This holiday season, I’ve decided to share twelve books with you.
At the bottom of this post, you can enter for a chance to win a copy of this book.
You can also visit this page to find the entire list of books and giveaways.
When I first seriously began exploring the world of animal behavior, I read several books by Temple Grandin. I find Temple Grandin’s books both insightful and thought provoking. So, as we near the end of this series of book reviews, I wanted to include one of her books.
Today’s book is Animals in Translation, which was first published in 2005. In the book, Temple Grandin explores why animals behave as they do, using both her own personal experiences from working with a variety of different species of animals and by explaining research studies related to animal behavior and learning.
Here’s some of what you’ll find in the book:
There’s a long chapter in the book on animal feelings and emotions. Unfortunately, there are still people today who think animals don’t have emotions! In this chapter, Temple Grandin discusses Dr. Panksepp’s core emotions, including the importance of curiosity and the SEEKING system. (If you’ve never heard of Dr. Panksepp, check out this post on my blog.) I think Animals in Translation was one of my first introductions to Dr. Panksepp, and it certainly got me interested in learning more about his work.
The second chapter in the book explores how animals perceive the world. In this chapter, Temple Grandin discusses why animals are afraid of somethings (and not other things), why her friend Jane’s cat doesn’t actually have ESP, some of the differences between animal and human vision, and more. This chapter helps you understand why animals often react very differently to certain things than we do!
There’s also a chapter in the book on pain and suffering. Temple Grandin talks about how she feels pain (and how she thinks this is slightly different from how other people feel pain). She also argues that “the single worst thing you can do to an animal emotionally is to make it feel afraid.” In this part, she discusses how animals often do not have a lot of power to control the things that they are afraid of, and this can make those things even more scary.
I like this quote from the end of the book:
“If we’re interested in animals, then we need to study animals for their own sake, and on their own terms, to the extent that it’s possible.
What are they doing? What are they feeling? What are they thinking? What are they saying?”
If you would like to read a book that will make you think more about why your animals behave as they do, as well as how they think, feel, and learn, I think that you would enjoy Animals in Translation.
You may also be interested in some of the other blog posts that I’ve written about Temple Grandin:
Here’s my review of the Temple Grandin movie.
Here’s my review of Temple Grandin’s book The Way I See It.
Here’s a series of posts that I did on Temple Grandin’s book Animals Make Us Human.
Enter to win a copy of this book
To enter the giveaway:
1) Leave a comment on this post to earn one entry.
2) Fill out the Raffelcopter box below.
3) You can also earn entries by being a member of the StaleCheerios email list and/or by telling a friend about this post!
Terms and Conditions
One lucky reader will win a new copy of this book.
Winner will be chosen at random.
This giveaway ends on Friday, Dec. 14, 2018 at 11:59pm Central Standard Time.
Winner will be notified via email on December 15.
If the winner does not respond by Dec 17, he/she will forfeit the prize.
Void where prohibited.
Entering the giveaway form means you agree to the terms listed above.