In a new book, dog trainer Kevin Behan proposes a new model for understanding canine behavior — that dogs respond to their owner’s feelings rather than their thoughts or commands.
Behan will discuss his book, “Your Dog Is Your Mirror,” on Monday, July 25, at the Westport Public Library. The discussion is slated for 7:30 p.m. in the library’s McManus Room.
The program is free and open to the public. Copies of the book will be available for purchase and signing, the library said, and a portion of sales benefits the library.
Behan details his theory, based on long experience with dogs, that canine behavior and emotion are driven by how the canines read their masters. As a result, he concludes, dogs can actually put people back in touch with their own emotions.
Behan is a veteran police-dog trainer, author of “Natural Dog Training,” with insights into the rehabilitation of aggressive and problem dogs, the library said. At age 10, he trained his first dog .
The author originally studied the theory under his father, John Behan, who pioneered the use of trained dogs outside the military and was one of the first in America to establish dog training as a career.
For more information, check the library’s website, www.westportlibrary.org, or call 203-291-4800.
