Summary: In the tradition of Temple Grandin, Oliver Sacks, and Neil Shubin, cardiologist and psychiatrist Natterson-Horowitz and science writer Bowers look at the remarkable correspondences between the way human beings and animals live, die, get sick, and heal in their natural settings.
Booklist Reviews
*Starred Review* Our ancestors knew that animals suffer the same diseases as humans, but as modern medicine developed, a great schism grew between physicians and veterinarians. Cardiologist and psychiatrist Natterson-Horowitz now calls for a new species-spanning approach to medicine and health. She and science writer Bowers coined the term zoobiquity for this emerging field, and they present their case with winning enthusiasm and expertise. Natterson-Horowitz, astute and funny, recounts her mind-expanding zoobiquitous expeditions involving a remarkable array of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, and insects and explicates the genetic and evolutionary roots of her revelatory discoveries. Not only do animals faint but fainting can be essential to survival, leading Natterson-Horowitz to modify a classic phrase to Fight, flight, or faint. Even more arresting are her revelations about animals, intoxication, and addiction (including a Texan cocker spaniel who loved to lick cane toads for the hallucinogenic toxin in their skin). Her investigation into animal sex redefines natural acts, and her coverage of animal adolescence and eating disorders is fascinating and instructive. Clearly, we have much to learn from animals and from this profoundly illuminating new fusion of veterinary, human, and evolutionary medicine. Zoobiquity is as clarion and perception-altering as works by Oliver Sacks, Michael Pollan, and E. O. Wilson. Copyright 2012 Booklist Reviews.
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