Ten things I learned about Sir William Osler

Hero contemplates William Osler: A Life in Medicine.

It helps a man immensely to be a bit of a hero worshipper, and the stories of the lives of the masters of medicine do much to stimulate our ambition and arouse our sympathies. - Sir William Osler, Aequanimitas.

I confess to being something of a hero worshipper. There are people throughout history, many of whom remain alive, whose lives I hold as a great example. I'm not going to embarass them by listing their names, but William Osler was a bit of a hero to many and his biography has been written and rewritten and pored over in the hope that it might offer tips and inspiration to those with a medical bent.

Osler (with the “o” pronounced as it would be in “host”) is regarded by medical historians as one of the greatest doctors in history. His aphorisms are frequently cited, and it is through versions of these that I came to learn about him.

Before motivational speakers were all the rage, Osler was rocking stirring statements which apply equally to matters of public health as they do to tasks like unstacking the dishwasher, such as “By far the most dangerous foe we have to fight is apathy – indifference from whatever cause, got from a lack of knowledge, but from carelessness, form absorption in other pursuits, from a contempt bred of self-satisfaction” and “to know what has to be done, then do it, comprises the whole philosophy of practical life”.

I read “William Osler: A Life in Medicine” by the prolific Canadian historian Michael Bliss who worked on the document for several years (it turns out Bliss, Emeritus Professor of the University of Toronto, doesn’t do anything by halves, having compiled some staggering biographies. He churned through thousands of letters and papers, visited libraries around the world, interviewed descendants and managed to distil this into a very readable book). 

In reading it I served the dual purpose of acting as a hot water bottle for Mike and Hero whilst absorbing much about Osler that I didn't know. I decided to compile ten things I learned, but there could easily have been twenty. Or thirty. 

Osler, known for his ways with patients, spent much of his early career communing with the dead.

The oft-quoted Oslerisms relate to examination of the live patient, treating the “patient not the disease”, and cultivating an appropriate bedside manner.

Yet he spent a huge amount of time performing post mortems in the “dead house” and embraced pathology. This was in an era where slaves and poor people were often being bumped off to provide teaching material for medical students (though there is no suggestion that Sir William was associated with medical homicide).

“To investigate the causes of death, to examine carefully the condition of organs, after such changes have gone on in them to render their existence impossible, and to apply such knowledge to the prevention and treatment of disease, is one of the highest objects of the physician" (p66).

Osler made arrangements for his own post mortem on his deathbed. When a colleague tried to reassure him, Osler responded: “…I’ve been watching this case for two months and I’m sorry I shall not see the post mortem.”

Even his brain is preserved, although the whereabouts of 3.6g of the organ are unknown (they were suspected to have been borrowed by some eager fans).

He was an academic double-dipper in the most productive sense.

“He was an eager joiner and subscriber, and as a researcher and publisher he mastered the knack of making the most of his material. An interesting case or specimen might be exploited for teaching purposes, first in the morgue, then in class. Then it would be presented at [the Medico-Chirurgical Society], whose minutes would be published in one of the locally edited medical journals. Specially noteworthy cases…were written up as separate articles and published in journals and sometimes separately reprinted. Off-prints were sent to friends, acquaintances, experts in the field…Later, Osler’s cases might be agglomerated in lectures and papers on characteristics of diseases.  Finally, the original pathological specimens would be preserved, labelled and displayed in the Facility’s museum.”p87.

Notes to self: be super productive like Sir William Osler. (Do anyone else's books develop Post-it pox after reading? or am I living in Nerdsville, population one?).

He was an early proponent of ‘one medicine’, hanging out with and even teaching vets.

Bliss writes: “Osler was keen to track down unusual cases in animals as in humans, and exhibited animal specimens both to the Medico-Chirurgical Society and the fledgling Montreal Veterinary Medical Association”p93. He lectured at the Montreal Veterinary College, discovered verminous bronchitis as the source of a spate of mortalities at the Montreal Kennel Club (later named Oslerus osleri), and was even president of the MVMA from 1879-80!

He juggled academia and private practice.

My impression of Osler was of a busy doctor in private practice, but he spent most of his time associated with the finest medical schools and was no stranger to university politics, fundraising and the woes of administration.

Osler knew too well the conflict between what he called “the two great functions of a University…The work which shall advance the science, which brings renown to the professor and to the University…On the other hand, the teaching function of an institute…” p126 which he suggested was apt to be neglected in pursuit of its “bauble reputation”.

He knew that a University education was simply a starting point, urging doctors to live as “perpetual students” (known now as life-long learning), seeking knowledge like “a lover courting a fickle mistress who ever eludes his grasp.”

He was concerned about non-clinicians being solely responsible for clinical education: “I cannot imagine anything more subversive to the highest ideal of a clinical school than to hand over young men who are to be our best practitioners to a group of teachers who are ex officio out of touch with the conditions under which these men will live…”(p387-388).

When medical schools sought to introduce full-time salaried positions, Osler baulked – he felt that unless rewarded by a large private practice caseload (and income), the best clinicians wouldn’t take on teaching.

But he saw good teaching as a skill unto itself: “No bubble is so iridescent or floats longer than that blown by the successful teacher.”

He was a creature of habit.

I love the little details in biographies. Like reading about the morning routines of medical luminaries. In general, the most productive people are the most predictable.

When working on his textbook, Osler’s day progressed like clockwork – he dictated from 8am-1pm, saw patients from 2-6.30, had dinner, bummed around til 9.30, went to bed with a good book for an hour at 10pm and slept soundly til 7am. He had the whole “shut up and write” thing down pat. There is a photo of Osler writing the textbook at his desk, piles of books spewing onto chairs and onto the floor, which anyone who has wrung their brain out over an essay can relate to.

True, Osler didn’t have to contend with the constant distractions of email, mobile phones (he delayed installing a landline til he absolutely had to) or the internet, but he did receive a gazillion notes in the post that he was obliged to respond to.

So I think we've established that my image library contains zero images of Sir William O. But it now contains some rather tasteful photos of his biography with the best looking feline models in the known universe.

He was aware of the perils of over-medicating.

“A desire to take medicine is, perhaps, the great feature which distinguishes man from other animals,” he wrote. Since then studies have documented the tendency for doctors to cave in to the “pressure to prescribe”, but Osler knew – even before antibiotics were available – how strong the human desire for a silver bullet was, even in the absence of evidence that the patient will benefit.

In 1909, before the emergence of big pharma as we know it, Osler wrote that “Far too large a section of the treatment of disease is today controlled by the big manufacturing pharmacists, who have enslaved us in a plausible pseudo-science” (p361). (If this topic interests you, I highly recommend the works of Ray Moynihan, found here). 

Osler talked the talk and walked the walk.

Osler spent every waking moment thinking about medicine in some form another. Students and colleagues loved him not just as a diagnostician and teacher, but also “in demeanour, dress, manners, love of good books, Saturday-night sociability, and a near-religious commitment to medicine as a way of life” p228. He spawned dozens of Mini-me’s, with students imitating him, dressing in the same clothes and affecting his gestures.

But Osler knew he wasn’t perfect and always sought fellowship with colleagues. He felt that solo private practice created “an egoism of a most intense kind…Ten years of successful work tends to make a man touchy, dogmatic, intolerant of correction and abominably self-centered” (p248).

His life philosophy was simple: do the day’s work well and not spend too much time fretting about tomorrow; and cultivate equanimity.

He had no illusions about what doctors could do for patients.

Osler didn’t fool himself into believing that it was a doctor’s sole job to cure patients of medical afflictions. Rather he realised that he helped in varied ways: a) making the right diagnosis and prescribing a successful treatment (the traditional way); b) (more commonly) making a helpful suggestion in terms of prognosis or management; c) not knowing but confessing ignorance; d) reassuring the patient.

Offering comfort was often the only thing he could do, and something he saw great value in.

He probably wasn’t as Oslerian as the Oslerians.

Osler wasn’t perfect, but was practically canonised after he died, with Oslerian societies springing up all over the world. While he argued that a doctor’s demeanour should be one of good natured equanimity, and that “it is an unpardonable mistake to go about among patients with a long face”, Osler was a busy and well-remunerated fellow.

“He had a delightful beside manner and inspired warm feelings of hope and confidence, but he gave individual patients very little of his time,” Bliss writes. “Modern editions of [Osler’s magnum opus] The Principles and Practice of Medicine are far more patient-centred than Osler’s versions ever were, and modern doctors probably spend more time talking to their patients than Osler did” (p500).

He had some ideas which probably fly in the face of modern “Oslerian” values – such as the notion that people are most productive between 25 and 40 years, after which it all goes to pot.

One must remember that in Osler’s day one could rely on one’s goodly spouse, a raft of servants and stenographers, chauffers and assistants to help one sail through life’s little necessities and “let each day’s work absorb your entire energies.” The academics and practitioners I know today don’t have butlers at their disposal (if I did mine would be promptly dispatched on a bok choy run for the guinea pigs).

Despite claiming that doctors should be balanced, Osler was a workafrolic.

An oft-quoted Oslerism is that “the young doctor should look about early for an avocation, a pastime, that will take him away from patients, pills and potions” (Aequanimitas), but I don’t think he took his own advice.

He even wrote a speech suggesting that good old hard work is “the balm of hurt minds”, the ultimate virtue. If you can call hunting for novel microscopic organisms or organising one of the world’s most impressive medical history collections an avocation, sure…the guy had a balanced life.

According to a lecture to students at Yale, Osler espoused a philosophy of living in “day-tight compartments” – burying the past, ignoring the future, and immersing oneself in the present.

If you are at all interested in the history of medicine this book is an incredibly rich read. I learned that Halstead, whose surgical principles I memorised as a student [gentle tissue handling, meticulous haemostasis, preservation of blood supply, asepsis, minimal tension, accurate opposition and obliteration of dead space] had his own demons:

“As a bold surgical experimenter in New York in the early 1880s, Halstead had pioneered in the use of cocaine as a local anaesthetic, had taken to snorting it, and, along with all of his assistants, had become a full-fledged addict”p174.

Harvey Cushing, the famous neurosurgeon after whom “Cushing’s syndrome” [hyperadrenocorticism] takes its name, was a chain smoker AND a biographer of Osler. He spent FIVE YEARS drafting a one-million word Osler biography, which was eventually cut down to 600,000 words. Bliss, who pored over Cushing’s work, subsequently wrote a biography of Cushing. That’s next on my list of books to read.

Cat Protection Society Open day & Sculptures by the Sea & Links

Hero was rescued by the Cat Protection Society. He has three legs, but doesn't let that stop him - he is perfectly capable of throwing everything off my desk (here he is caught in the act!).

If you're looking for something awesome and animal oriented to do this weekend, the Cat Protection Society is holding an open-house from 11-2pm. You can come and listen to talks by CPS staff, pick their brains about the ins-and-outs of feline behaviour, and even hear a talk on feline health. 

Its also a very good opportunity to meet some of the residents and consider opening your heart and home to a new cat. Or two. You can tour the cattery, see first-hand how the cats are cared for, and go into the draw to win some very cool feline-oriented prizes (for more info click here).

Phil attending Sculptures by the Sea - attracting as much attention as the sculptures.

If you're looking for inspiration for a canine-oriented activity, consider visiting Sculptures by the Sea. To avoid crowds, Phil and I recommend getting there are the crack of dawn or as close to as possible to it. The exhibition ends on Sunday. It is always held at an awkward time of year - those around me are either studying for exams, or madly marking exams, but you still have to make time to walk the dog and you might as well walk him through the most spectacular outdoor art gallery on the planet!

Mornings: they hurt less when you're surrounded by extraordinary natural beauty.

And if you are neither studying for nor marking exams over the weekend, why not do both? 

For the lizard-oriented, the Centre for Veterinary Education is hosting an upcoming webinar by South Penrith Veterinary Clinic veterinarian Robert Johnson (readers might know him as the vet who performed the incredible caesarion on the pink-tongued skink). He will be covering everything from how to look like a lizard vet (this could be read in several ways and part of me hopes it involves sequins and fake scales), to common species and conditions, diagnostics, medicating lizards, anaesthesia and surgery. The webinar runs on November 21. For more details and registration click here.

Spike the lizard. An appropriate name given that spectacular armour, don't you think?

VMD Technology posted this guide to negative pressure wound therapy which I found helpful. 
Finally, this post has been doing the rounds of the internet (be careful before you click - it is a bit gross). I have a strong stomach but there's possibly no way I could contemplate actually ingesting these "anatomically accurate" cakes. The hydronephrotic kidney is exceptional, but having met some of these in real life I wouldn't be tempted to have a nibble on anything that remotely resembled one!

Dogs don't fail: some simple lessons about dog training that might save lives

Good training means being aware of cues and reinforcers and thinking about how the world looks from the animal's point of view.

I attended the Working Dog Alliance inaugural Australian Working Dog Conference this week - the turnout was sensational which bodes well and gives you an idea just how much those who work with dogs are keen to ensure that they keep up with best practice.

The keynote speaker was Steve White, founder of Proactive K9 and the only person to have served as a handler, trainer and supervisor for the Seattle Police Canine Unit. He has been training dogs since 1975.

The most powerful lesson for me was that while the prospect of training a dog can seem overwhelming, the basics are simple. The consequences are profound.

White identified responding to recall/name, loose leash walking (walking on a lead without pulling) and one stationary behaviour (sitting, staying) as three essential qualities that allow dogs to meet our expectations of "good behaviour".

"If you have those three things most dogs won't get euthanased" [for behaviour problems].

Its true. Dogs that don't do these things are often identified by owners as "problem dogs". Those dogs are more likely to be surrendered, or they may not enjoy an ideal bond with their owner. The sad thing is that we're not all good at communicating to dogs what it is that we expect of them in a way they understand. Given that the consequences can be so dire for them it seems incredibly unfair.

White made the point that behaviour problems are not the result of failure on the dog's part.

"When we have an expectation, give cues and then get a behaviour we don't expect," he said, "it gives us information about a gap in our training plan and where the animal is prepared to go."

In a world where the number one cause of death in young dogs is "euthanasia" due to behaviour problems, it is refreshing to hear one of the world's most experience trainers reveal that usually the problem is the expectations at the other end of the leash - on the part of the human.

"Dogs do not fail – they perform as trained," he said. "Dogs “fail” when we ask them to perform that for which we have not adequately prepared them".

Part of his job as a trainer is to help owners understand the way an animal is perceiving a given situation - and to meet the animal at its own level - "not drag it kicking and screaming to where they think it should be."

He identified several pitfalls in dog training, including:

• Focusing on the problem (for example, jumping up). We really need to reverse the problem and focus on skill-building. For example, a skill might be an incompatible behaviour, such as sitting or standing.
• Starting from the wrong baseline, i.e. assuming the dog "knows better".
• Going too fast or too slow: White argues that making haste comes at a price ("big leaps in training create gaps you will need to patch up later on").
• Cuing and reinforcing errors.

It is easy to inadvertently reinforce undesirable behaviours - we just have to be aware about cues, triggers and reinforcers that dogs may be responding to. Trainers should be asking what are the antecedents, the stimuli in the environment associated with a behaviour. What exacerbates it? What disrupts it? White disagrees with the brief that unwanted behaviour will be extinguished if ignored long enough.

He argued that such behaviour would likely continue due to reinforcement that owners may not be aware of.

Often we aren't even aware of these (White is a big fan of using video as it may reveal what is not seen at the time). Identifying what the dog did well is important as this can be used to shape behaviour and manage expectations.

This weekend, White is giving a two-day workshop at the Australian Canine Sports & Training Centre. 

Things you didn't know about Tasmanian Devils

A Tasmanian devil.

As a companion animal veterinarian practicing in suburbia on the mainland of Australia I rarely encounter Tasmanian devils. But I know a little about them due to the emergence of Devil Facial Tumour Disease (and a little warning, I will be showing a photo of an afflicted Devil later in the post).

Professor Kathy Belov gave an excellent talk about Devils at the HARN seminar yesterday and I learned about a gazillion things.

The Devil has had the honour of being the largest marsupial carnivore since the thylacine (aka Tasmanian tiger) became extinct in the 1930s.

Adult males weigh 7-13kg, females 4-9kg.

They are marsupials, so give birth to underdeveloped young that live in the mother’s pouch for an extended period, living off the mother’s milk (which Prof Belov’s team is currently investigating for the presence of antimicrobial peptides).

The breeding season is February-March and gestation is 18 days (imagine that...not enough time to paint the nursery!).

Females give birth to 20-30 young but only have four teats – so the first four to attach tend to survive (and four neonatal Devils will fit easily onto a 20 cent coin).

Females may mate with multiple males and have mixed litters (different littermates have different fathers).

Devils used to be found on mainland Australia but that population was lost around 3K years ago.

DFTD is an infectious and contagious cancer passed on during biting which can occur during mating or feeding. The majority of primary tumours occur around the face (causing the classic disfiguring lesions), and often interfere with eating so these animals starve. Around 60 per cent will suffer mets and due to organ failure.

A Tasmanian devil with advanced lesions from Devil Facial Tumour Disease (Image (c) Dept of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Enrivonment)

It emerged in the North-east of Tasmania and was first reported in 1996 by a wildlife photographer who took photos and reported the tumours to the authorities. Since then, 85% of the total population of devils has been lost, and 95% of the population on the East coast of Tasmania.

Strangely enough, no local extinctions have occurred…so the emphasis has shifted from talking about managing extinctions to managing populations where the disease remains persistent.

DFTD is restricted to devils, requires direct contact to be spread, and has an unknown incubation period – but “healthy” devils that have been introduced into captivity have developed the disease up to twelve months later. So wild devils are now quarantined for 15 months before being introduced to disease free captive populations.

There is no diagnostic test that detects subclinical infection – once lesions appear they are almost always fatal.

DFTD is a disease of adult devils: it does not effect juvenile devils. The youngest reported case occurred in an 18 month old devil, with most cases reported in animals over 2.5 years old – does something in their mother’s milk protect them?

Every tumour has the same chromosomal arrangements. Investigators have traced it back a devil in which an event lead to a chromosomal change – a schwann cell in a female devil. That cell line has remained stable and passes from animal to animal – so far killing about 100,000.

One reason devils are so vulnerable is that they are effectively immunological clones. That is they lack variability at the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC). [The MHC is the most variable region of the genome, containing around 200 genes in vertebrates. It is expressed on the surface of cells and presents self and foreign peptides like viruses and bacteria to the immune system].

DFTD seems to switch off the MHC molecules, so that the cancer cells do not trigger an immune response. While one of Professor Belov’s students has found a way to restore the expression of the MHC – albeit briefly – the use of this innovation in a vaccine is unlikely to save the devils.

According to Professor Belov, their biggest hope is “on the ground management of populations”. She says that we need an enduring and ecologically functional population of devils in the wilds of Tasmania.

There are around 33 organisations involved, including the Tasmanian Government, Zoo and Aquarium Association Australasia, Adelaide Zoo, Australia Zoo, the Australian Reptile Park, Ballarat Wildlife Park, Cleland Wildlife Park, Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Devils at Cradle, Dreamworld, Gorge Wildlife Park, Halls Gap Zoo, Healesville Sanctuary, Lone Pine Koala Park, Monato Zoological Park, the National Zoo and Aquarium, Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park, Perth Zoo, Symbio Wildlife Park, Taronga Conservation Society, Tasmania Zoo, Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve, and Trowunna Wildlife Park. Saving a species is a huge effort.

Greyhound welfare needs to be on the Government agenda

Greyhounds that have been given a second chance through the Greyhound Adoption Program NT

Greyhounds are incredibly athletic dogs, but their genetic gifts have cost them dearly. Every year the greyhound industry produces thousands of "surplus" dogs, most of which are destroyed. As a veterinary student I learned this first-hand: our first anatomy dissections were performed on greyhound cadavers because they were so easy to obtain.

Because of the circumstances in which most of greyhounds are kept, rescue groups often have to rehabilitate them extensively. I treat a number of rescue greyhounds, the majority of which require anti-anxiety medication and some serious dental work.

The Legislative Council's Select Committe on Greyhound Racing in New South Wales is winding up its Inquiry Into Racing in New South Wales tomorrow (November 6). If you want to have a say in the way the industry is related with regard to animal welfare, now is the time.

An ex-racing greyhound enjoys the beach.

Submissions may be made regarding a range of matters (read the full list here). It is telling and somewhat disappointing that in an alphabetical list of topics, the economic viability of the racing industry is listed as point (a) whilst welfare gets a mention in (don't hold your breath) point (j). 

One might expect that an industry that earns so much money from racing animals would be required to invest heavily in their care, but my first-hand experience is that this is not the case. Yes, I have met greyhound trainers who sleep beside their dogs, but these are the exception - not the rule. They deserve better.

To make a submission, click here.

Dogs in Action: Interview with author Maria Alomajan

Maria Alomajan has the best job in the world. 

This month SAT interviewed Maria Alomajan, author of Dogs in Action: Working Dogs and Their Stories. Lets be clear: working dogs work hard (some of our readers are today attending the inaugural Working Dog Alliance Australian Working Dog Conference - we don't need to tell you guys!). Maria spent a lot of time getting to know and working with working dogs around the world. She was even dug out of a snow cave! 

Tell us a bit about yourself - how did you become a writer?

I live in Auckland with my boyfriend and a moveable menagerie of animals that I share with my mother, 3 dogs, 4 cats and 4 fish. They’re all rescues and each has their own quirky personalities and preferences for each other, or not as the case may be which makes life interesting. My long-term ambition is to move to the country where I will be able to surround myself with more animals, I think that’s what makes Peter hesitant about it, funny that. The love of my life was a young elephant, but that’s another book.

I’ve always loved writing, right from early school days. Dogs are a passion of mine and being able to combine the two in this project has been a dream. I have enjoyed writing this book more than anything else. Surrounding myself, literally and figuratively, with these awesome dogs and their humans every day for around a year was a profound pleasure.

Your latest book, Dogs in Action, is about working dogs in many contexts, from police dogs to cancer-detecting dogs, sledding dogs and assistance dogs. Where did your love of dogs come from?

I have to say I have always loved dogs, so it must have come from my mum and my grandfather who both also love dogs. As far back as I can remember dogs have always been present and participants in my life.

When it comes to working dogs, my grandfather’s dog Topsy a slightly neurotic Doberman, would walk up the drive, get the newspaper out of the letterbox and bring it back. That seriously impressed me at a preschool age!

Then our first family dog, Kurt was a failed police German Shepherd. The word ‘failed’ didn’t mean anything to us, the fact that he held that association gave him a lot of ‘cred’ with us as kids. We thought that made him extra special amongst dogs and very, very clever. (Actually I have to admit I’m still seriously impressed with police dogs.)

Many dog professionals and pet owners will say “if only I had that dog now” and in this case I would love to have that time again with Kurt knowing what I do now about dogs. I know I’ve talked about this in the book but it’s such a huge part of my primary school memories. Kurt would track us and turn up at school. We’d be sitting in class and see him walking around or standing on the field and just shrink with shame knowing that we were going to get in trouble again. Sadly, but understandably, his presence wasn’t very welcomed and we would always get told off and then asked to take him home at lunch time or tie him up to the school fence or someone would call mum to come and get him. And being a german shepherd, no doubt there was probably a fair amount of barking that accompanied his visit. Of the hundreds of students at the school no other dog did this and I wish we could have appreciated how special his behaviour was and what we must have meant to him. It’s very special to be able to honor him in this book, and tell the world some of his very naughty antics!

Crashing through a large pain glass window to try to get to a bitch on heat miles away was the most dangerous thing he probably did. Or, perhaps stealing the neighbour’s roasts off their dinner table on Sundays in front of them could have been more dangerous! Alerting us to the kittens a feral cat had birthed on our bedroom floor was probably the gentlest. We were going to bed and he was sniffing and licking what we thought was his poo and I recall yelling to mum that Kurt had pooed on the floor. Surprised at this as he had never done it before the soon discovered it was a litter of kittens still in their umbilical membrane. My stepfather peeled it off and have them mouth to mouth and they lived! That’s how awesome my animal childhood was.

Later, I loved watching Wonder Dogs, a tv show here in NZ where dogs would compete in a number of trials that consisted of things like agility, article selection and bring the sausages back without eating them! Eventually they got to the winner. From the first time I saw that show wanted a wonder dog!

It would take a few years but I finally got one better.

You aren't just a writer - in your spare time you help dogs. What sort of things do you do?

I’m lucky in that my schedule is so fluid and my time gets divided depending on the greatest need. I love working with dogs and continually study canine behaviour and science. I have a particular passion for rehabilitation of what most people would label ‘difficult’ dogs, dogs that have sadly been damaged in some way by humans. Dogs that other people won’t or can’t work with. I do also get involved in basic training, hopefully helping people create what I like to think of as ‘a dialogue’ with their dogs to enable them to live happily and peacefully together.

I’m involved in rescue and re-homing dogs, particularly with life chained or caged dogs and dogs that have been rescued from animal testing and puppy milling. Facebook makes it so much easier to support groups around the world, which I like to do. And, when I can I travel to Thailand where I work with street, temple and pound dogs, and of course battle the dog meat trade. It’s heartbreaking stuff and it feels like there will never be an end to the cruelty in this world, but then you have a success, a perfect adoption or you see again how resilient and forgiving dogs are and it inspires you on.

Maria with dogs in Thailand.

In order to research the book, you had some unique experiences with dogs. What did you get to do?

Where to start…I had yeehaa, raise the roof with excitement experiences while researching this book.I got to mush a sled of dogs and it was even more awesome than I expected!! The speed, power and drive of the dogs was truly something that has to be experience to understand. What an amazing feeling being pulled along under a blue sky, white mountains and 6 incredible dogs doing what they do best. It’s the only thing with dogs that has ever made me nervous as the number one rule of mushing is NEVER let go of the dogs, no matter what happens! So the responsibility fell heavy on my shoulders as Ray entrusted me with his team. If you have heard of the great races like Iditarod or Yukon Quest, the reason many mushers never get to finish is not because of the dogs but because of the human just isn’t strong enough or fit enough to hold onto the sled with all that pulling power. 

Mushing. Humans can't always keep up.

Volunteering with search and rescue dogs was a huge eye opening and challenged my clostrophobia and fear of heights. I got to cross the river on a small boat in Bangkok with dogs and handlers in the early hours of the morning. Hid under large chunks of filthy concrete rubble in the cold, dirt and rain in Auckland while heavy machine thumped away. I “sucked it up” and was buried in a snow cave up on Treble Cone in Wanaka and tramped through bush in the Waikato. If you let yourself go for a minute and truly believe you are experiencing each terrifying situation of being buried or lost, it really is an extraordinary relief to hear the scuffing, deep inhaling, the pawing and then finally the loud barking of a dog coming to find you. Even right in your ear it’s a joyous thing.

Maria is dug out of a snow cave by a rescue dog.

When you're trapped under rubble, this must be the happiest site.

I must mention here that what astounded me the most is that these incredibly committed rescue workers who regardless of weather of family commitments train all year round and are volunteers! I wonder how many people know that?

Another thing I have always wanted to try was a bite suit. One of those sleeves or body suits used when training dogs to apprehend someone. So I was extremely excited to get the opportunity to have a go at being a run away ‘baddie’ for a young very handsome police dog only in his third week of training. Well didn’t I just provide the most hilarious lunchtime story for that squad! All I remember is looking back at this boy running at me, I’m grinning from ear to ear because this is so much fun, recalling my instructions to let my arm go with the dog but I went one better, I let my whole body go, over and over, several times, before coming to a stop. 

It takes a special lady to don a "bite suit" in the name of good journalism. Not sure I would have it in me!

Yep, I would be more like this.

Realizing even the dog had let go because he’d never seen that happen before and neither had any of the guys, I quickly re-raised my arm for the dog to grab, just in case he was looking around for something else and to the surprised constable, who was doing a great job of not laughing, said “that was awesome, let’s do it again!” I told the squad I was merely helping build confidence in the dog but apparently what I helped more was the ego of the handler who could now claim to have the best dog in training. Envious yet?

You highlight the role dogs play in a range of contexts. Most people are at least aware of Guide Dogs and Police Dogs, but were dogs involved in any kind of work that you hadn't expected?

Absolutely, and even now I am still learning new and exciting ways dogs are helping the world. The jobs I hadn’t heard of before I started researching the book were things like seizure alert, illegal dvd tracking and water rescue dogs. Whale scat detectors, elephant poacher trackers and bed bug sniffers - all these jobs seem so obvious for a dog once you learn about them but most people have no idea dogs are out there doing this work!

Do you think working dogs are adequately recognised for the work they do? If not, how do you think we could do it better?

In general, they are absolutely not recognized for the work they do. By the people working and living with them they are totally. In fact, all dogs are under-appreciated and misunderstood. As far as working dogs are concerned, I think one thing we can do and hopefully this book is a start, is educate people on what dogs are doing, right next door and in the far reaches of back and beyond, and hope that they look at them in a whole new light. I’ve had people say to me they don’t really believe dogs can do some of those things, like detect cancer and I think that’s great because it most probably means that they go on to discuss it with others or research it further themselves. 

Anyone who lives with dogs knows how incredible they are. But this book will increase your respect.

There are still some ‘old school’ ideas about how working dogs should be housed and taught but thankfully even working dog trainers are getting up to speed with new science and training. Certainly all of the dogs in this book have great handlers and trainers.

Working dogs save lives. They make our jobs easier. They do things that neither people nor machines can do. They’re happy about it, they’re keen to do it and need so little in return. Personally, I think the world is indebted to dogs.

Maria is not afraid to get close to her subjects.

For dogs worldwide, the best thing we could all do is accept that they are ‘just’ dogs, do our utmost to understand the nature of their species (which is far from human!) and do our best to fulfill their species needs as best we can. As for domestic pets in many urban situations I think we could reduce the needs of our species on them and allow them to be dogs. My dream would be that people read this book and look at their own dogs in a slightly new light and get out and do more with them.

Why do you think it is that we bond so tightly to dogs?

To be a bit boring for a minute, I think there is both a bit of science behind our bonding and as well as plain old emotions. To begin with, we share an evolutionary history with canines that we don’t have with any other species which means we’ve spent millennia being around each other. I certainly think dogs have done a way better job of it that we have but we’re catching up now…Dogs generate the production of oxytocin while lowering cortisol, which physiologically means they should illicit feelings of love from us. And those are just a couple of key “science based” reasons.

On a more emotional and personal level, they are one buddy that will happily come most places with us, will stand by in the ups and downs, will look at you and tilt their head but not open their mouths, that will run up and lick your face when you fall over to say sorry even though it’s not their fault, will howl at nothing while you yell at the TV during sports, will eagerly sit in the car waiting while only smelling the delicious aromas coming from the café where you stopped for a treat, will turn summersaults when you get home whether you’ve been out to check the mail or working sixteen hours. How people could not bond with a dog or worse abuse a dog is way beyond my comprehension.

Can you tell us a bit about your own dogs, who are featured in the book?

Brats, all of them!!

Jet is the youngest and has what could be classified as the best work drive. He is so much fun to “work” with and train. He was rescued from the middle of the road as a beaten up, starving young puppy who was terrified. I had hoped he could be a proper working dog, search and rescue but turns out he was terrified of large machinery, the dark, the rain, strangers…need I go on?

He did however come into his own for photo shoots, although I discovered recently only if he can see me and for TV commercial work. I was so proud of him when he did his first ad. Have I mentioned yet that I’m quite competitive when it comes to my dogs? A bulldog was required for an ad but it was proving difficult to train one to do what was required so behind the scenes I trained Jet up for 2 weeks to do the desired behavior of holding a phone in his mouth while looking at the camera for 7 seconds. Well, hello “Omen”, all that head spinning was nothing compared to what Jet did when I first suggested he put this offensive hard plastic thing in his mouth!! We finally got there, I generalized the behaviour in numerous situations scared he would fall apart on set with all those strange people, big lights, equipment etc. I never got a wink of sleep the night before, you know what they say, never work with…

Anyway, to my utmost bursting pride, two hours had been booked to get the shot and my boy had it down in 4 takes!!!!!! Awesome!!!!

After meeting certain dogs in the book I thought I’d try some truffle detection – well Jet’s truffle career started and ended as soon as I opened the pottle! Drool! Fight to get into it instead of accepting an ultimate rewards means fail. Possum tracking, he loves that. I wish I hadn’t started it because anywhere we go he likes to clear the area for possums now! Jet is a staffy, collie, boxer type cross mutt dog and the most handsome of the pack.

Jesse is a red golden retriever type, not sure what else but he has a ridge, and he is the optimist of the pack. I believe that is the only thing that kept him alive during the six years he was chained! I rescued him off the chain starving, furless, covered in fleas, no muscle mass thus he couldn’t walk much or even jump on the bed. Jesse loves food and is the dog for tricks and anything to do with water. Jesse kind of looks up to Jet and defers on all things except toys and bones and spends lots of time at my house. My mother failed fostering Jesse and kept him after bringing him back to life although my five-year-old niece claims Jesse as her dog, and like to play ‘training’ with him. Jesse the kind of dog who likes to be all over you.

Lulu is the kind of dog who likes to be all over you only if she feels like it and while she watches what everyone else is doing. She is an old (but very young looking) Rotti that we rescued from a druggie going into rehab. From what we can gather she had never had any vet care, had old open weeping wounds, untreated arthritis, was terribly underweight as she only got fed if and when there was something to throw her and had lived much of her life in a shed being milled for puppies - that were mostly sold to pay for drugs. Lulu is a very high status dog and likes to make sure everyone curtails to her. She likes male dogs more than females but has come a long way in accepting females over the last few months thanks to the help of staff at a place here called K9 Heaven. She was even reunited with one of her pups (now five years old) recently at K9 Heaven. Lulu would have been a great mother and now loves to sleep under the duvet with her face on a silk pillow! So would I!

Although I have lived with bigger dogs I lover smaller ones too and the tiniest dog in my life was a teacup terrier who I used to foster and at his best he only weighed around one kilo!

You mentioned that working dogs work hard and play hard - with handlers ensuring these dogs enjoy their work. Do you think as humans we can learn something from this?

Totally. Dogs can switch from one mode to the other in an instant without any baggage, and all work for them is fun. If it wasn’t, they wouldn’t do it, they would shut down. Dogs don’t ruminate on what they could or should have done, what will come tomorrow, if they will succeed or not, or what so and so things or said about them. They do the work when it’s there and they play when it’s there (and sometimes even when it’s not) and rest in between. To work well they need to be balanced, they need to eat well, stay mentally agile and physically fit. Don’t we all?

Thanks Maria for tearing yourself away from the hounds in your life. It is a beautiful book.