Karen Pryor was a pioneer in modern positive reinforcement animal training practices. She was a mentor to thousands of trainers, whether they met her in person or just knew of her from her dozens of books, courses, and programs. If you know clicker training, you have Karen to thank.

Karen passed away at the age of 92 on January 4, 2025. She will be greatly missed but her legacy will live on with every person who takes on the mantle of caring for animals.

I'm honoring Karen today with a discussion of her book On Behavior, a collection of essays and articles from her decades of teaching others the way of positive reinforcement training.

Listen to related Zoo-notables: Don't Shoot the Dog and Lads Before the Wind

Want a copy of Karen's books? Check out Karen Pryor Academy.

Connect with other animal trainers at ClickerExpo (January 24-25 online)

When Macdonald’s father passed away, she was devastated. An experienced falconer she’d never before been tempted to train a goshawk. But in her grief, she saw that the goshawk’s fierce and feral temperament mirrored her own. Resolving to raise one of the creatures as a means to cope with her loss, MacDonald adopts Mabel and turns to the guidance of the Once and Future King author TH White’s chronicle The Goshawk to begin her challenging endeavor. Projecting herself “in the hawk’s wild mind to tame her” tested the limits of Helen’s humanity and changed her life…

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What do Mozart, Picasso, Tiger Woods, and the Williams sisters all have in common? That they are all considered masters of their field. They have all also been called "talented."

Let's explore the myth of talent and how you can achieve greatness in your field with Bounce by Matthew Syed.

A great way to kick off the new year, and Season 4 of Zoo-notable!

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It's one of my favorite times of year, National Novel Writing Month (also called NaNoWriMo), and to celebrate and honor all my writing friends, I thought we could delve into what it takes to be a Healthy Writer, from one of the most prolific authors I know, Joanna Penn.

We'll discuss stress in our dream job, realizing and getting in tune with our cycles, loneliness, and lessons from yoga and running.

If you would like to learn more about Healthy Writer, or check out other books by Joanna Penn, visit her site at https://www.thecreativepenn.com/books/

I was very hopeful that we would be electing our first woman President this election, and I was excited it would be Kamala Harris. I read her memoir from her time before becoming the first woman Vice President, The Truths We Hold, and was inspired and empowered by her accomplishments.

Today we discuss some of Kamala's insightful lessons-- Embracing the Mundane, Words Matter, Taking Perspective, Show the Math, and Breaking Glass Ceilings.

I may not have experienced what I had hoped for, but I am still inspired by Kamala Harris to roll up my sleeves, and do the hard work.

Want to check it out for yourself? Click here

I got the chance to sit down and chat with Ann Littlewood, one of my favorite authors, who got me interested in mysteries. She wrote Night Kill, Did Not Survive, and Endangered, murder mysteries set in a zoo.

We discuss a lot of the changes from when Ann was a zookeeper, to when Iris Oakley, the main protagonist of the series, was starring in her role as murder solver and zookeeper, to how zoos function today.

Grab your copies of Night Kill, Did Not Survive, and Endangered today.

Listen to them on Libby.

And don't forget to let your voice be heard. Go out and VOTE!

"After forming an intense bond with Natasha, a wolf cub she raised as part of her undergraduate research, Renée Askins was inspired to found the Wolf Fund. As head of this grassroots organization, she made it her goal to restore wolves to Yellowstone National Park, where they had been eradicated by man over seventy years before. In this intimate account, Askinsrecounts her courageous fifteen-year campaign, wrangling along the way with Western ranchers and their political allies in Washington, enduring death threats, and surviving the anguish of illegal wolf slayings to ensure that her dream of restoring Yellowstone’s ecological balance would one day be realized. Told in powerful, first-person narrative, Shadow Mountain is the awe-inspiring story of her mission and her impassioned meditation on our connection to the wild."

To honor Wolf Awareness Week, I delve into this memoir of the founder of Wolf Fund, the organization that was integral to the wolves returning to the wild in Yellowstone and Idaho in 1994-1996. More than a conservation story, Shadow Mountain is a tale of compassion and empathy for wolves, communities, and everyone in-between.

Find a copy for yourself at Amazon

"Mindsets are just beliefs. They’re powerful beliefs, but they’re just something in your mind, and you can change your mind.”

- Carol Dweck, Mindset

Today we're discussing a topic that has been a hot button issue for me since probably March or so: The 2 Mindsets-- The Fixed Mindset and the Growth Mindset, and how they affect us, and how we can adopt a more productive and helpful growth mindset.

I read this book to help prepare for AAZK national conference in Omaha, where I'll be presenting a workshop on developing a growth mindset. If you want to learn more about AAZK, click the link and perhaps I'll see you in Omaha!

Check out the book for yourself, Mindset by Carol Dweck.

How do winning friends help us influence our well-being and our career? Well, by taking our relationships to the penthouse, we can foster connections that can enrich our lives and help us change the world.

It's Not Just Who You Know by Tommy Spaulding helps explain why friendships are important, and how to develop lasting, authentic connections through empathy, humility, and vulnerability.

Like this Zoo-notable? Check it out on Libro.fm

Want to read other books by Tommy Spaulding:

The Gift of Influence

The Heart-Led Leader

To Save a Starfish is a wonderful workbook by Jennifer Blough to help animal care professionals identify compassion fatigue in their lives, discover techniques that will help combat burnout, and implement them.

This book is only available on Amazon (I usually prefer to promote local sources like libraries and local bookstores), but if you are struggling with your mental health, this may be a terrific resource.