MOST POPULAR 2024 EPISODE (Re-issue): We are re-issuing our interview with Ben Moon – surfer, climber, photographer, and outdoors enthusiast – as the most popular episode of Dog Save The People during 2024. Ben’s lifelong journey with dogs at different ages is something many can identify with. From seeking constant adventure to having a health scare at a young age, to now learning to appreciate slowing down and being in one place, his dogs have served as a reflection of his path at each stage. Many know his Husky and Pit mix Denali from Ben’s short film and memoir, but now his current Australian Shepherd and Husky mix Nori is helping him write a new chapter.

To close out the year, our annual recap episode highlights excerpts of 2024 guests who joined us on Dog Save The People. This year the conversations centered around companionship, acceptance, creativity, therapy, family, health, grief, home, and more. For more information about the episode, guests, and featured social media or links: dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/2023-recap 

Human-animal behavior research and education has grown significantly over the past decade. One person who has stayed on top of these developments has been Zazie Todd, PhD, a psychologist, trainer, behaviorist, and writer. Through her website, Companion Animal Psychology, Zazie has written since 2012 about the ways science can help our animal companions have happier lives through digestible insights that everyone can understand. She writes a regular series for Psychology Today today too, called Fellow Creatures, exploring the social world of people and animals. She has also now written three books about the science behind our dogs' emotions.

In this episode, we hear from Zazie about her thoughts on better understanding the anxiety and fear of dogs at any given age, and why positive reinforcement is important.

For more information about the episode, guest, and featured links: dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/zazie-todd-2024 

Pamela Hornik is an art collector based out of the Bay Area. She is a Founding member of the Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco (ICA SF), Board member of Stanford’s Cantor Arts Center, and a Management committee member of Stanford’s Anderson Collection. Pamela and her husband, David Hornik, also regularly supports artists with funding their exhibitions, publishing their books, and more. In recent years, thanks to a deep connection with her Maltese Chihuahua mix Teddy, Pamela began to focus more on collecting dog art from contemporary artists. Eventually, this turned into a traveling exhibition called Some Dogs, which first exhibited in San Francisco in 2023 and then in Dallas in 2024.

For photos of the artwork Pamela mentions from her collection and more information: 

www.dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/pamela-hornik-2024   

Lisa Jhung is a freelancer outdoors writer, author, and editor. She writes a regular column about outdoor adventure gear for Outside Magazine and has also written extensively for Runner’s World. Dogs have been a constant in her life through early childhood and now as a mother. One particular way she has always loved to spend time with a dog is being out in nature. Whether running on trails or even going for a morning walk, dogs bring their joy to life to the activity, and Lisa feels it is contagious. As a writer, Lisa also feels that a dog’s company is important in her creative process.

For more information about the episode, guest, and featured links: www.dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/lisa-jhung-2024 

 Tom Turcich is an adventure photographer and author. In his new memoir, The World Walk, he writes about being one of 10 people to ever walk around the globe. His dog and travel buddy, Savannah, was the first to do so. Tom is a former guest of the show and returns to discuss adjusting to life back home in the US after being on the road for almost 7 years and writing a memoir about his worldwide travels.   He also opens up about grieving for his beloved canine companion, Savannah, who unexpectedly passed away in recent months. Now faced with a new chapter ahead with unexpected directions, Tom is trying to embrace the power of consistency that he learned from Savannah, which was to do his best each day, and not let anything stop him from reaching his goals. 

For more information about the episode, guest, and featured links: dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/tom-turcich-2024 

Vanessa Woods is the Director of Duke University’s Puppy Kindergarten program, which studies what qualities are important in becoming a great service dog. The program is funded by the National Institute of Health and works with puppies from Canine Companions, the largest service dog provider in the United States. While this is primarily intended to learn what makes the best service dogs, it has also been informative about all dogs. 

Her husband, Brian Hare, is the Founder of the Duke Canine Cognition Center, the first academic program dedicated to studying dogs in the country. Together they co-wrote a new book, called Puppy Kindergarten, where they take the valuable lessons learned from their years of research studying service dogs as the ideal model for how dogs live with us in today's culture. They share tips, activity ideas, and more insights on for all dog parents raising puppies.Their goal is to help everyone develop a happier and healthier relationship with their dogs from a young age, which carries on throughout the rest of their lives.

For more information about the episode, guest, and featured links: www.dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/vanessa-woods-2024 

PART TWO - One of the most hot-button discussions in Turkey is how street dogs impact everyday citizens. Most people in cities like Istanbul are used to it, with a long tradition of living alongside them. However, in peripheral areas, there is not always as much support. When government municipalities started to push strays from city centers to outside suburban and rural areas, out of their natural environment, there have been a relatively small number of attacks and accidents. These have reportedly been sensationalized in the media, making it seem like a bigger phenomenon, and said to be weaponized by the government to instill fear. 

With the Turkish parliament passing the so-called ‘massacre law’ in July 2024, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government positioned it as a way to protect civilians from these stray dogs. However, in reality, this will be used as a way to significantly harm many strays. Animal rights activists have tried to present alternate solutions or volunteer their time and services, but so far the government has closed the door on that dialogue.  

In the second episode of this two-part series, we spoke to local guests about how much stray dogs would be missed from the streets and how the government should embrace the passionate and hard-working animal rights community to reach a better solution that still addresses the overpopulation problem while going about it safely and humanely.

Guest experts featured, in order, include Ahmet Senpolat (HAYTAP, Animal Rights Federation), Nazlan Ertan (journalist), Lisanne Hillen (Melez Dog Rescue), and Elizabeth Lo (filmmaker).

For more information about the episode, guests, and featured links: dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/turkey-stray-dog-dilemma-2024-pt-2

The Turkish Parliament passed new legislation this summer that aims to remove all stray dogs from the streets by 2028, as these dogs are labeled by the government dangerous and causing harm to humans. This is a significant shift in policy in a country where street dogs have been embedded and accepted into its culture for centuries. Turkish animal welfare groups say in reality there are very few deadly dog attacks, but social media sensationalization and politicization of incidents have complicated debates. While everyone agrees there needs to be better plans to manage the country’s dog overpopulation, there is conflict on how to handle it. Animal advocates argue the 100,000 capacity in current shelters cannot humanely accommodate an estimated four million street dogs, calling the new stray dog legislation the “massacre law.” 

In the first episode of this two-part series, we explore the unique culture tradition of stray dogs living in Turkey, and discuss the problems and challenges around this new stray dog removal law.

We spoke to several guest experts about their perspective on Turkey’s stray dog dilemma with the new law. Guests include Elizabeth Lo (filmmaker), Nazlan Ertan (journalist), Lisanne Hillen (Melez Dog Rescue), and Ahmet Senpolat (HAYTAP, Animal Rights Federation).

For more information about the episode, guests, and featured links: www.dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/turkey-stray-dog-dilemma-2024-pt-1 

Ben Moon is a photographer and filmmaker who has integrated his passion for the outdoors into his work, including as a longtime contributor to Patagonia with climbing and surfing imagery in particular. Dogs have always been part of Ben’s life, but it was after a divorce, living out of a car,  and then a colon cancer diagnosis at 29, that the companionship with his rescue dog Denali, a pit-husky mix, took on a new meaning. Their strong connection was highlighted in a 2015 short film called ‘Denali’ which honors his late dog and has amassed over two million views. As a follow-up, Ben then wrote a 2020 memoir, also entitled Denali, that took an even more introspective look at the power of their human-dog relationship. 

Now at a new life stage, with his 8-year-old rescue dog Nori, an Australian shepherd and husky mix, they have settled down in a beach house on the Oregon Coast. Ben is learning to appreciate the slow build and the benefits that come from settling down in one place.

Ben speaks about his life journey and dogs with Dr. Sharon Holland, an author and distinguished Professor of American Studies at the University of North Carolina (UNC), as well as the host for Dog Save The People.

For more information about the episode, guest, and featured links: www.dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/ben-moon-2024