Home Buying As A Dog Parent

03/10/23 • 57 min

Today's Topic: Buying a home today, especially if it's your first home, can be a dizzying emotional roller coaster ride characterized by stress, frustration, elation, anxiety, and, let's be real...REJECTION. And in the midst of this (at times) chaotic experience, you have to make sure to do all the research necessary to ensure that the home and the surrounding neighborhood meet the needs of every member of your family.
In prior generations, this research might have been isolated to looking into school districts, the walkability of the neighborhood, the placement of the bedrooms, and an open floor plan, to name a few, but now with more than 7 in 10 millennials now owing a pet (with more than half owning a dog), often at the expense of (or putting off) starting a family, and an increasing number of them regarding their pets as members of the family, is it any surprise that millennials are putting their pets first when buying a home, and looking for advice on what to consider when buying a home as a dog parent?

That's why we invited licensed realtor with HomeSmart International, L.L.C., and the founder of "Kelsea With A Frenchie", a content platform designed to help the modern millennial buy their first home, Kelsea Imanuel, to the pod, to discuss her professional journey thus far, what the "Modern Millennial" is in her opinion, why she thinks she been so successful reaching and speaking to the "Modern Millennial", what the major questions, concerns or non-negotiables dog parents have today during their home search, what the "flat dog test" is, the major regrets dog parents had in regards to their dog after the purchase of their home, her favorite dog amenities she's seen in people's homes, the major laws, regulations and restrictions to look out for that can affect you and your dog's life, and so much more!
Guest Bio: Kelsea Imanuel, also known as "Kelsea with a Frenchie", is a Colorado native, born and raised in the small mountain town of Nederland. Staying close to her mountain roots, Kelsea is passionate about helping others enjoy the same lifestyle. She joined the real estate business shortly after getting her Bachelor of Science, Summa Cum Laude, from Johnson & Wales University in Denver. Having worked in numerous real estate brokerages, she obtained her real estate license and is helping others find their perfect place! As part of her commitment to her clients and the real estate business, she stays current in real estate matters through continuing education and career training. In addition, Kelsea wants to share her love for Colorado by helping her clients find their dream properties. In her free time, you can find Kelsea spending time with her family and her French bulldogs, Nellie & Dottie, outside running, hiking, skiing, doing yoga, and adventuring in the mountains she loves so much!”
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Previous Episode

Leash Reactivity, Part II

Today's Topic: In the first part of our 2-part series on Leash Reactivity, we discussed a whole host of topics with certified professional dog trainer, the founder of Perfect Pals Dog Training, and the co-creator of the most comprehensive digital dog training course on the subject, "Help! My Dog Is Reactive On Leash!", Erin Gianella, including how common leash reactivity is, how it's different than general reactivity, what a dog wants when they are reacting, distance-increasing behaviors vs. distance-decreasing behaviors, being proactive vs. reactive, and perhaps most importantly, some management strategies people can use to prevent their dog's practicing of unwanted reactive behaviors, such as whining, growling, barking, lunging, etc.
In today's episode, we go a bit deeper and discuss alternative behaviors you can teach your dog, how training can differ if you've discovered that your dog is wanting to increase distance from vs. decrease distance to the trigger, what counterconditioning and desensitization are, whether a dog can be "cured" of leash reactivity, and much much more!

Guest Bio: Erin Gianella's journey to become a dog trainer began in 2014 when she noticed her own dog, Gus, having separation anxiety issues. She became more and more curious and passionate that she decided to leave the corporate world and learn as much as she could about being a dog trainer. Erin studied at the Karen Pryor Academy and became a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner. Erin started Perfect Pals Dog Training in 2021 based in Denver, CO. She offers private training using positive reinforcement, science based methods. Along with training, Erin also incorporates enrichment and management into the training plan to ensure all needs are being met. She is passionate about helping people build a bond with their dog and having them become a part of the family.
Connect With Erin Gianella:

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"Help! My Dog Is Reactive On Leash!" Course (Use promo code "PODCAST10" for 10% off!

Next Episode

My Training Journey, Part I

Today's Topic: Ask any positive dog trainer that has any experience working with leash-reactive dogs, and the one thing that many of them will have in common is their LACK of videos of dogs that they've trained exhibiting leash-reactive behaviors.
And the reason for this is simple: when a positive trainer sees a dog exhibiting leash-reactive behaviors, they see a dog in distress, and the LAST thing they want to do is pull out a camera to capture video footage of this moment, just like a therapist would never pull out a camera to record their patient who is going through an emotionally difficult, or psychologically stressful, moment.
Rather, their instinct is to drop everything, immediately jump into action, and help in whatever way they can.
But that poses a problem, of sorts. While a prospective client of a therapist would never ask for a "Before & After" video of a client that underwent a transformational change in their mental health, as a way to find the best therapist for themselves, prospective clients of dog trainers increasingly demand it.
It's not hard to see why. As a society, we love to see transformation stories, whether it's stories about weight loss, entrepreneurial success, etc., largely because we want to see that transformation is possible.
That's why we invited the founder of Dogs Made Simple, a content platform dedicated to sharing creative enrichment recipes and DIY dog stimulation games, and the dog mom of Diesel, a leash-reactive Golden Retriever, Jessica Sims, to the podcast, to discuss the transformation journey she will embark on to train her leash-reactive dog using our, "Help, My Dog Is Reactive On Leash!" course. We discuss her history growing up with Goldens, how and when she adopted Diesel, her training journey thus far, and why, despite all of the knowledge she's gained via self study about dog training, leash reactivity is still something she struggles with.
Guest Bio: About two years ago, Jessica knew she was ready to get a puppy. She didn’t have much planned in terms of training besides perhaps a puppy group training class, mostly since every Golden Retriever she had growing up never needed any training.
However, from the moment Jessica brought him home, she noticed signs of food aggression and resource guarding. He was also skittish and very nervous around groups of people. His behavior started to get worse. Jessica paid thousands of dollars in dog training, met with numerous trainers, and nothing seemed to be helping.
She felt hopeless - until she decided to take matters into my own hands. Jessica immersed herself into the world of dog training.
In May 2021, she decided to start sharing her journey with the public by creating her page: Dogs Made Simple.
Jessica's goal with this page was to share relatable content. She wanted to give hope to dog owners like herself who were struggling. She tries to be as transparent as possible by sharing honest content - the good and the bad.
As her page grew in popularity very fast, she realized that there was one piece of content specifically that people loved, and that was mental stimulation games for their dogs. Since then, she shares a ton of creative enrichment recipes and DIY dog stimulation games.
Stay tuned! By April 2023, Dogs Made Simple is launching its first ever product line with never-seen-before enrichment toys, bound to disrupt the dog industry.
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