Today we’re welcoming two guests to the podcast! First we’ll meet Michelle Dumont who created a series of children’s books based on Phoebe Cakes, the tiny special needs bulldog who spent 4 amazing years with Michelle & her family. While Michelle always thought of herself as a “cat person,” she quickly fell in love with dogs after her sons' campaign for a canine family member. When looking to adopt a bulldog from a local rescue, Michelle wasn’t deterred when she learned that her family was 21...
Feb 20, 2023•47 min•Ep. 64
Thank you for your patience as I took a mini hiatus from the podcast these last couple weeks. When Lisa & I recorded this episode at the end of 2022, I didn’t know it would be hitting so close to home right now. As many of you know, we recently and very unexpectedly said goodbye to our beloved Penny when she suffered a sudden health crisis. It’s very special to me that Penny was so much a part of my conversation with today’s guest, Lisa Rimmert . Lisa is here to share the story of Dakota who...
Feb 06, 2023•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 63
From running away from home with her dog to bringing her dog to college, Mindy Dutka has been passionate about her love for dogs since childhood. And Mindy’s other lifelong passion is photography. 6 years ago Mindy merged her passions to create her pet photography company: Dogs I Meet . From family photo shoots to working with pet brands, Mindy is dedicated to using photography to create connection through visual storytelling. Mindy generously shares her best tips & tricks with us so we can ...
Jan 09, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 62
Steph Evans is a Physiotherapist (UK term for Physical Therapist) for both people and animals. She shares with us everything we should know to not only rehab our dogs after an injury – but also how to prevent injuries in the first place with Prehab. We’ll also learn signs of pain to look for in our dogs and thoughts about how to choose a harness versus a collar for your dog. Steph is also the creator of the Ultimutt Bootcamp for Pet Parents and their pups to exercise together. Not only is this a...
Dec 19, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 61
Susan Shahoda is a lifelong dog lover who has devoted much of the past 15 years to volunteering with Westside German Shepherd Rescue in Los Angeles, CA. But don’t let the name fool you – Westside rescues dogs of all shapes & sizes and adopts to families throughout the continental U.S. and Canada. In fact, Westside is celebrating 20 years and 20,000 dogs finding loving homes! What should potential adopters look for in a rescue organization? Why are those adoption applications so long? How do ...
Dec 05, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 60
Andrew Cotter is a lifelong dog lover and sports lover. You may recognize his name or voice from his career as a sports broadcaster where he's announced everything from Wimbledon to the Olympics. But since COVID-19, Andrew is better known as the Dog Dad to the internet’s most famous Labradors, Olive and Mabel. You might imagine that when your career is a sports broadcaster and suddenly there’s a global pandemic and all sporting events are cancelled, that life may suddenly look different overnigh...
Nov 21, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 59
I first started following Danny & Ron’s Rescue back in 2018 when I saw the documentary about them called Life in the Doghouse . So it was a complete joy to have the opportunity to speak with them about their new book Forever Home: How We Turned Our House into a Haven for Abandoned, Abused and Misunderstood Dogs - and Each Other . Forever Home is such an honest and vulnerable share of the ups & downs that Danny and Ron have experienced - in life and in rescue. I think so many Pet Parents ...
Nov 07, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 58
You might be surprised to learn that Billy Hoekman grew up without pets while eating take-out and fast food. Because today Billy is known for being THE Dog Nutrition Guru. Billy’s life changed forever when an adorable pug named Lua caused Billy to ask the question: What’s the best thing for my dog to eat? And he’s been obsessed with answering that question for the past 15+ years. As the Vice President of Nutrition and Communication for Green Juju , Billy is involved in formulation, product devel...
Oct 24, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 57
Lisa Tully has a passion for healing pets and Pet Parents – physically, mentally and emotionally. When you hear that Lisa is an Animal Communicator , you might be surprised to learn that she has a degree in Science and used to work for a pharmaceutical company. But I believe that science and “woo-woo” aren’t mutually exclusive. From Ireland to a wildlife sanctuary in the Amazon rainforest to living amongst the Tibetan monks in the Dalai Lama’s community, Lisa shares her world travels with us and...
Oct 10, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 56
A lifelong mutts-lover, Olivia uses her talent and passion to highlight the beauty of non-pedigreed dogs with her new book MUTTS: A Celebration of Mystery Mixed Breeds . MUTTS is a big, beautiful coffee table-style book filled with portraits capturing the heart & soul of more than 100 beloved rescue mutts. Each photograph is accompanied by the dog’s name, best guess of breed mix and a fun or interesting trait about them. (One of my favorites is Elvis the Chihuahua/Basenji mix who passionatel...
Sep 26, 2022•51 min•Ep. 55
Elizabeth Menegon is a lifelong dog lover who saw a problem in the world and decided to do something about it. While Elizabeth spent a lot of time thinking about what dog breed would be a good match for her lifestyle, she would often look around the world and see many families whose dogs didn’t seem to be the best fit for their life. After the COVID-19 quarantine happened, Elizabeth left her career in the hospitality industry and started Sugar Skinn , a boutique skin care company from her couch ...
Sep 12, 2022•58 min•Ep. 54
Meredith couldn’t wait to add Edie, the Golden Retriever puppy to her family. She knew it would be just like raising her first two dogs. She was wrong. From the first puppy class to trying to take a walk around the block – nothing about Edie was easy. Edie was anxious and terrified of the world around her. And that was not what Meredith expected. So now what was she going to do about it? I can’t wait for you to hear from Meredith May, author of Loving Edie: How a Dog Afraid of Everything Taught ...
Aug 29, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 53
Today we’re continuing our discussion from last week so make sure you’ve listened to Episode 51 , as we jump right back into the conversation. In Part 2, we start with a discussion of how to resolve the difficult emotions that can arise when you’ve experienced a dog fight situation in your home. Everyone vulnerably shares their experiences and how they were able to move forward. But how do you prevent these situations in the first place? How should you go about introducing a new dog to your home...
Aug 15, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 52
I was recently asked for information on how to stop a dog fight in the house when a newly adopted dog isn’t getting along with a resident dog. And when I couldn’t find the information that I was looking for online, I wanted to create a podcast about this topic to help anyone in this situation. And I’ll tell you my Dog Mom Confession: I once had a dog fight in my house and I still have a little PTSD about it. Today I’m bringing together Dianna and Nikki, 2 skilled professional dog trainers, and N...
Aug 08, 2022•1 hr 42 min•Ep. 51
When she was experiencing an “empty nest,” Jodi’s husband, a retired Marine, encouraged her to express her feelings through writing. Now Jodi Burnett is the author of more than a dozen suspenseful thrillers – with a bite! All of Jodi’s books include dogs as central characters in the stories. I’m a huge fan of the Tin Star K9 books featuring Renegade, the law enforcement K9. Since Jodi doesn’t have experience working in law enforcement, I was curious how she learned so much about working K9 dogs....
Jul 25, 2022•54 min•Ep. 50
Join us today as we celebrate the life of Catherine Violet Hubbard who was taken from her family & the world much too soon. Catherine was just 6 years-old in the First Grade on December 14, 2012 when the Sandy Hook tragedy took place. Catherine’s dream was to be an Animal Caretaker. She was so passionate about this that she made her own business cards which she handed out in Kindergarten. Known for collecting “animal pals” around the backyard, Catherine would always release her pals with a p...
Jul 11, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 49
If you can name a Dog Sport, Melissa Stagnaro has most likely tried it at some point over the past 20 years. And today we’re so fortunate to have Melissa sharing tips and insight from her years of experience. I loved her canine enrichment idea for dogs recovering from an injury! But did you know that you can learn the sport of Search & Rescue? If you’ve ever wanted your dog to learn how to find someone in the woods or track a scent trail, there’s a sport for that! Commonly referred to as “RH...
Jun 27, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 48
While Lynne Cox is known to the world as an elite world-class swimmer who’s set open-water swimming records all over the world, she is also someone whose life has been shaped by the love of dogs and the lessons she has learned from dogs. When Lynne found out there was a school in Italy that trains water rescue dogs to jump out of boats and helicopters to save people from drowning, her first thought was: I have to go there right now! So Lynne traveled to Italy and was able to learn first-hand abo...
Jun 13, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 47
Angela is a lifelong animal lover who is the founder of CBD Dog Health , as well as the Your Natural Dog Podcast and online store. Angela also runs a rescue farm with geese, chickens, ducks, pigs and more! As a Pet Cannabis Expert and expert in holistic health for pets, I have so many questions for Angela. I’ve been hearing about using CBD – for both pets and people – for the last several years. In fact, my dog Penny takes it for arthritis. Some people swear that CBD has been a huge help for the...
Jun 06, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 46
I know that when I don’t feel good, I’m not always at my best. Some people – like my husband – even get “hangry” when they’re hungry, their blood sugar crashes and affects their mood. And I’ve learned – usually the hard way – that when I eat junk food, I’ll have that “crash” afterwards when I’m definitely not at 100%. But what about our dogs? Tamara and I discuss what this looks like for our dogs and how what we feed our dogs affects their behavior. Tamara joins us bringing her wealth of knowled...
May 23, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 45
A lifelong animal lover, Natalie Keegan has created a life she loves by connecting her background in psychology with her passion for dogs. After witnessing firsthand, the difference that the love of a dog made in her son’s life, Natalie decided to learn even more about dogs by becoming a dog trainer. Seeing the power to connect her professional work with children with her dog training skills, Natalie founded the Kids-4-K9s organization and was awarded a prestigious Open Society Institute fellows...
May 09, 2022•56 min•Ep. 44
From leaving New Jersey to start a new life – and a holistic dog boutique – in Montana to history, science and technology, Ellie and I cover a lot of ground in this episode. Ellie’s life was forever changed when she was scrolling on social media one morning and saw a video that shook her to her core. This was a video showing laboratory testing on beagles. A beagle owner herself, Ellie was horrified and decided she was going to do something about this. Now the Dog Mom to two rescued laboratory be...
Apr 18, 2022•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 43
Marta Negro is one of the bravest and coolest people that I’ve ever met and I can’t wait for you to hear her story. Leaving at the end of 2019 to embark a solo adventure around the world, Marta hitchhiked her way through Poland and worked as a tour guide in Russia before landing in Thailand to volunteer at an animal rescue helping Thai street dogs. On her first day at the rescue, Marta fell in love with a little dog named Teaspa who really needed some TLC. Marta knew she had to bring Teaspa home...
Apr 04, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 42
It’s not an exaggeration for me to say that the information in this episode could save your dog’s life. After a terrible accident, Paweenduh (you can call her “P” for short) found her purpose and has dedicated her life to raising awareness about keeping your dog safe in the car with dog seatbelts with Dogs Ride Certified . Believe it or not, so many products for pets are not regulated. So just because you buy a dog seatbelt that says that it is “crash tested,” P explains to us what this really m...
Mar 14, 2022•42 min•Ep. 41
April Doherty has dedicated her career to seeing that animal abusers are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. As a paralegal with the Baltimore County State’s Attorney Office for the past 18 years, April shares her experiences witnessing animal abuse and neglect cases being taken more seriously by all players in the criminal justice system. April’s impressive resume also includes training and educating law enforcement – both home and abroad! We also talk about the emotional toll that thi...
Feb 28, 2022•1 hr 37 min•Ep. 40
Episode 36. Aligning Your Heart With Your Career with Kristin von Kreisler Today we’re welcoming award-winning, bestselling author Kristin von Kreisler to the podcast. A lifelong animal lover – and animal empathizer! – Kristin’s life was forever changed one night when she stumbled upon a terrified beagle in need of assistance. Naming her Bea, Kristin made it her mission to show love and patience to this pup who had never experienced life outside of a cage. Several years later, the tables were tu...
Feb 14, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 39
Episode 35. The Great Adventures of Paddington & Zurich: A Follow-up with Carla & Wayne Greenside Today we’re welcoming back Carla & Wayne Greenside. When we last spoke on Episode 21 , Carla & Wayne shared the story of the unlikely friendship of Paddington the Morgan Horse and Zurich the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog. Carla & Wayne wanted to further share Paddington & Zurich’s friendship by creating a children’s book about the unlikely duo. I’m excited to share that The Grea...
Jan 31, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 38
10 Years of Serving Baltimore’s Dogs with B-More Dog - Part 2 In September 2011, B-More Dog’s (a Baltimore-based non-profit organization) scrappy group of volunteers launched a program called Community Pit Bull Day to provide free vaccines to dogs in under-resourced communities in Baltimore City. Now known as the B-More Dog Wellness Clinics, over the past 10 years, more than 3300 dogs have received services from B-More Dog. The Clinics have grown in size, in services provided and in partnership ...
Dec 27, 2021•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 37
10 Years of Serving Baltimore's Dogs with B-More Dog - Part 1 In September 2011, B-More Dog's (Baltimore-based non-profit organization) scrappy group of volunteers launched a program called Community Pit Bull Day to provide free vaccines to dogs in under-resourced communities in Baltimore City. Now known as the B-More Dog Wellness Clinics, over the past 10 years, more than 3300 dogs have received services from B-More Dog. The Clinics have grown in size, in services provided and in partnership wi...
Dec 20, 2021•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 36
Presley & Taylor are country music recording artists – and sisters! – known for creating beautiful harmonies. They are also huge animal lovers and have 3 dogs! Presley & Taylor recently released a heartwarming song called “Choose Me” which tells the story of a shelter dog finding their forever home. The lyrics remind me so much of how my dog Penny joined our family that I was almost in tears the first time I heard it. Today we hear the story of what “Choose Me” means to Presley & Tay...
Dec 06, 2021•42 min•Ep. 35
