Tales of Two Species

Essays On Loving And Living With Dogs

How well do you and your dog understand each other?

Have you ever caught yourself wondering what your dog is thinking when he rolls in something stinky? Do you wonder how much of your emotional life is like that of your dog’s? What about life from your dog’s perspective? Join best-selling author Patricia McConell in pondering these questions, in this thought-provoking collection of essays about people and dogs, originally written for The Bark magazine.

Gain insight into the dog-human relationship

• What does the name given to a dog say about the owner and the future relationship between the two of them?
• Humans are experts as using words. Dogs are experts at body language. How can we use these talents to better communicate with each other?
• We have bred dogs for many different purposes over thousands of years—to hunt, to herd, to provide protection, even to cuddle. How has this process impacted a dog’s ability to learn and be trained?
• Why getting “dominance” over your dog isn’t the answer to having a more obedient dog.