Cog-Dog Radio

Sasha Zitter and Benah Stiewing are the dynamic duo behind Boundless Junior Agility Company, dedicated to enhancing the agility experience for young handlers. They discuss the various challenges these aspiring competitors face, from accessibility to financial barriers. Personal stories reveal the growth of opportunities through events like the Junior Open Agility World Championships. The duo emphasizes the power of community support and the need for empathy within the agility world, urging adults to foster a nurturing environment for the next generation of handlers.

Stop! Before listening, go watch this SNL skit about Surprise Party Sue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4R1yybhmHg Ok, now, is Sue a dog you know? Maybe Sue is your dog. Maybe she is a client’s dog. This skit is something Sarah uses to explain to her clients how their dogs are behaving, and from there discussions like “is this ok/normal?” and also “what can we do about it?” can happen. When these questions were posed on social media, the answers were surprising. Listen to hear Sarah’s take on Surprise Party Sue. Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

Is fetch a problem? Does fetch cause problems? Is chasing a ball different from marking and finding a bumper? Can we utilize retrieving in beneficial ways? All this and more as Sarah explores the popular dog owner game of “fetch” with friend of the podcast Liza Rader KPA-CTP of Focus Dogs in British Columbia. focusdogs.ca @focusdogs Click here for the bundles: https://focusdogs.thinkific.com/collections There is also a BIPOC scholarship that is 20% - just e-mail Liza about it! Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

One of Sarah’s most popular episodes of all time, this episode explores the ethical and effective role punishment might play in a least-intrusive, minimally-aversive (LIMA) framework. Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

Sarah is joined this week by assistant professor of psychology at Boston College, Dr Angie Johnston. Angie is the director of the Canine Cognition Center and Social Learning Laboratory, where she compares human and dog learning, studies the ways dogs learn from humans, and so much more. Find more here: sites.bc.edu/doglab Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

Working with stranger-directed aggression cases can be dangerous because, as the professional on the case, you are also the dog’s trigger (and potential target). Join Sarah in conversation with Lisa Mullinax CDBC of Serenity Canine–an expert in stranger-directed aggression in dogs–to learn about the steps professionals can take to help everyone stay safe in these sessions. From tools and tips to risk assessment, this is a meaty episode for dog pros and dog nerds alike. Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

The old ways of “free” shaping behaviors are out and the much-improved process of shaping via component parts is in. Join Sarah in conversation with Tromplo founder Agnieszka Janarek for a discussion that goes into frustration, resilience, and core skills as a way of life. Find Agnieszka at Tromplo: www.tromplo.com And on instagram @tromplo Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

Do dogs need to be trained to relax, or will they relax when their needs are met? Should they be asked to relax if their needs haven’t been met? Where can we draw the line between taught relaxation and exercise? All this and then some. Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

We all want to help our dogs experience less stress at the vet, and there is actually some scientific data to support two ideas that some might already be doing naturally: avoiding lobbies and staying with dogs through procedures. Break down the research, and also get into some of the culture of vet med with geneticist and veterinarian Dr Jessica Hekman. Find Jessica at http://www.dogzombie.com/ and functionalbreeding.org Sources: Hekman, Jessica P., Alicia Z. Karas, and Nancy A. Dreschel. "Salivary cortisol concentrations and behavior in a population of healthy dogs hospitalized for elective procedures." Applied animal behaviour science 141.3-4 (2012): 149-157. Perego, Roberta, Daniela Proverbio, and Eva Spada. "Increases in heart rate and serum cortisol concentrations in healthy dogs are positively correlated with an indoor waiting‐room environment." Veterinary Clinical Pathology 43.1 (2014): 67-71. - dogs in veterinary clinic vs dogs outside, same wait time, group A had higher cort levels Mariti, Chiara, et al. "The assessment of dog welfare in the waiting room of a veterinary clinic." Animal Welfare 24.3 (2015): 299-305. - behaviorist vs owner observations; “The behaviourist's evaluations were strongly correlated with the time spent by dogs showing signs of stress and moderately correlated with the number of displayed signs, whilst owners’ evaluations were not closely correlated to those factors. Dogs rated as highly stressed by the behaviourist were more prone to display resistance (halting, refusing to budge) when moving from the waiting room to the consultation room. The results of this pilot study support the idea that the welfare of dogs in the veterinary waiting room is often impaired, and that owners are unable to accurately assess stress in their dogs in such situations.” Juodžentė, Dalia, Birutė Karvelienė, and Vita Riškevičienė. "The influence of the duration of the preoperative time spent in the veterinary clinic without the owner on the psychogenic and oxidative stress in dogs." Journal of Veterinary Medical Science 80.7 (2018): 1129-1133. - Dogs waiting for 12 hours prior to surgery had higher cort levels (and another measure, oxidative stress index) than dogs brought in 10 min before surgery. Csoltova, Erika, et al. "Behavioral and physiological reactions in dogs to a veterinary examination: Owner-dog interactions improve canine well-being." Physiology & behavior 177 (2017): 270-281. - 2 groups of dogs getting PE. Owners present for both, allowed to touch group 1 but not group 2. Group 1 had more lip licking, higher HR, and temp, also more attempts to jump off the table. Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay

Amy Cook, PhD is a dog behavior consultant extraordinaire and she sat down to chat with Sarah about the importance of planned, trained, and rehearsed management strategies for navigating the world with reactive dogs. http://playwaydogs.com/ https://www.fenzidogsportsacademy.com/index.php/courses/7467 Sign up for courses and join the membership here: https://cogdogclassroom.mykajabi.com/ Join us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cogdogradio Music by AlexGrohl from Pixabay