Unnatural Companions

If you love pets, reading Peter Christie’s new book Unnatural Companions: Rethinking Our Love of Pets in an Age of Wildlife Extinction might be like taking the pill in The Matrix. It is a highly compelling and even page-turning read, but it’s not a comforting one. In it, Christie argues that the pet industry is a significant threat to wildlife conservation. TNC's Cool Green Science

Exceptionally well written and impressively informative, Unnatural Companions: Rethinking Our Love of Pets in an Age of Wildlife Extinction is a timely and unreservedly recommended addition. Midwest Book Review

A remarkable examination of our interactions with the pets we welcome in our homes. Literary Review of Canada

Unnatural Companions highlights an array of issues that pets pose to the natural world…. Ultimately, it is hard to imagine any reader coming away from Unnatural Companions without some needed enlightenment on the complexity pets play in our world today. Journal of Wildlife Management

The author dramatically highlights the problems associated with our pets as they relate to the natural world .... This book will make you think. It may also lead you to become part of the solution. Wildlife Activist

Our cuddly cats and our slobbering retrievers give us much joy and affection. The challenge, and what Christie uncovers and articulates so well in Unnatural Companions, is that there are deep reasons as well as hidden costs to our pet addiction, including their ecological footprints—which most of us don't consider, but should. Pete Marra, Director of Georgetown Environmental Initiative, and author of "Cat Wars"

Unnatural Companions not only identifies some of the major problems we face by climate change endangering wildlife, but also suggests real ideas for improvement. Pet owners could behave in ways that impact less on wildlife, and the pet industry could protect the species that would benefit from its protection. We who love our pets must be champions for all animals and champion the fight to stop extinction. Alan M. Beck, Professor and Director of the Center for the Human-Animal Bond, Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine

We are devastated when a beloved cat or dog dies, depriving us of a cherished companion. But cats and dogs, along with rats, are the most devastating animal species to biodiversity, while exotic pets—pythons in Florida, for example—massively harm natural ecosystems. Christie paints the complex picture of just how much our love of animals has unexpected and unfortunate consequences. Stuart L. Pimm, Doris Duke Professor of Conservation, Nicolas School of the Environment, Duke University