I am truly excited about coming to England this November, where I’ll be speaking in Milton Keynes, Newcastle and Bristol for the The Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors.
I’ll be in Milton Keynes the evening of November 5th (Someone explain that name to me! It sounds more like an author than the name of a city.), in Newcastle on November 6th and Bristol on the evening of the 8th.
The talks are being organized by the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors, a stellar organization that works to promote science-based animal training and provides a great deal of education to the public about animal behavior. (Truth in lending: I do get a speaking fee, but the primary motivation is to raise money for a good cause.)
Here’s the topic for the talks:
Are You Thinking What I’m Thinking?
Ever wondered what’s going on inside that furry little head of your pet? Join Patricia McConnell for an inquiry into the mental lives of animals, and learn what new discoveries in neurobiology can tell us about the minds of our companion animals. You’ll see slides and videos that discuss problem solving, self awareness, and “thinking” in non-human animals, and have lots to think about yourself when you get home and say hello to your dog or cat!
I am SO looking forward to seeing my English friends! Please help spread the word anyway you can, it’s a great topic and I’ll love meeting animal lovers in the UK.
Here’s an example of the kind of thing we’ll be talking about:
Frances says
I am still hoping to get to the Newcastle event, but it is in the evening which means an overnight stay, or a very late drive home… Let’s hope for good weather and last minute tickets!
As for Milton Keynes, NOBODY understands Milton Keynes! It is an artificial construct, built on a grid with roundabouts, and the key to finding your way around is to remember which roundabout has the concrete cows. That is probably as good an explanation of Milton Keynes as you are ever likely to get…!
Nic1 says
OMG!!are you KIDDING me!!!
*stress pants in joy*
See you there Trisha!
Trisha says
Nic1, absolutely come say hi, what a treat to meet you in person! And Frances, I hope hope hope you can make it. All paws crossed! Spread the word if you will, hoping to meet lots of animal lovers in me mum’s home country!
(Okay, enough exclamation points. For now, anyway. Oh heck, one more!
Jules Morgan says
Bristol – cannot wait! Wish you were doing a full weekend…..
Anita Hope says
Milton Keynes, named after two economists Milton Friedman and John Maynard Keynes. A “new town”, be prepared for roundabouts and plastic cows! Great that you are coming to the UK.
Robin Jackson says
Trisha,
You probably already know this, but you’ll notice NatGeo has added a disclaimer on the bottom of the video that the chimpanzee research has been disputed in a peer-reviewed journal. That’s because although the (one) chimpanzee in the study was definitely faster than people, he’d also had hundreds of hours of practice at the game. When two humans were given the same amount of practice, they reached the same speeds. So an impressive result, but not necessarily the conclusion drawn by the original researcher.
Disputing study is here:
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10071-008-0206-8
Trisha says
Yes, thanks Robin, I have seen that, and thus it’s a perfect study to begin our discussion about cognition in animals! Thanks for weighing in…
Grace says
We are in Milton Keynes, whereabouts are you going to be doing the talk ? would like to come. As for explaining Milton Keynes, its the easiest place to get around (by car obviously), there are so many ways to get from A to B, Yes we have a few concrete cows (not plastic) and no they are not on a roundabout, all the roundabouts have names, the main roads have names as well as numbers, H for horizontal and V for vertical, its a grid system, if you can read a map you can find your way around easily. Ive lived here for about 18 years and know it like the back of my hand. hope to see you then. Grace
Nic1 says
Trisha, it will be an honour and a privilege to meet you. I have booked for Newcastle and I am absolutely thrilled that you are coming!
Margaret McLaughlin says
@ Frances–lots of American cities west of the Appalachian Mountains are built on a grid. Trisha may feel right at home! Lets hope she remembers which side of the road to drive on:) Hope you make it–enjoy.
Nic1 says
http://www.mkweb.co.uk/Heritage/Borough-of-MK.htm
‘ There are many theories about the choice of name for Milton Keynes; one popular misconception is that it derived from the names of two eminent economists, Milton Friedman and John Maynard Keynes. In fact it took its name from the village of Milton Keynes, which lies to the east of the city centre, and was so called because of its position between two ancient local centres (Middleton) and from the Keynes family, which once owned the manor.’
Trisha says
Grace, the talk will be at the Chrysalis Theatre. Go to the website provided to register. And don’t worry Margaret, I won’t be driving, so you’ll all be safe on the roads! Nic1, I love that you found an answer to the Milton Keynes name… I love it when things make sense. I’ll see you Nic1 in Newcastle. I’ve never been there (or Bristol or Milton Keynes for that matter, my mother was from Surrey and my cousins live in London and southern England). Can’t wait!
Bonnie H. says
Have a wonderful trip!!
Have you seen the article about the Dallas Zoo raising two cheetah cubs with a lab puppy, in the hopes that the puppy will be a calming influence on the cubs? I am a little worried about the following quote: “Zoological experts have found that because dogs are naturally comfortable in public settings,…). Maybe they need to consult with some DOG experts??!!
Robin Jackson says
We video quite a few of our training sessions, and since Dilly is such a scientific learner, it is amazing to see how much he rehearses strategies he wants to try next, even before I’ve finished setting up the equipment.
For example, like many quads I have a lot of trouble opening airtight containers. I got some of the Oxo POP containers, which have a large button on top. One push seals the lid, another push unseals it. Takes about the same amount of force as a push light.
I spent a week trying to teach Dilly to push the button with his foot, but he kept knocking the cannister over. He already knew “Chin” as a head bob to target his chin to my knee or hand, so I decided to switch to that. But we’d never done it with an object that would move as he pressed it.
The first session was a disaster. I was lumping too much, not making clear it was the button that mattered, and he kept trying to use his feet.
The next day for our second session I had decided to go back to the beginning and just mark looking at the cannister, etc.
However, Dilly had clearly been doing some thinking himself. As I started setting up for the second session, he was very excited, did a tentative foot movement, and then rehearsed three very distinct head bobs before I even put the cannister down. He clearly had an idea he wanted to try.
So I decided to just let him go with it, put the cannister down, and sure enough he had nearly perfect biomechanics for the task, and he was very enthusiastic. He both opened and closed the cannister, never knocked it over, and we did 4 or 5 successful iterations in that session, with no misses.
We have been working together for about 6 years now. He doesn’t have the “light bulb” moments I’m used to from most border collies. He’s half bc and half Great Dane. But he’s a very persistent, methodical learner, and it’s been really fascinating to watch him design a strategy and then test it. And he almost always learns much faster than I do! 🙂
Robin Jackson says
@BonnieH,
The San Diego Zoo has been pairing big cats with dogs for several years, with very good results. And, yes, dog experts were also consulted.
http://blogs.sandiegozoo.org/2009/10/09/cheetah-and-dog-pals/
http://blogs.sandiegozoo.org/2010/07/23/playtime-for-wolves-cheetahs-dogs/
The Dallas Zoo, along with some other zoos, have been consulting with San Diego on how to make these programs successful.
Nic1 says
Trisha. – I hope you have some time to look around when you are here? Bristol and Newcastle are historic cities, the latter having undergone a lot of regeneration over the last few years.
Modern day Newcastle was founded on the profits of coal and ship building, both industries no longer exist there now so the city and surrounding area entered quite a decline in the 70s and 80s. It’s a thriving and buzzing city now though with lots of museums, galleries, theatres and good shopping. I went to Uni there in the 90s and my maternal grandparents and extended family are all originally from in and around Newcastle, Northumberland and the coastal region up there. The surrounding countryside and coast are stunning. And well worth getting out into if you have any spare time. Hadrian’s Wall isn’t far, which is a Roman Wall built by the Emperor Hadrian back in the day!
You may find the accent a bit tricky at first. The Geordie dialect is extremely distinctive and some common slang words and phrases are:
‘Why Aye pet!’ translated means ‘Of course my dear!’
‘Are ye gan yem like’? ‘Are you going home?’
‘Howway bonny lad!’ ‘Get a move on!’
You may find this one useful: ‘Whees the netty?’ ‘I say, can you tell me where the lavatorial facilities are please?’
The people are wonderfully warm and incredibly friendly though so I am sure you will really enjoy visiting.
Robin Jackson says
Quite amazing video report on the San Diego Zoo dog and cheetah program, which explains more about it. Interestingly, it seems to work because the dogs enjoy protecting their cheetah partners, and the cheetahs do seem to feel safer in that protection. Just another very cool thing about dogs.
http://www.slate.com/blogs/trending/2013/03/19/cheetahs_and_dogs_captive_cats_breed_more_when_they_have_dogs_as_friends.html
BTW, I was incorrect in saying “big cats and dogs.” This is being done specifically with cheetahs, which average about 100 pounds. In some cases the dogs outweigh the cheetahs, and in all cases the dogs are noticeably bigger than the cheetahs’ typical prey. These programs probably wouldn’t work with tigers and lions, but then those tend to be more sociable with their own relatives in zoos and don’t need the buddy program.
Bianca Arlette Schmid says
I am coming to the event in Bristol. I might be the only non-dog trainer there but – as a very invested dog owner – I will be just as enthusiastic!!!
Laura says
Nic1,
My linguistics loving brain just geeked out over all the dialect references you made. I wish I was going and I hope everyone who is has a great time. Tricia, when oh when are you coming to the Twin Cities area? I suppose I could make it down to Madison or Chicago when you come through there again though. Have a great trip. 🙂
Kat says
@Robin Jackson, Quite a few years back we visited a Big Cat rescue called Cat Tales outside Spokane Washington. At the time they had a Lab mix living with a lion. The lion had been purchased by some idiot sports fan as a cub and turned over to the rescue when he stopped being cute and little. I guess the reality of owning the team’s mascot was a lot different than the imagined joy. The dog had adopted the young lion and they lived together 24/7 until the lion got so big he was crowding the dog in the shelter and the dog wouldn’t let him in at night or when it was cold. After that the dog had to sleep elsewhere but they still hung out during the day. I remember the story because the idea of the approx 60 lb dog making the lion sleep in the cold was so absurd. It would seem that if the dog is with the Big Cat from an early point the size of the dog isn’t really what matters and that dogs and Big Cats together isn’t really as new as it seems from the recent media attention. Dogs really are amazing.
Nic1 says
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-013-0670-7
Help for separation anxiety!?
Amy says
Booked onto the Newcastle one (3 hours from me!)
Can’t wait! Although wish you were coming to North West instead of North East as it would mean much less travelling for me! Come to Liverpool next time 🙂
Robin Jackson says
Here’s a new Canine Cognition Conundrum. Normally my service dog, Dilly, sleeps on my bed. Occasionally when my 25 year old son is sick, Dilly will go and sleep in his room. Since I’m a partial quad, I may need Dilly’s help at any time, so I may ask my son to close his door at night so Dilly will come back to my room.
So my son has had a bad cold lately, and the last few days Dilly has been sleeping in his room. I figured I’d give it one more night, then have Michael close his door.
I wake up this morning, roll over: no Dilly. But, for the first time ever, there is an empty dog bowl on the pillow next to me. Obviously, it was a message, but what did it mean? A simple reminder that he hadn’t gone far? A ransom note? A promise, “I’ll be back in the morning, have breakfast ready”?
I cracked up, and I know he meant something by it, but I have no idea what. If he’d just been hungry, he would have woken me up. But to come in quietly while I was sleeping, leave an empty bowl, and go away again…I just have no clue.
Trisha says
Great story Robin. So here’s my question: Can you train Dilly to bring you breakfast in his bowl next time?