HABRI Central

Latest Entries

1. New Directions in Canine Assisted Therapy: Spreading the Wealth

   Entry #199

   25 Nov 2014

   10:44 am

   Patty Dobbs Gross

   0 comments

     As the field of Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) for children emerges, so does the importance of providing appropriate therapy for all children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. No longer is it ok to simply focus on “curing” autism and ignoring the child as he or she...

2. Education is Key: An Interview with Richard Timmins, DVM

   Entry #198

   18 Nov 2014

   11:22 am

   Katie Carroll

   0 comments

   The special connection between humans and nonhuman animals was not a common topic of study when Richard Timmins, DVM attended veterinary school.  The focus instead was on training aspiring veterinarians on how to help injured and ill pets and livestock.  But, early in his career,...

3. Physicians "Prescribing" Pets?

   Entry #196

   11 Nov 2014

   7:53 am

   Myrna Milani

   1 comments

   Call me a grinch but articles like this one about physicians prescribing pets for their patients doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling. I most certainly recognize the benefits healthy, well-behaved animals  can have on human physical and mental well-being. But I also know...

4. The Philosophy of Pets in Prisons: An Interview with Emily Humbert

   Entry #187

   15 Oct 2014

   3:12 pm

   Katie Carroll

   2 comments

   When thinking of the settings where the human-animal bond is present, people usually think of schools, long-term care facilities, hospitals, libraries, and even the typical American family’s backyard.  But, very seldom does a person think of the U.S. prison system as a prime location...

5. Whole Dog Academy – Holistic Dog Training – Meet Taylor Sisk

   Entry #182

   13 Sep 2014

   3:55 pm

   Eric Thompson

   0 comments

   Finding a Passion for Animals – Inspiring Taylor’s Work  Taylor Sisk says, “As a child I was the one who wanted to adopt a new dog, go horseback riding, or find the newts at the lake. So long as it had to do with animals, I was happy.” Sisk has used the love for...

6. A Therapeutic Look at Zoos

   Entry #181

   07 Sep 2014

   9:50 am

   Myrna Milani

   0 comments

   No doubt this series will stir a lot of controversy about a whole rage of topics related to the best and worst of the human-animal bond because it addresses so many different elements of it simultaneously. One can only hope that the result will be broader appreciation of its full range instead of...

7. Birds and the Human Condition

   Entry #180

   19 Aug 2014

   3:59 am

   Myrna Milani

   0 comments

   This beautifully written opinion piece from The New York Times points out the integral role birds play in human survival, or could play if we weren't so busy doing what we consider matters of  such consequence that we miss their much more...

8. New Directions in Canine Assisted Therapy: Tales from Four Labradoodles, Part 2

   Entry #179

   16 Aug 2014

   9:03 am

   Patty Dobbs Gross

   0 comments

   North Star Blue The two labradoodle sisters I wrote about in my last column, Luna and Cocoa, have two lively brothers, Harry and Blue, which we are also placing with North Star children. I picked up North Star Blue myself a few months back and flew with him to Nashville to work with Liam, a...

9. New Directions in Canine Assisted Therapy: Tales from Four Labradoodles, Part 1

   Entry #178

   15 Aug 2014

   5:09 pm

   Patty Dobbs Gross

   0 comments

   North Star Luna North Star Foundation is now in her fourteenth year of incorporation as nonprofit; to date we have helped over 200 children all over the world socially, emotionally and educationally by virtue of their assistance or therapy dog placements. We are trying to pioneer animal...

10. The Mountaintop School for Dogs: A dog book like no other

    Entry #176

    03 Aug 2014

    6:23 am

    Myrna Milani

    0 comments

    The Mountaintop School for Dogs: A dog book like no other When I was a little kid I used to think that living in the past went along with old age, based on the way my grandparents and others of their era referred to the same old events over and over again. Later I realized that people of all...

11. New Directions in Canine Assisted Therapy: Developing Canine Bonds with Children with Autism

    Entry #175

    22 Jul 2014

    6:45 pm

    Patty Dobbs Gross

    0 comments

    This column focuses on the still unfolding fate of four golden pups delivered by North Star Molly this time last year. Three of these pups are now working in our program with their carefully chosen children, with their sister, North Star Angel, now working as a therapy dog in New...

12. HABRI Central Update - July 21, 2014

    Entry #174

    21 Jul 2014

    3:00 pm

    Christopher C Charles

    0 comments

    HABRI Central recently received several new features and updates! Here are some of the major improvements we've made and how they'll affect you,   UNIFIED LIBRARY The HABRI Central bibliography has been consolidated with the HABRI Central repository. No longer will you have to...

13. Providing a Voice for the Voiceless: An Interview with Emilie Buchwald

    Entry #172

    30 Jun 2014

    1:23 pm

    Angel Tobey

    0 comments

    Many individuals strive to inform the public about the different aspects of the human-animal bond, but not many use children’s books to accomplish that task. Emilie Buchwald, founder of The Gryphon press, works with her organization to provide children’s books that recognize the...

14. New Directions in Canine Assisted Therapy: Recycling at its Finest

    Entry #169

    24 Jun 2014

    12:42 pm

    Patty Dobbs Gross

    0 comments

    My last column on failure is deliberately followed by this one, which highlights North Star dogs whose initial failure ended up just a bump on the road toward a better temperamental fit with a different North Star child. It should be noted this new child may not be the next on our waiting list,...

15. Not Just Horsing Around: An Interview with Colleen Cheechalk

    Entry #168

    16 Jun 2014

    3:39 pm

    Angel Tobey

    0 comments

    Colleen Cheechalk recently talked with us about her experiences with the human-animal bond and the amazing work she is doing with her organization, Borrowed Freedom. In the Beginning Colleen Cheechalk has always been an animal lover and after being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis,...

16. AVMA Introduces New Animal Welfare Hub

    Entry #166

    29 May 2014

    11:15 am

    Myrna Milani

    0 comments

    Whether we share our homes with companion animals, train or depend on them to perform various functions that benefit us, work with animals used for food or fiber production or research, success means taking the animal's welfare into account along with everything else. The...

17. Helping People by Helping Animals: An Interview with Rachel Herman

    Entry #165

    27 May 2014

    8:37 am

    Angel Tobey

    0 comments

    Rachel Herman was kind enough to grant us an interview about her work with the human-animal bond and her organization, PAWS NY. Getting Started From the start, Rachel Herman was immersed in a world filled with animals. When she was growing up, her house was always home to a myriad of pets...

18. Want to Broaden Your View of the HAB?

    Entry #164

    23 May 2014

    7:57 am

    Myrna Milani

    0 comments

    Then hurry and claim your copy of Trash Animals: How we live with nature’s filthy, feral, invasive, and unwanted species. In addition to offering highly readable accounts of 17 animal species that elicit extreme human emotional reactions, these essays also provide readers with insights into...

19. HABRI Central Review Series Books Available

    Entry #162

    07 May 2014

    9:45 am

    Marcy Wilhelm-South

    0 comments

    The next book in the HABRI Central Review Series is available. We have a limited number of copies of Trash Animals: How We Live with Nature’s Filthy, Feral, Invasive, and Unwanted Species, edited by Kelsi Nagy and Phillip David Johnson II. Reviews should be a maximum of 1500 words and need...

20. Second Book in the 2014 HABRI Review Series Now Available

    Entry #160

    06 May 2014

    10:07 am

    Myrna Milani

    0 comments

    Most of us accept that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The same is true for our perception of the animals discussed in Trash Animals: How we live with nature’s filthy, feral, invasive, and unwanted species. However in their case, running afoul of human aesthetic standards may cost them...