Although canine aggression gets the lion’s share of media attention, when it when it comes to possessing the potential to destroy or prevent the development of a mutually rewarding human-animal bond, separation anxiety shares top billing on my list.
Read more →Most people value activities that they share with their dogs. The trick is to not let the desire to do this take precedence over the welfare of the animal.
Read more →This commentary belongs in what I mentally think of as my “Field of Dreams” file. These topics arise from discussions with those who work with companion animals and almost inevitably include a recurrent theme: The old approaches have reached a point of diminishing returns because the needs and expectations of the animal and human populations have changed.
Read more →While according to some the ability to use language elevates the human species, when it comes to labeling animal behaviors it often creates confusion instead of clarity.
Read more →This commentary presents a list of questions for those considering rescuing an animal, based on comments made by self-defined rescuers who later regretted that they didn’t get this information before they got caught up in the rescue culture and process.
Read more →For several reasons the idea of using certain medical problems in the domestic, primarily companion, dog as a model for similar problems in humans is generating interest among some researchers.
Read more →Because plants play such a critical role in the animal environment, it shouldn’t surprise us when some of the same rules apply to both. But sometimes it does.
Read more →Over the years I’ve written numerous holiday-related articles, commentaries, and blogs on all the different issues that may make holidays less than merry for companion animals and the humans with whom they share their lives. Nor do I doubt that countless others will contribute their own offerings that address these same topics again this year. Among these will be warnings not to give animals as holiday gifts, even if we feel totally convinced that the animal would result in the very best holiday ever for the recipient. We will learn, if we didn’t already know, the numerous reasons for
Read more →Regardless who originally said or wrote that “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar” in what context, in its most popular current usage it refers to not overlooking something’s actual identity in favor of any symbolism we choose to attach to it. As the amount and different kinds of symbolism we confer on companion animals continues to grow, the concept of “just an animal” seems to be going the way of “normal” in our society. By that I mean that in our efforts to impose all our symbolism (to say nothing of various behavioral, medical, and political labels) on
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The Mountaintop School for Dogs: A dog book like no other
Unlike novels involving human-canine relationships that provide intimate, often gut-wrenching details associated with traumatic events to justify a character’s response Ellen Cooney’s beautifully crafted book, The Mountaintop School for Dogs, asks us to forego that familiar literary tactic in favor of something far more intimate and in some ways unnerving.
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