Publications & Interviews
Find in this section publications from our founder, interviews with those making a difference, and interesting media content. Have an opinion piece that you care to share? Use our contact page with your inquiry.
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Greatest Canines explores the domestication of man's best friend and the incredible bond they have come to share over the course of thousands of years. It further relates those remarkable beings and their extraordinary achievements, demonstrating their unique being and how they have come to form their alliance with humankind.
November 2024 Update: Greatest Canines is set for release in 2025.
There has been a lot of interest in Greatest Canines, while it is fair to say that the research has taken more time than the actual writing.
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Have you ever wondered how dogs became domesticated? Excerpt is taken from Greatest Canines.
For most geneticists, the commensal pathway is described as the beginning of domestication by way of social selection as opposed to artificial selection and or selective breeding where many times select traits are sought via human interference. Further evidence supporting this biological interaction is provided by DNA signatures of Pleistocene wolf populations and skeletal material collected from deposits of eastern Beringia. Specimens examined suggest morphologically distinct evidence of skull shapes and tooth wear demonstrating a wolf ecomorph adaptation to a local environment that had suffered extinction during the Late Pleistocene. Conversely, wolf ecotypes who may have formed a migratory relationship with those hunter-gatherers and survived via social selection, thus altering their genetic traits, further allowing them to habituate with humans. Sometimes referred to as “domestication syndrome,” those early “proto-dogs” then reinforced their partnership with humans by protecting campsites against threatening predators and performing other menial tasks in their evolutionary process. Proto-Dogs are often referred to as those first Paleolithic pioneer dogs with higher social inclinations toward humans. According to Robert Quinlan, professor of anthropology at Washington State University, “Wolves on their way to becoming dogs were a great alarm system.” Eventually, through offspring, those less-aggressive and more-tolerant wolves with lowered flight response served alongside humans as hunters. Musings: Front Lines
Did Egyptians only love their cats during antiquity? Excerpt is taken from Greatest Canines.
One prominent example suggests that in parts of ancient Egypt, dogs were considered sacred animals, the Egyptians believing that dogs possessed certain protective and magical qualities. When a person of high status or pedigree passed away, it was not uncommon for their dogs to be buried alongside them due to their symbolic significance in Egyptian culture. Dogs were recognized for their protective nature, and they were valued as guardians of homes, temples, and royal estates. Further, they were often depicted in wall paintings and sculptures as loyal and alert sentinels.
In the ancient Red Sea seaport town of Berenice Troglodytica, also referred to as Berenike or Berenice, located in southern Egypt, researchers were fascinated by their find on a project excavation that began in 2011. A study published by Cambridge University Press in 2016 established a vast cemetery for house pets within the community during the period between 75-150 A.D. The discovery unveiled nearly 100 complete animal skeletons in the area west of the Serapis Temple on the outskirts of the Early Roman port of Berenice. Mostly cats and dogs, the dig also unearthed other animals including several monkeys and an ostrich. The presence of such a large number of complete skeletons suggests that these animals were intentionally buried with care and respect.
Musings: Front Lines
NEVER LEFT BEHIND
A Plea Questioning
How We Choose to Treat Animals
Available in Hard Cover & Paperback
Book Editor: Jessica A. Vaillancourt
Available at most major retailers
Hudson booksellers select airport locations
NEVER LEFT BEHIND Now in Select Airports locations
JANUARY MAGAZINE
January Magazine lists Never Left Behind
About The Author
Paul Barthel, A Chef entrepreneur and restaurant owner who worked behind the scenes in kitchens for over thirty years. An Animal rights advocate who pushed to establish an Illinois law recognizing pets in domestic cases.
Barthel is the founder of the 501 (c)(3) Animal Humane Advocacy, and author who pens about the fair and ethical treatment of animals. Barthel is also a contributing freelancer. Musings: Front Lines
Events & AHA Moments
Sample Passages from Never Left Behind
In the spring, not on any trail but hidden hundreds of yards away from view, few people knew about the rolling hills of bluebells. Catching my breath the first time I happened upon them. Acres upon acres of undisturbed bluish-purple English bluebells masterfully hidden from view, not to be disturbed; their brief, elusive moment when in full bloom. Pepper, always leading and shorter than the perennials, would be lost had it not been for the shaking flower bulbs consuming his body, as we carefully navigated through the masterpiece. Similarly both amusing, and breathtaking.
"I was oblivious to what had happened, nor had I noticed the bullet having entered his body, penetrating his back and into his spine. His auburn hair masking the blood around the entry. I recall mom coming out of the house saying he had been shot, probably with a farmer’s bullet from a .22 long rifle. Any larger caliber certainly would have killed him."
We came upon dried streams, no larger than small puddles, with dozens of fish squirming and fighting to survive. As if he understood, Pepper, crouched over and scratching at the dirt, watched intently as I scooped as many as possible into an old milk jug and brought them to a larger stream for survival. Regularly, we would stumble across carcasses of various animals that had succumbed to an untimely death. Be it age, the elements, or injury. On other occasions we would witness herds of mule deer grazing off the forest bed, their bodies shrouded in a haze of fog from over the lush green forest bed; a photogenic scene. On sunny days, penetrating the highest of trees, streams of brilliant rainbow light beams filled with pigments and particles of dust danced in the brilliance from 100 feet up. Trees undoubtedly a century old, as round and broad as a car at their trunks’ base, with curvatures and deep wood-crevices inches deep. I would find myself mesmerized by these mundane observations, had I not understood the verity of where my life was at the time.
Never Left Behind Reviews
"I cheated and had to go to the end of the book to find out what happened. Excellent Read!" ~ Beta Read ~
"Very similar to Anthony Bourdain, Kitchen Confidential. Great kitchen anecdotes, oh, and the dog!" "Amazing." ~ Good Reads ~
"It is more than one of those "dog books" - it is a saga of love, longing, regret and redemption that leads you on a journey like no other. If you get to the end of the story with dry eyes, then your tear ducts need an overhaul."
~ Dennis Rimmer Author and Podcast Host ~
"Another dog book? I shudder. Was pleasantly surprised with a good read, a "true" story about a man losing his dog." ~ Writers World ~
Author, Paul Barthel had this to say:
"I had to put the book away on several occasions, many times for months on end. In addition to many unfortunate deaths in the family causing delay, the writing process, while rather easy, became arduous revisiting many of those moments putting pen to paper so to speak. I only wish Pepper could read"
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