#884A: The extraordinary journey of Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald to becoming a veterinarian in Denver, where he also does stand up comedy to open for famous comedians, having spent his younger years as head of security for the Rolling Stones. 

#883B: Tracie talks to Susan, a listener in Connecticut, who cannot figure out why her dog, Shelby, has had episodes of sudden onset shaking and whining. Is it emotional? Physical? What is triggering it? How best to manage it?

#883A: Marc Bekoff discusses his newly revised book “The Emotional Lives of Animals: A Leading Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy — and Why They Matter,” with a foreword by Jane Goodall, alongside whom Bekoff has spent his career advancing the idea that animals have inner lives — and outer relationships — of significance.

#882B: Tracie talks to dog trainer Annie Phenix — who specializes in aggressive dogs — about the immorality of asking her to help rehome a dangerous “Czech shepherd” dog that has shown aggression to other dogs and to people. 

#882A: Simon Van Booy discusses his newest novel “Sipsworth,” which enchanted Tracie with its depiction of a rare and beautiful relationship between an elderly lonely lady and the mouse who transforms her life.

#881B: Kerry Nichols writes with exuberance in her book “PUPPY BRAIN: How Our Dogs Learn, Think, and Love,” about how puppies’ minds and feelings develop and our impact on them.

#881A: Helen Brown speaks from Australia about the healing power of a feline companion in her memoir “Mickey: the Cat Who Raised Me.” 

#880B: Amy Creel is a hilarious curmudgeonly TikTok presence [amymaurercreel] where she recounts her amusingly frustrating experiences helping dogs find homes through her Knine Rescue in Maryland.

#880A: Bill Wasik [New York Times Magazine executive editor) and his wife Monica Murphy (Park Slope veterinarian and writer) collaborated on a sweeping history of how animals and people coexisted in the 19th century in their impressive book OUR KINDRED CREATURES: How Americans Came to Feel the Way They Do About Animals.

#879B: Dr. Starr Cameron [Clinical Associate Professor in Small Animal Neurology, Department of Medical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin at Madison] has been studying feline dementia and the symptoms like disorientation, changes in sleep/wake cycles, reduced activity and interaction with people or other pets, house soiling, anxiety and problems with learning/memory.