The Pawsitive Post in Conversation by Companion Animal Psychology

Leave us a voicemail!
New research on dogs and cats helps us to understand them better and give them better lives. But how do we know if the research is any good, and what about our feelings about the results? Zazie and Kristi chat about how to evaluate the science.
We talk about:
Taking an ethical stance on dogs and cats that recognizes that they are sentient beings
How it can be tricky to assess research if you're not trained as a scientist
The research on training methods shows risks to using aversives and that it's much better to only use reward-based training methods
Why we look for more than one study to teach us something
We consider different types of research, including the value of questionnaire studies and of experiments
What a meta-analysis is
How it can feel emotional if you don't like the results of a particular study
People's willingness to take part in research
A re-evaluation of a classic study on spanking children that is relevant to the discussion
And finally we talk about the books we're reading

The books we recommend this time are:
People, Places, Things by Chuck Palahniuk
New Beginnings at the Cosy Cat Cafe by Julie Haworth

Also mentioned is Zazie's post about a literature review on dog training methods: https://www.companionanimalpsychology.com/2017/04/new-literature-review-recommends-reward.html
Support the show
About the co-hosts:
Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of, and now on staff with, the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online classes. She is also a northern anthropologist.
Kristi Benson's website  Facebook  

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog, Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and has a column at Psychology Today. She lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, a dog and a cat. 
Instagram  BlueSky

Leave us a voicemail!
Jean Donaldson has just published a new edition of her book Mine! A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs. If you have a dog who guards food, objects, people, or locations, you need this book! Jean joins Zazie and Kristi to discuss what to do if your dog guards food, locations, or other resources.
We talk about:
Why it was time for a new edition of Mine! and what it was like to write it
How to decide if your dog needs a regular training plan or a more incremental one to resolve their guarding behaviour
Why it's a myth that you should be able to take your dog's food away from them
How we can add food to puppies' bowls to help prevent food guarding
Why there's not really anything wrong with the personality of a dog who guards resources
The other behaviour issues that sometimes accompany guarding behaviour
What it means to be "warmed up" or "cold" in a dog training plan
Why dog trainers like the spicy dogs
The Olde English Sheepdog who was a bit of a challenge
Guarding behaviour in Jean's dog Buffy and Kristi's dogs Archer and Soleil
When to hire a dog trainer to help with resource guarding
The book Jean recommended to us is The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV by Helen Kastor.
To be the first to learn about Bark! Fest, the book festival for animal lovers, sign up to the Companion Animal Psychology newsletter.
Mine! A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs by Jean Donaldson is available wherever books are sold.
Jean Donaldson is one of the world's top dog trainers, founder of the Academy for Dog Trainers, and author of the seminal book Culture Clash, which was named number one training and behaviour book by The Association of Pet Dog Trainers. In 2017, Jean authored and instructed Dog Training 101 for The Great Courses, another wonderful resource for dog guardians. Her most recent book is the second edition of Mine! A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs.
Follow Jean at the Academy for Dog Trainers:
Website: https://academyfordogtrainers.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AcademyforDogTrainers
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/academy4dogtrainers/?hl=en
You might also like: Understanding resource guarding in dogs and how to fix it with Lisa Skavienski 
Support the show
About the co-hosts:
Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of, and now on staff with, the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online classes. She is also a northern anthropologist.
Kristi Benson's website  Facebook  

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog, Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and has a column at Psychology Today. She lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, a dog and a cat. 
Instagram  BlueSky

Leave us a voicemail!
Kids are routinely taught to ask a dog's owner before petting the dog. Today, radio host Steve Dale joins us to talk about how they should also find out if the dog wants to be petted or not. We learn about Steve's new children's book, Ask the Dog, which is a fun story with an important message, and we also talk about some good news in cat health.
We talked about:
Why Steve wrote the book
The importance of preventing dog bites, and why children are especially at risk
Why children should learn to ask the dog
How the relationship between dogs and children has changed over the years
What it was like working with an illustrator for the book
The work of the EveryCat Health Foundation and their research on taurine in cat food, FIP, diabetes, and heart disease
How research on cat health has also benefited human health
Also mentioned:
The EveryCat Health Foundation is at everycat.org
Theater of the Mind created by David Byrne and Mala Gaonkar is at the Goodman Theater in Chicago through August 30 2026 https://theaterofthemindchicago.com/
Steve Dale's interview with David Byrne https://stevedalepetworld.com/blog/conversation-with-david-byrne-booth-46/
The book Steve recommended is Bicycle Diaries by David Byrne
Ask the Dog by Steve Dale, illustrated by Shelby Koehler, is available wherever books are sold.
Steve Dale is a certified animal behavior consultant, a radio host, and his show Steve Dale’s Pet World is essential listening for everyone who loves pets. He co-edited Decoding Your Dog, written by the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists, and has written and contributed to many other books. Ask the Dog is his first children's book. Steve is the host of Steve Dale's Pet World on WGN radio and also hosts a Sunday afternoon talk show at WGN radio. 
Learn more about Steve and sign up for his newsletter at stevedale.tv.
Support the show
About the co-hosts:
Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of, and now on staff with, the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online classes. She is also a northern anthropologist.
Kristi Benson's website  Facebook  

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog, Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and has a column at Psychology Today. She lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, a dog and a cat. 
Instagram  BlueSky

Leave us a voicemail!
Zazie and Kristi ask each other rapid fire questions about dogs and cats, breeds and behaviour. But in this game of this or that, we also discuss the answers, illuminating ideas about training and enrichment. By the end of the show, you'll know Zazie and Kristi a lot better, but you'll also have learned something about dogs and cats.
As you listen, be sure to shout out your answers too! Or you can leave us a voicemail and let us know.
Do you have any this-or-that questions that you would like us to answer? Send them in!
At the end of the episode, we discuss the books we've been reading:
Detective Aunty by Uzma Jalaluddin
Crier's War by Nina Varela
Support the show
About the co-hosts:
Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of, and now on staff with, the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online classes. She is also a northern anthropologist.
Kristi Benson's website  Facebook  

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog, Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and has a column at Psychology Today. She lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, a dog and a cat. 
Instagram  BlueSky

Leave us a voicemail!
Zazie and Kristi chat with Dr. Jo Wimpenny, author of Beauty of the Beasts, to learn more about wasps, mosquitoes, vultures, sharks, and other unloved animals.
We talk about:-
why Jo wanted to write about the beasties
how everything is connected
the value of wasps and mosquitoes to the ecosystem
how sharks are not necessarily out to get people (even if sometimes they are)
whether some animals are over-rated
which animal Jo most loved writing about
and finally Jo told us which book she's been reading.

Beauty of the Beasts: Rethinking Nature's Least Loved Animals is available wherever books are sold.
The book Jo recommended to us is The Animals in That Country by Laura Jean McKay.
Previous episodes with Jo:
The Holiday Special 2025 (Ep48)
Animal minds and our favourite fables (Ep15)

Also mentioned: Kristi's blog post on making a living in the world.
Jo Wimpenny is a zoologist and writer, with a research background in animal behaviour and the history of science. She studied Zoology at the University of Bristol, and went on to research problem-solving in crows for her DPhil at Oxford University. She’s the author of Aesop’s Animals, which we’ve talked about with her before, and her new book which is just out now is Beauty of the Beasts: Rethinking Nature’s Least Loved Animals.
Jo's website: https://jowimpenny.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jowimpenny/
Support the show
About the co-hosts:
Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of, and now on staff with, the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online classes. She is also a northern anthropologist.
Kristi Benson's website  Facebook  

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog, Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and has a column at Psychology Today. She lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, a dog and a cat. 
Instagram  BlueSky