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Showing posts with label book club. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book club. Show all posts

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club November 2017

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"It will forever change how we see our aquatic cousins - the pet goldfish included."

A cup of coffee and a notebook by a pool full of koi. What a Fish Knows is the book for November 2017.


The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for November 2017 is What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins by Jonathan Balcombe.

From the back cover,
"Do fishes think? Do they really have three-second memories? And can they recognize the humans who peer back at them from above the surface of the water? In What a Fish Knows, the myth-busting ethologist Jonathan Balcombe addresses these questions and more, taking us under the sea, through streams and estuaries, and to the other side of the aquarium glass to reveal the surprising capabilities of fishes. Teeming with insights and exciting discoveries, What a Fish Knows offers a thoughtful appraisal of our relationships with fishes and the planet's increasingly imperiled marine life. It will forever change how we see our aquatic cousins - the pet goldfish included."

Why not join us in reading the book? You can leave your comments below!

You can also follow Jonathan Balcombe on twitter.



Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

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Companion Animal Psychology Book Club October 2017

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"What if the secret to great dog training is to be an expert 'feeder' rather than a strong leader?" The book for October is Plenty in Life is Free by Kathy Sdao.

Pomeranian reading outdoors in Autumn because the book club choice is Plenty in Life is Free


The  Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for October 2017 is Plenty in Life Is Free: Reflections on Dogs, Training and Finding Grace by Kathy Sdao.

From the back cover,
"What if the secret to great dog training is to be an expert 'feeder' rather than a strong leader? A skilled reinforcer rather than a strict enforcer? 
"Over the past two decades, countless dog trainers across the world have embraced the liberal use of positive reinforcement. Often accompanying this trend, however, is an underlying emphasis, inherited from more coercive models of dog training, that each human in the family must be the dog's leader. Adopting the role of leader through the use of "Nothing in Life is Free" training protocols, however, can result in stifling rules that constrain people's ability to share affection with their dogs, Strict reward-rationing regimens also tend to put the burden on dogs to "earn" all their privileges instead of placing the primary responsibility on the humans to be generous, precise, creative "feeders" (i.e., reinforcers)."

Why not join us in reading the book? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

You can also follow Kathy Sdao on twitter.


Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.


Companion Animal Psychology Book Club September 2017

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The book of the month is Pets on the Couch by Nicholas Dodman.

Pets on the Couch: A Maltese reads a book for the Animal Book Club


The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for September 2017 is Pets on the Couch: Neurotic Dogs, Compulsive Cats, Anxious Birds, and the New Science of Animal Psychiatry by Nicholas Dodman.

From the cover:
"Racehorses with Tourette's syndrome, spinning dogs with epilepsy, cats with compulsive disorders, feather-plucking parrots with anxiety, and a diffident bull terrier with autism - these astonishing and difficult cases were all helped by what pioneering veterinarian Dr. Nicholas Dodman calls One Medicine, the profound recognition that humans and other animals share the same basic neurochemistry, and that our minds and emotions work in similar ways. Traditional veterinary treatments did not cure these behaviors because they treated the symptoms as disorders of the body, rather than problems of the mind.  
Dr. Dodman, the Oliver Sacks of animal brains, demonstrates that our pets have thoughts and emotions similar to those of humans. His approach and philosophy save animals' lives, giving hope and help to pets and owners who are otherwise out of options."

Are you reading Pets on the Couch too? Why not leave a comment below with your thoughts on the book.

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club August 2017

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The book of the month is How to Tame a Fox by Lee Alan Dugatkin and Lyudmila Trut.


A fox curled up asleep for the book club's choice How To Tame a Fox by Lee Alan Dugatkin and Lyudmila Trut



The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club book for August 2017 is How to Tame a Fox (and Build a Dog): Visionary Scientists and a Siberian Tale of Jump-Started Evolution.

From the inside cover,
"Most accounts of the natural evolution of wolves place it over a span of about 15,000 years, but within a decade, Belyaev and Trut's fox breeding experiments had resulted in puppy-like foxes with piebald spots and curly tails. Along with these physical changes came genetic and behavioural changes, as well. The foxes were bred using selection criteria for tameness, and with each generation, they became increasingly interested in human companionship. Trut has been there the whole time and has been the lead scientist on this work since Belyaev's death in 1985, and with Lee Dugatkin, biologist and science writer, she tells the story of the adventure, science, politics and love behind it all."

To whet your appetite, you can read my interview with Dr. Lee Dugatkin.

Are you reading too? Leave a comment below with your thoughts on the book.


Companion Animal Psychology Book Club June 2017

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The book of the month is The Inner Life of Cats by Thomas McNamee.

A sweet cat rests her head on a book


The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for June 2017 is The Inner Life of Cats: The Science and Secrets of Our Mysterious Feline Companions by Thomas McNamee.

From the inside cover,
"In The Inner Life of Cats, acclaimed nature writer Thomas McNamee helps us decipher the thoughts and motivations of these often inscrutable creatures, digging deep into emerging (and forgotten) research to reveal what might be driving our cats' actions. McNamee consults the experts, decodes cats' befuddling behaviour (why are they always drawn to the one 'non-cat' person in the room?), and celebrates the unsung heroes who are starting to give us glimpses into what drives our cats to do the things they do."
Are you reading alongside us? Please let me know what you think of the book in the comments.

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club May 2017

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The book of the month is Dog Sense by John Bradshaw.

A man reads a book with a happy little dog on his lap.The book of the month is Dog Sense by John Bradshaw


The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club choice for May 2017 is Dog Sense: How the New Science of Dog Behavior Can Make You A Better Friend to Your Pet by John Bradshaw.

For our UK friends, the book is called In Defence of Dogs: Why dogs need our understanding.

From the inside cover,
"The dog has been mankind's faithful companion for tens of thousands of years yet today finds itself in crisis throughout the western world. Until just over a hundred years ago, most dogs worked for their living, and each of the many breeds had become well suited, over countless generations, to the task for which they were bred. Now, in their purely domestic roles, we fail to understand their needs. And it is time that someone stood up for dogdom: not the caricature of the wolf in a dog suit, ready to dominate its unsuspecting owner at the first sign of weakness, nor the trophy animal that collects rosettes and kudos for its breeder, but the real dog, the pet that just wants to be one of the family and enjoy life."

Are you reading alongside us? Please leave your thoughts on the book in the comments below.

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club April 2017

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The book of the month is The Other End of the Leash by Patricia McConnell.

Two chihuahuas sleeping on some books on the settee. The book of the month is The Other End of the Leash.


The book for April 2017 is the dog training classic The Other End of the Leash: Why We Do What We Do Around Dogs by Patricia McConnell.

From the back cover, “Dr. Patricia McConnell reveals a revolutionary, new perspective on our relationship with dogs – sharing insights on how “man’s best friend” might interpret our behaviour, as well as essential advice on how to interact with our four-legged friends in ways that bring out the best in them.”

Book club members can join in the discussion on Facebook. Alternatively you can leave your comments on the book below, or just enjoy reading alongside us.

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club reads one book a month, with January and July off.

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club: March 2017

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The book of the month is Being a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz.

A beagle rests his head on some old books in a library


The book for March 2017 is Being a Dog: Following the Dog Into a World of Smell by Alexandra Horowitz.

From the inside cover, "To a dog, there is no such thing as "fresh air." Every breath is full of information. Dogs, when trained, can identify drugs of every type, underwater cadavers, cancer, illicit cell phones in prison, bedbugs, smuggled shark's fins, dry rot, land mines, termites, invasive knapweed, underground truffles, and dairy cows in estrus. But they also know about the upcoming weather, earthquakes before they happen, how "afternoon" smells, what you had for breakfast, and whether a cat touched your leg yesterday."

Join us in the book club for the discussion, leave your thoughts on the book in comments on the blog, or just enjoy reading alongside us.

The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club reads ten books a year about animals and us. Follow the link for more information and a list of the previous books.


Companion Animal Psychology Book Club: February 2017

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The book of the month is Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de Waal.


An African hedgehog is reading a book, apparently



The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club continues with discussion of Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de Waal.

From the inside, "Frans de Waal explores both the scope and the depth of animal intelligence. He offers a first-hand account of how science has stood traditional behaviourism on its head by revealing how smart animals really are, and how we've underestimated their abilities for so long."

Towards the end of the month, I will post my thoughts about the book. You will be able to leave your own thoughts on the book in the comments section.

Through the book club, we will learn more about companion animals and our relationship with them, and build up a nice library of books about animals and the human-animal bond. Of course, we'll also enjoy talking about the books.

Are you reading too?

The Secret History of Kindness: Companion Animal Psychology Book Club

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The book for December was The Secret History of Kindness: Learning from how dogs learn by Melissa Holbrook Pierson.


The book cover of The Secret History of Kindness


The Secret History of Kindness: Learning from How Dogs Learn is a history of clicker training, from B.F. Skinner’s studies of operant conditioning and the development of the field of behaviourism through to present day dog training.

It covers Skinner’s rise and fall within Psychology, including the devastating effect of Chomsky’s review of Skinner's book Verbal Behaviour. It also details the work of Marian and Keller Breland via Animal Behavior Enterprises, Bob Bailey, Karen Pryor, Jean Donaldson, and the author’s own experiences of attending Clicker Expo.

Interwoven through the history are stories about Pierson’s own dogs, and what it was like to learn to live with them and train them. She is a fine writer and I enjoyed these stories very much.

For someone who espouses positive reinforcement, Pierson somehow fails to teach her dog to come when called. But the book is not intended to be a guide to dog training – it is very much a history of the development of modern dog training methods using operant conditioning. The kindness of the title refers to kind training methods that use positive reinforcement.

While the dog goes romping through the undergrowth, we are treated to philosophical musings about life with a canine. These discussions are an interesting part of the book, covering topics such as the treatment of zoo animals and why some people are so quick to use physical punishment when other options are available.

The meticulously-researched footnotes are packed with interesting asides, but it’s possible to leave them to dip back into later.

“Dog training is both exquisitely simple and achingly hard,” she writes (p219).

Anyone who has trained a dog will find something of interest in this book.

Learn more about the Companion Animal Psychology Book Club.

If you’ve read the book too, what did you think of it?

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club: December 2016

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The book of the month is The Secret History of Kindness by Melissa Holbrook Pierson.


A happy mixed-breed dog sits on a beach with a pile of books


The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club continues with discussion of The Secret History of Kindness: Learning from How Dogs Learn by Melissa Holbrook Pierson.

From the cover, "Pierson draws surprising connections in her exploration of how kindness works to motivate all animals, including the human one."

Later in the month, I will post my comments about the book, along with some highlights of the book club discussion.

You will be able to leave your thoughts on the book in the comments section.

Through the book club, we will learn more about companion animals and our relationship with them, build up a nice library of books about animals, and of course enjoy talking about the books.

Are you reading too?

The Trainable Cat: Companion Animal Psychology Book Club.

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The book for November was The Trainable Cat: How to Make Life Happier for You and Your Cat by John Bradshaw and Sarah Ellis.




The Trainable Cat: A Practical Guide to Making Life Happier for You and Your Cat is fascinating from start to finish.

It is about how to teach your cat the things that will help him or her to have an easier, happier life. Instead of tricks or obedience, think useful skills like how to get along with a new baby or how to go in the cat carrier.

Near the beginning of the book, the authors say,
“we aim to show you how training can improve not just your relationship with your cat but also your beloved pet’s sense of well-being. That’s not to say that the training won’t be fun – it will, for both of you – but the distinction is that you will be producing a happy and well-disposed pet, not a circus star.”

Each chapter has a section on how cats see the world, followed by training information. Early chapters explain how cats learn. Chapter 3 introduces a set of key skills, along with activities so you can practise them before you start training for real. Future chapters use these key skills and apply them to the practical situations your cat faces in everyday life. The book shows you how to tailor training to your individual cat – taking into account whether your feline is bold or fearful, and what their preferred rewards are.

The book also explains how you can meet your cat’s instinctual needs to hunt and to mark their territory by providing scratching posts and toys. Ideas to keep indoor cats content include cat agility and a sensory box to bring the outside in.

The book received overwhelmingly positive feedback from book club members; even the ‘dog’ people found it fascinating.

With this book, cat owners will not only understand their cats better, but also be able to teach them useful skills. It is essential reading for cat owners, and may even change your cat's life.

For more information, read my interview with Dr. Sarah Ellis on The Trainable Cat, or learn more about the Companion Animal Psychology Book Club.

You can follow the authors on social media: John Bradshaw on Twitter, and Sarah Ellis on Facebook and Twitter.

If you've been reading too, what did you think of the book?



Companion Animal Psychology is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Companion Animal Psychology Book Club: November 2016

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The book of the month is The Trainable Cat by John Bradshaw and Sarah Ellis.


Two sleepy cats, a book and a cup of tea; cosy inside at twilight on a rainy day


The Companion Animal Psychology Book Club starts this month with discussion of The Trainable Cat. Are you reading alongside us?

The Facebook group to discuss the books filled up in less than three days. Apologies but no new members are currently being accepted.

However you can still follow along on the blog.

Each month I will post a list of the discussion questions, along with some highlights of the discussion. You will be able to leave your thoughts on the book in the comments section.

Through the book club, we will learn more about companion animals and our relationship with them, build up a nice library of books about animals, and of course enjoy talking about the books.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on The Trainable Cat. I’ll post an update on the discussion later in the month.