Unlocking the Animal Mind: How Your Pet's Feelings Hold the Key to His Health and Happiness [Paperback]

Franklin McMillan (Author), Kathryn Lance (Author), Bob Barker (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 21, 2004

From the man who pioneered the concept of feelings-based animal care-a revolutionary work about animal moods and emotions that shows us a totally new way to view and care for the beloved pets who share our lives.

In this ground-breaking work, veterinarian and animal theorist Dr. Frank McMillan uses a wide variety of examples from his own practice with scores of scientific studies to construct a striking-and extraordinarily logical-depiction of the way your pet's mind works. Dr. McMillan presents a comprehensive look at how physical and emotional feelings are at the controls in guiding your animal's actions, from wanting to go for a walk to hiding from the vacuum cleaner to limping on a sore leg. Understanding the importance of your pet's feelings, according the Dr. McMillan, is the key to unlocking the animal mind.

Dr. McMillan shows readers:
· What the Pet Pleasure Principle is and why your pet wants you to always use it as your main guide in caring for him or her
· Why feelings are the only things that your pet cares about
· How profound an influence the mind has on every aspect of an animal's health
· The importance of the Comfort Zone and how to help your pet reach it and stay in it
· Why boredom can be devastating to your pet's emotional health and how to relieve it
· What "stress" really is and how to give your pet the tools to deal with it in his or her life
· Why the best veterinary medical care is based on your pet's feelings
· Why a Safe Haven is the single most important factor for your pet's emotional well-being
· How to determine your pet's quality of life and ways to maximize it

For the 152 million people in the United States living with pets, Dr. McMillan explains why understanding your pet's feelings is essential for making every decision affecting his or her life, such as upbringing, conflicts with other animals, health care, and even the heartbreaking choice of euthanasia. He shows how feelings-based care offers your pet the greatest 20opportunity to enjoy the happiest, healthiest, and most emotionally fulfilled life possible.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Making the case that feelings—"comfort, pleasure, discomfort, and suffering"—are the only things that matter to pets, veterinarian McMillan demonstrates a variety of ways that pet owners can observe the impact of emotions on their pets' health and use such information to better the quality of their pets' lives. McMillan's conceptual keys to pet behavior are the "Comfort Zone," an animal's mental state in the absence of unpleasant feelings, and the "Pet Pleasure Principle" (with thanks to philosopher Jeremy Bentham), which describes an animal's choice of behavior based on what will bring it the most pleasure. Using numerous examples from his practice, he shows how these concepts work (and work together): feeling out of the Comfort Zone can be an "early-warning system that a potential threat exists," for example, while an animal back in its Comfort Zone will spend its energy seeking greater pleasure. A helpful chart entitled "Why Your Pet Ain't Misbehavin' " lists painful emotions a pet might experience (e.g., boredom, anxiety) and the undesirable behaviors such emotions often cause (e.g., howling, chewing furniture). McMillan's thesis is, he acknowledges, an "incredibly simple concept," and it probably doesn't deserve all the pages it gets, but those seeking greater connection with their pets will find it enlightening.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

This unusual, well-written, and insightful book explores the role of complex emotions and "human" feelings in animals. McMillan is a veterinarian with a special interest in the mind-body connection. His two primary concepts--the Comfort Zone and the four-part Pet Pleasure Principle--are designed to recognize the underlying feelings and emotions that fuel animal behavior and form the foundation for guiding their well-being. His explanations of feelings go beyond the simple instinct so often attributed as the cause of animal behaviors to prove that animals experience fear, loneliness, joy, grief, anticipation, and boredom. Increasing pleasure, including safety, and decreasing mental and physical discomfort are the goals of any animal, and should be of its owner, too. By using the quality-of-life factors McMillan defines with the help of veteran coauthor Lance, and his three-step program for mental wellness, pet owners will acquire powerful tools for keeping pets happy. Its successful blend of personal stories, lucid explanations, case studies, and specific problem-solving techniques makes this a standout in the crowded field of animal-care manuals. Lauren Roberts
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Rodale Books (October 21, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1579548806
• ISBN-13: 978-1579548803
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #827,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MUST READ for Pet Owners, July 29, 2005

By 

L. Howardopoulos (New Rochelle, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Unlocking the Animal Mind: How Your Pet's Feelings Hold the Key to His Health and Happiness (Paperback)

I am a professional pet sitter/dog walker. I have found this to be an EXCELLENT book. I recommend it for any pet owner. It is easy to understand, and the author sights many examples to clarify his point. I think I will buy several more copies to give to some of my clients. PLEASE read this before you give up a "difficult" pet. Please read it if you love your pet and want to provide the best for them. Please read it if you are even considering getting a pet.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Unlocking the Animal Mind, March 15, 2006

By 

P. Sigman "kennel nanny" (New Baden IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unlocking the Animal Mind: How Your Pet's Feelings Hold the Key to His Health and Happiness (Paperback)

I agree with Dr. McMillan's theories as I have observed first hand much of what he says in his book. I applaud his attempt at educating people to the fact that animals do have feelings which should be acknowledged, respected, and addressed along with their physical needs. Overall, I found the book interesting reading, though it was somewhat repetitious. The stories and his encounters as a veterinarian, however, kept my interest, and I feel better informed for improving the quality of life of my pets and rescue animals. That was my intention. I do recommend the book for anyone who sincerely wants to better understand the animal world.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Eh, It's ok, May 13, 2009

By 

J. Nichols "shua" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Unlocking the Animal Mind: How Your Pet's Feelings Hold the Key to His Health and Happiness (Paperback)

This book is interesting and the author makes his point that animals have feelings with science, logic and life experiance. However, I agree with others when they say that the book was repeatative. If you read the intro and ch. 4 you've you can put the book down because the other chapter's don't say anything differant.