Product Details
Scribner, June 2009
eBook, 272 pages
ISBN-10: 1416546251
ISBN-13: 9781416546252
Read an Excerpt
Chapter 1Description
Karen Pryor has improved the lives of millions of animals. A celebrated pioneer in the field of nopunishment animal training, she introduced an innovative training system in her groundbreaking bestseller Don't Shoot the Dog! Now, after thirty years of training creatures both tame and wild, Pryor presents the sum total of what she knows about teaching animals and what they in turn have taught her.
Pryor's all-positive clicker-training system is a safe, effective way to modify and shape behavior. Karen can teach anyone to train animals with a cheap, plastic, handheld clicker, rewarding wanted behaviors -- click! -- and ignoring the unwanted. No leash-jerking. No pushing. No smacking. Animals quickly learn that one behavior gets them a reinforcing click and a bit of food, and undesirable behaviors get them, well, nothing at all. Given the choice, animals quickly focus on what works and abandon what doesn't.
Reaching the Animal Mind uses clear, accessible language that will allow anyone to master Pryor's training system. Pryor also entertains by introducing some of her more interesting pupils. Ponies are taught to surf, gloomy birds learn how to play, a rhinoceros routinely leans against a fence for a pedicure, and dogs learn everything with pointed ears and shining eyes that seem to say "You want what? I can do that; watch me!"
Throughout the book, Pryor provides Web addresses where the reader can access video of the actual training sessions that she describes.
Practical and engrossing, Pryor explains the science behind her system, how it works and why it works, its applications for teaching humans, as well as step-by-step instructions on how to clicker-train your cat to give you a high five or your dog to find your car keys. What could be better than that?
How did you come to write this book?
After several decades of teaching animals and people with positive reinforcement, and several books about that, I had hundreds of new stories going to waste, and dozens of new questions that needed answering. This book is a start.
" Karen Pryor explains positive training methods in an easy-to-understand manner that can be quickly learned by all animal lovers."
-- TEMPLE GRANDIN, Ph.D., author of Animals in Translation and Animals Make Us Human
"Karen Pryor has been at the forefront of humane and science-based training for decades, and this book shows us why. With compelling stories and accessible science, Reaching the Animal Mind is an inspiration for everyone who loves animals and wants to train them with compassion and respect. Whether you're an experienced clicker trainer or someone who just wants their dog to stop barking without having to yell, you really, truly want this book!"
-- DR. PATRICIA McCONNELL, author of The Other End of the Leash: Why We Do What We Do Around Dogs
"Karen Pryor explores new discoveries in animal learning, looks at old concepts with a fresh perspective, and tells a masterful story throughout. This book should fascinate the scientist, the trainer, and the casual animal lover all at the same time. Karen has always been a compelling storyteller, but this book truly caps off her amazing career. As an animal-care professional, I would put this on the required reading list for everyone who works with or cares about animals."
-- KEN RAMIREZ, Shedd Aquarium, and author of Animal Training
"Karen Pryor shows how clicker training has solved problems that traditional training methods could not solve, or worse, that those methods caused. The clarity of her descriptions enables the reader to start basic clicker training right away. Moreover, the book helps readers gain awareness of their own ways of controlling others. Any time criticism, jerking, or punishing can be replaced with clicker-training methods, everyone benefits. The more that people follow the principles in this book, the better off the world will be."
-- JULIE VARGAS, author of Behavior Analysis for Effective Teaching
North Adams Transcript, October 22, 2009
...BRATTLEBORO -- Two woman scientists: Temple Grandin and Karen Pryor. Two new books, with great dogs on the covers. Two mandatory reads for people who care about animals. Temple Grandin is the autistic scientist whose insights and research ...
