Training Without Conflict® | Dog Training Podcast

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Thirty-Four: Louis Donald If you are German Shepherd lover, this episode is for you! This week’s episode epitomizes the reason I started my podcast. I wanted to have in depth conversations and talk dogs with some of the most accomplished, knowledgeable, and interesting people on the planet. Louis Donald is one of the world’s foremost experts on the German...

Welcome to another Training Without Conflict podcast! In today's special episode, I’m honored to have with us Dr. David Mech, a globally recognized authority on wolf behavior. Dr. Mech's groundbreaking research has reshaped our understanding of these majestic creatures, but his work has often been misinterpreted, especially in the dog training community. For years, the concept of dominance in anim...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Thirty-Two: Dean Calderon I’m sure many of you have heard the term “dog boy” around certain dog training circles. Many people don’t know where that term came from, but this week, you will find out where it came from and why… My guest this week is self proclaimed “Dog Boy”, dog sport legend, and my friend Dean Calderon. Dean has some strong opinions that y...

This week on my podcast I had a conversation with the highly controversial trainer The Dog Daddy. While many of you might find this surprising or even potentially upsetting, my goal with my podcast is to allow all of you to learn about training methods and perspectives from trainers across the spectrum of dog training.  Although Dog Daddy has created quite a rift in the dog training space, I was i...

Training Without Conflict® Episode Thirty: Omar Von Muller In this episode, I had the pleasure to catch up and have a nice conversation with a long time friend, and trick dog master, Omar Von Muller. It is highly likely you have seen one of Omar's tricks in a viral video in the past or in a major Hollywood production. As a teenager, Omar trained dogs for friends and family. Omar also spent time tr...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-Nine: Edgar Scherkl This episode was a long time in the making. I was finally able to sit down with Edgar Scherkl to talk about Belgian Malinois, the history of Schutzhund, the German Korung, judging in competition, and the current situation in the IGP world community. The podcast is available now on YouTube, Apple Music, Spotify, and all other maj...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-Eight: Steve White The latest TWC podcast features guest Steve White. Steve is a seasoned expert in K9 units from the state of Washington, accredited as a Master Trainer in 1993. He is a key figure at major Police K9 conferences. In addition to his extensive career in police K9 units, Steve is also a prominent figure in the force-free training comm...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-Seven: Debbie Zappia Part Two In this episode, Ivan interviews the first returning guest of the TWC Podcast, Debbie Zappia. This episode features a deep dive into the sport of American Schutzhund. Ivan asks all the pertinent question to fully understand the inner workings of this burgeoning sport! Debbie has had a long, storied history in the sport...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-Six: Debbie Zapia In this episode, Ivan interviews the founder of American Schutzhund, Debbie Zappia. Debbie has had a long, storied history in the sport of Schutzhund, highlighted by her incredible accomplishment of winning the 2015 WUSV World Championship with her dog Iron Von Den Wölfen, becoming the first American AND the first woman to win the...

In this episode, Ivan had the pleasure to talk with one of the most respected IGP judges in the world, someone who understands the demands of the sport and looks at it from many different lenses, as a judge, competition, helper and simply as a dog man. This episode's guest is Hari Arčon, member of the FCI Utility Dog Commission, and FCI judge. In this episode, Hari Arčon gives an interesting take...

Training Without Conflict Podcast Episode Twenty-Four: Aimee Sadler In this episode, Ivan interviews long time friend and colleague Aimee Sadler. For those that don't know Aimee, she is the founder and CEO of Dogs Playing For Life, a rescue organization that prides themselves on redefining the meaning and importance of quality of life for all sheltered dogs by improving their experience through pl...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-Three: Jenifer Zeligs In this episode of the Training Without Conflict® Podcast, Ivan interviews a true expert in the field of animal training. This episode's guest is Dr. Jenifer Zeligs. Her experience in the field of animal training and animal learning cannot be overstated. She has been training species across the entire animal kingdom for over 4...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-Two: Dr. Stewart Hilliard In this episode, Ivan speaks to a true dogsport legend filled with a wealth of expertise and experience in the dog training world. This episodes very special guest is Dr. Stewart Hilliard. They discuss an array of fascinating topics about all aspects of dogs and dog training ranging from breeding and raising sport and work...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twenty-One: Mathias Dögel In this episode, Ivan had a chance to speak to long-time friend, highly respected dog sport competitor, founder and innovator of Working-Dog. Com, Mathias Dögel. This was a very fun conversation where they had an opportunity to catch up about current, past, and future dogs, as well as share stories about their experiences in dog...

In this episode, Ivan has a conversation with Jo-rosie Haffenden. When it comes to training, they stand on the opposite sides of the line in the sand. However, they were able to have a long conversation that took them all over the place. They both realized that they actually have more common training ideas than they expected! This is what a conversation between two dog trainers on the opposite sid...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Nineteen: Nick Benger Since my presentation on The Real Facts About Science Based Dog Training, I made a commitment to talk to dog trainers on all sides of the argument with the intent to make progress and find the way forward through the current divide in the dog training industry. Thankfully, a few force free trainers have stepped forward to have conver...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Eighteen: Jany Böhm Last month we had the privilege of working with Jany Böhm over a series of workshops at my place in Florida. During that time, we had truly amazing training, but more importantly got to know each other as friends. In this great conversation, we were able to discuss many things about IGP dogsport, helper work, past and future dogs, and...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Seventeen: Susan Garrett A few weeks ago I released a podcast challenging the rhetoric of the force free ideology. In a short time, we have already made significant progress. One of those examples of progress is Susan Garrett, a highly respected and well accomplished reinforcement based trainer reached out to me to train some dogs together. While that is...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Sixteen: Mia Skogster Recently, Mia visited us in Florida for 4 weeks to teach a seminar and have some great training with me and my team. We had an absolutely amazing conversation about our history in IGP, thoughts on Malinois breeding and selection, how our training approaches differ, the current state of IGP, how the dog training community needs to uni...

Training Without Conflict Podcast Episode Fifteen: Dr. Michael Perone In this episode, Ivan Balabanov takes a deep dive into the role of Operant Learning in animal behavior with Professor of Behavioral Analysis, Dr. Michael Perone. Dr. Perone has been actively involved in the experimental analysis of operant behavior for over 30 years. An area of ongoing concern is how to translate the concepts an...

The Real Facts About Science Based Dog Training: A Training Without Conflict® Podcast Arguments about dog training are reaching a boiling point and I decided it’s time for someone to take a significant stand against the constant propaganda and misinformation that gets spread through social media. Scientific research that starts with a conclusion and works backwards to prove it is a dangerous and u...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Fourteen: Michael Shikashio Recently, Ivan invited Michael Shikashio to the TWC podcast. Michael and Ivan may hold at times different opinions on dog training. However, they had a great, respectful conversation that explored these views and ideas. Is it possible to bring the dog training communities together, rather than increase the polarization? Both Iv...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Thirteen: Dr. Helmut Raiser Recently, Ivan spent sometime with Helmut Raiser and naturally they decided that they had to do a podcast. For those familiar with Schutzhund ( todays IGP) Helmut needs no introduction. For those who have not heard of him, he is one of the most influential trainers that popularized the Schutzhund in Germany and most of Europe i...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Episode Twelve: 3x PSA National Champion Janet Edwards In this episode, Ivan Balabanov interviews 2-time PSA 3 Handler, Janet Edwards. In addition to being a PSA 3 handler, Janet is also a well respected PSA judge, dog trainer, and teacher to dog trainers around the world. Throughout the episode they discuss the sport of PSA K9, the differences between PSA and th...

Training Without Conflict® Podcast Special Edition: The Seat Belt Analogy and Negative Reinforcement Earlier this year in one of Ivan's Facebook posts, he stated that the commonly used seat belt analogy is misleading and does not properly illustrate the concept of Negative Reinforcement. This podcast is a 30-minute excerpt from my Training Without Conflict® course lecture on Negative Reinforcement...