Dog Talk ® (and Kitties Too!)

#908A: Tom Turcich describes his epic journey,  with Savannah, an adopted puppy, by his side in his book “The World Walk: 7 years, 28,000 miles, 6 continents. A grand meditation one step at a time.” 

#908B: Tracie’s co-host on CAT CHAT, Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado, discusses her scientific research paper about cats who retrieve objects and how common it is for cats to play fetch with their humans.

#907A: Paul Koudounaris talks about the pet cemeteries he found and photographed all over the world in his book “Faithful Unto Death: Pet Cemeteries, Animal Graves & Eternal Devotion,” chronicling fascinating tales of how people have memorialized their beloved pets forever.

#907B: Warren Booth, Associate Professor Department of Entomology in the Urban Evolutionary Entomology Lab at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, talks about the many topics he has studied, from bed bugs to reptile reproduction. 

#906A: Bruce Cameron’s novel “My Three Dogs” takes us inside a pack of three dogs who are separated after being put in a shelter when their owners die in an accident — but the hero is the Australian Shepherd who cleverly finds a way to reunite his pack.  

#906B: Dr. Claude Beata (who is one of only 5 “animal psychiatrists” in all of France) discusses his psychological theories about bipolar disorder, ADHD and OCD in cats in his book “The Interpretation of Cats: Understanding the Psychology of Our Feline Companions,” conditions which he says are treatable with medications and behavior/environmental modification.

#905A: In her book  “Rethinking Rescue: Dog Lady and the Story of America’s Forgotten People and Pets,” Carol Mithers did a deep dive into the life of Lori Weise, the champion of pets of the homeless in Los Angeles, offering a different perspective on how we approach pets and people experiencing homelessness.

#905B: Annie Grossman, founder of School for the Dogs in Manhattan's East Village, has written  “How to Train Your Dog With Love + Science,” which even those without a dog can enjoy because it is more than a dog training book — as funny as it is useful.

#904A: Margaret Mizushima has written another gripping Timber Creek K-9 mystery “Gathering Mist,” in which the forest is integral to the dangers confronting heroine K-9 Deputy Mattie Cobb and her tracking dog Robo. 

#904B: Chris Buddle is a renowned entomologist (emphasis on arachnids) who has been chasing spiders throughout his academic career, while developing astonishing skills as a watercolorist of natural subjects. He has turned his work into a gorgeous book "A Portrait of Astonishing Nature" with pithy Haiku poems accompanying every drawing — with 100% of the proceeds going to a land trust in Canada, bordering the Great Lakes, to protect the wildlife.

#903A: Shannon Walker, the Executive director of the National Association of Service Dog Providers for Military Veterans (and also the Founder of Northwest Battle Buddies, which trains and provides PTSD service dogs for veterans) talks about the Association’s support from Purina Dog Chow and now the NY Dog Film Festival, presented by Purina, featuring three finalists in a new Service Dog Salute category of films illuminating the life-saving effects of specially trained dogs for veterans with the invisible wounds of PTSD.

#903B: Filmmaker Kim Best — who was awarded the Visionary Award from the NY Cat Film Festival for having at least one film in every year of the Festival — will be flying back to New York City again on October 15th to be applauded for having yet another two new films in the 6th Annual Festival.

#902A: Zazie Todd’s newest book “BARK! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful or Reactive Dog” explains what can make dogs fearful or anxious (which are actually two different emotions!) and how to create a safe space to help him cope.

#902B: Ron Schmidt is a conceptual photographer creating iconic images of dogs that people hang on their walls — he and his wife Amy took the bold step of creating their first short documentary for the Purina Dog Chow Service Dog Salute category of the NY Dog Film Festival — and they wound up being one of only three prize-winning finalists!

#901A: Peggy Gavan’s book “The Bravest Pets of Gotham: Tales of Four-Legged Firefighters of Old New York” is a wonderful window on the animals that used to be essential to firehouses in the late 1800s — and to the men who populated them.

#901B: Veterinary behaviorist Dr. Amy Pike of the Animal Behavior Wellness Clinic in Maryland talks about the ways you can help calm a thunderstorm-phobic dog, including a new anxiety medication called Sileo.

#900A: Carol Borden of Guardian Angels Medical Service Dogs explains how dogs can distinguish the chemical components of emotions, particularly the scent of PTSD for which they can be trained as service dogs — about which her organization made a film for the Purina Dog Chow Service Dog Salute category of the upcoming NY Dog Film Festival.

#900B: Mustapha Khan, an Emmy-Award winning director and Brooklyn College Film School professor, talks about his film “Freddie Bear’s Lovely Day,” set to Bill Withers iconic tune, which he will be there to see in person at the 9th Annual NY Dog Film Festival premiering in NYC October 24th. 

#899A: Jessica Pierce’s newest books focusing on dogs — “Dogpedia” a Brief Compendium of Canine Curiosities” — is a cornucopia of carefully curated topics, encyclopedia-style, that will delight and surprise even the most well-versed dog lovers. 

#899B: Cathryn Michon’s gorgeously illustrated prose poem book “i’m still here - a dog’s purpose forever” is a panacea for those of us who have lost a dog, with the assurance that while we still miss that dog so much, s/he never really left us. It is a most comforting, rewarding, uplifting, adorable, funny book.