124. Fourth of July Pet Safety, Understanding Dog Behavior & Caring for Giant Breeds

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Pets Ad Life, your guide to the latest in pet trends, products and the joy of the human animal bond with Kristen Levine and me, Chris Bonafati, powered by the American Pet Products Association and dog TV. Hello and welcome to another episode of Pets Ad Life. I am one of your hosts, Chris Bonafati, and joining me is a $2.50 slice of pizza and crisp can of Coca-Cola, Kristen Levine. Kristen, how are we doing today?

Speaker 2 (00:30):
That sounds delicious. I'm doing great. Happy summertime.

Speaker 1 (00:34):
Yes, it is summer. The kids are out of school. They are hogging up the pizzeria lines. They're all in the deli at weird hours of the day. That's the worst.

Speaker 2 (00:45):
Yes. I know it. I know it.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
Wait in line for your sandwiches. Yeah. And spoiler alert, I've got some content all lined up for those cat owners who may have some concerns. I've got maybe - Awesome. Rumor has it. I may have a 4th of July related store. Rumor has it. I may have an anxiety oriented product of the week, but I mean, you're just going to have to keep the dial situated directly on Pal to find out.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
That's right. And we got some awesome guests too, but I'm not going to tell you who they are. No,

Speaker 1 (01:16):
You're going to have to stick around to find out. And guess what? Grayson is going to be one years old.

Speaker 2 (01:22):
Ooh, that's right.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
July. Yeah, he's right around. I'm not going to reveal his actual birthday, but it's right around the 4th of July. So happy birthday too. Happy birthday, Grayson. The greatest little terror. I'm staring at a pile of eggs right over there. There's just a pile of cold eggs that I didn't have time to clean up before hopping into recording. So having a child is amazing. We find eggs in interesting places. It's one of his favorite foods and he's got that squirrel tendency where he'll sort of keep it in his hand or in his mouth and then pull it out in a place where there should not be eggs.

Speaker 2 (02:05):
And you're lucky because if you had a dog, he'd probably be feeding the dog the eggs. And you wouldn't have a pile of eggs sitting there anywhere.

Speaker 1 (02:12):
But anyway, gross. Yeah. Speaking of gross, let's transition directly into story time. Kristen and Chris present story time. Sure. I will kick us off and I've got a nice little roundup article here from The Dodo on some precautions you could take to keep your cat safe on the 4th of July. I think we often think about dogs because I would say all, but I would say a huge majority of dogs are indoors and outdoors. But people forget about cats because a lot of cats nowadays are indoor cats and they think, oh, I don't really have to do anything special. The cat's going to be scared, but they'll be fine. The thing is a lot of cats get lost on 4th of July. They'll find a way that they'll beam straight through that screen door. They'll jump out of the window. They'll do things that are uncharacteristic of their usual behavior because they're scared.

(03:12):
So I'm going to talk about some products later and I've always talked about things like having a safe space for your cat. So we're going to blow through those and we're going to go into some more specific things that you really should be doing. The first is having your cat microchipped.This is the biggest thing because a scaredy cat who runs away is going to want to be found. Once things calm down and it's the morning of July 5th, they're going to be wandering neighborhoods wanting to be found. And if your cat is microchipped, if somebody brings them into a vet, they're going to be able to get your contact information. If you do use a physical collar and tags on your cat, if you haven't looked at them recently, check. Even if you have like a stainless steel or silicone tag that's high quality, they're going to wear over time.

(03:59):
And if you can't read your contact information on that tag, guess what? Somebody else isn't going to be able to either. And make sure you have a recent picture of your pets at all times. It's great if you're going to make your own lost photo, but we've talked to a few different platforms that help reconnect pet parents with their lost pets. And oftentimes what we hear is recent photo, good photo, clear photo, high resolution photo. Those things are all incredibly helpful with locating your pets. So keep your cat inside. If they're an outdoor cat, bring them back inside for 4th of July. Keep them nice and calm, get them all set up in their safe space. I'm going to be going over a nice little product that you could use, but there's all sorts of things that we'll talk about. And of course, head on over to Kristen's lovely Pet Anxiety Awareness website where there's all sorts of resources where you could read more.

Speaker 2 (05:00):
Awesome. I'm so glad that you brought that up about cats because the 4th of July, all of the attention around pet safety is focused on dogs. And for good reason, because about half of dogs have some degree of noise phobia. But I'm really glad that you addressed that cats actually can be afraid of noises as well. And like you said, July 5th, I don't know if you said this specifically, but a lot of pets go missing around the July 4th holiday. Back in the day when I worked in the animal shelter world, July 5th was the busiest day of the year for lost and found intake. So yeah, I will just echo. I'm going to copy your story except for dogs. If you haven't seen Dr. Radas's amazing video on our pet anxiety awareness content, which you can find on any of the dog TV channels, you can find it on the website that Chris mentioned.

(05:55):
She breaks it down really well. And I'll just give you a quick synopsis. Basically the best way to prepare your dog or your dogs for the July 4th and specifically fireworks, which as we know, start before the fourth in most neighborhoods. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. So it's a good idea to get your pet some sufficient exercise earlier in the day before it gets too hot. You even stay indoors if it's really hot and do some brain games, some puzzle toys, just kind of tire them out and then get them into a room that they enjoy or a quiet space that they enjoy with their favorite bed, their favorite toys, maybe a Kong with some peanut butter in it. You'll want to put on some ambient sounds like dog TV, for example, that would be the best choice because not only do you have the audio, but you have the video that's specifically designed to engage dogs.

(06:47):
You can also use some music or white noise and keep an eye on them. Don't take them outside. Don't take them to any festivities because you want to avoid them escaping. Like you said, Chris, make sure they've got an up-to-date microchip and a tag on their collar with accurate information. And if you can, if somebody can stay home with the dog or dogs, just keep an eye on them. Make sure they're comfortable. And in the cases where you have a dog that has a problematic fear of noises where they start to panic or pant or try to escape, it's not too late to call the vet and to try to get in to see the vet before the holiday because in some cases, your dog may benefit from medication. And I know for my dog, Chili, that was a game changer for him. He was able to exist calmly through noise events and we only used it when we needed it.

(07:44):
So there you go.

Speaker 1 (07:46):
And this is going to be 4th of July too, because it's the 250th.

Speaker 2 (07:49):
250. I

Speaker 1 (07:50):
Can imagine that every place that does explosions in the sky will be doing them extra big this year.

Speaker 2 (07:59):
For sure.

Speaker 1 (08:00):
Take care of those furry friends. Remember, they don't understand the concept of fireworks. They don't know it's for fun. So be extra careful this year. Beyond the leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professionalism. And joining us now is Kim Brophy, an applied ethologist, ethologist, ethologist. It's something like that. Certified dog behavior consultant and the founder of Family Dog Mediation, an educational framework that helps people better understand and resolve challenges with their dogs through the lens of modern behavioral science. She's the author of Meet Your Dog: The Game Changing Guide to Understanding Your Dog's Behavior, creator of the dog LEGS Legs Model and host of the podcast, Your Dog's Not Broken, where she explores canine behavior, welfare, genetics and the evolving relationship between humans and dogs. Coming out of Asheville, North Carolina, Kim spent more than 20 years in canine behavior, welfare and education.

(09:01):
She's become a leading voice advocating for a deeper, more scientifically informed relationship between humans and dogs through her writing, lectures, courses and public speaking. So having her on this show is an obvious choice. Kim, thank you so much for taking some time to hop on the pod.

Speaker 3 (09:18):
Yeah. Thanks for inviting me. I'm glad to be here.

Speaker 1 (09:21):
Of course. So let's jump right into it. Yo often say that many behavioral problems begin with misunderstanding dogs themselves. So hot question right out of the gate. What do most people fundamentally get wrong about their dogs on a day-to-day basis?

Speaker 3 (09:38):
Yeah. I'd say the big umbrella that many smaller things fall under is the fact that we haven't really been told that we're letting the dog out of the bag here, but that dogs are captive animals. We're growing up in a really interesting time in history where just in the last few decades, dogs have gone from having a lot more agency. I mean, I grew up in Atlanta, major city in the '70s and '80s, and the dogs were still loose and they were our family companions. And they've lost an extreme amount of agency and freedom just in the last 20 years or so. And so like any other captive species of animal that has welfare problems associated with it when they aren't getting to engage in all these natural behaviors that are specific to their species. And so a lot of the things that are perfectly normal and baked into the cookie of who dogs are, we find really frustrating in pet conditions where they are heavily restricted.

(10:30):
The dogs are struggling, therefore the people are struggling. And maladaptive behavior is actually evidence of fundamental welfare problems in animal welfare science. And it's just not a lens that we've been looking through as an industry or a society.

Speaker 2 (10:46):
Kim, I was so excited to talk to you today. I watched your TED Talk last night when I was prepping for the show. And I think it's something that anybody listening to this interview, you definitely want to go check out Kim's TED Talk because it really opened my eyes. And when I was thinking about the dogs that I've had, several of them were Labradors and they were always enjoyed meeting new people and being petted by new people. But the last two dogs I've had, when people approach them, they pull back, their ears go back and they're not inviting of that affection. And it just kind of made me realize that every dog is different and isn't accustomed to human behavior because they're dogs for goodness sakes. So could you talk to us a little bit about that?

Speaker 3 (11:35):
Yeah. I think we've kind of like positioned dogs to be, oh, they're man's best friend. And so we have these ideas that we've popularized in society. All dogs love belly rubs. All dogs love playing with balls. They love going for walks. They like meeting new people. And then you have that standard of the Golden Retriever, your Labrador example. And many dogs do like all of those things, but dogs are a lot more complicated than that. And so we have these kind of poster children for what most people want or think about what they want when they're getting a dog. And then the idea that most people in the public have is that we're going to train all the dogs to conform to that really rigid expectation. But there's a lot of different types of dogs. And frankly, most of them were not specifically bred for that level of excessive sociability with people.

(12:24):
They're all genetically domesticated to various degrees, but many of them, particularly the less domesticated breeds, so the Asian, the natural breeds, the Nordic breeds, things like that. They're going to be a little bit closer to their wild ancestors and have a little bit more reticence about being frankly fondled by people they've never met before, which many of us can probably relate to too, unless we're really humanical.

(12:47):
Yeah. So I think teaching the public that there's a lot of different kinds of dogs. It's not all how you raise them with any other species nor with dogs. There's all of these different factors of nature and nurture that are collaborating together to result in who your dog is. And instead of trying to mold them to meet our expectations, we got to meet them where they are and respect them for that.

Speaker 1 (13:09):
Yeah, absolutely. I love that. And you've created this dog. Do you say dog legs or dog L-E-G-S? How do you say it? I've only read it, so I'm not sure.

Speaker 3 (13:19):
Yeah. Everyone says legs. Yeah, because it's easy to remember everyone knows dogs have four legs, right?

Speaker 1 (13:24):
Yes. So you developed this model to help people better understand their dogs. And I think everybody who's listening to a podcast like this wants to have that deeper relationship with their dog. So can you give us the short version of the dog legs model?

Speaker 3 (13:40):
Yeah, sure. Absolutely. So essentially it's the breakdown of a nerdy little concept in science called a phenotype, which is the interaction of that genotype with the elements of the environment and learning and the experiences that the individual has. But phenotype is a really sticky word and not one that's easy for most people to remember. And it also doesn't really tell us what are the stones we need to remember to look under. So legs kind of breaks that down for us as the pieces of the puzzle that contribute to our dog's behavior and who they are. First being learning, that's the L. Second being environment, that's the E. Third being genetics, that's the G. And then fourth being self, that's the S. And that's the internal condition. So whereas the environment is the external conditions in a dog's life, internal conditions, sex, age, health, nutrition, disability, injury, personality, all of that stuff, that's that S piece.

(14:31):
And all of those things contribute to who our dog is. So a lot of times, people will come to folks that work with behavior and say, "Train my dog to blah, blah, blah." As if all there is this big fat L, right? And maybe some of these S pieces of, okay, they're two years old and they're a male and whatever. But if they're not really thinking about this really critical relationship for all their species between the organism and their habitat, right? So you have a niche and an ecosystem, this relationship of the genetics and the environment, that's the elemental bit that breaks down for animals and captivity most importantly, because they're not in the environment that they were genetically designed for. They're effectively fish out of water. And that's where actually most of the problems modern dogs are having with their families are rooted today.

Speaker 2 (15:17):
Yeah. And speaking of the problems that dogs are having with their families, let's talk a little bit about behaviors. So a lot of dog parents think that behaviors like barking or reactivity or destructive chewing are just bad behavior, but how should we be reframing those behaviors and what can we learn from them?

Speaker 3 (15:34):
Ooh, I'm so glad you asked that because actually we have this huge rollout July 1st for a number of things. Our new website, our app that's been in development for the last two years will be coming out with the public release of the ethhogram that's related to that. And essentially the answer to your question around all of that is no one's ever really outlined for us as an industry or the public what are all those natural, normal dog behaviors that not only we should expect to see, but it's actually our job to promote. Nobody has ever told us that. You go to zoos, you see these really interesting enrichment features that are designed to promote certain behaviors in those captive animals. And it's our duty to do the same thing for our dogs because technically whether we like it or not, we're their keepers. So your examples there, like being destructive, let's say shredding something, right?

(16:23):
Dissecting something. You're talking about an animal that in their evolutionary roots would need to do that in order to pull apart the carcass that they might have found that they took down to enjoy for dinner together. You talk about alert barking. That's not only a natural canine behavior for alerting other social members of potential opportunities or threats. It's actually something we humans artificially selected for. So we put gasoline on that genetic fire and said, "Hey, please let us know when the wolves and the bears are coming because then it might save our hide." So we have to think about the context of those natural behaviors and realize that they're not misbehavior. They're not bad behavior for us to come in and train away. That's kind of trying to erase the biological integrity of that dog. It's really our job to figure out in what capacity can I promote it?

(17:13):
It doesn't mean just because rooting is a natural dog behavior, it has to be in your garbage can. It can be in a toy basket. It could be in all kinds of other enrichment things that we can then design and provide for them to give them a healthy outlet for the behavior that doesn't drive us nuts.

Speaker 1 (17:28):
Yeah. I really appreciate the points that you're making. And this episode is actually airing during pet anxiety awareness month. So I wanted to ask, people are seeing a lot more anxious symptoms in their dogs nowadays. Does this all relate? Is this all sort of part of that same problem in your opinion?

Speaker 3 (17:50):
100%. So I'll give you just kind of like a quick visual. Imagine you have two circles and they're meant to overlap. That's the genetics in the environment I was talking about a second ago for every organism. They're meant to be like a key to a log. What happens in captivity is that you have these two circles with a little bit of overlap in the middle where the environment is working for that genetic organism, but then on both sides you have the stuff that doesn't naturally fit. On one side, you have the natural behaviors that are highly frustrated with no place to go. That can create a lot of issues like reactivity, destructiveness, frustration, rooted behaviors, et cetera. On the other side, which is the answer to your question, you have all of the new problems in the environment that the animal is not biologically prepared to solve.

(18:36):
And that is a terrifying feeling. That's kind of like if you got thrown in headfirst in the deep end of a pool of a totally new culture or situation you knew nothing about, it's a really scary experience. And there's a lot of things about our modern world, it having changed so much in the last hundred years that dogs are not remotely genetically adapted to nor are they equipped to understand or navigate. And so we have chronic anxiety issues in the modern pet dog population for frankly both of those reasons, but particularly that second circle set of factors.

Speaker 1 (19:09):
So absolutely amazing stuff, Kim. So we got a wrap here, but you mentioned you have some awesome stuff coming out July 1st. Where can our listeners go find that material?

Speaker 3 (19:21):
Yeah. So it'll be out. The new website will be up July 1st, but if they happen to hear this before then, then they're welcome to go to the existing one and just see good information that'll be even better soon. But it's familydogmediation.com. And we not only have a lot of our information there and courses for dog professionals, which is kind of our primary audience is educating and raising the bar for the entire industry, but we've got tons of resources for the general public, all kinds of free things that they can access there. There's also a directory of certified and licensed family dog mediators so they can see if they can find someone in their own community to help them approach behavior issues or just best living with their dogs in this way.

Speaker 1 (20:03):
That's amazing. Kim, this was awesome. I know you've got some awesome ongoing research. I think we're going to have to have you back on when some of that concludes and hear some of the results because this is some really interesting stuff, a really amazing way to view our relationship with our animals in this modern world. So thank you for taking some time out of your busy schedule. I'm sure join us for a few minutes today.

Speaker 3 (20:26):
Yeah. Again, thanks so much for having me and I'm happy to come back if that works out.

Speaker 1 (20:33):
That was some really interesting stuff. I've really never framed my way of thinking about dogs like that.

Speaker 2 (20:39):
I know. It's intuitive. We were talking after the interview and she said, I wish we could train less on dog more.

Speaker 1 (20:49):
Yeah. Train less dog more. Yeah. I really just think like there are so many different perspectives on how to influence dog's behavior. And I love that we're actively researching these things. We have people like Kim and all around trying different things and measuring those results. So I was serious. We'll have Kim back on eventually when there's more information.

Speaker 2 (21:14):
I'm going to have coffee with her because she's just 20 minutes away.

Speaker 1 (21:18):
Lucky. Nobody ever lives in Connecticut. It's literally just me. The only person who lives in Connecticut.

Speaker 2 (21:28):
Sarah McLain is the co-founder of The Big Damn Dog Company. It's a company focused on creating health and wellness products specifically designed for giant breed dogs. Inspired by her great Dane Lucy, Sarah and her husband Jared launched the company after struggling to find a joint supplement that was properly formulated for dogs over a hundred pounds. Their research driven... Blah, blah, blah. Their research driven journey led the... Oh my goodness. Their research driven journey led to the creation of Giant Breed Hip and Joint, a supplement designed to address the unique mobility and inflammation challenges faced by these giant breed dogs. Sarah's also the winner of this year's Pet Innovation Lab competition. I was one of the judges at Global Pet Expo, and that's where her team earned top honors for creating the best marketing campaign in the pet industry. The story behind the competition and the participating brands are going to premiere this summer as a new dog TV series.

(22:26):
Welcome, Sarah.

Speaker 4 (22:28):
Thank you so much for having me. I'm thrilled to be here.

Speaker 2 (22:33):
Oh, it's great to see you again. I know you used that fabulous marketing expertise for your own brand. I just thought I'd kick off the interview by asking you to take us way back to when you had that first veterinary visit that sparked this idea in your mind.

Speaker 4 (22:54):
Absolutely. I think some of the best ideas come from when we face the problem ourselves. And that was our story. We had Lucy, she was a great Dane that I had adopted at about two, two and a half. And the first vet visit, our vet was very adamant that joint care was something that was going to be really important for her and her longevity. And so of course we took her advice and all of the products at the time, this was back in 2019, none of them were actually built for a dog her size. Our vet's top recommendation, the dosing said for dogs 60 pounds and over, give one chew. Lucy was 120. So what, do we just double it? How do I know that that's safe? How do I know that she's still getting enough? And that was really that kickoff point of like, you know what?

(23:47):
There really isn't anything that's actually designed with these dogs in mind. And unfortunately they're the ones that need it the most. So it was really out of that necessity of being that dog mom that just wants the very best for her own that led to the creation of the product.

Speaker 1 (24:03):
Yeah. I want to dive into that a little bit on, for those who don't know, most people don't have these big dogs, but I'm sure everybody, at least my generation grew up watching Scooby-Doo and was like, "One day I'm going to have a great Dane as well." They're obviously incredibly challenging but rewarding animals, but what is it about a giant sized dog that requires this type of attention towards supplements?

Speaker 4 (24:30):
Yeah. Great question. I think the best way to look at it is that these dogs require the same care as any other dog, but everything you do matters more because their bodies are under so much more stress just by existing. If you get into a 200 pound mastiff, that body is under a very different kind of strain than a 40 pound dog. They also, their bodies age faster. They do have shorter lifespans. So all of the issues that smaller dogs face, they face sooner and to a harsher degree. So it's really taking that approach of everything we're doing to give them the best care possible is more important because everything is just a little bit more compact in that timeline and the impact is just greater.

Speaker 2 (25:27):
Yeah. That's a really great point. I don't know that it's a different way to think about it. When you have a giant breed dog that has a shorter lifespan, everything matters more. Everything from what you're feeding them to their lifestyle to certainly their supplements matters more. You had mentioned that Lucy showed dramatic improvement after starting your supplements. What kind of changes did you notice?

Speaker 4 (25:52):
Yes. So what we had seen, the biggest difference we had seen was when she would have those play dates and just be a little extra rough and a little extra activity than normal, she would always come back stiff and sore for a day or two. You'd really kind of notice that hitch in her get up a little bit, especially in her shoulder. And she was only four or five at the time. She was not a senior dog, but that's how early it can really start. And after we had started her on the high dose supplement, all of that went away. We didn't see any more stiffness after those more extreme days of play. So that was the first big indicator of like, okay, there's something here that these dogs just really do need a different approach. So she was the one that really first demonstrated that to us and then it just really evolved from there.

Speaker 1 (26:43):
Absolutely. Yeah. I think that's a great message. And we have a couple more minutes, so I want to change gears to Global Pet Expo. Yo participated in and won the Marketing Innovation Lab at this year's Global Pet Expo. We've got some footage dog TVs coming out with a whole documentary about the process, but I wanted to just ask you about to reflect on the experience overall and maybe what you feel like. And for those of you who don't know, this was a competition hosted at Global Pet Expo where a bunch of elite marketeers came up with a marketing campaign for some of our non-for-profit partners. And Sarah did an amazing job. Kristen was a judge. I was in the audience. So we have firsthand information that this was all high quality stuff. So what was the experience like for you? And why do you think, not why do you think you won, but what makes a good marketing campaign in today's modern pet industry?

Speaker 4 (27:37):
Sure. It was an incredible experience. We had an absolute blast. I think it was really fun for us as the competitors to step out of our day-to-day. We're so used to marketing our business or our industry to big dogs. To step out of that and be able to aply all of that to something that was totally new to us. So it really, really was a lot of fun. It was a thought exercise in a lot of ways for us. I think what made our pitch land was we really grounded it in the difference that pets make. All of the nonprofits that were part of that day were incredible, are incredible and equally deserving of winning the prize. I think what we did specifically was we made it very tangible the difference that our nonprofit was making, the pets that we're making in the lives of the students in our case.

(28:40):
I think that's in this industry, pets are more than pets to all of us. They are family, they are life changing. And we demonstrated that I think in just a little bit more of a profound way with the storytelling that we included and just bringing that home. Pets are just, they're everything to a lot of us and they change a lot of lives every day. So that is a thing I think that carries through to all of our marketing for sure, but for this one in particular.

Speaker 2 (29:16):
Yeah. Well, I really enjoyed judging the competition. You're right. All of the organizations were highly deserving, but you won for pets in the classroom. So they got a financial award and they're going to put that toward executing on the campaign that you developed. Is that correct? Is that how that works?

Speaker 4 (29:36):
Yes, that is correct. We're really excited to see what they do with it. I think there's any number of ways they could take it. Just any nonprofit that has an influx of cash that they can then use. They're a very deserving organization. Yes, $10,000 can go a long way for a nonprofit. And for them, I think the reach that they'll be able to obtain... Gain by putting that money to good use. We're excited to se what comes from it and how it can help spread their message and grow their programs.

Speaker 1 (30:09):
Me too. It's one of my favorite programs and I think it's severely underutilized. So thank you for the effort you put in. I think it's going to help a lot. We are at our time, Sarah. So thank you so much for taking some time today. It was amazing being able to talk to you about your unique journey and the marketing innovation lab. And thank you for paying attention to these damn big dogs.

Speaker 2 (30:33):
Or big damn

Speaker 4 (30:33):
Dogs.

Speaker 1 (30:35):
The big dogs. We appreciate it.

Speaker 4 (30:39):
As long as you get the curve in there, we're fine.

Speaker 2 (30:42):
Yeah, exactly. Real quick, Sarah, tell us where we can learn more information about the big damn dog company.

Speaker 4 (30:48):
Yeah. Just look us up online. The name's pretty unique. So we're on all the social channels.

Speaker 1 (30:53):
Search it, you'll find it.

Speaker 4 (30:54):
Yeah. You'll find us. All of our social channels, all the website. We do do a lot of education. That's a huge, something that's really important to us to educate about what it looks like to be a responsible guardian for these dogs. So we've got a blog, we've got a bulletin, so much information that we put out just to help you live better for these dogs. So yeah, definitely join the community, reach out. We'd love to have you.

Speaker 1 (31:20):
Awesome. Awesome.

Speaker 4 (31:20):
Well,

Speaker 1 (31:20):
Thank you so much.

Speaker 4 (31:22):
Yeah. Thank you guys. Bye.

Speaker 1 (31:28):
Yeah. Too much yapping after the interview. Yeah,

Speaker 2 (31:32):
We talked a lot after the interview. Apparently producer Ron had a great idea to start a podcast about big dogs. And I'm not

Speaker 1 (31:41):
Invited because I'm not tall enough.That's the feedback I got is so everybody get in the chat and give me information on how a 34 year old man can grow like another... I need like four inches to become a big dog.

Speaker 2 (31:59):
It's a podcast. We can't tell how tall you are anyway, so who

Speaker 1 (32:02):
Cares? I know. I know. Listen, I'm six feet tall. I'm not short, but I'm not a big dog. So I'm down to do anything for great days. I'm down to do surgery. I'm down to take supplements. I don't need any clinical research. I just need results. Sending your concepts folks. I'm down for anything. I'll go to Southeast Asia and get a sketchy surgery. I just need to be a big dog. I just need to be a big dog. Product of the week. It is time for our product of the week. And it's a special 4th of July/Pet Anxiety Awareness edition of our product of the week. So Kristen, why don't you kick us off with what you got

Speaker 2 (32:48):
This time? Sure. Yeah. Well, my product of the week, this is kind of a fun one. This falls into the enrichment category. Earlier during our stories, I said, do some brain games or something fun with your dogs or cats to kind of tire them out for the holiday. And this one is by a company called Atomic Bubbles. And they've been very supportive of our Pet Anxiety Awareness Month campaign. They have two products. One's called Puppy Love Calming Bubbles and the other one is Kitty Love Calming Bubbles. And essentially these are just what they sound like. Little bottles of liquid with the little thing that you pull out and you blow bubbles. Now the dog version is lavender scented. So there have been some studies that show that lavender has calming properties. They are certified non-toxic. They will not stain anything. You can even get those big bubble blower things and just make big bubbles and some dogs really get into it.

(33:50):
My dog Chili used to love bubbles. I haven't tried it with tulip yet. I have to do that. But the kitty bubbles are cool because they actually have catnip infused in the bubble juice. So yeah, not every cat loves catnip, but some do. So this could be a really great tool, very inexpensive too. I think they're under 20 bucks. Really inexpensive and fun way to play with your dog or cat to tire them out and give them a little exercise and a little mental enrichment at the same time.

Speaker 1 (34:21):
That sounds nice.

Speaker 2 (34:22):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (34:23):
Lavender bubbles, very summery.

Speaker 2 (34:26):
Exactly. So what do you have for us, Chris?

Speaker 1 (34:32):
Yeah. I'm here to talk about the, let's see what they call it. It's from Pet Honesty. They call it their dual texture chew calming support supplement, which is a mouthful. But it's a treat. It's a treat supplement before anybody asks it does have the NASC seal of approval as if I would ever soapbox for a supplement that does not have the NASC seal of approval. So this is NASC approved. It's also AFCO aproved. AFCO is the... Let me put my association hat on. Association of American Feed Controls Office, something like that. Anyway, they're the ones who get to tell you whether your product counts as natural for the pet industry. So this is considered a natural product through AFCO, no corn, no wheat, no soy. And this is a good daily supplement actually. So this isn't something you're going to give your pet just on 4th of July.

(35:36):
This is for all our scaredy cats out there who might be a little neurotic and anxious just all the time. This is a daily treat. They have a whole chart on how much you're supposed to give. Active ingredients. Let's talk about its active ingredients. Let's see how we do on pronunciation. Thiamine.

(35:56):
L-thionine.

Speaker 2 (35:58):
Good.

Speaker 1 (35:58):
And chamomile. And these are the two ones that sound sciencey are supposed to interact with the cat's nervous system to make them less shaky. And then the chamomile is an herb or a flour. Actually, it's technically a flower that has natural relaxing properties. I don't know if anybody's had some nice chamomile tea before going to bed. It is one and the same. So I was looking far and wide for a calming supplement that was NASC approved and isn't like a spot treatment, but something you use every day. And I did not find a lot. And so Pet Honesty sells this product. I found it un-chewy. The biggest box of this stuff you could buy is like $40 and it's like a bunch of the pouches. It's going to be like probably about a month's supply for your average sized cat. So if you really have one of those worrisome, shaky, anxious cats, this is a good step in the right direction.

(37:13):
And as always, this should be part of your conversation with your vet in trying to find an appropriate solution to your animal's anxiety issues. So that's what I got this week, Kristen. Any thoughts on the L-theanine?

Speaker 2 (37:29):
Yeah. L-theanine is actually an active ingredient in a lot of calming products. There's a lot of good science there, both for dogs and cats to show that it does work. And as always, we'll have links to those products in the show notes. Q and As.

Speaker 1 (37:47):
All right, Kristen, it's time for our favorite part of the show. That's right. We are going to answer two questions from our incredibly talented audience at home. And I know what you're thinking, incredibly talented audience. How do I get my question answered by Chris and Kristen? Well, it could not be more simple. We're going to head on over to petsadlife.org/podcast. I think I did that right. Scroll on down to the bottom of that page and you will see a form to submit your question. Or if you are feeling as brave as the guy who has to light the New York City firework display, pretty sure they don't hand light it anymore, but could you imagine? You can submit a voice memo. That's right. A voice memo. You'll see that on the page as well. You record your voice memo, send it on in and you may hear your question played live on air.

(38:35):
So the only way you could possibly ever be on a podcast. Don't ever think about starting your own. Anyway, Kristen, we've got a couple of questions.

Speaker 2 (38:45):
We sure do.

Speaker 1 (38:46):
I'm

Speaker 2 (38:46):
Going to hit

Speaker 1 (38:46):
You with this

Speaker 2 (38:47):
One

Speaker 1 (38:47):
First.

Speaker 2 (38:48):
Alrighty.

Speaker 1 (38:49):
This question comes from Rachel in Austin, Texas. Rachel, thank you for your question. Rachel asks, "I'm seeing more technology for pets lately, like some GPS trackers and different health tools I saw. Which types of pet tech do you genuinely think improve dog's quality of life, especially for older or less active pets? I want to believe the hype, but can't. So convince me. " It's a great question, Rachel.

Speaker 2 (39:13):
That is a really good question. I don't think we've ever had a question anything like that before. And pet tech is so hot right now. So yeah, there is a lot of hype around it. And I think the hype is pretty justified. And there's a lot of competition in this space too. But I'll speak in kind of general terms without calling out specific products, but I think GPS trackers are the first pet tech that I embraced that I absolutely loved. I think they're genuinely worth it. Back in the day, I forget the name of the one we had. It was a very early version and all it did was track your dog. Yeah. Yeah, that was it. That was it. Thank you. And we use it religiously with Chili and he actually did escape one time when we were visiting my sister in Colorado and we were able to track him to the neighbor's backyard, which was so cool.

(40:07):
So yeah, I think those are great. A lot of them have geofencing alerts and most of them nowadays include health monitoring features like activity, heart rate. And actually I've seen a lot less emphasis on the GPS tracking part of it and a lot more emphasis on the health monitoring.

(40:32):
And Rachel mentioned, she said, especially for senior dogs, I think these are particularly great for adult and senior dogs because it's really important that you recognize changes in your senior dog, whether it be less mobility or maybe some... I know some of them have pain indicators. So I think those are awesome. Smart litter boxes. Those are another really cool pet tech innovation from recent years. You're a cat guy. Would you ever use a smart litter box?

Speaker 1 (41:04):
Oh yeah. Yeah. When we bring another cat into our home, we'll be getting some type of litter box that does something to help us with technology in some

Speaker 2 (41:17):
Capacity.

(41:18):
Yeah. These are great. They can also indicate health changes in your cat's like urine and stuff like that and probably some mobility issues. Yeah. What I would say though is that all this technology doesn't replace your veterinarian. So really the idea behind these health monitors is that you share that data with your vet so that you can work together to identify or diagnose a particular issue or make changes in your pet's environment to make things better. But yeah, I think for an older, less active dog, I would highly recommend an activity monitor just so that you can see any changes from baseline in your pup. So great question, Rachel. I hope that's helpful. Chris, I've got one for you. This one is from Michael in Denver. All right. Michael says, "There are so many supplements being marketed to pets now. Joint support, probiotics, calming chews, fish oil.

(42:21):
How can pet owners tell which supplements are actually beneficial and which are mostly hype?"

Speaker 1 (42:28):
That is a great question. And first up, we're going to talk about NASC, National Animal Supplement Council. We've had them on the show. Go back a few episodes, the Bill Bokout episode. They do independent audits of these supplements. And in order to get their golden seal, the supplements need to be making realistic claims about what they are doing and be using the proper ingredients that have been shown clinically to achieve those kinds of results. So things to avoid. Anything that seems too good to be true, done. There is no pill or supplement out there that is going to prevent cancer. There is no supplement that is going to heal injuries faster or keep your dog just straight up alive longer. They don't exist. It's not real. What a good supplement is going to do is add more quality years to your dog's life. And this is something we've talked about before.

(43:32):
It's not necessarily going to extend their lifespan, but they're going to have more quality years before they really start to, I say retire, like a dog retires from being a dog in their last couple of years.That is really what the supplement is going to do. So you want to look for that golden seal. That means it's been audited by NASC and these claims have been supported. Avoid that trap language. Look for things like some popular supplements specifically for dog that I know for a fact can actually work are things like joint supplements. Now these are not going to magically prevent every single type of condition that your dog may have, especially if you have a larger and more active dog. But what it will do is keep everything, I say well lubricated, which is probably a weird way to describe your dog, but like a good diet plus supplements keeps your dog well lubricated.

(44:32):
So when they're doing those active things and they're running around the yard and stuff, you know that their body has the building blocks to restore their muscle, restore their ligaments, heal any minor injuries. That's really the role of the supplement is to fill in the gaps in their diet to ensure that their body has those important building blocks to put everything back together. And as a result, you're going to get more good active years with your furry friends. So definitely if you're reading something and going, especially in today's day and age where your phone is freaking listening to you, oh my goodness. And you say like, "Oh man, I'm so upset that Phido's feeling more lethargic." And now suddenly your Instagram is filled with, "This is basically monster energy for your dog. Look at him." Just don't believe that kind of stuff.

(45:23):
Supplements are going to be incremental success over time and lead to long term incremental results. There's no magic pill. It doesn't exist. So that's what I would say. Look for that Golden Seal. Check out NASC's website. I think it's just NASC. It's a weird one. I want to say. Org, but it's like... No, I'm looking it up now. It's NASC.cc, which I don't know what a. Cc is. And you can read all about their process. They are very transparent with the way they do things and what gets an app and grade and what doesn't. So if you're more curious from a scientific perspective or somebody who's not an expert or somebody who is an expert and not a Chris, head on over to NASC.cc. All right. And I believe that's the end of our show. Already 250 years of America, 124 episodes of Pal.

Speaker 2 (46:27):
Those are some significant milestones.

Speaker 1 (46:29):
Two and a half years. Is that how long Pal's been doing it? Does that make sense? That sounds

Speaker 2 (46:33):
About right.

Speaker 1 (46:34):
Yeah, about two and a half years because producers saying eight and a half years we've been doing Pets Ad Life podcasts. So if you haven't heard - That

Speaker 2 (46:43):
Just feels like it.

Speaker 1 (46:45):
In dog years. Okay. It's eight and a half in dog years. But there we go people. That's it. That's it for this week. We're happy you're watching us. If you are not aware, we're on your Amazon TV on the Dog TV Fast Channel. Be sure to follow us on all of our social medias @petsadlife @dogTV. Check us out and all that awesome content. And please, please, please, please, please stay safe this busy 4th of July. Do we get a weekend? I'm not even sure what day of the week. Are we getting a 4th of July? You know what? Let's check the calendar. Geting a 4th of July weekend or is it... Yeah, it's a Saturday. That's what I thought.

Speaker 2 (47:24):
Okay. So does that mean we get Friday off?

Speaker 1 (47:27):
I think so. Ron, do we get Friday off? Okay. So Chris will be here on Friday, July 3rd, just sitting on this couch, I guess, in front of a camera that's turned off. Everybody else take the weekend off. Be safe, have fun. Keep all the pets happy and safe and we'll see you back here on Tuesday. Pets Ad Life, your guide to the latest in pet trends, products and the joy of the human animal bond with Kristen Levine and me, Chris Bonafati, powered by the American Pet Products Association and dog TV. I