Don’t Shoot the Dog will change the way you think about behavior, teaching and training. If you’ve ever wondered how to change the behavior of a pet, a child, a spouse, a co-worker, or even your own behavior, then Don’t Shoot the Dog is the book for you. You’ll learn how to keep your cat from jumping on the counters, how to teach your kids to say thank you and pick up their dirty socks, and how to get your dog to stop pulling and start walking politely on a leash.

Don’t Shoot the Dog was one of the first books I read about the science of behavior, before I knew anything about applied behavior analysis or clicker training. Even though I’m working on a master’s degree in behavior analysis now, I still think Don’t Shoot the Dog is one of the best introductions to the study of behavior and training. I still even refer back to it from time to time.

Last semester I had fun reading back through the book with several friends at school. So, I wanted to do a brief review of the book while it is still on my mind. I love Don’t Shoot the Dog because it’s easy to understand, even for those not familiar with animal training or people training. Although the book is wide-read in the dog training community (probably because of the title), it will appeal to a broad audience. Karen Pryor did not originally intend the book to be for dog trainers and the examples throughout include all sorts of animal species, including people.

What you’ll learn from this book.

In the first half of Don’t Shoot the Dog, Karen Pryor explains reinforcement, shaping, and stimulus control. If you understand these three concepts you will be well on your way to becoming an awesome trainer or teacher. Most good trainers and teachers intuitively understand these concepts, although many can’t explain the details or science behind these principles.

The fourth chapter “Untraining: Using reinforcement to get rid of behavior you don’t want” was one of my favorites when I first read Don’t Shoot the Dog and is still one of my favorites. Karen Pryor explains 8 totally different methods for getting rid of unwanted behaviors, everything from punishment and shooting the animal to more humane methods, such as changing the animal’s motivation or training an incompatible behavior.

What I love about this fourth chapter is the examples. Karen Pryor picks 10 examples and explains how each of the eight methods could be applied to each example. I think this chapter really helped me start thinking about how, even with a seemingly impossible training problem, there are often actually many possible solutions. Great trainers are creative problem solvers. They can come up with unique and individualized training solutions in any situation. This chapter will really help get your creative juices flowing.

The last two chapters of Don’t Shoot the Dog provide lots of examples about how to apply reinforcement and the other principles in the book to the real world. Karen Pryor also includes a short introduction to clicker training. One thing that I like most about Don’t Shoot the Dog is that it is filled with real life stories. The examples in the book deal with a wide variety of species, settings and training situations, which really helps illustrate the importance and usefulness of the principles described in the book.

Can You Train a Chicken?

Here is one of my favorite quotes, from the end of the introduction of the book:

“Using positive reinforcers in one situation may show you how to use them in others. As a dolphin researcher whom I worked with sourly put it, “Nobody should be allowed to have a baby until they have first been required to train a chicken,” meaning that the experience of getting results with a chicken, an organism that cannot be trained by force, should make it clear that you don’t need to use punishers to get results with a baby. And the experience should give you some ideas about reinforcing baby behavior you want.”

People were training animals using positive reinforcement and clickers before Karen Pryor wrote Don’t Shoot the Dog. However, Don’t Shoot the Dog is largely responsible for starting a positive training revolution and bringing clicker training and positive training to the dog and horse training worlds. So, whether you train horses or dogs, or even humans or chickens, you’ll find Don’t Shoot the Dog a delightful and entertaining read. Even better, you’ll find ideas and answers for improving your teaching skills and your relationships with both animals and people.

Buy on Amazon: Don’t Shoot the Dog!: The New Art of Teaching and Training

Want a few suggestions?  

Learning Games: by Kay Laurence. I love this book. Kay Laurence is one of my favorite dog trainers. This book has a ton of great ideas for behaviors to train, from the very simple to the extremely complex. The book is written with dogs in mind. However, I’ve also used this book to come up with ideas for behaviors to train to other species. There are many shaping exercises in the book that will really improve your training skills!

Reaching the Animal Mind: This is Karen Pryor’s newest book, published in 2010. The book includes stories and information about how our knowledge of animal training continues to grow and evolve. One reason why I like this book is that it includes a lot about recent science and research related to animal training, including some of the studies that have been done by my advisor, Jesus Rosales Ruiz, and his students at the University of North Texas.

Horse Books and DVDs: The clicker training store has a great collection of books and DVDs related to clicker training horses, including all of Alexandra Kurland’s books and DVDs.

Many of their best sellers are also currently on sale. As well, there are some special year end sales products that are still available at a discounted price.

So, be sure to check out the clicker training store, either by clicking on this LINK or by clicking on the banner image above. I am not sure how long the coupons will be good, but I’ve e-mailed the store to ask. I will let you know what I find out!

Also, if you purchase something, I’d LOVE to hear what you buy as well as your review, once you get a chance to read, view or use the product. I’m always looking for suggestions for new books, DVDs, and products to try.

DVD Trailer: Operant Conditioning with Bob Bailey

Bob Bailey is one of the fathers of modern animal training practices. First a student of biology and zoology, Bob Bailey began training dolphins for the U.S. Navy in the early 1960s. In the mid-1960s, he went to work for Animal Behavior Enterprises (ABE), an animal training company founded by Keller Breland and Marian Breland, two students of B.F. Skinner. I’ll write a longer post about ABE later this summer, but it was a fantastic company and one of the driving forcing that brought the science of behavior out of the lab and applied this science of behavior to training pets, livestock and even exotic animals. (Much of the research and training ABE did in the 1960s and 1970s is still much more advanced than most of the training people are doing today.)

During the past couple of decades, Bob Bailey has spent much time teaching animal trainers how to be better trainers. One of his favorite ways to teach people to be better animal trainers is by making them train chickens. Why chickens? Chickens are fast moving and offer quite a bit of behavior. They are also actually pretty smart. So, if you can learn how to have the timing and mechanical skills to train a chicken, you should be prepared to train almost anything!

Much of the DVD is footage from Bob Bailey’s chicken training workshops. You’ll see people working on exercises to improve their timing and food delivery, as well as teaching (seemingly) simple behaviors, such as having a chicken peck a round circle. The DVD also has some neat footage and explanations of more difficult behaviors, including Bob’s cone discrimination. (When the two cones are yellow, the bird must make a figure-8 between them. When they are replaced by red cones, the bird must merely circle around the two cones. There is a short video of this task at the end of this previous blog post.) The DVD also shows how the same principles and ideas apply equally well to many other species, including dogs, horses, and a couple of polar bears.

One of my favorite things about the DVD is that it discusses many concepts and tips that are needed to get top level performance. For instance, one training task shown in the video is how to get a chicken to peck only at a red square, never at a yellow or blue square. However, Bob Bailey has his students train this behavior to such a high level that if the bird is presented with only the yellow and blue square, it will completely ignore both of them and not peck either of them (for at least 20 seconds). Now that’s what we call great stimulus control. He does this by breaking down the task into many parts, so that the bird is almost always correct. He gradually has his students make the task more complex, until the birds can do the final behavior with a very high degree of accuracy.

Why the title of this post? Bob Bailey likes to say that animal training is “simple, but not easy.” Meaning, most everything about great training can be summed up in a handful of simple ideas and principles. Many of Bob’s favorite principles are presented during the DVD. However, many of these simple skills, such as timing, food delivery, knowing when to raise criteria, and so on, can take a lifetime to perfect.

So, if you have a chance, I’d definitely recommend watching this DVD, Operant Conditioning with Bob Bailey. If anyone else has had a chance to watch it, I’d love to hear your review!

I recently rented a colt starting DVD from giddyupflix called The First Week. It features Joe Wolter, Bryan Neubert and Jim Neubert working together for a week to start 20 colts at the Four Sixes Ranch in Guthrie, Texas.

Note: This review will only focus on disc one of this four disc set. I was not impressed at all with disc one and do not plan to rent the rest of the set.

Quick and Dirty Colt Starting

Joe Wolter, Bryan Neubert and Jim Neubert don’t waste a whole lot of time on ground work and preparations. The 20 horses in this DVD are basically unhandled, they’re not even halter trained. However, the trainers are sitting in the saddle, beginning to ride around a bit by day two.

None of it looks pleasant at at all for the poor horses. Haltering the horses, even on day two, involves roping the horse first so that they can get a halter on. The horses don’t want any part of this kind of “training.”

My opinion of this kind of colt starting is similar to my review of the In A Whisper colt starting challenge–faster does not equal better!

The trainers saddle the colts by circling around the moving horse with a saddle and pad, throwing both on, cinching up tightly, and then releasing the horse into a large arena to run and buck around and “get use to it.” I wonder how many of these horses were cinchy or had issues with being saddled later in life?

If you break saddling and desensitization down into small steps–it really doesn’t take very long to have a horse who is happily standing to be saddled. No bucking or wild running around needed.

Listen Folks–Don’t try this at home!

That’s the disclaimer that needs to come with this DVD.

Not only are methods such as this unkind to the horse, they are potentially very unsafe for humans! Joe Wolter, Bryan Neubert and Jim Neubert all have a lot of experience around horses. They have a good sense of timing and are able to predict what the horse is going to do next. They’re able to quickly get out of the way of a swift kick or bucking horse, if need be. And, actually, I’m sure many of these colts turned into fine riding horses.

However, for the average horse owner, this DVD and the horse training methods shown spell trouble. Anyone who tries to repeat the ground work or exercises shown in the DVD could easily get hurt if they were not very experienced with starting young horses. And, I would hope that anyone who was very experienced with starting young horses would be smart enough to use different training methods.

If you’re interested in starting horses or are exploring different horse training methods, I wouldn’t bother wasting your time or money on this DVD set.

The horses are muddy pigs right now. The contest between the pastures seems to be who can get the muddiest. The picture is of Miss Kitty, one of our old timers at the rescue. She’s at least 30 and seemed determined to win the mud award. Mud I don’t mind too much, but it’s hard to do too much riding when there’s standing water in the round pen.

Rainy or wet days don’t have to be a waste. With a bit of thinking, there’s actually a lot of training that can be done in a small space. The best places to play yesterday were definitely the run in sheds in the pasture. One gelding tends to brace while being haltered, so we worked on head lowering and relaxation at each step in the haltering process. Connor got to work on head lowering, flexions and giving softly to the lead, no matter which way it went. Tex the pony and I practiced backing up from just a finger pointing at his chest.

I’ve been reading Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling’s Dancing with Horses. Although I disagree with KFH on a lot of things, overall (so far) I really like his philosophy and message, which centers on the horse’s well being. He is very concerned with developing a horse so that the horse will be both mentally and physically sound.

One of the sections I read yesterday discussed teaching a horse to back up. He writes:

“It is good to learn how to back a horse from the ground, that is, how to direct him backwards, not push him backwards, bump him backwards, or cause him to back away from pain…..if I begin with gross methods, with yanking, jerking, tugging or dragging, then the standard of communication has been set and subtle work is no longer possible.”

Very sound advice, I think. The method he describes involves leading the horse into a channel, so that the only direction possible is backwards. Backward movement is rewarded with praise and a treat. Later a verbal cue is added and the channel is gradually dissembled.

Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling understands the importance of setting up the environment so that the horse can be successful from the start, as well as rewarding small efforts or try. Criteria are gradually increased, so that the horse continues to be successful. I promise a full review of the book when I finish it, but so far I’m really enjoying Dancing with Horses.

Last year I had a fantastic time when I attended ClickerExpo. If you’re not familiar with ClickerExpo, it is the world’s largest gathering of positive animal trainers. The event is hosted by Karen Pryor Clicker Training and features 3 days jam packed full of fascinating lectures, hands-on learning labs and countless opportunities to interact with other animal trainers.

If you’ve never been, I definitely recommend it! The 2011 ClickerExpos will be held in January in Newport Beach, CA and in March in Chicago, IL.

Here are the 10 Reasons Why You Should Attend ClickerExpo:

1. You’ll Learn from a Phenomenal Faculty

The trainers who present at ClickerExpo are the best of the best. Literally. Karen Pryor brought clicker training to the dog world. Ken Ramirez is head trainer at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Alexandra Kurland is one of the best and most well respected horse clicker trainers. Kay Laurence is one of the most innovative, creative dog trainers that I’ve ever met. Plus about a dozen more top-notch trainers, all willing to share their knowledge. (See the complete list here: ClickerExpo Faculty)

2. You’ll Learn Something New (I promise!)

During the three days of ClickerExpo, over 50 lectures, presentations and demonstrations are offered. There’s so many that you’ll have trouble picking and choosing the ones you want to go to! The program has a little bit of everything. So, you’ll find something to whet your appetite whether you just started clicker training or whether you are a professional animal trainer.

3. You’ll Connect With “Old” Friends

This was probably my favorite part about ClickerExpo. Most of my clicker training friends are people I “know” online through blogs, discussion lists, forums, and facebook. I got to meet many of my horse clicker training friends at ClickerExpo. It was awesome to put names to faces and get to have some conversations face to face about our horses.

4. You’ll Make New Friends and New Connections

At sessions and between sessions I had an awesome time interacting with the other attendees. It was great to get to discuss the sessions and what I was learning with trainers who shared similar interests. I came home from clickerExpo with a list of e-mail addresses and a stack of business cards from interesting, thoughtful, positive-thinking trainers. Although many of the attendees are dog trainers, I also met horse trainers, bird trainers, a primate trainer and others.

5. You’ll Definitely Get Your Money’s Worth!

ClickerExpo is pricey. However, when you consider the number of lectures and presentations you’ll get to see by top trainers, it’s an amazing deal. Days at ClickerExpo start at 9am and go until 5pm. However, for the early birds, there are some 8am sessions. Round table discussions are held at lunch and in the evenings there are dinners and more presentations. (See the full schedule HERE.)

6. You’ll Improve Your Training Skills

One of the best parts about ClickerExpo is the learning labs. These are more than just lectures–they are actual demonstrations that involve participants and their dogs. (Did you know that you can bring your dog to ClickerExpo?) The ClickerExpo faculty members demonstrate key concepts, share tips and secrets and offer valuable feedback. Although I didn’t bring my own dog, I learned a ton from watching participants interact with their dogs at the learning labs.

7. You’ll Have Access to a Bookstore that Can’t be Beat

There’s an awesome bookstore at ClickerExpo with dozens and dozens of books, DVDs, training toys and more for sale. I buy most of my training books and DVDs online. So, it was really nice to be able to flip through and look at many of the books up close. I bought a few things and also made a nice wish list of several things I wouldn’t mind having in the future.

8. You’ll Get Better at Helping Others

Even if you’re not a professional trainer, you probably have found yourself giving advice or trying to help someone out who is learning about clicker training. Some of the sessions are aimed specifically at improving our teaching skills. ClickerExpo sessions cover everything from TagTeach, to games to improve your observations skills, to how to teach a puppy training class. Sessions are also offered that highlight business and professional skills, as well as learning how to use social networking sites.

9. You’ll Learn About the Science of Training

ClickerExpo isn’t just about being better at dog agility, dog obedience or riding your horse. Many of the sessions explore the hows and whys of training. Can we teach dogs to copy each other? What’s the best way to address problems with aggression? How does generalization actually work? At ClickerExpo, you’ll learn about things that you didn’t even know existed!

10. You’ll Have Three Days of Non-Stop Fun!

I had a great time at ClickerExpo in Lexington, Ky last year. And from the smilies all weekend on the faces around me, I think everyone else did too. ClickerExpo is a great opportunity to learn from the experts while improve your skills and connecting with other like-minded trainers.

Click on any of the links in this post to learn more about ClickeExpo. As well, I am more than happy to answer any questions you have about ClickerExpo. Just leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail! I’d also love to hear comments from those who have enjoyed attending ClickerExpo in the past.

At the end of August, my family and I went on a trip to New Mexico. We had a great vacation and enjoyed seeing the sights in Santa Fe, as well as visiting family in Albuquerque. My brother and I also had a fantastic time horseback riding with the Broken Saddle Riding Company, which is located on highway 14 between Santa Fe and Albuquerque. If you are in New Mexico and looking to go trail riding, I definitely recommend checking it out. We had a knowledgeable guide, well cared for and responsive horses and beautiful scenery to ride through. I don’t give this recommendation lightly–I’ve seen many trail outfits with poorly cared for horses who looked miserable plodding along nose to tail in big groups.

Here are the four reasons why I loved the Broken Saddle Riding Company, as well as some great photos from our ride: (Click on any photo to view a larger version.)

1. Great Horse Care
We arrived in time to watch the guides saddling the horses. Every single horse on the property was a good weight with a nice shiny coat. All horses were wearing fly masks, every horse got fly sprayed and saddles looked like they fit well. All horses are also ridden bitless, which means the horse doesn’t have a rider with poor balance jerking on their mouth the whole ride.

2. Only Small Groups or Private Rides
My brother and I went on a private ride (which only costs $10 extra). However, the maximum group size is 5 people. This insures the wrangler can keep a close eye on the group and tailor the trail ride to the particular riding abilities of the group. For advanced riders, they do allow trotting and cantering in some spots on the trail.

3. Knowledgeable and Interesting Guides
Our wrangler (who’s name I’ve already forgotten) was excellent. Because it was just the three of it, he was able to chat with us throughout most of the ride. He was very knowledgeable about the history and biology of the area and was also great at point out interesting sights–everything from old mine shafts to lizards sunning themselves on rocks.

4. Attention to Details
About ten minutes into the ride, our guide stopped the group, got off his horse and checked everyone’s cinch and saddle to make sure everything was tight and fitted right. As well, my horse had a small cut on his hock (very common when horses in the pasture roll on the hard New Mexico ground) and the man in charge held up our ride for 2 minutes so he could go get a bit of medicine to put on the cut. Everyone on staff was friendly and knowledgeable and they all seemed to genuinely care about the customers and about the well being of the horses.

When we got back to the stable at the end of our two hour trail ride, the horses were unsaddled, given water and carrots and turned out into the paddocks for a bit of rest.

So, if you are in New Mexico and looking for a place to go horseback riding, I definitely recommend checking out the Broken Saddle Riding Company!

I finally got a chance to see it early this week. I thought HBO did an excellent job chronicling Temple Grandin’s many accomplishments, as well as some of the huge obstacles she has faced throughout her life. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Temple Grandin, you need to be!

Temple Grandin has autism. However, she also has a PhD and has revolutionized the way cattle are handled. Because of her efforts and ideas, cattle in the United States are treated much more humanely and safely.

I thought Claire Danes did an excellent job as Temple Grandin. The movie focuses mainly on Temple Grandin’s high school and college years. Temple Grandin was born in 1947, when very little was known about autism and doctors told mothers to institutionalize children with autism. Life growing up was never easy for Temple Grandin. She was constantly teased at school and college for being different and was met with tremendous opposition for trying to work in the cattle industry, which was at that time a completely male dominated field. The cinematography also does an excellent job capturing what it is like for Temple Grandin to think in pictures.

For more information on “thinking in pictures,” check out this short lecture given by Temple Grandin from TED.com. It is fascinating to hear her talk about how she thinks, as well as some of her views about autism and animals. The talk is entitled “The World Needs All Kinds of Minds.”

Temple Grandin: The World Needs All Kinds of Minds

Temple Grandin sees her ideas and thoughts as pictures. She also has an amazing photographic memory as well as heightened senses. Heightened senses are common for people with autism. For instance, some children and adults with autism cannot stand certain loud noises, strange textures or bright lights. This can hinder their ability to function in our normally loud, bright, and crazy world.

Temple Grandin’s attention to detail gives her a huge advantage when designing safe and efficient feed lots, slaughter houses and other facilities for handling cattle. Cattle, as prey animals, are super aware of their environment. They have to be to survive–if you think something’s about to eat you, it’s better to run first, then check and see what it is. Temple Grandin is able to notice any little feature that might startle or scare cattle–a shiny object hanging on the wall, a creaky gate, or a strange texture on the floor. She uses her knowledge to help design more humane equipment and procedures for handling cattle.

I have read a handful of Temple Grandin’s books. Her unique perspective means she is able to offer interesting insights about how we treat people and animals. Check out some of these previous posts for some of my favorite parts from her books.

Temple Grandin–The Way I See It
What do Animals Need?
What’s a Good Reinforcer for an Elephant?
What Makes Something Scary?
Why do Animals Exhibit Stereotypies?
Anticipation and Announced Rewards

Did you see the Temple Grandin movie? I’d be curious to hear what you thought of the movie or of her books, if you’ve read any of them. (Also, if you missed the Temple Grandin movie when it originally aired, it is now available from Netflix.)

I recently finished reading Getting to Yes by Sharon Foley. What a great book! I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking to learn more about clicker training and positive step-by-step methods to improve their horse training.

I bought this book over a year ago and have used it from time to time as a reference. However, while I was on a car trip in August I took the time to read it from cover to cover. Getting to Yes is informative and a fun read. I am definitely adding it to the list of books I recommend to people looking for information about clicker training with horses.

Why I Liked Getting to Yes

In Getting to Yes, Sharon Foley presents a clear and straight forward approach to clicker training. The book is heavy in the beginning on foundational information, including the whats and whys of clicker training and how to begin clicker training your horse. Then, throughout the following chapters, the book builds on these foundation exercises to progress to round pen work, in hand work and even some advanced riding exercises.

The book makes it easy to see how and why early foundation lessons are essential for later training. For instance, the Look at Me exercise is used later when teaching the horse to follow a feel and even later when working on lateral flexions and getting the horse’s attention under saddle.

Horse people sometimes want to skip over the basics to get to more advanced concepts. Sharon Foley does a great job of showing how many advanced concepts are just elaborations on the basic building blocks.

Let’s Have Fun, But be Safe!

Getting to Yes is written for people who already have some horse handling skills. However, even experienced horse people sometimes get themselves into trouble when they start clicker training and add food rewards to their training program.

The first chapters in the book emphasize good manners, including how to train your horse to take food politely and how to train your horse to be attentive to you while staying out of your space. The early lessons, such as teaching your horse to target, also include plenty of troubleshooting tips that cover many common questions.

Sharon Foley emphasizes practicing clicker and food delivery mechanics before starting with your horse. She also includes a great explanation of how to play the training game and the “no” game with another person before you start training your horse. These are great exercises for people new to clicker training or for someone who has been clicker training for years.

The Clicker Training Mindset

Getting to Yes is filled with practical applications for clicker training with horses. (There’s a great chapter on using clicker training to teach your horse to longe.) The book isn’t just a practical how-to guide, however. Sharon Foley also does an excellent job explaining the underlying science behind clicker training and why it works so well.

Sharon Foley’s underlying philosophy is that the “horse would be doing what was asked of him if only he were clear about what was wanted and was confident that he could do it.” Our horses aren’t trying to be brats or challenge us or make us angry. However, they often don’t understand what we want or why they should be doing what we are asking.

The goal of good training should be clear and precise communication between horse and rider. In Getting to Yes, Sharon Foley shows us how to break training down into small steps and show our horses exactly what we are asking. By doing this we can build a mindset where we work with the horse, rather than against him, and help the horse be right every step of the way.

The methods in the book are simple enough to help someone new to clicker training solve training problems and create a better partnership with their horse. However, the more advanced chapters will help even those already familiar with clicker training refine their skills. I would highly recommend Getting to Yes for anyone who is interested in clicker training their horse. As well, Sharon Foley’s website is a great source for more information on clicker training with horses.

Check Out Getting to Yes on Amazon.com

I just finished reading We Bought a Zoo, by Benjamin Mee. What an entertaining book! This book is the true story of one daring English family that spent their life savings to buy an old, dilapidated zoo. The zoo has been shut down due to having it’s license revoked and is rife with problems, from falling apart buildings and improperly cared for animals, to animal fencing that isn’t always as strong as it should be. Through lots of hard work, Benjamin Mee, along with his family and staff, slowly nurse the zoo and it’s animals back to health, reopening in 2007 as the Dartmoor Zoological Park.

This book was highly entertaining. Benjamin Mee, a writer who has always been interested in animals, has no experience running a zoological park. The book is full of his trials and tribulations in the early days before Dartmoor Zoological Park reopened, including everything from trying to get skeptical lenders to fund his zoo to Code Reds (which are called when a dangerous animal escapes). The writing style is both humorous and easy to read, and although they do succeed, the book keeps the reader in a sense of suspense, wondering just how they are going to manage to pull off this wild endeavor.

Benjamin Mee, as director of Dartmoor Zoological Park, also faces many of the questions and ethical decisions present at any modern zoo or wildlife park. What animals should we keep in zoos? How should we design habitats and enrich the animals lives to keep them happy? When are certain medical procedures necessary? In We Bought a Zoo, Benjamin Mee addresses many of these questions in a thoughtful and elegant manner. It is obvious that he loves both the zoo and the animals and wants to do what is best for the animals and for the park. His perspective is also interesting, as he is an outsider to the zoo world and sometimes has a different opinion than that of the traditional establishment.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading We Bought a Zoo and would recommend it to anyone interested in wildlife, zoos, exotic animals or risk takers. It’s fun getting to know the animals and by the end of the book you’ll be rooting for the park to succeed.

Buy your own copy of We Bought a Zoo

If you enjoyed this post, you might also be interested in some of my post on zoo animals, including What do animals need and Animals in Captivity.