We happened to be listening to NPR yesterday and heard part of Fresh Air's interview with John Bradshaw, "an anthrozoologist and noted scholar of animal-human interactions", who's just published a book called Dog Sense: How the New Science of Dog Behavior Can Make You a Better Friend to Your Pet. You can listen to the full 33 minute interview and/or read six pages of of interview summary and an excerpt from the book here: www.npr.org/2011/05/26/136497064/the-new-science-of-understanding-dog-behavior. As we know, NPR is thorough-no 250 word blurbs do they!
After listening to Mr. Bradshaw and reading the excerpt from his book, we think he certainly makes some excellent points, particularly when he asserts that dog owners have a responsibility to ensure both the physical and psychological health of their canine companions and why. From our limited reading, we also
agree with his statements that point out the perils of "over breeding" purebred dogs to achieve breed standards, without regard to the physical health of the dog.
But we remain undecided about the answer to our initial question, or even whether there is a single answer.
Do those reputable scientists who study animals employing true scientific methods understand more about their behavior than those who spend years gathering knowledge from intuitive observation and directly working with them?
We'd love to hear what you think!
Meanwhile, I'll study up on the issue...
Photo of me by John Clark
After listening to Mr. Bradshaw and reading the excerpt from his book, we think he certainly makes some excellent points, particularly when he asserts that dog owners have a responsibility to ensure both the physical and psychological health of their canine companions and why. From our limited reading, we also
agree with his statements that point out the perils of "over breeding" purebred dogs to achieve breed standards, without regard to the physical health of the dog.
But we remain undecided about the answer to our initial question, or even whether there is a single answer.
Do those reputable scientists who study animals employing true scientific methods understand more about their behavior than those who spend years gathering knowledge from intuitive observation and directly working with them?
We'd love to hear what you think!
Meanwhile, I'll study up on the issue...
