Believe in Dog

This might be the most important conversation I’ve ever had on the Believe in Dog Podcast.

Have you ever wondered why there’s a seemingly endless stream of homeless pets in need at shelters and rescues across the USA? 

As a writer, Cara Sue Achterberg began documenting her family’s experiences fostering dogs for a local rescue and wrote the book Another Good Dog - One Family and 50 Foster Dogs.

Cara shares with us her dog fostering wisdom learned from now more than 150+ dogs who have spent time in her home.  You may also be surprised to learn that fostering dogs brought Cara’s children and family closer than ever – even through their teen years!

But Cara did wonder – where were all these dogs coming from? The answer was mostly the Southeastern USA.  So when she embarked on a book tour she decided to also make it a shelter tour so she could see firsthand where the dogs were coming from.

And this decision changed her life.

Cara will share with us what she’s learned from visiting 120+ animal shelters in 12 states over the past several years.  We’ll hear the 3 factors that lead to animal shelters successfully saving lives.  And about the unsung heroes who persevere through unimaginable obstacles to give dogs a chance.

Cara created the organization Who Will Let The Dogs Out to support the shelters and rescues lacking budgets, resources and often a staff.  Who Will Let The Dogs Out is bringing awareness and resources to homeless dogs and the heroes who fight for them.

Trigger Warning: The topic of animal euthanization is a theme of this episode. Please take care while listening.

Find Links, Show Notes & Photos at:

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

https://www.teefhealth.com/?aff=58

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What does pioneering integrative veterinarian Dr. Marty Goldstein want you to know about the cause of cancer in dogs?  Today we’ll hear the 3 biggest causes for the exponential increase in cancer rates over the past 50 years.

I was fascinated to learn that it was Dr. Marty’s journey with his own health that led him to questioning the medical establishment for  both people and pets.  And when Dr. Marty witnessed the connection between diet and health, he made his life’s work to spread this truth even in the face of adversity. 

And there was plenty of adversity – from concerns of bankruptcy to having his veterinary license threatened. Of course this was before he started crossing paths with everyone from George Harrison to Oprah and having the documentary, The Dog Doc, filmed about his groundbreaking work.

Dr. Marty also regales us with tales from his upcoming book – like why he still cringes when he thinks about that time he met Ray Charles on an airplane.

Episode Sponsored by The Dog Health Journal

Find Links & Show Notes at: https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode74

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Did you know that hearing dogs are trained to support the deaf and hard-of-hearing community?  I recently learned this when I connected with David Allery, Founder of the nonprofit organization, Your Hearing Dog.

David, who experienced a loss of hearing due to a medical condition, shares his own experiences and the societal isolation experienced by many people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.  

Hearing dogs are not only trained to alert to vital needs such as a smoke detector, but serve an equally important role in connection and companionship.

We’re also joined today by Judith Mueller, a Board Member of Your Hearing Dog, who joined the organization due to her passion for dogs and desire to make a difference.   

David and Judith share with us why Your Hearing Dog is passionate about training shelter and rescue dogs, how the training process works and how dogs and people are matched.

If you or someone you know is deaf or hard-of-hearing, this episode offers valuable insights into the life-changing impact our four-legged companions can have.

A transcript of this episode is available for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community is linked HERE.

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.

Find Links & Show Notes at: https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode73

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What is life like with a rescued puppy mill dog?  And is there anything we can do to stop puppy mills? 

These are the questions we explore today with Dog Mom and Advocate Jo Anna Kloster, author of Lily Unleashed.

Jo Anna shares the story of how Cagney, her first rescued puppy mill dog, changed her life and gave her passion and purpose.  Jo Anna shares all that she’s learned about the inner workings of puppy mills, pet stores and the laws that aren’t being enforced.

Jo Anna’s passion and career as a teacher led her to writing Lily Unleashed, a chapter book for all ages that tells the story of how a rescued puppy mill dog inspires an insecure 6th grader to speak up and take a stand for what’s right.

The good news is that more Congressional leaders than ever are sponsoring new laws – Goldie’s Act and the Puppy Mill Protection Act – which all of us can support with emails and phone calls. 

Check the Show Notes for quick links to take action and support these laws today!

Find Links, Show Notes & Photos at:

https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode72

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

https://www.teefhealth.com/?aff=58

Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

Have you ever wondered if it’s possible to make a living being a Dog Mom? Tori Mistick is here to tell us how she turned her blog Wear Wag Repeat from a creative outlet into her full-time job – including all the pivots along the way.

I’ve learned so much from Tori’s online courses for petprenuers (entrepreneurs in the pet industry) and from her monthly membership group, the Wear Wag Repeat Society.  Tori also shares with us why it’s important to her that the Wear Wag Repeat Podcast is a platform for women in the pet industry.

Tori recently completed a course in Canine Enrichment and she gives us some fun & easy tips to create more joy in our dogs’ lives.

I’m also appreciative to Tori for vulnerably sharing some of her hardest moments as a young pet parent with us.

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.

Find Links & Show Notes at: https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode71

Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

Are all of us communicating with our animals and we just don’t realize it?  This is one of the questions we explore today with Animal Communicator Shannon Cutts.

While Shannon grew up loving nature and always wanting a pet bird, it took many years for Shannon to follow her intuitive calling to work as an animal communicator.  Shannon shares her long and winding journey with us, including the many ways animals have been healers in her life.

We also explore how Highly Sensitive Pets experience the world differently and how pet parents can identify and best support their pets who fall into this category.

Shannon is also a Reiki Master and we explore what reiki is and how this is connected to her work as an animal communicator.  I also share my experiences with Reiki.

Does Shannon think we all have the ability to be animal communicators?  We discuss our intuition, how to quiet our minds and demystify the woo-woo.

Learn more about Shannon's work, classes, book and podcast at

https://animallovelanguages.com/.

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.

Find Links & Show Notes at: https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode70

Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

How did Ruby Balaram go from being a reluctant dog mom to pet industry CEO? You don’t want to miss this episode.

Like me, Ruby grew up in a house where she wasn’t allowed to have pets - except that one time she & her mom tried to sneak in a cat! So when Ruby met her partner, Turk, he came with a dog and she wasn’t so sure about jumping into the Dog Mom Life.

But when Turk’s dog got a second cancer diagnosis, Ruby witnesses the power of feeding fresh real food to dogs when the grumpy old Doberman started running around with puppy-like energy. Ruby & Turk were so amazed that they wanted to start a company to make fresh real food accessible to all dog owners.

Ruby shares their early entrepreneurial journey with us and all the pivots they made along the way to form Real Dog Box in 2015.

No matter what diet you feed your dog, Real Dog Box is an easy and affordable way to add fun and healthy variety to your dog’s bowl. And you definitely don’t want to miss out on the fun of the Secret Shop!

Ruby & her team have now launched the Feed Real Institute which was born out of all the questions they’ve received from Pet Parents over the past 8 years.

Creating digital courses for both Pet Parents and Veterinarians, Ruby wants everyone to have access to the scientific-backed information showing the healthiest food choices for our dogs.

Want to try Real Dog Box for your dog? Save $10 off your first order at: https://real.dog/erinthedogmom

Find Links, Show Notes & Photos at: https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode69

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By day, Jen Danna is a scientist studying infectious diseases. But at night, Jen has immersed herself in creating the world of FBI K9 Handler Meg Jennings and her dog Hawk. 

From domestic terrorism to human trafficking, the FBI K9 series follows Meg & Hawk as part of the FBI’s Human Scent Detection Team.  From page one, these books had me hooked and it felt like I was along for the ride as Meg & Hawk are tasked with locating the missing, lost, escaped or dead.

Jen shares her writing process with us and how it has changed following the recent loss of her longtime writing partner, Ann Vanderlaan.

We discuss the critical importance of the partnership and bond between law enforcement K9s and their handlers.

At the end of the episode I share what I’ve learned about the history of law enforcement K9s in the US. I was surprised to discover that  my hometown of Baltimore plays a uniquely special role in this history of law enforcement K9s!

Get 20% off your next order of Teef, for your dog's dental health with the code: ADM.

Find Links, Show Notes & Photos at:

https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode68

Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

We’re diving into an age-old question today: do dog trainers train dogs … or people?  As a dog trainer and pet health coach, Jessica Fisher has a lot to share on this topic.

Despite having some “not so great” experiences with pets when she was growing up, Jessica was on her way to becoming a bit of a crazy cat lady when she met the man who would become her husband … and his chihuahua.

But it took her dog Kimberly, a rescue who came with separation anxiety, for Jessica to find her calling as a dog trainer.

Jessica and I discuss everything from how to work with a dog trainer over Zoom to how vulnerable it is to share your story on a podcast.

Jessica is also a member of the Two Podcasts Club – you can listen to her on The Parenting Reset and Pet Health Junkies.  I highly recommend listening to Jessica share her story on the episode: Why Are Dog Moms Not Having Kids?

Get 20% off your next order of Teef, for your dog's dental health with the code: ADM.

Find Links, Show Notes & Photos at:

https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode67

Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.

We see these memes online everyday joking that all of our dogs are freelance emotional support dogs.  But what if it’s your dog’s behavior that’s causing you anxiety?

I’m grateful to Karoline Edmonds of Dog Mom Mentality for courageously sharing her ups and downs with us today.

Admittedly a bit of a reluctant and naïve dog owner, in early 2020 Karoline agreed that her boyfriend could get a dog – if he was willing to do all the work.  Then COVID happened and Karoline found herself being the one at home all day everyday with Layla the Australian Shepherd mix.

When Layla began showing fear, reactivity and even some fear aggression, Karoline found that her dog’s anxiety was giving her anxiety!  So now what was she going to do?

Over the past 3 years Karoline has embarked on a journey of Growing & Heeling – working on her own mental and emotional health, as well as Layla’s behavioral challenges.

Karoline has now created the Growing & Heeling Journal to help pet parents navigate through both the awesome times and those times when it’s unexpectedly difficult sharing your life with your dog.

Get 10% off Karoline's Growing & Heeling Journal with the code: BID10.

Get 20% off your next order of Teef, for your dog's dental health with the code: ADM.

Find Links and Show Notes at:

https://believeindogpodcast.com/episodes-1/episode66

Support this podcast, subscribe on your favorite app and leave a rating or review.