Dog Sense
How the New Science of Dog Behavior Can Make You a Better Friend to Your Pet

This is in the class of books that I really enjoyed and don’t have the background to critically evaluate. It is also loosely in the category of books exploring the thesis of “yeah, that thing you were taught? That’s wrong.” Unlike many of those books (I’m lookin’ at you, Malcolm Gladwell), it also h......more

It was the best of books, it was--not the worst of books, not by a long shot, but incredibly annoying in places. This is a serious effort at collecting in one place the current state of the science of dog behavior. Bradshaw discusses the evidence we have for how and when dogs evolved from wolves, as......more

This was another one of those books that ought to be required reading for any dog owner, or for anyone who's just around dogs a lot. However, it's the best of the bunch. Bradshaw, a published and respected scientist who has spent years studying canine cognition walks through the common misconception......more

The whole “alpha dog” thing is a mistake: dogs aren't wolves, and we should really just forget that whole pack/dominance thing. (Side note: even wolves aren't wolves. The pack model is based on observations in old-time zoos; not necessarily the most natural and stress-free environment). Reward train......more

For those interested in biology as well as reflections on human-canine interactions. Takeaway: dogs are not mini wolves, whatever their genes say. Their adaptability and lack of hierarchical structure is what made them our perfect companions and treating them as little wolves misconstrues their natu......more