Believe in Dog

How to Build Your Dog’s Confidence in Any Situation with Kelly Lee of Dogkind Training

Is your dog always 100% confident? While Kelly Lee of Dogkind Training specializes in working with fearful dogs, her confidence building tips will help you build your dog’s confidence in any situation.
Kelly shares her top Do’s and Don’ts for increasing your dog’s confidence – whether it’s a brand-new situation or an experience you may need to reintroduce to your dog in a different way.  
My biggest takeaway is how to break down these experiences into tiny steps.  Dogkind Training’s website has amazing free resources for learning how to do this in various ways – from stairs to nail clippers.
We also learn the most common mistakes Kelly sees pet parents make when they first adopt a fearful or traumatized dog.  Kelly’s even developed an online training program, the Confidence Builders Club, to provide support for pet parents of fearful dogs.
As much as we all love snuggling our dogs, do we *really* know if our dog wants to be pet right now? What does consent mean as a pet parent?  I first learned of Kelly’s Petting Consent Test video from previous guest Ann King (Episode 87).
Kelly shares her thoughts on what petting consent means and how to tell if our dogs are enjoying our company as much as we think they do.
Find links & show notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode91
 
Get your free checklist: Join Erin the Dog Mom's email list to receive the 12 Changes in Your Dog to Never Ignore checklist.
 
Teef: The easiest way to improve your dog’s dental health is with a spoonful of Teef powder in their water.  Save 20% on your Teef orders when you use the code: ADM.
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

Are We Giving Our Dogs Anxiety? with Alex Peacock

Have you ever wondered if we’re [accidentally] making our dogs’ anxiety worse? 
Alex Peacock – a dog trainer who specializes in working with anxious dogs – is going help us answer this question and understand why anxious people and anxious dogs seem to attract each other.
Alex works with pet parents of anxious dogs through a comprehensive program he designed.  He’ll share with us the three pillars of his program and give us powerful tips for any pet parent dealing with an anxious dog. 
Alex also advises us on how to choose the best dog trainer to help with your dog’s anxiety.
But what if we could stop dog anxiety before it even starts?  Alex shares the one BIG thing pet parents can do to avoid dog anxiety in the first place.
Alex also reveals that he was inspired to be a dog trainer from a young age after watching THAT celebrity dog training tv show.  (But don’t worry, Alex’s training methods are nothing like that!)
 
Find links & show notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode90
 
Get your free checklist: Join Erin the Dog Mom's email list to receive the 12 Changes in Your Dog to Never Ignore checklist.
 
Teef: The easiest way to improve your dog’s dental health is with a spoonful of Teef powder in their water.  Save 20% on your Teef orders when you use the code: ADM.
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

Learning Our Dogs’ Body Language with Lili Chin

Our dogs are always talking to us … but are we listening?   I believe that learning our dogs’ body language is one of THE most important aspects of being a pet parent.
So thank goodness for Lili Chin’s work translating Doggie Language for us humans. In fact, if you follow anything dog-related on social media, you’re probably familiar with Lili’s illustrations and artwork.
Lili never anticipated that adopting Boogie, the Boston Terrier, would impact her life and career in so many ways.  She also hadn’t anticipated Boogie nearly getting her evicted after biting her apartment building manager!
After a few disappointing experiences with other trainers, Lili was introduced to positive force-free training methods and learned to understand what Boogie was communicating all along.
Dog trainers and other professionals soon began commissioning Lili’s artwork to share important messages for pet parents.  From Dog Body Language to Your Dog’s Emotional Cup, Lili’s work is shared far & wide on social media impacting pet parents daily.
Get the Doggie Language book for your collection HERE. (Aff. link)
 
Find links and show notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode89
 
Teef: The easiest way to improve your dog’s dental health is with a spoonful of Teef powder in their water.  Save 20% on your Teef orders when you use the code: ADM.
 
Oncotect: With 1 in 3 dogs being diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, Oncotect is the first at-home screening test that Pet Parents can purchase to get peace of mind.  Get 15% off when you use the code: BELIEVEINDOG
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

Hope for Challenging Dogs with the Way of Life Method with Dr. Souha Ezzedeen

Have you – or someone you know – ever struggled with a challenging dog?  Where you’ve tried everything from trainers to vets to behaviorists, but life with the dog is still a daily struggle – whether fear, reactivity or feeling like the dog runs the house instead of the humans.
If any of this sounds familiar, then you won’t want to miss this episode.
After struggling for 5 years with her own dog, Maya, Souha met a series of life-changing teachers and mentors.  These experiences led her to develop a philosophy to heal the relationship and strengthen the bond we have with our troubled dogs.
Souha explains to us her 3-stage method that she calls the Way of Life Method. This system is like hitting the “reset” button on your relationship with your dog – at any age and no matter how long your dog has been part of the family.
Souha’s Way of Life is a methodical approach to adjusting the expectations we have for our dogs and involves re-establishing our life and our home in a structured way that sets our dogs up for success.  This is a completely force-free and non-aversive methodology.
In Souha’s book, The Way of Life Method, she provides daily schedules, exercises and bonding activities intended to create the connection with your dog that you’ve always wanted but didn’t think was possible.
 
Find links & show notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode88
 
Get your free checklist: Join Erin the Dog Mom's email list to receive the 12 Changes in Your Dog to Never Ignore checklist.
 
Teef: The easiest way to improve your dog’s dental health is with a spoonful of Teef powder in their water.  Save 20% on your Teef orders when you use the code: ADM.
 
Oncotect: With 1 in 3 dogs being diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, Oncotect is the first at-home screening test that Pet Parents can purchase to get peace of mind.  Get 15% off when you use the code: BELIEVEINDOG
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

5 SMART Steps for Introducing a New Dog to Your Home with Ann King

Dog Mom Confession: Sometimes it’s stressful adopting a new dog!    
Have you ever heard of the 3-3-3 Rule?  This advice gives Pet Parents an expectation of what to expect 3 Days, 3 Weeks and 3 Months after bringing a new dog home.
Today’s guest Ann King is the dog trainer who has popularized the 3-3-3 Rule for the shelter & rescue community.
Ann is also the creator of the Rescue SMART framework. SMART is an acronym for Ann’s five steps to successfully introducing and integrating a new dog to your home:
Structure
Management
Activity
Red Flags
Training
Ann will share what each of these components means and how to implement the SMART framework in your home. Ann will also tell us how she developed the framework – including all the mistakes she made along the way.  
We’ll also learn the most common mistakes that Pet Parents make when introducing a new dog to their home and the easy ways to fix or prevent these.
Share this episode with your shelter and rescue friends!  Rescue SMART is a totally free resource that includes videos and PDF downloads to help anyone introducing a new dog to their home.
 
Find links & show notes at: https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode87
 
Get your free checklist: Join Erin the Dog Mom's email list to receive the 12 Changes in Your Dog to Never Ignore checklist.
 
Teef: The easiest way to improve your dog’s dental health is with a spoonful of Teef powder in their water.  Save 20% on your Teef orders when you use the code: ADM.
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

How to Make Your Dog Happy: According to Science with Dr. Zazie Todd

Is your dog as happy as you think? Are there scientifically proven ways to make your dog happy?
Dr. Zazie Todd shines light on these questions in her book Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy.
This is a re-broadcast of Episode 9, which originally aired March 9, 2020.
Zazie Todd did not grow up with pets, while on her way to becoming an accomplished social psychologist. When she & her husband adopted 2 dogs within 6 weeks from their local humane society, Zazie used her psychology and research background to make sure she was doing the “right” things for her dogs.
As she began looking into the burgeoning field of canine science and what we are learning about dogs, Zazie shared her findings by starting her blog, Companion Animal Psychology.
If you’ve ever wondered if your dog is as happy as you hope, or if you are making the right decisions for your dog, Zazie shares all that she’s learned in her book Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy.
 
Find links & show notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode86
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

What Pet Parents Should Know About Trauma and PTSD in Dogs with Caroline Alupo

Did you know that the most common cause of trauma in dogs is at the hands of people – particularly harsh handling by Pet Professionals such as groomers, veterinarians and dog trainers?
 
Caroline Alupo is a Sweden-based ethologist and dog trainer who literally wrote the guide to diagnosing PTSD in dogs.  This topic is extra-personal for me as I believe my dog, Neno, meets the criteria for Complex PTSD from abuse and neglect he experienced before we adopted him.
 
Caroline shares the signs to look for in your dog’s behavior AND physical health when determining if PTSD is present. 
 
We’ll also learn the Do’s and Don’ts to creating a healing environment for dogs that have experienced traumatic events. And we’ll learn tips for protecting our dogs and how to prevent these situations from happening in the first place.
 
Learn more from Caroline on the Petli app! (Available for Apple and Android.)
 
Happy Holidays from the Believe in Dog Podcast!  Join Erin the Dog Mom’s email list at: https://www.erinthedogmom.com/
 
Find links & show notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode85
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

No Dog Left Behind. What really happens to military K9s when they retire?

If you’re playing a drinking game along with this episode, “shocked” is the word of the day.  I was utterly shocked learning about the institutionalized lack of accountability in caring for the retired military and contract working dogs that protect the U.S.
Many of us weren’t aware that this was a problem until the outcry of animal advocates after the U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 where contract working dogs were left behind.  In fact, it wasn’t until 2016 that a law was passed stating that the U.S. military had to bring their retired dogs stateside – but Bob tells us about the loopholes that muddy the waters on this. (Researching more about this topic led me to the shameful history of the U.S. military’s abandonment of 5,000+ dogs during the Vietnam War.)
Fortunately, there’s people like Bob Bryant and Mission K9 in the world who are doing something about it. From arranging transport from the far corners of the world to rehabbing the dogs’ physical and psychological wounds to finding appropriate adopters, Mission K9 keeps these commitments to each dog they rescue.
Watch this video from the 2017 Petco Helping Heroes Award to learn more about Mission K9.
In this season of giving, I hope you’ll consider supporting organizations like Mission K9 or animal welfare organizations in your community.
 
Find links, show notes and photos of rescued K9s at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode84
Join Erin the Dog Mom’s email list at:https://www.erinthedogmom.com/
 
 

Everything You Should Know About Your Dog’s Vision with Cathy Symons, CVT, CCRP

Can dogs see colors?  How does your dog’s breed affect their vision?  What changes in your dog’s behavior could indicate they are losing their vision?Cathy Symons, CVT, CCRP, answers all these questions and more for us. Cathy’s pug Booda, aka The Emperor, was a bold and adventurous dog who loved his agility class and lived life to the fullest.  Until the day he didn’t, and Cathy realized that Booda had gone blind due to a condition known as SARDS (Sudden Acute Retinal Degeneration Syndrome) that is known to affect small breed dogs. Pulling herself together after this diagnosis, Cathy threw herself into creating a safe environment for Booda as he regained his confidence and learned to thrive in his new world. Cathy wrote the book Blind Devotion to share with Pet Parents dealing with their dog’s vision loss everything that she wishes she had known. Cathy is also the author of the children’s book Watching Out for Digger, named after her second blind pug.In her day job, Cathy works as a Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner, and she shares with us what Pet Parents should know about this field and the most common physical conditions and healing modalities she works with.You can hear Cathy and her Canine Rehab partner Chris on the PetAbility Podcast where they share their decades of knowledge with us so we can keep our pets’ best quality of life for as long as possible.
 
Don’t miss the fun of Black Furday from November 25 – December 1.  Register here: https://www.blackfurday.info
 
Find Links & Show Notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode83
 
Teef: The easiest way to improve your dog’s dental health is with a spoonful of Teef powder in their water.  Save 20% on your Teef orders when you use the code: ADM
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.
 

How a Vet Tech Was Converted from Kibble to Feed Real with Kay Stewart

Have you ever had one of those experiences that seemed like it was the worst thing that ever happened to you but then it turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to you?
 
Kay Stewart was shocked when her position of 32 years was abruptly eliminated.  But this career loss helped Kay realize how out of alignment she had become with her childhood goal of helping animals.  When she stumbled onto a job listing posted by Ruby, Founder of Real Dog Box, Kay began to find her true passion.
 
Hired to create a course for the Feed Real Institute, Kay experienced a paradigm shift learning about what a true species-appropriate diet for dogs looked like.  And it wasn’t a bag of Kibble (used here in the generic sense to describe any dry dog food pellets). Kay & I discuss the history of Kibble and why it’s so bad for our dogs . . . even the “Good Kibble.”
 
We dive into the veterinary profession’s problems with fresh feeding – and why the Feed Real courses put these concerns to rest once and for all.  But what do veterinarians think about that?  Kay shares the reception of Feed Real’s RACE (continuing education)-approved course from both holistic and conventional veterinarians.
 
So what should our dogs be eating?  Kay shares the Feed Real approach to fresh feeding.  And some curious facts about chickens too.
 
Find Links & Show Notes at:https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode82
 
Dr. Ruth’s Holistic Shop: Save 10% on your orders from Dr. Ruth’s Holistic Shop featuring 400+ high quality supplements - including some of your favorite brands! - curated by Holistic Vet Dr. Ruth Roberts with the code: ERINTHEDOGMOM (aff. link)
 
Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.