Understanding what’s going on in the mind of your dog or cat (or bird, bunny, ferret) is one of the best ways to be a better pet owner and companion. Whether it’s learning what makes your dog happiest or why your cat finds the strangest spots for a nap, the more you know about your furry friends, the better the life you can offer them.

In these six TED talks, authors, scientists, and trainers offer a variety of insights you can use to enrich the life you share with your best pet buds.

The Secret Life of Dogs

At some point in time, every dog owner has come home to find that Rover did something we didn’t want him to do.  And what’s more, he seems to know it, eyes downcast, a sheepish look on his face. But is he actually feeling guilty? In her talk, animal behaviorist Julia Espinosa examines how dogs understand the world to help us better understand and respond to them, as well as broaden our own perspective as human beings.

Dog-Friendly Dog Training

In this classic TED talk, dog trainer Ian Dunbar takes listeners through three stages of dog-friendly puppy training. For training to be dog friendly, Dunbar says, it must take into account the needs and wants of the dog, not just impose the owner’s will on the dog. Dunbar’s style of training aims to get your dog to want to do what you by emphasizing reward over punishment and redefining what punishment means on the occasions it might be warranted.

Why Do Cats Act So Weird?

Ever wonder why cats are obsessed with empty boxes? Or why they feel the need to shred your toilet paper to pieces? In this less-than-five-minute animated video — part of the TED-Ed series of animations — veterinarian and cat expert Tony Buffington explains why some of cats’ most peculiar behaviors are a direct result of instincts honed over thousands of years as both a predator and prey animal. 

Grief and Love in the Animal Kingdom

Anthropologist Barbara J. King uses examples from around the world to push back against the notion that humans own the feelings of love and grief. All social animals, King says, can create strong bonds and feel loss when those bonds are severed, so much that some will actually die of grief. Though her talk focuses mostly on wild animals, her premise can be applied to our pets as well. By recognizing their capacity for deep feelings, we can make the world a kinder place for them and be a better pet owner.

Depressed Dogs, Cats with OCD – What Animal Madness Means for Us Humans

Just like humans, pets can suffer from mental illness, whether it’s a dog with a panic disorder that jumps out of a window when its owner leaves or a cat with OCD that licks its paws until they’re raw. Best-selling author Laurel Braitman learned this first-hand when she adopted a dog that turned out to have numerous mental health issues. Learning to recognize and treat these illnesses in our animal companions makes us better friends to them and increases our capacity for empathy — for all animals, including other humans.

In this short presentation, two-term U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins imagines the inner musings of two very different dogs reflecting on their owners.  You may never look at your dog the same way again.