Pick of the Litter Podcast
It can be really hard to know which dog training advice to trust. That why we hope you’ll join us – trainers Mike Tomai from Furry Face Dog Training, and Kathy Callahan from PupStart – as we discuss the best ideas out there. These are the tips and techniques that really make humans and their dogs happier together. Each episode will give listeners three things: something simple to try, a key concept to think about, and a big name to trust. So, if you get overwhelmed by all the conflicting voices on the internet, we think you’re going to like this conversation, because we’ve done the work for you: we’ve already found the pick of the litter
Listen on:
About Us
Kathy Callahan-
//www.puppypicks.com/
Mike Tomai-
//furryfacedogtraining.com/
Episodes
Thursday Sep 07, 2023
Thursday Sep 07, 2023
Do you ever think that you and your dog aren't communicating very well? You can get much better at it! Dr. Patricia McConnell's work as a zoologist and an applied animal behaviorist been groundbreaking in helping people to understand canine body language — and how our own primate-style body language confuses our dogs, and weakens our relationship. In this episode, we use McConnell's classic book "The Other End of the Leash" as a jumping off point, discussing all the simple things you can do to improve communication between yourself and your dog. As the episode continues, we delve into McConnell's fascinating research on vocalizations between species — if you want your dog to come quickly, then don't use one long slow note to call! — and then finish with a more abstract conversation on the complex issue of "dominance."
NOTES
Patricia McConnell is a delightful speaker, and we highly suggest that you search her out on your podcast app! She has been a guest on:
Drinking from the Toilet
Pod to the Rescue
The Bitey End of the Dog
Monday Jun 26, 2023
Monday Jun 26, 2023
If you’ve heard of clicker training but you’re not quite sure what it is, this episode is for you. “Clicker training” has become shorthand for positive reinforcement training, and marine mammal behaviorist Karen Pryor is credited with bringing this incredibly effective technique to the dog training world. Here, we talk about Pryor's classic book “Don’t Shoot The Dog,” and cover why, how and when to use a clicker.
Friday Mar 17, 2023
Friday Mar 17, 2023
In this episode, we focus on the work of dog trainer and behaviorist Leslie McDevitt. Her deceptively simple pattern games are huge favorites with our clients for good reason: they’re easy to use, and they work. We cover our favorites, explaining how to do them, when to use them, and why we love them: The Up-Down Game, Ping-Pong, 1-2-3, Go & Come Game, Look & Sniff Game, and Look At That
Sunday Feb 05, 2023
Sunday Feb 05, 2023
We’re going to kick things off by introducing you to the work and wisdom of Kathy Sdao. Not only does she have an overall philosophy that we’d love to burn into the hearts and brains of our clients, but she also came up with our very favorite training exercise, the one we both use with almost every client, called SMART x 50, which we’ll explain in this episode