Pets & Animals

Every show filed under pets & animals, ranked by what listeners actually play.

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100% Aiko
Die Erste Woche
Vom ruhigen Einzug bis zum ersten Bad – so wild und überraschend begann unser Leben mit Husky Aiko.
Yesterday · 32 min
My Dog Is Better Than Your Dog
The Part of Pet Parenthood Nobody Prepares You For w/ Dr. Jenn Roedig
There is a moment almost every pet parent will face and almost nobody is prepared for it. You are sitting with your dog and it hits you. We are getting closer to the end. And then comes the flood. The emotions. The questions you did not know how to ask. The guilt you did not see coming. The decisions that feel impossible because you are making them for someone who cannot tell you what they want. Dr. Jenn Roedig is a licensed veterinarian and the founder of Sage Paws, a virtual practice built entirely around supporting pet parents through their animal's aging, illness, and end of life. She has guided over 500 families through this space. And two months before we recorded this conversation, she lost her own dog Luke unexpectedly the night before Easter to a ruptured splenic mass. She shares that story in this episode. It is raw and it is real. We talk about guilt, probably the most common emotion pet parents carry, and what is actually underneath it. We talk about anticipatory grief, the kind that starts weeks or months before the loss when nobody around you understands why you are already mourning. And we talk about how to know when it is time, and why you will know is not always a good enough answer. Dr. Lily also shares something personal in this one. She lost her heart dog in 2020 and still carries pieces of that ending with her. KEY INSIGHTS: ✨ Guilt is probably the most common emotion pet parents experience around end of life and it is almost never talked about openly because pet loss is grief that society does not fully recognize. Guilt loves isolation. It feeds on silence. ✨ Naming it is the first step to moving through it. Dr. Jenn calls it naming it to tame it. Once you can see what is underneath the guilt, you start to take your power back. ✨ Saying you will know when it is time is not always helpful. It depends on the disease, the pet, the family's values, and what too soon or too late means to each person. ✨ Look at good hours, not just good days. A day can be called good but if it only had four good hours and twenty bad ones, that matters. Quality of life is nuanced and individual to every pet and every family. ✨ Notice what they stop disliking, not just what they stop liking. Dr. Jenn's dog Luke used to bark at delivery drivers. She knew that if that ever stopped, something was really wrong. ✨ Anticipatory grief is real and it is disenfranchised. Nobody around you may understand why you are already grieving a pet that is still alive. You are not alone in that and you do not have to carry it alone. ✨ Journaling or voice noting your thoughts for ten minutes a day can help break the spiral. Getting it out of your head and onto paper gives it somewhere to live so it stops consuming you at 3am. ✨ The best time to have these conversations is before you need them. Families who plan ahead, even loosely, are more prepared to make meaningful decisions under pressure. ✨ Dr. Jenn's sessions are 90 minutes and completely virtual. She works with pet parents anywhere in the world. ✨ Vets are not trained for these conversations in vet school. A resource like Sage Paws does not replace the veterinarian. It fills the gap the vet does not have time to fill. RESOURCES: Sage Paws: https://www.sagepaws.com/ Instagram: @_sage_paws Sessions: 90 minutes, virtual, available worldwide Linktr.ee: @sagepaws FOLLOW:Integrative Pet Wellness Center: https://integrativepet.com/ Instagram: @integrativepet Threads: @integrativepet Sign up to our newsletter to get more holistic pet care tips 🐶🐈‍⬛ Dr. Lily Chen: Instagram: @dr.lilychen @the.unicorn.vet Threads: @the.unicorn.vet LinkedIn: Lily Chen, DVM, CVA
Yesterday · 1 hr
The Instinctive Australian Shepherd
Don't Get Squished: 4 Rules for Safe, Well-Controlled Livestock
This week on The Instinctive Australian Shepherd, we're talking about something that doesn't get talked about enough: safety when you're working livestock. Jacque opens with the story of a dear student who was hit by two sheep and ended up with two broken knees and an ankle — months off her feet and surgery, all because the sheep ran into her while working. It is a wake-up call: as instructors, we owe our students, their dogs, and ourselves better than "hope it doesn't happen." Jacque walks through her four non-negotiable rules for safe, well-controlled livestock: No part of their head touches you. From the nose to the pole, a sheep or cow's head is never allowed to come in contact with your body — and when it does, it's not an accident. It's dominance, it's dangerous, and that animal needs to go (or get penned where it can't hurt anyone). She shares the story of a beautiful show ram that turned aggressive and went straight to the sale barn — life is too short to get bashed around. They don't run through gates. Gates are the most dangerous place on any ranch or farm. Stock that bolts through a gate needs to learn — with the dog covering heads and turning them back — that the gate is not their escape. Run the lesson three or four times and they'll walk out quiet. When the dog stops, they stop. Controlled livestock understand pressure and release. If your stock keeps running when the dog takes the pressure off, they're being chased, not controlled. Be reasonable. Cull the crazy ones. Calm genetics make safer cows and safer sheep — and they raise calmer babies. Keep one or two hard ones for advanced students and difficult-stock practice, but never keep anything dangerous. Plus: why she uses lambs for beginner lessons, why she discourages dogs from heeling cows (there's no steering in the heel — the head is where the control happens), why cows get "kicky" when heeled, and why dog-broke sheep are worth every penny if you're starting out. www.theinstinctiveaussie.com www.stockdogtrainer.com
Yesterday · 39 min
Soul Touched by Dogs
Therapy Dogs and Model Dogs: How Your Dog's Hidden Gifts Can Heal Others with Susan Hartzler
Prefer video? Watch on youtube. Therapy dogs visit hospitals, schools, and nursing homes — but what does it actually take to build that kind of partnership with your dog? Susan Hartzler has been doing therapy dog work for 26 years, and in this conversation, she shares what she's learned about helping dogs and their people bring comfort, connection, and healing to communities. It's a glimpse into a world most of us only see from the outside — and a reminder of just how much dogs give when we learn to work alongside them. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN The difference between service dogs, emotional support dogs, and therapy dogs — and why understanding those distinctions matters if you're considering any kind of working role with your dog How to recognize whether your dog has the temperament for therapy work, and what training foundation they need before stepping into hospitals, schools, or other settings Why therapy dog work is as much about the human as it is the dog — and what it takes to be a calm, present partner at the other end of the leash What happens when a dog intuitively knows what someone needs, and how to follow your dog's lead rather than override it The science-backed benefits of spending time with dogs — from lowering cortisol to calming panic attacks — and how to tap into those intentionally, not just accidentally How Susan taught her dogs to wear hats and sunglasses (and why that skill actually matters in therapy and modeling work) What it's like when your dog becomes both a therapy dog and a professional actor — and how those two worlds surprisingly overlap A FAVOURITE MOMENT "He actually knew what each person needed, and I was just kind of his facilitator at the end of the leash." — Susan ABOUT SUSAN HARTZLER Susan Hartzler is an award-winning writer and passionate advocate for the human-animal bond. For the past 26 years, she and her pack have volunteered as certified therapy dog teams, visiting hospitals, schools, libraries, nursing homes, and community organizations across the country. Her newest book, Teaming Up with Therapy Dogs: Skills to Build Healing Partnerships, offers practical guidance for aspiring therapy dog teams, blending training insights with real stories from the field. She's also the author of two memoirs — I'm Not Single, I Have a Dog: Dating Tales from the Bark Side and The Peace Puppy: A Memoir of Caregiving and Canine Solace — and the creator of BlissDog, a Substack publication exploring the healing power of dogs. Her current pack, Seven and Paige Turner, aren't just therapy dogs — they're also professional actors and models. CONNECT WITH SUSAN HARTZLER Website: susanhartzler.com Substack: blissdog.substack.com Facebook: facebook.com/Blissdog and facebook.com/SevenForPresident YouTube: youtube.com/@SusanHartzler LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/susanhartzler CONNECT WITH SOUL TOUCHED BY DOGS To find out more about Soul Touched by Dogs, visit soultouchedbydogs.com And if you're a dog lover who wants community, trusted expert resources and coaching to create a calmer, happier, healthier life with your dog, come find us at planetcalm.co - the Ultimate Hub for dogs, the people who love them.
Yesterday · 29 min