If you’re in the Halifax area, it’s a PD day for the schools, so bring your kids! There will be snacks and a special guest dog to help me do communication demos. Should be a blast. Read More  

In Fox Talk, I describe experiments done on wolves and dogs and domestic foxes, to test their ability to understand human pointing gestures. Comparisons showed that dogs and foxes are better at using human body language, even without prior ... Read More  

Thanks so much to Crystal Garrett and the Global Morning News for inviting me to talk about foxes on the show! It was a lot of fun and over so quickly I didn’t have time to get nervous, which ... Read More  

At least three people have sent me this video, and since it’s been a long week full of jet lag and putting out fires, I figured I would share: In case you’re wondering, the fox says whine, pant, cackle, ... Read More  

For everyone who went looking for the ebook edition of Fox Talk and couldn’t find it – first, thank you! Second, I am really sorry. The ebook was scheduled for release on October 5, but at the last minute, ... Read More  

I love travel. I love exploring new places, eating new food, and meeting new people. I firmly believe that travel is the best means of broadening horizons, experiencing new ideas, and destroying preconceived and prejudicial notions that’s available to ... Read More  

Missed the earlier instalments? Check out Part One – Riker’s Race, and Part Two – The Battery Revolution before reading today’s post.  Remember those brick-sized cell phones from movies in the 1980s? Lithium batteries are the reason we’re no longer carrying them. ... Read More  

Very excited to announce that Fox Talk is now available as an enhanced ebook! The ebook preserves the artwork and design of the paper edition, but comes with cool special features: – pop-up glossary definitions in the main text ... Read More  

The Alberta and British Columbia segments of my Fox Talk book tour are complete, and I’d like to thank everyone who hosted, supported, and came out to meet me. It was a great experience and I can’t wait to ... Read More  

Unfortunately, I did not personally see these whales, although Tech Support (now also known as “Book Tour Roadie”) saw a humpback one morning while I was sleeping in. Next time I visit Vancouver Island, I’ll try to spend less ... Read More  

My publisher created this lovely trailer for FOX TALK using video that Brian Dust (also known as “hubby” or, more often, “Tech Support”) shot while we visited Featuring Animals this past February. I’m the one wielding the SLR, but ... Read More  

As I’ll be touring with FOX TALK for the next couple of weeks, a couple of announcements: Blog posts will go up as always, but it might take me a little longer to respond to comments. I’d still love ... Read More  

After compiling all the entries in the order received, I used a random number generator to select the winners. And those winners are…. *drumroll* KIM CLEARY – winner of an autographed copy of FOX TALK! PAULA MORROW – winner of ... Read More  

The Talk About Fox Talk Contest ends at 12:01 AM tomorrow – comment now to enter! For commenting inspiration, I offer adorableness: And also this question: If you could have any wild creature as a pet, what would it ... Read More  

1. Dogs were the first domestic animal species. Unambiguous archaeological evidence for dogs is about 12,000 years old, but domestication may have started 20,000 years or more before that. 2. Ancient Egyptians had at least three dog breeds: a ... Read More  

Any dog owner will tell you that their pet understands them – recognizes words, follows commands, and somehow knows when they need a sympathetic snuggle. Scientists call this communicative skill and intelligence “social cognition.” It’s the set of knowledge ... Read More  

Have you ever noticed that domestic animals share physical characteristics with each other, but not with their wild ancestors? Floppy ears, for instance. Elephants are the only wild species with floppy ears, but they occur in breeds of dog, ... Read More  

Alberta-born author and scientist Dr. Lindsey Carmichael has penned another science book for young readers. The Edmonton native’s upcoming book on the domestication of foxes, Fox Talk: How Some Very Special Animals Helped Scientists Understand Communication, publishes in August ... Read More