First the singing “kookaberry” I remember from my childhood is actually a kookaburra. But while the kookaburra does laugh I don’t think it sounds anything like the way my dogs’ koala toy laughs. Nor does the sound a real koala makes sound like my dogs’ koala either. Having disproven my theory that perhaps it got there by mistake because someone confused it with a kookaburra, I’m at a loss regarding how what sounds to me like a distinctly young human’s laughter wound up in the toy. Be that as it may, the fact that it did served as the
Read more →The point to keep in mind about the phenomenon discussed in this podcast is that most of these animals not faking their physical and behavioral issues. In their minds, they really can’t use that limb or not be afraid of this or that. Because of that, in order to help these animals we need to get the whole picture. We can’t just focus on eliminating the behavior that troubles us instead of dealing with the underlying cause. Or rather we could limit our focus like that and eliminate the effects and ignore the underlying cause as long as we
Read more →I’m a big fan of contrast, whether it be in animal behavior, the human-animal bond, photography, food, scientific findings, music, literature, you-name-it. If I had to guess why I’d say because experience has taught me that the more unrelated two concepts superficially appear to be, the more they likely have something in common.
Read more →Do you ever experience one of those days when you need a new perspective on life with animals and especially cats and perhaps even your very own particular cat? Because the invasive Bamboo decided that going outside in cold weather no longer appealed to him, I found the book that serves as the subject of this week’s podcast especially helpful.
Read more →Like many of my podcasts, this one was triggered by information that just happened to hit my desk or computer at about the same time. First I’d just resurrected the FRATT commentary because the same and new after-the-fact oops moments continued to occur in human and veterinary health.
Read more →When I was a little kid some wise person, who I like to think was my grandmother because she was a very wise woman, said to me, “Never say never or always.” No doubt she wasn’t the first person to realize the value of such awareness. Perhaps because of this indoctrination—or maybe brainwashing—I tend to be very suspicious of those who speak in terms of absolutes, and especially those referring to biology or behavior.
Read more →This is a rough idea of the two images I saw peripherally that served as the inspiration for the podcast:
Read more →This podcast started out as a tribute to several groups of animals routinely doing some very important work who often get overlooked. The bulk of the podcast still addresses that topic, but I also riff a bit about the unsung relationship between cats and rats and other rodents which benefits us humans as much as it benefits them.
Read more →In some quarters this might be considered a snarky comment, but wouldn’t it be deliciously ironic if we could come back some time in the future and discover that all human behaviors—even those that we currently claim as uniquely our own—have their roots in long-established animal ones? Seriously, would this really be all that surprising?
Read more →As I was editing this podcast, it hit me that the gift of laughter is another reason why I like the species-specific parental model for our relationship with domestic animals instead of a peer-based reward/punishment competitive one.
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