thesis

According to my program timeline, all student research and write an original thesis from September to April in the third and final year of the program. For as long as I've been a student at Guelph, my plan has been to write about some aspect of ecological restoration. It's a topic I am interested in, and something with employment potential. However, recently that has changed.

Before Christmas I had a meeting with my professor Nate, and his wife Tina. While Nate is a prof in Landscape Architecture, Tina is a prof in the Animal Science department and specializes in animal behavior and welfare. They are looking to have research done to look at the need for and design of outdoor components of humane societies.

Starting now (so I can hopefully meet some of the deadlines to get research grants), I will be researching the design of dog parks, training areas and walking areas for dogs at humane societies. Part of this will look at the need or use of such areas by the dogs, and another aspect will be their use by humane society employees and volunteers.

It is an interesting research project, but never something I had ever considered doing before! This will be the first time I have combined my love of dogs with academics. Hopefully I'll be posting a bit more about the project as it progresses.