How To Train Your Dog With Love + Science - Dog Training with Annie Grossman + Anamarie Johnson PhD (Formerly known as School For The Dogs Podcast)

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**How To Train Your Dog With Love + Science – Dog Training with Annie Grossman + Anamarie Johnson PhD (Formerly known as School For The Dogs Podcast)**

Annie Grossman, founder of School For The Dogs and author of the book How To Train Your Dog With Love & Science, is obsessed with positive reinforcement dog training and thinks you should be, too. Anamarie Johnson, PhD, who consults with shelters and loves to nerd out on dog-related studies. They want dog owners to be more literate in the basics of behavioral science! Tune in to learn how to use science-based methods to train dogs (and people) without pain, force, or coercion.

Get the book at anniegrossman.com/book
(Formerly known as School For The Dogs Podcast)

dogtraining.substack.com

Latest Episodes:

5 of our "go to" treats at SFTD (in ASMR + French) Nov 23, 2020

Show notes

This bonus episode is a recording of an Instagram Live Annie did, which can be seen here.

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CH8i617n2mi/

The treats discussed here are main ones trainers use at School For The Dogs. They are:

Happy Howies food rolls

Carnivore Crunch by Stella + Chewy's

Crumps Freeze Dried Beef

Lamb Lung

Tricky Trainers

You can find them all at StoreForTheDogs.com

https://storeforthedogs.com/collections/go-to-treats

---
Partial Transcript:

Annie:

Hey, this is a recording of an Instagram live I just did about five of our go-to brands of dog treats at School for the Dogs. The first minute or two didn’t record. But the first treat I am talking about is Lamb Lung. We have our house brand of lamb lung. And a listener wrote in and suggested that I would have a good voice for a ASMR. So I attempted to talk about lamb lung in my best whispery, breathy voice.

[whispering:]

I never thought I would think so much about the lungs of lamb. It’s really a disgusting thing. When you think too much about the lamb lungs that are enjoyed by our dogs, but at least one of these animals is having a good life. I don’t know about the poor lambs. It makes me quite sad. Which it actually is one of the reasons why we started carrying a lot of vegan treats at School for the Dogs, because I think it’s actually a good idea to feed your dog vegan food, because it means fewer dead lambs, but that said the dogs do like the lamb lung.

[whispering:]

So this is the lamb lung that we carry. It’s our house brand. [crinkling plastic sound] Oh, it’s a crinkly noise to go with the whisper noise. So many good noises. So I like it cause it breaks up into really, really small bits. Really small, and they’re not greasy. And the dogs love them.

[whispering:]

So when I'm using a clicker, I will often have the treats and the clicker all together in one hand. And I will either have the lamb lung in small pieces, or I'll have one big piece, and then click, give a treat. You can like break off a treat while you like click and then just break off a little bit. So lamb lung is a real go-to at .

[speaking] Oh my God, I don't think I can keep doing it. Doing the whisper is going to hurt my voice too much. [laughs]

God, those whispering people on the internet have a lot of stamina.

Okay. The second treat today is tricky trainers. We carry these in a bunch of different flavors kind of butter, cheddar cheese. This one is liver. I think liver is probably our most popular, and these are like the err dog treat. I think they're great.

There's a couple of dog treats that come in, kind of brands that have treats in this kind of shape and size is like pencil eraser type treat size. It's great. Cause you can break one of these up into like one, two, three, four, right? I think I've got six pieces here. They're super low calorie. They’re three, three calories per treat. And like I said, one of these treats is really basically like 6 treats. So that's half a calorie per treat.

They're made by Cloud Star, which is a small company in Missouri. You've probably seen their stickers. They have the slogan Wag more bark less. They make stickers that people put on their cars and whatever. Anyway, I'm a big fan of wheat and corn free Tricky Trainers. And look how cute is their little logo. It's a dog riding a bicycle. I love it.

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

School For The Dogs' Sasha Prasad on helping animals live happier lives Nov 20, 2020

Show notes

Sasha Prasad moved to New York City with her three rescue dogs last year in order to get a masters degree in Animal Behavior and Conservation from Hunter. She began working at School For The Dogs right away, and has been with us ever since, doing everything from walking to client relations to social media. Her passion is helping all animals live happier lives; dogs are just one of the creatures she wants to work with. She and Annie discuss how she built her own dog walking company, Freedom Tails, in Boston, her shelter-based education in dog behavior, and her current work: researching how to make koi fish live happier, more enriched lives.

Learn more about Sasha at http://SashaPrasad.com
Articles by Dr. Becca Franks: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=zBb257kAAAAJ&hl=en

---
Partial Transcript:

[Intro and music]

Annie:

So I think I’ve said this before and I don’t want to sound self-congratulatory, but I have to say Kate and I have really great people working for us at School for the Dogs. I am. So just thrilled, thrilled to have a team of people who have these special talents and interests. I’m thrilled to have these people working towards the same goal altogether under the School for the Dogs umbrella. The goal of helping dogs and people live happier lives together.

And I feel especially I don’t know, sort of sappy about it. I think just because this has been such a difficult year for pretty much everyone in the world. And one thing, one blessing, one silver lining has been that I feel like it’s brought our staff closer together and just made me all the more grateful.

So today I am sharing with you a conversation I had with Sasha Prasad. Sasha has been with School for the Dogs for over a year now. But you maybe haven’t met her at the studio because especially lately, she does a lot of behind the scenes stuff. She does a lot of our Instagramming, the wonderful roundups we do on the weekend. And she also is the person who answers a lot of emails that come into our info box.

But Sasha is an animal trainer in her own right. Currently working with fish, actually. So I’m excited to share this conversation she and I had.

Annie:

Hi.

Sasha:

Hello. The lighting where you are as beautiful. You are glowing.

Annie:

I’m right in the window.

Sasha:

Yeah, amazing.

Annie:

So I am psyched to get to talk to Sasha Prasad and to see your little dog there.

Sasha:

Yeah. Chloe is here, Lilo’s down here. Jackson will probably make himself heard at some point. So the gang’s all here.

Annie:

You’re a three dog, three dog household in New York City.

Sasha:

Yeah. Not on purpose, but here we are. So.

Annie:

Aw. And I know one of them, one of them has been in hospice care — at home hospice care. Is that right?

Sasha:

Yeah. It’s been a pretty wild ride. So Lilo, she’s 17. We brought her to the emergency vet sometime in late August and they told us she was in kidney failure and that she had a couple of days to a couple of weeks left. But here we are going on a month. Behaviorally, she’s a little slower and I have to do a lot more coaxing to get her to eat, but she’s eating full meals. She’s still doing the things that she likes to do. She’s going for walks. And so, I don’t know. We’re really grateful and we’re taking it one day at a time.

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

Dog Training Q and A! 11/19/2020: Handmade gifts, dealing with a dog who bites the leash & dog training tips for a toddler mom Nov 19, 2020

Show notes

Join Annie Grossman for a live Q and A most Thursdays.

Have a question? Visit AnnieGrossman.com/ask or upload a recording at anchor.fm/dogs.

In this episode: Annie talks about some of the awesome handmade products for sale at StoreForTheDogs.com and answers questions about a young dog who "submissive pees" and bites the leash on walks. She also talks about a friend who was receptive to Annie's dog training advice when it came to her kid throwing tantrums when it was time to get dressed.

Find all the items mentioned in this episode at StoreForTheDogs.com
http://storeforthedogs.com/collections/handmade

---
Partial Transcript:

Annie:

So today I thought I would show you guys some of the really cool handmade things that we sell at School for the Dogs as as a lot of you know we really try and have items that are, first of all, things that we really like that we recommend. We have like a pretty limited amount of space. So we want to fill it with things that we truly think are great.

We also try and support other small businesses, particularly small local businesses. And we have quite a few people who make really lovely goods by hand, and I wanted to show you just a couple of them. These are all available at storeforthedogs.com and also in our East Village shop.

This is a toy that just came in. It’s pretty hilarious. I think it’s like a tomato with a baby tomato, I guess. I don’t know what’s going on here. It’s made by the company at the furry folks, we carry their whole line on our online store. But what’s cool about this is, you pull out the tiny, tiny baby tomato and this, I don’t know, yellow pulp stuff comes out, and you can hide treats in the pulpy part, in this like yellow fabric thing with holes in it.

I’m trying to figure out how I would describe this to someone who can’t see it. It’s kind of like a big, weird stocking that comes out of this tomato. That’s like crackling. [crinkling sound] And we all know dogs like things that crackle. It has this really sturdy fabric on the outside. So anyway, you put dry food, treats, kibble, whatever in the yellow pull-out part and then stuff it in here. If you have the kind of dog who really loves to pull things apart, really nice toy that comes in this very cute little like tomato style box, like you would see at green market.

Also by DogNMat, is this sushi snuffle toy. I’m a big fan of this because I think it’s just so cute. it comes like this rolled up like a sushi, totally made of fleece, machine washable. You unroll it and it has like avocado in it. What is this? The egg stuff? I never liked that stuff in my sushi rolls. Salmon. And, again, you just hide treats in the little bits here, roll it up, has a little Velcro closure, and you have a sushi snuffle roll!

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

The Charles Mingus' CAT-alog for Toilet Training Your Cat (1972) Nov 18, 2020

Show notes

When he wasn't revolutionizing the world of mid-20th century jazz music, Charles Mingus was home training his cat, Nightlife. Specifically, he was really into training Nightlife to go on the toilet. Indeed, he was something of an evangelist on the subject. Here, Annie reads from "The Charles Mingus CAT-alog for Toilet Training Your Cat," his 1972 brochure that outlines a step-by-step process.

You can find the full text here
https://www.charlesmingus.com/mingus/cat-traning-program?utm_content=buffer97a50

Train your own cat with a modern invention: The Litter Kwitter
https://litterkwitter.com/

Music: Full of Love from Album Stay Tonight, by Till Paradiso (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/till-paradiso/stay-tonight/full-of-love-tp-031mp3

---

Partial Transcript:

Annie:

There are two things I love that I rarely talk about on this podcast. One is cats. The other is jazz music. Well, that's all going to change today. A few weeks ago in a Q and A I did, I mentioned this little known fact in the history of jazz, which is that jazz titan Charles Mingus was very interested in cat training.

Specifically, he was interested in training cats to pee and poop on toilets, and he actually wrote a guide to how to do that. So today I thought I would just share with you a reading of this guide paired with some jazz music. Here is Charles Mingus is the Charles Mingus CAT-atalog for toilet training your cat.

First, you must train your cat to use a homemade cardboard litter box if you have not already done so. If your box does not have a one-piece bottom, add a cardboard that fits inside so you have a false bottom that is smooth and strong. This way the box will not become soggy and fall out at the bottom. The grocery store will have extra flat cardboards, which you can cut down to fit exactly inside your box.

Be sure to use torn up newspaper, not kitty litter. Stop using kitty litter. When the time comes, you cannot put sand in the toilet.

Once your cat is trained to use a cardboard box, start moving the box around the room towards the bathroom. If the box is in a corner, move it a few feet from the corner, but not very noticeably. If you move it too far, he may go to the bathroom in the original. Do it gradually.

You've got to get him thinking, then he will gradually follow the box as you move it to the bathroom. If you already have it there, move it out of the bathroom, around, and then back. He has to learn to follow it. If it is too close to the toilet to begin with, he will not follow it up onto the toilet seat. A cat will look for his box. He smells it.

Now as you move the box, also start cutting the brim of the box down, so the sides get lower. Do this gradually. Finally you reach the bathroom, and eventually the toilet itself.

Then one day, prepare to put the box on top of the toilet.

At each corner of the box, cut a little slash you can run string around the box through these slashes, and tie the box down to the toilet so it will fall off. Your cat will see it there and jump up to the box, which is now sitting on top of the toilet. Get the sides cut down to only an inch or so.

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

The Bully Test: How to tell if your dog (or kid or country) is having fun PLUS: FOMO crate training Nov 13, 2020

Show notes

If two dogs are playing, and you're unsure if your dog is into it, there is a simple "test" you can perform. The Bully Test, which was coined by Dr. Ian Dunbar, is a great way to tell how your dog feels about his or her playmate. Annie looks at how she herself behaved when faced with childhood mean girls, and how voters reacted when bullied by the Bully-In-Chief. Also: Is "bully" an inherent quality in a dog? Or a kid? Is there a term that we could come up with that doesn't vilify one of two puppies when performing this "test?" And: Why you shouldn't expect dogs to just "working it out" during play. Lastly: Annie explains how to use FOMO to train dogs to love going in crates.

Master Class: http://anniegrossman.com/masterclass Community App Early Invite Signup: http://schoolforthedogs.com/podcastcommunity

---

Partial Transcript:

[Intro and music]

Annie:

Here is a pretty simple thing that any dog owner can do if their dog is playing with another dog and they're not sure if both the dogs are enjoying themselves. What you do is you gently restrain whichever dog is the more outgoing, the more aggressive one. I think a lot of the time, in play with dogs, just like with kids, one person is the chaser. Hold back, restrain in whatever gentle way you can, the more aggressive of the two dogs and see what the other dog does.

If the dog comes right back and goes up to the dog, who's being restrained and is like, come on, I thought we were doing this. Then that dog probably was into it. Right? That dog was probably feeling good about that place session. If the dog goes to the other side of the room that tells you that that dog was most likely happy that he has the chance to take a break and that perhaps he was feeling bullied.

This is called the bully test. I believe it was named, if maybe not also developed, by a Dr. Ian Dunbar, a trainer of great renown and also a veterinarian. It's such a simple thing. It makes so much sense. And if it can help you make sure that two dogs aren't enjoying playing with each other, there's really no downside. And by the way, the dog who is the possible bully -- if the dog who wasn't being restrained does take the chance to go to the other side of the room -- that does not mean that one dog is a bad dog. It just means that in that situation, maybe the intensity was too much.

Maybe there’s a size difference between the two dogs that is making one of them uncomfortable. Maybe it has nothing — one dog might just be extra fearful for any reason, or no reason. Could be mix-matched play styles. So this isn’t, you know, see which dog is the good dog and which is the bad dog. It’s just a way to diagnose the healthiness and the happiness of play that is happening.

So I wanted to mention this because I think it’s a really easy tool to have in your dog training dog-owning toolbox to use with dogs who are off-leash. And I think off-leash play is very important for most dogs, much better than on leash play. But I also think one-on-one play is often the best kind of play. However, this technique could be used in a dog park situation too, or with more dogs.

Another reason why I was thinking about the bully test recently and wanted to mention it was because I was going through some stuff in my mom’s basement recently. And I found a letter. I wrote it to my mom from summer camp when I was nine. And it was about this girl who I was in grade school with at that time.

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

Dog Training Q and A! 11/05/2020: Cody doesn't want to go out with walker, Peaches won't pee on the patio & more Nov 12, 2020

Show notes

Join Annie Grossman for a live Q and A most Thursdays.

Have a question? Visit AnnieGrossman.com/ask or upload a recording at anchor.fm/dogs.

In this episode: A young labrador no longer wants to go to Fiesta Island with his walker. Is he being lazy? Peaches the Chihuahua doesn't understand why her human wants her to pee on the patio. Is it wise to get a second dog if a finicky dog seems more interesting in eating meals when other dogs are around?

---
Partial Transcript:

Annie:

Hey everyone. This is a bonus Q and A Episode. I try and answer questions live every Thursday. You can sign up to come to my free live Q and A at schoolforthedogs.com/QandA and you will see the next one I’m doing. I then am trying to take recordings of those Q and A’s and post them here to the podcast feed. If you have a question, you can email me directly Annie@schoolforthedogs.com. You can also go to anchor.fm/dogs and record your question there. Thanks for being here.

This is Annie Grossman here. I am doing a Live. We had some technical difficulties, but you you can join now at schoolforthedogs.com/Qanda. Or you can just hang out here. I have some great questions here. We have Max and Melissa in the room with us right now. Max has a two year old standard poodle named Lolo. I’m not sure I met Lolo, but how is Lolo doing?

Anyway thanks for sticking with me. There were some technical difficulties just now. But I have some great questions. I am not sure if those who ask these questions are in the room, but if you are, do say hello. All right.

Our first question is from Michelle Adams who has a Labrador, 70 pounds, lives in San Diego. And Michelle writes me this:

Hooper has been going to Fiesta Island, a large off-leash park where he can chase a ball and play with other dogs, for about three months now. He has been going with a dog walker who also has other dogs. He absolutely loves Fiesta Island this week.

This week he has decided he does not want to leave the house when they show up to take him. He is home by himself and simply needs to go out the doggy door. Rather, he sits on the sofa and looks at them through the window. If they come into the house, he will go with them. He then has a blast while he is at the park, pictures to verify (I guess she’s saying they take pictures to verify this).

The first time he refused to go, they asked him if he wanted a treat and he went right out the dog door. The second time he refused to go, they again tried asking him if he wanted a treat and he still refused to go. They had to go into my home to take him. I am not certain if he is just being lazy, it’s not really his style. Or if I should listen to him and realize that he doesn’t want to go?

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

School For The Dogs' trainer Erin Whelan on how dog training changed her life Nov 06, 2020

Show notes

Erin Whelan was a professional French Horn Player. Then she adopted a beagle mix named Oliver and enrolled him in Puppy Kindergarten at School For The Dogs. Then she did the School For The Dogs Professional Program. Now, she is a trainer and manager at School For The Dogs. Annie, who was once her dog trainer and is now her boss, is a big Erin Whelan fan. Annie and Erin discuss switching careers, Cesar Millan's best book, what it means to teach dogs virtually, human body language, and more.

Get invited to our new community app at http://schoolforthedogs.com/podcastcommunity

The Like Switch

https://amzn.to/2I5LVkl

Cesar's Rules

https://amzn.to/3p4hBrn

---
Partial Transcript:

Annie:

If you work at School for the Dogs, you might, at some point be approached by our boss, with your boss, asking if you would be willing to be interviewed for the School for the Dogs podcast. In this scenario, I am the boss and the person I’m interviewing today is Erin Whelan. Erin started out with us as a client and ended up doing our professional program and is now a trainer and a manager with us. She is wonderful.

I asked some of her coworkers to find adjectives to describe Erin. They said gregarious, honest, humble, fearless, compassionate, down to earth. Witty, Innovative, zealous. Funny, loyal, team player, empathetic, warm, goofy, creative.

I hope you’ll enjoy this conversation with Erin. You can book a session with Erin, either at our studio or virtually at schoolforthedogs.com/Erin.

[Intro and music]

Annie:

Hello. I am here with Erin Whelan. Did I say it right?

Erin:

You did. That’s very good.

Annie:

I know the H has to be sounded there.

Erin:

It doesn’t have to, but as long as it’s not wheelin, I’m happy.

Annie:

Whelan. And I am super psyched to be talking to you. I’ve known you for quite a while now, actually.

Erin:

Yeah it’s been over six years.

Annie:

So I, gosh, there’s so much to talk about, but why don’t you just kind of tell the story of how you ended up at School for the Dogs? And we can go from there. And actually, why don’t you start off by just explaining what you’re doing now at School for the Dogs, because you’ve been on both sides, the client and staff side, and you’ve worn a lot of hats on the staff side too, so.

Erin:

Well, yeah, so right now at the moment, I am both an associate trainer and interim day school manager at School for the Dogs. So I work at day school, puppy day school. I do private sessions for puppies and basic manners, adolescents, and day training. I also teach prep school and puppy kindergarten.

Annie:

Oh my goodness. Describe what day school is for people who aren’t familiar.

Erin:

So for day school and puppy day school, those are drop-off training programs. We have day schools for adult and adolescent dogs, and puppy day school. It’s in the name guys, it’s for puppies. And during both of those programs, the dogs go through some relaxation. They have the opportunity to play with other dogs...

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

Dog Training Q and A! 10/29/2020: Helping a puppy pee when its pouring and how to occupy your dog inside Nov 02, 2020

Show notes

Join Annie Grossman for a live Q and A most Thursdays.

Have a question? Visit AnnieGrossman.com/ask or upload a recording at anchor.fm/dogs.

In this episode, Annie answers questions about how to deal with a young puppy who is scared to relieve himself outside when it is pouring, suggests how to keep dogs occupied inside, and discusses why dogs lift their legs when they pee, and more.

---
Partial Transcript:

Annie:

So I am going to be answering some questions. I have at least one that’s on my agenda. Hi Lily. Hi Yolanta. But I think I’m probably gonna keep this pretty short because I’m not feeling great, but I took an aspirin, and I had a drink. [Laughs] And then I have another drink here that I’m sipping. So this isn’t a drinking problem, I have, it’s a drinking solution.

Lily, where are you joining from? Yolanta as we know is in the borough of Staten Island. Yolanta, I’m curious, if you–last week we talked about you paying your neighbor to help you. I’m curious how that worked out. And I’m curious if you saw the movie The King of Staten Island. Cause I thought it was kind of like a sweet ode to Staten Island, but then I wondered how actual Staten Island people felt.

Oh, Lily is in Kips Bay. Well then we are neighbors. Okay, Lily, since you’re here and you’ve already asked me a question, let’s start with you. So Lily asked:

My puppy is six months and hasn’t learned how to pee with his legs standing up. Will he ever learn?

Great question. I don’t know. Some dogs are always going to prefer peeing in a squat. My dog, sometimes squats, sometimes lifts his leg. Some female dogs prefer lifting their leg to squatting. I think there will probably be a day where all of a sudden out of nowhere he’ll lift his leg and you’ll feel very proud, but I wouldn’t worry about it.

I think that I think that one of the reasons, I don’t think I’m making this up. I think I’ve read about this, but I think one of the reasons we think dogs lift their leg is so that they appear bigger. Isn’t that interesting. Like, you know, one reason probably why little dogs have big ferocious barks is because they want dogs that are far away to think they’re bigger than they are. And one way to make dogs who might never meet you think that you’re more ferocious and should be treated with respect is if they smell you, and they smell your pee way up there.

I should also apologize. My husband is also on a call right now for work. He is helping wealthy kids get into expensive colleges in the other room. So if you hear that in the background, apologies.

So yeah, I wouldn’t worry if he isn’t lifting his leg, but I’m curious if maybe he will. I don’t remember when my dog started lifting his leg, but six, seven, eight months. It sounds like it might be happening.

And then we have a question here that came in from Mary Jane who is in Concepcion, Chile. She has a dog named Kenny, a mixed breed about 30 pounds. And Mary Jane says:

I am having trouble teaching my dog to wear a harness and collar. I put a plate with bits of chicken to lure her as soon as she puts her head through it and the harness rests on her neck, but then she backs off. She is very touch sensitive. We’ve been four months together, and just a month ago she allowed me to pet and touch her across her body.

Full transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

Virtual private training session: Yoshi, an adolescent Shepherd who jumps on people on the street Oct 31, 2020

Show notes

Sit in on an initial virtual private dog training session with Annie Grossman and NYC resident Kari. Kari lives near School For The Dogs with an 8-month old Shepherd mix named Yoshi. Yoshi likes to jump on people when they're walking down the street, and he is quick to rollover on his back when people greet him. Annie gives Kari tips on keeping his attention while walking outside, suggests how to set up practice sessions with people approaching him, and gives Kari some fun and easy exercises she can work on with Yoshi in their home.

Book a private session: schoolforthedogs.com/services - Get a free thirty minute private session when you purchase our Good Dog Training Course: schoolforthedogs.com/courses - Liquid Treat Dispenser: SchoolForTheDogs.com/ltd

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Partial Transcript:

[Music]

Annie:

This is a recording of a private session we did with a client. You can book a virtual or in-person private session at schoolforthedogs.com. And for a limited time, you can get a free 30 minute virtual consult when you buy our Good Dog Training course available at schoolforthedogs.com/courses. The trainer in the session is me, Annie. The client is Carrie who lives in Manhattan with her adolescent rescue dog, Yoshi.

Hi. Hi Kari. Nice to meet you.

Kari:

Hello. Hold on. Let me just adjust the volume. I don’t use zoom so I know nothing about this. Okay.

Hi.

Annie:

Hi. So is this Yoshi?

Kari

Oh yeah. I gave him an antler to keep him busy, so he’s right behind me.

Annie:

Oh, yummy antler. Well, that sounds smart. So tell me a little bit about how Yoshi came into your life and then let’s figure out how we can deal with… Doesn’t sound like you’re having major issues, but maybe a couple of things that we can improve upon.

Kari:

Okay. So we adopted him early August. He was an instant foster fail.

Annie:

And remind me, do you live in New York city?

Kari:

I’m literally three blocks south of School for the Dogs.

Annie:

Oh, awesome. Okay. Where did, where did you adopt him from?

Kari:

True North rescue. So we’ve always wanted a dog for a long time, but I’ve never really pulled the trigger. I’d scroll Petfinder for a long time. We decided to, but you know, pandemic happened and I was home a lot and I’m like, I think it’s time. And we decided to foster at first because I wasn’t really sure or 100% ready to commit to a dog. So I said, let’s start fostering.

The rescue that we got him from said that they were getting dogs from Puerto Rico. So that’s where he’s from. He’s from Puerto Rico. They flew him to Florida. He saw a vet there and then they loaded them to a truck and ended up in New York. So, I picked him out of a bunch of photos. I knew nothing about him. He was six months when we got him and all they told me that he was a shepherd mix. We don’t really know what kind of mix he is. I don’t know if that matters. I wasn’t really keen on finding out right now.

So we got him, he was six months. He didn’t really have any problems. apart from, of course within the first week he was sleeping a lot. He was probably really exhausted. And of course he was scared. I think he was more scared of us than anything else. So I had very little trouble. I didn’t even have to crate train him. He would go into his crate, no problem.

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/podcast

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Recycled treats and retractable leashes: The good, the bad & the hilarious Oct 30, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, you'll learn about two products, each invented by a woman. The first is something you've probably encountered: the retractable leash. The second is a new brand of treats called Shameless Pets, which makes yummy stuff for dogs from pre-consumer food waste. The former can be quite dangerous, but Annie suggests a way to make it safer; the latter is a successful version of a Seinfeld-esque business plan that Annie's neighbor came up with in the 1990s. In between tips about using a retractable leash and the story of Shameless Pets, you'll hear a hilarious piece of standup by comedian Drew Lynch.

Drew Lynch on retractable leashes - Mary Delaney's patent - Shameless Pet Treats - Free guide to house training

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Partial Transcription:

Annie:

Do you need some help teaching your dog where you want him to pee or poop, and when? If so, I hope you’ll check out our brand new totally free house training guide. You can find it at schoolforthedogs.com/house. It’s filled with lots of really good tips on how to train a dog to potty in the right spot. But it also is going to explain to you how to teach your dog to do it on cue. So go check it out. Schoolforthedogs.com/house.

[Intro music]

Hi, thanks for being here, humans. There are two parts to this episode. One part is about retractable leashes and the other part is a conversation I had with Alex Waite, who is one of the founders of Shameless, which is a really cool brand of treats that you’re going to learn a lot about. They’re doing things differently in a very interesting way.

Just a reminder that if you liked this podcast, please go to iTunes and leave a review and support us by shopping in our online store storeforthedogs.com. I think we have the greatest stuff in the world there, for people who love their dogs. Enjoy.

So here’s something you might not know if you’ve never worked with a dog trainer or you don’t hang out with dog trainers. Most dog trainers, at least the ones that I know, don’t like retractable leashes. And there are a bunch of reasons for this. For one, we want our dogs to ideally be walking on a loose leash. I always say a leash should be there the same way a seatbelt is in a car. You don’t wear the seatbelt and then feel like, okay, now I can drive like a madman. It’s there in case of an emergency.

Ideally your dog should be able to walk in a vicinity that is acceptable, but the leash should be there in case of an emergency. And if you have a leash that is always taut, your dog can get used to feeling that the leash has to have some kind of pull on him at all times. So often dogs on retractable leashes are dogs who have learned to pull.

Another reason is that the cord that attaches the class to the plastic chunky part of the retractable leash is very thin. And if you, if you get it wound around a finger or your leg or a dog, it can really do some damage. Actually, if you go to Google and you start typing in retractable leash, at least on my computer, the first suggested thing that comes up for you to be Googling is retractable leash injuries. Thanks to the magic of Google images, you can see what retractable leash injuries look like, and they’re pretty awful.

Full Transcript available at SchoolfortheDogs.com/Podcast

Get full access to Don't Be a Dick to Your Dog at dogtraining.substack.com/subscribe

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