When a child is bitten by a four-legged family member, it can turn the household upside-down. Owners feel puzzled and confused. “They sleep together all the time,” they might say, or, “He’s always been really good. He even lets Timmy sit on him.” In a majority of cases, the bite seems out of the blue. The humans can’t fathom why their once-trusted companion would bite an innocent child. But anyone who reads “dog” or can see life from the pet’s point of view would most likely say, “I’m surprised it didn’t happen sooner.” The fact is, a quick perusal of

Question: We have a five month old kitten who can’t seem to get the hang of using the cat door. Our other cats use the door and I’m sure he sees them, but he doesn’t seem to learn by imitation. Any suggestions? Answer: A kitty door is a simple contraption that many cats learn to use right off the bat, but others don’t know what to make of the flappy barrier. While some cats are actually afraid of the odd swinging contraption, others are just too polite to shove their way through. In either case, the solution is straight forward.

A reader once asked, “How can a dog bark for such great lengths of time? If I holler and scream for a long time, I lose my voice.” The answer, of course, is practice. And it starts when they’re young. Take, for instance, Alf the Aussie, who lives down the street. He started out at the front window, barking sharply at passersby: “Stay away from my property. Just move it on by.” He was so successful at sending the mail carrier and other pedestrians scurrying that when his owner promoted him to the front yard, he increased his alarm duties,

As an animal behaviorist, science and animal behavior are always on my mind; which is why I came up with the idea for this blog in the middle of my deep-water running workout yesterday. I was listening to a podcast of NPR’s Fresh Air, while speeding along at an incredibly slow pace when an interesting question was posed by the guest, neurologist David Linden, author of The Compass of Pleasure: How Our Brains Make Fatty Foods, Orgasm, Exercise, Marijuana, Generosity, Vodka, Learning, and Gambling Feel So Good. Why are Cigarettes More Addicting Than Heroin? He asked, “Why is it that 80% percent

Question: I have a 17-month-old Labrador Retriever who has a very bad habit. When I let her out in the backyard, she bites off the watering jets of our irrigation system. Worse, if I leave her out for a long time (over five minutes), she gets at the main irrigation hoses and she has chewed right through them. This is a nightmare in terms of repairs, costs and loss of function. Can you offer any advice? Answer: Like furniture scratching problems in cats, one strategy for curbing the destruction here is to direct the behavior at a more appropriate object,

It’s wonderful to come home after a long day of work to relax and spend quality time with your pet. But when quality time includes the following pet owner’s predicament, relaxation is far from the picture. “My Springer Spaniel barks constantly at the table when we eat dinner and it’s annoying,” says one perplexed pooch owner. “He gets table scraps occasionally but he always has dog food available. Any ideas or thoughts?” At this point, cat owners are gloating over their choice of a more peaceful pet, but before you feline fanciers let it go to you head, listen to