Pawdcast

In June 2013, MaryBeth Powers noticed a lump the size of a golf ball on her dog Teddy’s snout.  Only two days later she heard the words no pet owner wants to hear, it was cancer. ​Teddy had a sarcoma (a malignant tumor of connective or other nonepithelial tissue). The vet’s orders were to “keep him comfortable, he had only about two, maybe four weeks to live”.   As Marybeth recounts in this episod...

Boomer has been a fan of Lucky Dog Cuisine since he was a puppy 12 years ago.  In this episode of the PawsGo pawdcast, Karen chats with Dr. Janice Elenbaas, the founder of Lucky Dog Cuisine.  Lucky Dog Cuisine is a fresh, subscription-based dog food.  Long before there were countless “fresh” dog food ads filling our Facebook feeds, Lucky Dog was THE pioneer in fresh, healthy dog food.  It’s fair t...

We’ve discussed smiling leashes and leashes as equipment.  In this episode Karen and Jean chat with their friend Sandy Modell of Wholistic Hound Academy ( https://www.wholistichound.com/ ) about collars.  Collars are more than a stylish accessory.  Unfortunately, some owners and trainers use collars for correction and discipline.  Sandy shares that even the seemingly innocent vibrating e-collars c...

You can thank Boomer and Poppy for this episode of the PawsGo pawdcast featuring Shameless Pets upcycled dog and cat treats.  Karen purchased the Tooth Berry Dental Treats because she liked that they were healthy and made from surplus, castoff or ugly food.  Boomer and Poppy LOVED them.  A quick google search revealed that the Shameless Pet story was another great example of really smart dogtrepre...

This is a PawsGo pawdcast international edition featuring a conversation about the Smiling Leash Project-- https://www.smilingleash.com/       Lyubov Elupova of Bulgari, Ena Kobentar of Slovenia and Leticia Sanchez Moral of Spain met at European Dog Training School led by Turid Rugass - http://en.turid-rugaas.no/    Rugass is world renowned trainer and behaviorist – many of her techniques support...

For baseball fans, it’s the World Series; for football, it’s the Super Bowl; if movies are your passion, it’s the Oscars.  For dog lovers the top competition is the Westminster Dog Show.  In this episode of the PawsGo pawdcast, Jean and Karen chat with Kristina Shaw Whetzel, a breeder of champion Australian Shepherds and Becky Lueth, a champion handler, who has wrangled and guided more than one pr...

If you talk to your dog and SWEAR they understand what you’re saying – you will love this episode of the pawdcast.  Karen and Jean chat with Courtney Sexton, a doctoral research student in the George Washington University Department of Anthropology's Center for Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology and her research focused on canine communication.  Courtney recently launched the Dog Face Study...

In this episode of the pawdcast, Jean and Karen chat with Valerie Alfinito, a trainer who shifted her focus to creating handcrafted leather leashes and collars.  A true dogtrepreneur – Valerie founded Dog Sports Designs in the 1990s when her clients came to her training classes with bruised, cut and injured hands from their dog’s leashes. To Valerie, leashes aren’t an accessory – they should be co...

Our friend Andrew Hager, the Historian in Residence at the Presidential Pet Museum, returns to the pawdcast for a fun conversation about Presidential pets during the holidays – remember Barney Cam?  Dogs AND cats have been featured on White House Christmas cards, videos, and visits from Santa for decades.  Andrew shares some of his favorite White House holiday pet stories.  Karen, Jean and Andrew...

Kossi, a Greyhound Mix, Says 100 % Yes! In this episode of the Pawdcast, Karen and Jean chat with Teri Schultz, a freelance reporter for National Public Radio and Deutsche Welle. Based in Brussels, Belgium it was a story in Finland caught animal-lover Teri’s attention.  A project being overseen by the University of Helsinki using scent detection dogs to sniff out Covid 19 at Helsinki’s airport.  ...

In this episode of the pawdcast, Karen and Jean chat with Dr. Amanda Tinkle of the Dog Aging Project -- https://dogagingproject.org/ The Dog Aging Project (DAP) isn’t as much about old dogs as it is about how dogs age. This massive project is the first major longitudinal study involving dogs, and it's scheduled to last at least 10 years. DAP includes expert scientists and research veterinaria...

In this episode of the pawdcast, Karen and Jean chat with Chris Gabriel, owner of Nature's Nibbles, about what constitutes healthy dog food and what we as owners should be providing our dogs.  When you think about it, as owners, we have to make so many decisions for our dogs and their health.  Too often, too little thought goes into what we feed them, unless an issue develops.   Chris and his...

Puppies!!! Everyone loves puppies, and during this pandemic, it seems like EVERYONE is getting a puppy.  And why not?  The majority of us are still working from home or have an adjusted schedule.  And let’s be honest, few things in life are more joyful and uplifting than a puppy.  But puppies take work.  In this episode of the pawdcast, Jean and Karen chat with Kathy Callahan, a Certified Professi...

Based in Washington, D.C., People. Animals. Love. (PAL) was founded in 1982 by a local veterinarian.  It leverages the human animal bond to meet some of society’s most pressing needs in some very unique ways. PAL’s mission focuses on the benefits of animal companionship with mentally and physically ill patients, children in hospitals, and seniors in nursing homes. In this episode of the Pawdcast,...

In February, Jean and Karen scored press passes to the Westminster Dog Show and headed to New York City for the Westminster Kennel Club’s 144th  event and walked away huge fans.  Hugely inspiring and surprisingly accessible, the event is a MUST for any dog lover.  It's also the country's second oldest sporting event -- right behind the Kentucky Derby. In this episode of the Pawdcast, Jea...

You know who loves stay at home orders for humans?  DOGS!  You know who isn’t going to be thrilled when humans start going back to work?  DOGS!  Our friend Sandy Modell of Wholistic Hound Academy is back and we discuss ways to address separation anxiety in dogs, now -- before routines change again.  She provides simple exercises to get everyone on the right track.  The reality is, both humans and...

IF forced to come up with an unintended positive outcome of the COVID 19 pandemic, it’s probably the number of dogs and cats that are being fostered and adopted by stir crazy sheltering in place humans. In this episode, Karen and Jean chat (virtually) with Cara Sue Achterberg, an author and foster volunteer with Operation Paws for Homes (OPH), who literally wrote the book on fostering.  In Another...

In this absolutely DELIGHTFUL episode, Jean and Karen chat with Andrew Hager, the incredibly engaging and informative historian of record for the Presidential Pet Museum.  Full disclosure, the Presidential Pet Museum is currently closed for renovations. It was founded in 1999 as a means of preserving information, artifacts, and items related to the presidential pets. You can visit it virtually her...

It’s another episode on our favorite topic – Dog Behavior!  In this episode, Karen and Jean chat with Gwen Podulka of DogTrained, and learn all about a dog’s body language.  Did you know you can tell a lot about how your dog is feeling based on the way he wags his tail?  Yup!  There is tail wagging!  And there is TAIL WAGGING!!!!!  They mean different things and not always GOOD things. Learning th...

Who among us hasn’t seen the meme, t-shirt or said it out loud?  Who hasn’t had this thought --  If I won the lottery, I’d build a huge sanctuary and save all the dogs!! In this episode of the Pawdcast, Jean and Karen chat with Luisa Paucchi, the founder and president of Lu’s Labs.  Lu’s Labs is a five year old foster based Labrador Retriever rescue headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. Luisa did...

If anyone needs the comfort of a dog, it’s those of us that work full time!  Dogs are great stress relievers and enable us to get the exercise we need.  But no dog should be alone 8 hours (or more) a day while we are hard at work.  One could argue that the emergence of the dog walker as a business and profession has enabled more hard-working Americans to experience the joys of dog ownership, by pr...

A food truck for dogs? Yup, and not a truck that rolls up and hands out kibble.  Woofbowl serves up treats like burgers, fries and pho!  In this episode, Jean and Karen chat with the incredibly cool and extremely focused Ron and Solo.  Ron, a Navy veteran, suffers from PTSD.  He also has an MBA and is an author.  Solo’s family escaped Cambodia’s killing fields.  She fulfilled her parent’s wishes a...

We love smart women with big ideas that do good!  In this episode, Karen and Jean chat with Anne Tuccillo, founder of Pawfectly Delicious dog treats.  A federal employee ready for retirement, Anne was also growing concerned about limited employment opportunities for her adult son Bryan.  Bryan was aging out of special education services within his school district.   SURPRISE – their dog Friday led...

From Naval officer to Reiki Master to Animal Communicator, Maribeth Decker has had a very interesting career.  And as if taking care of her own dog and cats isn’t enough, Maribeth helps countless other humans communicate with their animals.  Jean and Karen chat with Maribeth about her gift as a communicator.  Maribeth helps adopted animals settle in their new home, humans understand their pet’s be...

Did you know that the federal government spending $15 billion annually on antiquated animal experimentation? White Coat Waste, a not for profit with a mission to end taxpayer-funded animal testing, is determined to expose this practice and end it. Board member Julie Germany and Vice President of Public Affairs, Justin Goodman stop by to share their victories, challenges, and expose some shocking g...