How to evaluate the scientific research on dogs and cats: A guide

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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

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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