Dog Talk ® (and Kitties Too!)

895B: Linda Kohanov, author of “The Tao of Equus,” describes a similar magic of communication we can have with dogs, and how we can transfer her principles of Wu Wei (not doing, not forcing, not striving) from our relationship with horses to that with dogs. 

#89A: Dr. Andy Roark is what Tracie calls a Physician Philosopher, dispensing humorous insights to other veterinarians (and the rest of us!), with a weekly blog Tracie eagerly anticipates for his musings into the joys and burdens of being human — like his recent one “No One Cares About Your Broccoli” that they discuss. (Tracie knows she has a lot of company in Andy’s fan club — his podcast “Cone of Shame” has had over one million listens!)

#894B: Anne Marie Farage-Smith’s book “How to Heal from Pet Loss and Different Forms of Grief” offers wisdom and support for coping with the often surprisingly powerful grief that accompanies the death of a pet.

#893A: The role of horses in warfare throughout history [Hitler’s war had only 10% mechanized equipment — the rest was horsepower] is but one of the many amazing facts in Timothy Winegard’s riveting historical narrative “The Horse — a Galloping History of Humanity,” that shows how horses have been central to the entire arc of human history. 

#893B: Dr. Carolynne Joone, reproductive veterinarian and professor at James Cook University in Australia, discusses being surprised by the results of her own study of neutered Rottweilers (3,085 intact and 4,100 neutered Rottweilers) which showed that when neutered before one year of age, males died about 18 months younger and females one year younger than those left intact. Tracie adds that early spay/neuter also increases the risk of obesity, cancer and ACL/CCL tears in any dog desexed before fully grown.

#892A: Erin Jones, author of “Constructing Canine Consent: Conceptualising and Adopting a Consent-focused Relationship with Dogs,” questions why we expect our dog to do something he doesn’t want to? Where is the mutual reciprocity in the relationship? Are we missing the chance to truly respect and communicate with them?

#892B: Melissa Stagnaro describes the fun of training for Search and Rescue competitions (vs. “real life” missions) that have different levels of competition, including one test that certifies you for “mission ready” qualification. Dogs [and people!] of all types and sizes can participate. Searchandrescuesport.org.

#891A: Wendall Thomas explains how a dormouse drives the story in her London-based mystery "Fogged Off,” while an endangered Tasmanian Tiger does the same in Australia in “Drowned Under.”

#891B: Hanna Mandelbaum, co-founder of Evermore pet food, is crowing because their company has made “chicken history” by receiving rare GAP 4 certification by exclusively using Mary’s Free-Range chicken — which are slow growth, heirloom birds raised on pasture (and happen to be the closest link to the Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaurs!) 

#890A: Jennifer Holland’s book “Dog Smart: Life-Changing Lessons in Canine Intelligence” takes a look at the “smartest of the smart” dogs who do extraordinary things for us with their natural abilities — and asks whether we shouldn’t be a little smarter in our dealings with them!

#890B: Sara Goldenthal is a professional jazz singer, composer and dedicated advocate for cats in shelters, who wrote lyrics and sang “Angels Surround You” (free on Spotify!) which has ambient music in the calming frequency of 528 Hz to soothe shelter cats.

#889A: Dr. Amy Attas talks about her memoir “Pets and the City: True Tales of a Manhattan House Call Veterinarian” and how three decades of tending to the pets of the rich and famous in their fabulous apartments has made her deeply appreciate the human-animal bond.

#889B: Mike Gould runs K9 Behavior Experts and often gives testimony in court about dog aggression cases. He discusses what is meant by a “red dog” — an aggressive one — although he believes no dog is dangerous, it is how s/he is managed.

#888A: Linda Kohanov’s groundbreaking book is out in a revised edition — “The Tao of Equus: A Woman's Journey of Healing and Transformation through the Way of the Horse,” which describes how thoughts and emotions are contagious between species.

#888B: Luiza Cervenka is a PhD behaviorist in San Paulo, Brazil, who is teaching veterinarians and owners what dogs really need — and how to see and empathize with pain in dogs that affects their behavior.

#887A: Dr. Treyton Diggs is famous in the world of competition Beagles, where he’s an AKC judge of field trials and also competes with his own pack of 32 Beagles — which he has bred and raised himself and knows everybody’s name! Now he has won Veterinarian of the Year from the Westminster Kennel Club, which gave a $10,000 donation to Not One More Vet (NOMV) in his name.

#887B: Karen Menczer is the Founder/Director of Animal-Kind International, dispensing grants to non-profits globally, often covering the salaries of shelter workers without whom animal rescue would not be possible. 

#886A: What if in fact dogs are “running the show” and have gotten us to do what they want? Philosopher Michele Merritt has written “Minding Dogs: Humans, Canine Companions, and a New Philosophy of Cognitive Science” to explore her theory about how dogs read our minds all the time, if only we were open to seeing it.

#886B: Kristina Bergsten, who runs The Animal Law Practice in Colorado [she can also practice in New York], talks about the kinds of situations where a lawyer specializing in animal law might be valuable when facing canine-related legal issues.

#885A: Dr. Amy Pike of the Animal Behavior Wellness Clinic in Washington D.C. explains that 75% of all behavior issues are the result of the dog being in pain, so “behavior modification” (“fix it through training”) is not the solution! The challenge: find out where the pain is and effectively treat it.