unambiguously positive things I’ve done in my life.” In 18 months we’ve had 30 cats – and it’s been wonderful by Tom Hawking . “Dominance "training" causes stress and is a dog's worst nightmare” says Dr. Marc Bekoff in his post, Dominant alpha humans don’t garner dogs’ respect and trust (I am quoted in this one). “But while losing weight is relatively easy in the short run, keeping it off is difficult and, for many people, it is

Despite common belief, owned dogs escaping from yards – not free-roaming dogs – are the main risk for dog bites in Detroit. Photo: Carla Burke/Pixabay By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. Dog bites can have serious consequences and so understanding the circumstances in which they occur is important. New research by Dr. Laura Reese and Dr. Joshua Vertalka (Michigan State University) and published in Animals looks at the factors involved in all of the dog bites reported to police in Detroit from 2007 to 2015. It’s important to note that Detroit is a special case, as unlike many other cities in the USA, it has a free-roaming (i.e. unowned) dog population, on whom bites are often blamed. At the same time, the effects of poverty and economic malaise in Detroit mean that foreclosures and vacancies have created circumstances in which there are many stray dogs, an environment in which the

Does it seem that your cat is always napping? Here’s how much sleep the average cat gets, and how to choose a cat bed. Photo: Koldunov Alexey/Shutterstock By Zazie Todd, PhD This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you. Get Companion Animal Psychology in your inbox. “Cats sleep, anywhere,” by Eleanor Farjeon was a favourite poem when I was a child. We see cats sleeping in so many places. My cat Harley’s favourite places are stretched out in the sunshine by a window, on his back on the heat vent with his paws in the air, up in his favourite cat tree, or on our bed (often cuddled up to my feet). My other cat Melina likes what used to be my dog’s bed (though she avoided it for a few days after he passed), and she has a couple of chairs that she particularly likes to sleep on. How Much Do Cats Sleep? Cats are said to be naturally crepuscular, meaning they are more active at dawn and dusk. This makes sense because t

"This inspirational memoir is, above all, a book about redemption.”—Cat Warren 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 month, the Animal Book Club is reading The Education of Will: Healing a Dog, Facing My Fears, Reclaiming My Life , by Patricia B. McConnell. ( This page contains affiliate links ). From the back cover: “When a troubled and aggressive young border collie named Will enters Dr. Patricia McConnell’s life, she is confronted with a problem that she has never faced in her decades working as a world-renowned animal behaviourist. Her special connection with Will triggers memories of harrowing traumas in Patricia’s own life and unearths a secret she had long repressed. In order to save Will from his dangerous behaviour, Patricia must summon the courage to address her own buried emotional pain. On her journey to healing, with Will as her trusted companion, she transf