In this episode, we sit down with renowned trainer Grisha Stewart to explore how Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT)can be applied to support shelter dogs. We dive into the foundations of BAT and how it helps dogs build resilience, reduce reactivity, and make better choices in challenging environments.

Together, we unpack practical tools such as set-ups that create safe learning opportunities, lead handling skills that support calm communication, and the importance of recognizing a dog’s threshold to prevent overwhelm. Grisha also explains how to spot and nurture glimmers—the subtle signs of curiosity and comfort that guide progress.

Whether you’re a shelter worker, volunteer, or dog lover, this conversation offers valuable insights into using BAT to improve the welfare and adoptability of dogs in care.

About Grisha Stewart 

Grisha Stewart is a kinship tender, visionary author, international keynote speaker, dog trainer, community grief ritualist, and song leader based in Oregon, USA, devoted to nourishing belonging and care for all beings. She is the Grisha behind the Grisha Stewart Academy (surprise) and a founder of the Stellar Village community network.

Grisha is of European ancestry, specifically Scotland, England, France, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway, according to family lore and DNA tests. In her 20+ years as a professional dog trainer, she is best known for her Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT) technique for dog socialization and reactivity/aggression rehabilitation (more on that below). 

In 2001, Grisha founded Ahimsa Dog Training, which grew to be Seattle's largest and most popular dog training company. "Ahimsa" is a Buddhist doctrine of nonviolence to all living beings, which reflects Grisha's focus on more collaborative methods to promote the well-being of dogs and their humans.

Links

Grishas Birthday Sale- https://school.grishastewart.com/pages/birthdaysale/?ref=352ff9

Shelter Scholarship at GSA- https://school.grishastewart.com/bundles/rescue?ref=352ff9

Grisha Reading BAT 2.0 with download book- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/abc-bat?ref=352ff9

BAT 3.0- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/evolution?ref=352ff9

Lead skills with Grisha and Mike Shikashio- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/ropes?ref=352ff9

How to Human- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/human?ref=352ff9

In this episode I’m joined by Kat Creagh an animal welfare scientist who reviews policies and procedures for a large uk animal welfare charity. In this discussion we tackle some of the complicated questions around capacity to care and how we can best support the behavioural health of animals we are helping! There is no perfect solution to this problem and one of the discussions that continually kept appear is the importance of having discussions as individual organisations about our aims, hopes and ability. This episode will pose some questions to help start the conversation around this difficult but hugely important topic

City dogs conference September!

I think we can all agree that the shelter constitutes a difficult environment for behaviour modification! In September I'm going to spend a whole day discussing how we can maximise success in shelter and rescue but also take our learning and apply it to dogs outside of the shelter to improve behavioural health for all.

Ill be discussing emotional assessments, problem solving tools and how we best support the dogs in our care to get long lasting, welfare boosting behavioural change to boost rehoming and prevent relinquishment

Join Me, @ZazieTodd and @MalenaDeMartini for Three amazing days of workshops.

Join us online, or in person in Toronto Canada from Friday the 26th to the 28th of September.

In August the dogs in the city conference is also 20% off using the following code CITYDOGS link in captions!

In this episode Tom and Andrew Hales explore what it means to approach emotional experiences with Compassion Acceptance Knowledge and Empathy. Focusing on how we can take care of ourselves and those around us Andy explores the CAKE model and how it can impact the work we do in shelter and rescue, before moving on to discuss resilience, support and most importantly looking after ourselves to ensure we can turn up everyday and be the person we need to be, with no negative affect on ourselves!

Ep. 42 How do we Choose the Doggy in the Window, Decision Making of Adopters with Lawrence Minnis.

Ep.41 the Look at That Game for Reactivity in Shelter with Kim Palermo

In this episode I’m joined by Sarah Ellis and Vicky Halls from International Cat Care. During the show we discuss ICCs approach to Cat Friendly Care, how we can improve welfare, rehoming and support for the Cats in our shelters and rescues. Shelters and rescues can be stressful places for all animals, but Cats in particularly can often struggle in silence. Learn from two of the leaders in the cat welfare and behaviour space how we can identify Cats who are struggling and what steps we can take to improve overall welfare both in care and beyond.

About Dr. Sarah Ellis Sarah’s interests span the behaviour and welfare of the domestic cat. She has a BSc in Zoology and Psychology from the University of Bristol (UK), a Post-Graduate Diploma in Companion Animal Behaviour Counselling from the University of Southampton (UK) and a PhD from Queen’s University Belfast (UK) which focussed on improving the welfare of cats housed in homing centres. Sarah spent eight years at the University of Lincoln (UK) as a post-doctoral research scientist working on numerous projects involving animal welfare assessment and furthering our understanding of cat behaviour and the cat-human relationship. Since 2015, Sarah has divided her time between her role at charity ‘International Cat Care’ as Head of Cat Wellbeing and Behaviour and working an an independent feline welfare educator, writer and consultant. About Vicky Halls

I have been working closely with cats since 1988 and specifically as a Cat Behaviour Counsellor from 1994 to 2019, treating behaviour problems in cats both in the UK and abroad. I am also an international bestselling author of 7 cat behaviour books for the cat-owning public and co-author of a number of veterinary textbooks.

I am a Registered Veterinary Nurse and member of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors. I am also a Registered Clinical Animal Behaviourist with the Animal Behaviour and Training Council. I also have a diploma in person-centred counselling and am a Registered Member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists.

Links https://icatcare.org/cat-advice/unowned-cats https://icatcare.org/courses/cat-friendly-homing-foundations Sarah’s paper on barriers to play: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159124003277

Ep. 39 Research to Support Welfare with Dr. Lisa Gunter 

In this episode we dive into some of the amazing research of Dr Lisa Gunter and her Colleagues. Dr Gunters contributions to the field have a massive positive impact on dogs in shelter and rescue, from improving perception and rehomability to reducing stress there’s some great practical implementations of research to take away from this episode. 

About Dr. Lisa Gunter 

Lisa Gunter, PhD, MA, CBCC-KA is an Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech in the School of Animal Sciences and directs the Companion Animal Research & Education (CARE) Lab. Lisa’s research explores the behavior and welfare of companion animals, specifically our interactions with them, as it relates to animal sheltering, behavioral issues, and training.

Prior to joining Virginia Tech, she was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Coastal Carolina University and the Maddie’s Fund Research Fellow at Arizona State University and managed the ASU/VT Maddie’s Nationwide Fostering Study. Lisa earned her PhD and MA degrees in the behavioral neuroscience and comparative psychology program at Arizona State University in the Canine Science Collaboratory.

Over her academic career, she has investigated owner-support programs that provide temporary care for pets; weeklong fostering, temporary stays, & short-term outings for shelter dogs; canine housing, social interaction, and barking interventions in the animal shelter; behavioral indicators of canine welfare; relinquishment and post-adoption interventions; and the genetic breed heritage and breed labeling of shelter dogs. 

Before beginning her graduate studies, she worked for nearly a decade with pets in animal shelters and with dogs and their owners. She was a behavior consultant and trainer in San Francisco, teaching group classes and consulting with owners experiencing issues of fear, anxiety, and aggression with their dogs. Her interest in canine behavior began in 2002 as an animal shelter volunteer, training dogs in basic skills and assisting in shelter dog playgroups. That interest grew into a professional career where she managed the behavior programs of several shelters throughout the West.

Her academic and professional experiences led Lisa to co-found Wagfield Academy, an online dog training and behavior resource for owners (which was acquired by the Humane Society of the United States Pets for Life program), and the Institute for Shelter Dogs with Dr. Erica Feuerbacher, where they combine the latest in shelter research with the current best practices in workshops for staff and volunteers. Seven years ago, she founded and annually organizes the Canine Science Symposium in San Francisco, which disseminates the latest applied canine science to practitioners from across the country.

Links 

Lisa’s Website https://www.lisamgunter.com

Lisa’s Research https://www.lisamgunter.com/research

Virginia Techs Program https://sas.vt.edu/academics/graduate-program.html

Canine Science Symposium https://www.caninesciencesymposium.com

Ep. 38 Supporting Rehoming to Homes with Children with Michelle Stern.

This week we look at what we can do before, during and after rehoming, to support a dog moving from shelter or rescue into a home with children. Wether existing children or a growing family join myself and Michelle as we discuss green and red flags for the dog and the homes. How to best prepare a dog and how we can support the transition with the aim of a happy life for all of the family

About Michelle Stern 

Michelle Stern cares about supporting parents, supporting kids, and helping dogs feel safe emotionally and physically; these three passions position her perfectly to work with families who are integrating their dogs into homes with children. This episode will support any listener who is, or plans to, integrate their dogs and children together in a way that is healthy and balanced.

Michelle Stern is a certified professional dog trainer, dog behavior consultant, certified family dog mediator, mom, and former classroom teacher. Her podcast is the Pooch Parenting Podcast, and you can learn more at PoochParenting.net.

Links and resources 

Free Workshop for Shelters and Dog Rescues: Successful Dog Placements in Families with Kids: https://poochparenting.net/workshop-for-rescues-placement-with-kids/

New Adoption Dog Handbook for Families with Kids: https://poochparenting.net/adoption-dog-handbook-for-families/

Reward charts 

https://fb.watch/zzswT-tYAT/?

In this episode I’m joined by Dr Findy Wills, a vet behaviourist with a passion for shelter and rescue dogs. Findy joins the pod to talk about differing attachment styles and how we can support these in shelter and rescue, and gives us some insights into her PHD studies that are currently underway,

About Findy

Dr Findy started as a small animal veterinarian in Newcastle NSW after graduating from the University of Sydney with first class honours. She has since been servicing the area for the past 15 years. In 2017, Dr Findy furthered her studies in animal behaviour with the University of Edinburgh, UK and graduated with a Masters degree in Clinical Animal Behaviour.

Let's Talk Paws Veterinary Behaviour Services was established with the goal of supporting human-animal relationships by providing owners with an understanding of behaviour from an animals' perspective and options for additional pharmaceutical support.

​Apart from seeing private patients, Dr Findy has extensive experience in shelter rehabilitation work and regularly provides her consultancy and post adoption services to RSPCA NSW and Greyhounds as Pets NSW.

This continued interest in post adoption support has motivated her to undertake a PhD candidature with the Psychology Department at the University of Sydney, researching the role and application of attachment styles in the rehoming of shelter dogs. ​

You can find out more about Findy Here

https://www.letstalkpaws.com.au/about-dr-findy.html

In this episode I’m joined by Jess Feliciano to look at how using food in training maybe more complicated than it seems! Off the back of her amazing presentation at Micheal Shikashios’ aggression in dogs conference, we discuss four main ways that’s treats might be the enemy! As well as the great friend we know they can be.

We look at

backward conditioning and poison cue

Oops moments

false sense of security

Reinforcement of undesirable behaviour

And how these four categories can affect our use of treats in shelter and rescue to maximise success.

About Jess

Jess started out her career by volunteering at a local, crowded shelter in NJ in 2004. She was immediately drawn to the aggressive and fearful dogs – the ones who sat in their cages because no one wanted to touch them. She wondered why the dogs acted that way and how she could change their behavior to make them more adoptable. From there, a passion grew.



Jess has continued to work as both a staff member and a volunteer at a number of different shelters and rescue groups in NJ and FL. In addition, she's worked in the veterinary field as a nurse since 2006. The combination of these two careers has allowed her to gain experience working with THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS of dogs of various breeds and personalities.



Her private training career started in 2006 where she continued her passion for working with aggressive and fearful dogs, particularly ones who were at risk of being euthanized. Although she loves all dogs (and all animals in fact, as she's vegan!) she holds a special place for nationally blacklisted breeds such as Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Wolf Hybrids, Pit Bulls, Akitas, Dobermans, Chow Chows, etc. These misunderstood dogs are the ones who need an advocate the most!

Links

Michael shikashio vip- https://aggressivedog.thinkific.com/bundles/the-aggression-in-dogs-ultimate-access-membership

Jess insta - https://www.instagram.com/rotndogtraining/

Jess website- https://rotndogrehab.wixsite.com/rotndogtraining