April 02, 2010

Chatting with Victoria Stilwell, Star of TV Show It's Me or the Dog

Listen in on my conversation with the popular dog trainer and star of Animal Planet’s It's Me or the Dog. Victoria is also the author of the book It's Me or the Dog: How to have a Perfect Pet, and will share some of her most effective training tips. Call in with your questions about your own training issues. We'll hear about what goes on behind the scenes when the cameras are off on her popular and highly beneficial television show and find out what you really need to know about puppy mills and what to do if your dog came from one.

(photo by Bill Adler)

Episode Segments:

Wild About Pets: All About Victoria Susan talks to Victoria about he background with dogs, the history of her show, and how the American version of the program differs from the British version. Victoria then talks about why socialization is so important for dogs, and offers some easy ways to help dogs socialize. (Photo courtesy of "Victoria Stilwell Enterprises, LLC")
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Wild About Pets: Behind the Scenes In part two, we find out about some things you don’t see on TV, like how they make the dogs comfortable around the camera crews, and how Victoria deals with aggressive dogs. We’ll also get some training tips from her book, like how to read a dog’s body language, why a dog sometimes needs to bark, and the most important commands to learn.
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Wild About Pets: Puppy Mills and More Victoria addresses the problem of puppy mills, and what we can do to help the dogs who were bred in them. Plus, Victoria gives us a preview of her upcoming book, and future episodes of her show. (Photo courtesy of "Victoria Stilwell Enterprises, LLC")
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Links to Related Websites:

Look While You Listen! Click here to view the photos Susan & Victoria are discussing.

Guest(s) Appearing on this Episode

Victoria Stilwell Born and raised in Wimbledon, England, Victoria Stilwell is one of the world’s most recognized and respected dog trainers. She is best known for her role as the star of Animal Planet’s hit TV series It’s Me or the Dog, through which she is able to share her insight and passion for positive reinforcement dog training and as a judge on CBS’s Greatest American Dog. By reaching audiences in over 40 countries, Stilwell helps counsel families on their pet problems. In the early 1990s, Stilwell began her career in pet training when she created her own successful dog-walking company and immediately recognized the need for qualified professionals to help her clients with the training process. While pursuing a successful acting career (working in London’s West End as well as in numerous films, TV series, commercials and voiceovers), she expanded her focus to dog training by learning from some of Britain’s most respected positive-reinforcement dog trainers and behaviorists. After moving to the U.S. with her husband, Stilwell co-founded several successful dog training companies up and down the East Coast, quickly establishing herself as one of New York’s most sought after dog trainers. With a particular fondness for rescue animals in need of behavior rehabilitation, Stilwell devoted much of her time and energy to a number of animal rescue organizations in New York and Atlanta, serving as a behavior advisor and giving regular seminars on the subject of dog rescue, training and rehabilitation. Her two best-selling books, It’s Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet and Fat Dog Slim: How to Have a Healthy, Happy Pet, have been widely praised, and they detail her core reward-based training philosophy: “There’s a better way to train – Positively.” Stilwell is a passionate advocate for positive reinforcement training methods that enhance a dog’s ability to learn while increasing confidence, resulting in a healthy, well-adjusted pet. She is a vocal opponent of punitive, dominance-based training techniques which often result in ‘quick fixes’ but ultimately cause more long-term harm than good while damaging the owner-dog relationship. She also remains committed to helping the cause of animal rescue and is heavily involved with rescue groups around the world including Paws Atlanta, Stray from the Heart (NYC), Hong Kong Dog Rescue and Greyhound Rescue of West England. She works closely with the Wisconsin Puppy Mill Project, the HSUS, Puppy Mill Awareness Day and the Waterside Action Group to increase awareness of the horrific practice of puppy mills globally. She has worked as a volunteer adoption counselor for the ASPCA, and she has been featured in numerous magazines and journals including The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, The Daily Mail, MSNBC.com, USA Today, Psychology Today and The Sun. Stilwell is a regular columnist for The Bark, Dog World, American Dog and Dogs Today magazines. She has appeared on countless talk shows, news broadcasts and radio shows in the US, Europe and Asia as a dog- training expert. Named 2009’s Dog Trainer of the Year at the Purina ProPlan Dog awards, Victoria is certified by the Animal Behavior and Training Associates and is a proud member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT). Victoria currently resides in Atlanta with her husband, daughter and Chocolate Lab, Sadie. Click here to visit Victoria's Website

Victoria Stilwell joins Today Show Host Natalie Morales in discussing the new season of "It's Me or The Dog", and positive reinforcement training. The Today Show from Victoria Stilwell, Inc.