“Out!” Who said that? Einstein, a brilliant Border Collie (aren’t all of them very smart?),has told his family he wants to go outside. He hit a prominent button with his paw that triggered this recorded message. The button is one of many buttons on a board that he can use to communicate and talk. “Food,” “water,” “come,” “dog,” “cat,” “fire,” ”yes,” “no,” “help!” and many more are in different sizes and shapes, giving him a limited, but valuable vocabulary after laborious training, as described by Christine Hunger in her ground-breaking documentary book, How Stella Learned to Talk. Einstein becomes a working dog -- a Therapy Dog --- having an important job and a knack for making himself understood even in a crisis. A crisis does arise. There is no romance for Einstein, but some humans seem likely to pair off once they get over some initial misunderstandings. A firebug generates too much warmth. Much happens in Riverview! Christine Hunger’s path-breaking work on training her dog, Stella, to communicate by hitting buttons on small recording devices opens the way to improved understanding between us and our dogs, many of whom have the intellectual abilities of young children. Border Collies, Shepherds, Poodles, and Retrievers are among the brightest breeds. Helen Bemis has enjoyed working with dogs all her life. She is grateful for the opportunity to help others understand these loving companions. Helen Bemis has enjoyed working with dogs all her life. She is grateful for the opportunity to help others understand these loving companions. She grew up on a dairy farm in Upper New York State. She obtained a college degree at SUNY Adirondack, earned the Certified Professional Dog Trainer international certification, and has a successful business, K-9 Karing. Helen has published almost twenty novels in her UNDERSTANDING… series. She loves to hear people say, “Helen has gone to the dogs.”

Chaser has a way with words. She knows over a thousand of them—more than any other animal of any species except humans. In addition to common nouns like house, ball, and tree, she has memorized the names of more than one thousand toys and can retrieve any of them on command. Based on that learning, she and her owner and trainer, retired psychologist John Pilley, have moved on to further impressive feats, demonstrating her ability to understand sentences with multiple elements of grammar and to learn new behaviors by imitation. John’s ingenuity and tenacity as a researcher are as impressive as Chaser’s accomplishments. His groundbreaking approach has opened the door to a new understanding of animal intelligence, one that requires us to reconsider what actually goes on in a dog’s mind. Chaser’s achievements reveal her use of deductive reasoning and complex problem-solving skills to address novel challenges. Yet astonishingly, Chaser isn’t unique. John’s training methods can be adopted by any dog lover. Through the poignant story of how he trained Chaser, raised her as a member of the Pilley family, and proved her abilities to the scientific community, he reveals the positive impact of incorporating learning into play and more effectively channeling a dog’s natural drives. John’s work with Chaser offers a fresh perspective on what’s possible in the relationship between a dog and a human. His story points us toward a new way of relating to our canine companions that takes into account our evolving understanding of the way animals and humans learn.

It was slow going but I was able to get a general overview of what he was driving at. I’ve been at this writing game long enough to know much will change over the course of the project. I tried to make Sam see this, My throat started to grow raw again and my voice was taking in a growling rasp. I had difficulty clearing my throat and had to excuse myself a number of times for water. As our conversation continued, I became impressed with Sam’s intelligence, though there were large gaps in his experience. This was more than made up for by a view of life that was unique; a view I would have difficulty imagining another human being holding. “I know,” he said. “A dog would.”

It's usually a pretty low-key day when you get a substitute teacher, but not so for Miss Florence's class. The "cool" assistant principal is using them as guinea pigs to try out a series of new prospective subs, from a wannabe inspirational teacher, to a conspiracy theorist, to a border collie. It's almost enough to make you want to quietly finish your work! You never know who's going to show up next in this outrageous comedy full of larger-than-life characters. Comedy One-act, 30-35 minutes 8-25+ actors (suggested casting: 16 any)

My dog understands me! At least, many dog owners think so. New scientific studies actually show that dogs understand a lot about us humans. For example, they can figure out what humans can and cannot see. Some dogs can even distinguish large numbers of toys by name, like Rico, the internationally famous Border collie. But do dogs also understand our emotions? Can they grasp cause and effect relationships? What fascinates us humans about dogs? Is it only the proverbial ‘puppy dog eyes’ that make dogs look sympathetic? Or is it the fact that these animals have grown very well-attuned to humans and are willing to cooperate with them? In a total of ten chapters, Juliane Bräuer and Juliane Kaminski present the results of the most important scientific studies of the last twenty years on dog cognition.

Will Spalding had an IQ of 172. But nobody knew it yet. And nobody would realise it even when he constructed what was probably the most amazing invention that the world had ever seen. Actually most of the world would never see it! Read the hilarious story of what happens when Will's little sister Maud crawls into it, and how Will and his friends (with the help of Einstein the dog) try to get her back without Will's Mum Pru finding out.

Learn to communicate with your dog—using their language “Good reading for dog lovers and an immensely useful manual for dog owners.”—The Washington Post An Applied Animal Behaviorist and dog trainer with more than twenty years’ experience, Dr. Patricia McConnell reveals a revolutionary new perspective on our relationship with dogs—sharing insights on how “man’s best friend” might interpret our behavior, as well as essential advice on how to interact with our four-legged friends in ways that bring out the best in them. After all, humans and dogs are two entirely different species, each shaped by its individual evolutionary heritage. Quite simply, humans are primates and dogs are canids (as are wolves, coyotes, and foxes). Since we each speak a different native tongue, a lot gets lost in the translation. This marvelous guide demonstrates how even the slightest changes in our voices and in the ways we stand can help dogs understand what we want. Inside you will discover: • How you can get your dog to come when called by acting less like a primate and more like a dog • Why the advice to “get dominance” over your dog can cause problems • Why “rough and tumble primate play” can lead to trouble—and how to play with your dog in ways that are fun and keep him out of mischief • How dogs and humans share personality types—and why most dogs want to live with benevolent leaders rather than “alpha wanna-bes!” Fascinating, insightful, and compelling, The Other End of the Leash is a book that strives to help you connect with your dog in a completely new way—so as to enrich that most rewarding of relationships.