Patricia Bean McConnell (born November 16, 1948) is an Adjunct Professor of
Zoology
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...
at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, and expert in animal behavior. She has written several books, including ''The Other End of the Leash,'' ''For the Love of a Dog,'' ''The Education of Will'' and produced a number of pet training DVDs. In both her academic and popular writing she has focused on issues of
interspecies communication. She also runs her own publishing company, McConnell Publishing.
From 1994 to 2008, McConnell was the co-host of the weekly one-hour radio show ''Calling All Pets'' produced by
Wisconsin Public Radio
Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) is a network of 34 public radio stations in the state of Wisconsin. WPR's network is divided into two distinct analog services, the ''Ideas Network'' and the '' NPR News & Music Network,'' as well as the ''All Classic ...
, during which she dispensed advice about behavior problems and information about animal behavior research.
She retired from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in May 2015.
Early life and education
McConnell was born in
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the on ...
. One of her sisters is the poet
Wendy Bean Barker.
McConnell is a trained ethologist and Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist (CAAB), and received her PhD in Zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1988. Her doctoral dissertation, "Acoustic structure and receiver response in mammalian signal systems", won the Warder Clyde Allee Competition.
On November 11, 2017, Dr. McConnell participated in the internal presentation series, Talks at Google,
Talks at Google
/ref> which has hosted leaders in the fields of music, science, literature, sports, entertainment and more. Her presentation for Google, "The Not So Secret Life of Dogs", translates the visual signals dogs frequently use to communicate that many humans often misread.
Selected bibliography
*
* (Published in 12 languages)
* (Audie Award
The Audie Awards (, rhymes with "gaudy"; abbreviated from ''audiobook''), or simply the Audies, are awards for achievement in spoken word, particularly audiobook narration and audiodrama performance, published in the United States of America. They ...
, as the Best Audio Book of 2007)
*
References
External links
Author's website
''Calling All Pets'' website
The Not So Secret Lives of Dogs via Talks at Google
{{DEFAULTSORT:McConnell, Patricia
American columnists
American non-fiction writers
Ethologists
Living people
University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni
American women columnists
1948 births
American women non-fiction writers
21st-century American women