• Declawing Facts from the Kentucky Humane Society

• ASPCA Position Statement

• American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) statement on declawing

• Declawing.com - Comprehensive website detailing the surgery as well as alternatives to declawing.

Cat Sense 

by John Bradshaw. Renowned anthrozoologist John Bradshaw uses scientific research to dispel myths and help readers to understand cats on a deeper, more compassionate and more functional level. 

The Cat Who Cried for Help 

by Dr. Nicholas Dodman. Dodman, a veterinary behaviorist, offers practical solutions to common behavior issues in cats through providing a deeper understanding of feline nutrition, enrichment and behavior modification.

Starting from Scratch: How to Correct Behavior Problems in Your Adult Cat by Pam Johnson-Bennett 

Cat behavior expert Pam Johnson-Bennett gives detailed instructions on how to address common behavior issues using relationship-based training methods. 

• Cat Body Language 101 (video)

• Cat Body Language (written)

Position statements: 

• The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior has several position statements that reflect the society’s opinion on topics such as dominance and the use of punishment.

• The Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers has a document called “Application of the Humane Hierarchy Position Statement.” 

• The International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants has a document called “IAABC Position Statement on LIMA.” 

Using punishment: 

• “What’s Wrong with This Picture? Effectiveness Is Not Enough”

•  “It Makes No Sense to Punish a Fearful Dog” 

• “Dog Whispering in the 21st Century” 

Using shock collars: 

• “The End for Shock Collars?” 

• What Experts Say

On dominance theory: 

• “What’s Wrong with Using Dominance to Explain the Behaviour of Dogs?”

• “Position Statement on the Use of Dominance Theory in Behavior Modification of Animals”, American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior

• “Dominance and Dog Training”, Association of Professional Dog Trainers

Studies: 

• “You Can Cross Over, But You Can’t Cross Back” 

• “If You’re Aggressive, Your Animal Will Be Too, Says Veterinary Study” 

• “New Study Finds Popular ‘Alpha Dog’ Training Techniques Can Cause More Harm than Good” 

If you want to know more about relationship-based training, here are some books that we recommend: 

Before You Get Your Puppy and After You Get Your Puppy 

by Dr. Ian Dunbar Dunbar, a veterinarian and animal behaviorist, covers what he calls the “developmental deadlines” to meet before and after you get your puppy. 

Don’t Shoot the Dog! The New Art of Teaching and Training 

by Karen Pryor. Pryor clearly explains the underlying principles of behavioral training and uses numerous examples to show how to achieve your training objectives through positive reinforcement. She also has a website on clicker training. 

The Culture Clash 

by Jean Donaldson. Donaldson presents a revolutionary new way of understanding the relationship between humans and animals. 

Outwitting Animals: Revolutionary Techniques for Animal Training That Work 

by Terry Ryan. Ryan draws on her 25 years of hands-on experience to help people understand animals, train animals, and solve animal behavior problems using kinder, gentler methods. 

Dog-Friendly Dog Training 

by Andrea Arden. This is a great book for beginners. 

The Other End of the Leash

by Patricia McConnell, PhD. Learn how changing your behavior and body language can improve your training and relationship with your dog.

The Power of Positive Dog Training

by Pat Miller. Pat Miller is known as a "crossover trainer": someone who used to use compulsion/punishment based training methods until she learned more and switched to positive reinforcement training. This book is an easy to read explanation of how dogs learn plus a complete guide to teaching the basics.

Learning to read body language is one of the biggest things you can do to help improve your communication with (and understanding of) dogs. Please note that many of the clips used in the below videos are taken from the internet and were posted by people that are completely ignoring their dogs discomfort. If you observe signals like in the videos from your dog (or a foster), it means you need to intervene. Do not try to trigger these behaviors to record them, or allow any situation to continue if your dog is displaying stress signals.

• Canine Body Language (written info)

• Understanding Dog Body Language (video)

• Understanding Dog Body Language Part 2 (video)

• Calming Signals - these are also known as appeasement behaviors.

• How to Use Calming Signals to Communicate with Your Dog