Praiseworthy Pets LLC

01/22/2023

This was such a great episode and I loved chatting with Simone from Predation Substitute Training - Simone Mueller!

Dogs are predators who often see cats as prey. How can we help them live peacefully together? What is prey drive anyway?

08/08/2022

"I'm feeding my cat and dog on either side of a baby gate like it said to do on the internet but it's not working! They'll eat but as soon as I pause to reload my treats they freak out..."

Creating opportunities for your pets to see each other (with a barrier in between) while eating is a great way to create positive associations with each other - if it's done correctly.

Swipe through to learn how to teach your pets to give each other the space they need to feel comfortable around each other - instead of trying to push them close to each other too quickly.




[slide 1: What your cat and dog need during a setup (hint: it's not just food)
2: Your cat's on one side of the barrier, the dog is on the other. They're both getting rapid-fire treats for not losing their s**t...
3: ...but when the food runs out? It's on like Donkey Kong!
4: When your pets need this kind of intense intervention in order to be in the same space, they more DISTANCE from each other, not more (or better) food - HOW?
5: Teach your dog that the cat appearing is a cue for them to come to you, or go to their bed, or go get a toy (instead of getting in the cat's face)
6: teach your cat that seeing the dog is a cue to calmly head to a safe space if they are feeling nervous (instead of immediately running away or getting into defensive attack mode)
7: Consistently help them calmly move away from each other... and over time, they will start to respect each other's "personal space bubble" on their own
8: Consistently reinforce when they choose to give each other space... and you might find that those personal space bubbles end up getting smaller and smaller over time
9: Want more ideas? Listen to episode 46 of It's Training Cats and Dogs (link in bio)]

07/15/2022

We can never forget the human side of the cat vs. dog conflict.

Stress, self-doubt, tears, and hopelessness can creep in throughout the process (because you love your animals and are dedicated to improving their relationship but it often isn’t an easy or linear process) 😣

And when you see progress? You get the highs of relief and pride and you want to shout your successes from the rooftops! 🥳

Living with animals who aren’t getting along and working through it is often an emotional journey that most people feel like they taking on alone.

**But you’re NOT alone!**

There are tons of other cat-and-dog people going through the same s**t as you (and we love to talk about it) ❤️

The Cat and Dog Coexistence Club is hosting a live event for anyone who has both cats and dogs and has some feelings about the process of trying to improve their pets’ interactions.

It’s an open, supportive space to:

🗣️ talk about your own situation.

👂 listen to what others are going through.

👭 meet new friends.

🌈 get inspired.

I can’t wait to see you there 👋

➡️ DM me for the invite link!

[ ID in the comments]

06/17/2022

Listeners of the podcast while remember Lara's pupper Bowie who's started suffering with arthritis and it's making him a bit cranky towards Neptune the cat.⁠
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It's amazing to hear from Lara that she's already seeing some positive changes. The kibble scatter is working to help Bowie feel more relaxed around Neptune and giving Lara a much needed breakthrough!⁠

Do you want to schedule a Dog and Cat Chat with me? DM me for info ❤️
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06/16/2022

When is the right time to start teaching your kids about interacting with your pets? ⁠
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Listen in on Episode 39 of It's Training Cats and Dogs for all of Jen's insight into having a full house of canine, feline AND human variety!⁠
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[Video description: Top left is the title "Kids, and Dogs, and Cats...Oh My! and It's Training Cats and Dogs Episode 39 on a blue shape with an orange and light blue set of speech bubbles. The Dog and Cat Coexistence logo to the top right. The text of the audio with a moving orange highlight]⁠
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06/14/2022

Our multi-species households can be as challenging as they are rewarding! Cats and dogs, pets and children, different breeds and different ages - with all those combinations comes all kinds of behaviors and personalities to consider.⁠
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Listen to this week's episode where I caught up with the amazing Jen Shyrock of Family Paws to chat about what it's like to have a household full of all those different needs - human and animal alike!⁠
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[video description: A picture of the blue It's Training Cats and Dogs cover with a photo of Naomi to the left and Jen to the right on a white background with an orange shape. New Episode is underneath in bold lettering with orange animated arrows pointing to it. The title "Kids, and dogs, and cats... oh my! - with Jen Shyrock" is over a graphic of a podcast player.]⁠
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06/10/2022

A relationship is a two-way street… and we often forget the cat! Looking at your cat’s behavior as an opportunity to address conflict is often a game changer for my clients 😻

06/09/2022

We can all get a little cranky as we get older and that goes for our pets as well. When animals start dealing with pain and discomfort, it's easy for them to find triggers in things that were no problem before.⁠
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That’s the situation with Lara’s dog Bowie, whose arthritis has caused some steps backward in his relationship with Neptune the cat. ⁠
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Listen in on Episode 38 of It's Training Cats and Dogs for the advice I gave Lara on how she can get Bowie feeling more relaxed around Neptune.⁠
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Do any of your pets have issues with pain or aging that's causing a bit of a setback in your coexistence? Let me know in the comments!⁠
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06/07/2022

Getting arthritis is enough to make anyone cranky and for a dog, it's no exception! Bowie has had enough of his feline sister being anywhere in his space.⁠
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Listen in to this week's episode to hear what I suggested Lara do to help keep Bowie relaxed while Neptune is around.⁠
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[video description: New Episode in bold lettering on a white background with light blue shape. The blue It's Training Cats and Dog's cover is on the left and the title "Aging Dog Wants Cat to Get Outta His Space" is to the right over a graphic of a podcast player. Animated arrows point to Out Now! on an orange stripe]⁠
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06/03/2022

For our regular podcast listeners, you might remember Yvonne from Episode 30. She'd only just recently brought home her new cat Lizzy, and was getting started on management and setups for her and Sunny the bull terrier. ⁠
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Yvonne recently got in touch to give me an update! It's wonderful to hear that things are progressing along well and to see that Lizzy's personality is really starting to shine.⭐⁠
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06/02/2022

Sometimes things don’t go exactly to plan 🤷‍♀️

[image description: headline - taking a photo of my dog and cat, photo on the left is expectation: Uri (a fluffy white dog) sits in front of a cat tree with Rio (a gray and white cat) sitting on a low tier. photo on the right is reality: Uri is awkwardly laying down half out of frame and Rio is leaping off the cat tree out of the picture]

06/01/2022

As scary as some of our pets interactions are, they might not always be as bad as they look! A lot of the time, until we get enough data to really understand what's going on, trying to come up with a solution can be a bit difficult.⁠
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I had a Dog and Cat Chat with Josie about her adolescent dog Kinai and his wildly different interactions with her two cats - including staying far away from one and putting the other's entire head in his mouth! How much of this behavior can be attributed to general environmental stress or something else entirely? We talked on ways to gather enough information to see what the next steps forward are.⁠
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Does your pets have really different behaviors among themselves? Are you a bit stuck on gathering info? Comment below!⁠
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