While animal behavior was struggling to become a science, researches, one by one, inched their way closer. One of the first was Ivan Pavlov. Ivan Pavlov (1849–1936) In the early 1900s, the Russian physiologist, Ivan Pavlov, was studying digestion in dogs. Pavlov designed and surgically implanted a fistula, which allowed him to measure and analyze gastric secretions after feeding his canine test subjects. His findings from this research eventually won him a Nobel Prize in medicine, which later attributed to his prestigious standing in Russia and among the Academy of Sciences. However, during the course of his research, Pavlov observed

Over 20 years ago, when I became interested in dog training and animal behavior, I frequently heard statements such as, “Well, in the wild, the alpha wolf eats before subordinates and walks ahead of them.” Then later I’d hear someone say, “That’s wrong, they don’t do that at all.” So how do you find out what’s right? You could crack open any current book by Dr. David Mech, the most notable wolf biologist alive. Or you could take a course at a respected conservations and research park study wolves, such as Wolf Park in Indiana. I did just that back

Wolf Hybrids In the classic novel, White Fang, Jack London tells the tale of an abused half wolf-half dog who finds safety and companionship in a kind, benevolent master. The wolf-dog returns the kindness with an unerring devotion and loyalty, even offering his life to protect his new-found savior from harm. For years, I thought about what it might be like to own a wolf-dog like White Fang. London’s hybrid between nature and the common dog proved one magnificent animal—smarter, stronger, and more loyal than any ordinary dog. He was a superdog, the ideal companion. In modern day, the wolf-dog

Pet deer attacks man! Pet wolf mauls child! Hand-raised tiger savages owner! Whenever one of these headlines flashes by my radar, I can’t help thinking, “Why would anyone want a wild animal as a pet?” Why are wild animals dangerous to keep as pets?  For one, they are not behaviorally adapted to living with humans. See what a 40 year study involving undomesticated commercial farm foxes reveals about domestication. In this study, researchers selected only for tameness and over many generations they got a population of foxes that was not only friendlier to humans and easier to tame; they were

Shedd Aquarium Maggie Gonio and I get a tour of Chicago’s famous Shedd Aquarium. Today I had the pleasure of a behind the scenes tour of the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, just one day after  teaming up with Sarah Kalnajs to give a 3-day seminar at Narnia Pet Behavior & Training. The tour was thoughtfully Read More

First, the Trainers It’s a sunny morning in Folsom and something odd is happening at the Folsom Zoo. Zookeepers and staff are waving their arms, flailing their legs, and balancing in weird positions. No, they’re not there to entertain the animals. They’re playing the training game. The game where two people collude to train a third person to perform behavior unknown to her. The only clues they can give are to click and treat whenever she performs a behavior close to what they want. It’s a game where they get to experience the confusion that animals feel when humans are