Animal behavior

Animal behaviorist John Bradshaw's books Cat Sense and Dog Sense detail what cat and dog owners should expect from their animals. Cat Sense originally aired Sept. 5, 2013. Dog Sense originally aired May 26, 2011.

Kittens don't play -- they hunt. And their aloof appearance has evolutionary roots. A new book explains cats' mysterious nature and how their relationship with humans has changed over the years.

Temple Grandin is one of the world's greatest animal behaviorists. She is also autistic — and has put that to work for her. Grandin has written several books on animals, including Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior. This weekend, HBO will premiere a made-for-TV movie based on her life.

Animal-behavior specialist Temple Grandin explains how her personal experiences with autism have in some ways enhanced her work — and shed new light on the way in which we communicate with animals.

In her new book, Animals Make Us Human, Temple Grandin examines common notions of animal happiness and concludes that dogs, cats, horses, cows and zoo animals — among other creatures — possess an emotional system akin to that of humans.

Biologist William Jordan has a new book of essays that contemplates the similarities between the animal and human mind by looking at behavior. It's called "Divorce Among The Gulls: An Uncommon Look at Human Nature.

Alan Beck studies the relationship between pets and their owners. His early research of animal behavior included a study of stray dogs in Baltimore. Beck says that medical experts should take into consideration the benefits of pet ownership when evaluating an individual's health.

Alan Beck, a leading authority on the relationships between pets and their owners. Beck is the director of the Center for Interaction of Animals and Society at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine. (Interview by Marty Moss-Coane)