The Good Dog Pod

About Sue Willumsen: Sue works in veterinary medicine and got her first Labrador in 1980. She has been very involved in the dog world ever since, showing and competing with her dogs. She is an AKC-licensed judge in several breeds.About Barbara Gilchrist: Barbara got her first Labrador in 1964. As the dog was rather difficult, Barbara focused on getting involved in obedience with her. She was then the first woman to be hired at a local field trial kennel, for which she dropped out of college to work for. She’s been very involved ever since, breeding many champions along the way.About Susan Patterson: Susan is a renowned Labrador Retriever breeder and breeds under the Fenwyck Labrador Retriever name. She has been breeding since the 80's when she first got involved with various Labrador Retriever clubs.Our guests discuss the history of the Labrador Retriever breed standard (and why we shouldn’t be asking about American versus English Labs). The breed standard was written by the parent club which was very field-oriented at the time, which has misrepresented the current state of the breed to a certain extent.They also talk about the temperament spectrum, and what to think about and what questions to ask before getting a Lab (or a dog in general).Sue talks about the health testing typically done on Labs (and what advances have been made in testing).They finish by discussing the ‘24/7 tech support’ that breeders provide their puppy buyers - how important it is, and how fun it is for them to keep up with the growth of their dogs!

Learn all about America’s favorite breed, the Labrador Retriever!About Sue Willumsen: Sue works in veterinary medicine and got her first Labrador in 1980. She has been very involved in the dog world ever since, showing and competing with her dogs. She is an AKC-licensed judge in several breeds.About Barbara Gilchrist: Barbara got her first Labrador in 1964. As the dog was rather difficult, Barbara focused on getting involved in obedience with her. She was then the first woman to be hired at a local field trial kennel, for which she dropped out of college to work for. She’s been very involved ever since, breeding many champions along the way.About Susan Patterson: Susan is a renowned Labrador Retriever breeder and breeds under the Fenwyck Labrador Retriever name. She has been breeding since the 80's when she first got involved with various Labrador Retriever clubs.The experts discuss how the Labrador hunts in the field, and why its structure as defined by the breed standard is so important.They talk about the differences between specialty dogs and show dogs. The type of hunting that takes place now is very different from the hunting that took place 50 years ago, which results in different types of Labs built for different purposes.

In this rebroadcast of a Pure Dog Talk episode, Laura discusses the disbanding of her local kennel club and the general state of clubs across the country.Today our club membership is dwindling and the members there are aging. They get together to put their shows together and that’s about it. And yet today with the continuing threat of the animal rights making owning a purebred “unethical”…we need our clubs more than ever! Let’s get back to being kennel clubs for the public!Laura put together 5 tips for joining and succeeding in an all-breed club, plus 5 more tips for club leadership. Tune in to learn more!

About Dr. Jessica Hekman: Dr. Hekman is a veterinarian who studies the genetics of dog behavior. She founded the Functional Dog Collaborative to give support to those who are responsibly breeding dogs.The Functional Dog Collaborative defines what they mean by responsible breeding (which is informed mostly by what sort of dogs you’re trying to produce). Dr. Hekman describes why they decided to include behavioral health as part of that definition, and why it’s so important to responsible breeding.For her day job, Dr. Hekman looks at canine genetics and how it relates to behavioral health. She wants the Functional Dog Collaborative to be able to support that research, to help both breeders and puppy buyers.

About Susan Patterson: Susan is a renowned Labrador Retriever breeder and breeds under the Fenwyck Labrador Retriever name. She has been breeding since the 80's when she first got involved with various Labrador Retriever clubs.Susan talks about what to look for in a Lab in order to know what type of dog they will be. While all Labs share the same looks, not all Labs are the same - and that’s important to keep in mind if you’re someone looking for a companion dog versus someone looking for a hunting dog.Susan matches puppies in her litters with their humans to best match up certain characteristics, the most notable one being drive. Some dogs are couch potatoes, and some need to have a job. Regardless of drive, however, every Lab needs to have proper structure and health to ensure longevity and quality of life.It’s important to understand that you don’t have to have a Best in Show dog to have a dog with proper structure - making sure your Lab has good hip and elbow placement is as important for a hunting dog as it is for a performance dog or even a couch potato!Judi speaks about the Dilute Retriever Policy and why it was created. She describes why Good Dog stands with the Labrador Retriever Club in only recognizing Yellow, Black, and Chocolate Labrador Retrievers.Cat then talks about the process of how Good Dog goes about making these decisions, and the importance of these decisions to Good Dog. In short, Good Dog relies on the experts (such as Judi and Susan) to inform and develop these policies.

About Bret Cody: Bret owns That’ll Do Photography and specializes in getting action shots of dogs. He got his start photographing Border Collies and Kelpies at herding dog events and continues attending events where he photographs all the action.Laura and Bret discuss how Bret got his start in the action dog photography world, and how breeders can apply his techniques to produce high quality photos.Some of Bret’s tips include:Get at eye levelPay attention to the backgroundUtilize interesting noises to grab the dog’s attentionUse support to steady the cameraBe aware of your light sourceTry to get the dog when they’re ‘in stress’Make sure the eyes are in frameLearn the tool you haveTake lots of pictures!

About Leader Dogs for the Blind: Leader Dogs for the Blind is a philanthropically-funded service that provides guide dogs to the blind and visually impaired. Read more about Leader Dog here.Laura talks with Beverly Blanchard, Manager of Canine Development at Leader Dog, about how Leader Dog produces effective guide dogs. Specifically, how are dogs taken from puppy to certified guide dog? It’s a long and difficult process that requires a whole lot of effort from both the trainers AND the dogs!Leader Dog is in a unique position where their guide dogs come from family homes that whelp and raise the puppies specifically for their guide dog program.Bev then discusses the important differences between guide dogs, service dogs, and therapy dogs, since those three categories of dogs are often blurred together.

About Dr. Marty Greer: Dr. Greer is a renowned author, speaker, veterinarian, and canine reproduction specialist. In addition to being the Director of Veterinary Services at Revival Animal Health, she is on the board of the National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA), the Society for Veterinary Medical Ethics, American Veterinary Medical Law Association, and the Society for Theriogenology.About Sheryl Bradbury: Sheryl Bradbury is the Owned Brands Manager at Revival Animal Health, where she oversees the Breeder’s Edge, Doc Roy’s, and Vet Basics brands. Sheryl grew up falling asleep in the whelping box and has bred champions from several breeds. Today she raises Grand Basset Griffon Vendeens and Lancashire Heelers. She is the president of the United States Lancashire Heeler Club and also holds board positions in various dog clubs and animal health foundations. In addition to her breeding experience, Sheryl brings 30 years of product management experience in the veterinary industry to her role at Revival.Reproduction is a luxury for a dog’s body, and can only happen if the body is already able to take care of its vital organs. We can’t overlook the nutrients that are often missed by the main pet food companies that are important to making a dog as healthy as possible for breeding. Thus, supplements are critical for keeping breeding dogs healthy for reproduction.Dr. Greer gives some specific examples of the nutrients required for healthy breeding dogs and what they do for the reproductive system, as well as what they do for the puppies’ health.Dr. Greer also talks about the importance of getting the right nutrients to stud dogs for breeding, in addition to the more commonly-talked about health of the bitch.Sheryl talks about some of the products Revival Animal Health offers, and how they support dogs’ reproductive health. She goes over the extensive research and development Revival Animal Health goes through to develop their products - making sure that they are created based on current reproductive and nutritional science and are reviewed by experts.As part of a new partnership, Revival Animal Health is offering Good Breeders $10 off everything in their online store!Dr. Greer talks about the recent research surrounding folic acid and its benefits. Check out some current research about folic acid and cleft palate in brachycephalic dogs here.

About Dr. Lori Cesario: Dr. Lori Cesario is a Board-Certified Veterinary Oncologist who is dedicated to providing families with high quality information about dog cancer. Dr. Cesario runs the Canine Cancer Academy (https://www.caninecanceracademy.com/)Laura and Dr Cesario discuss the common myths and misconceptions surrounding canine cancer. Dr. Cesario busts some common myths such as: can you tell if a tumor is benign just by looking at it? Can you tell if a cancer has spread without proper tests (x-rays, samples, ultrasounds, etc.) from a vet? Is cancer transmissible? Are certain breeds more or less prone to cancer? Can diet affect the prevalence of cancer?They talk about how important it is to realize that dogs express pain differently than humans might expect. As owners, we want our dogs to be as healthy and happy as possible. We have to understand that dogs are really good at hiding their pain, and should therefore take any subtle signs of discomfort seriously (especially with symptoms such as limps). It’s also important to understand the earlier signs of nausea, including things like decreased appetite, increased drooling, and lip-smacking.Dr. Cesario explains how dogs process chemotherapy different than humans do, which is important to keep in mind as humans decide how to treat their dogs for cancer.Dr. Cesario then talks about the effect of early spay/neuter on different types of cancer.