How can the human side of pet training - understanding and addressing our emotions and mental state - contribute to a stronger bond with our animals and more effective training process? In this chat with fellow pet professional Marissa Martino, we talk about... why it's not just about teaching behaviors and working through training planshow her dog Peru met the love of her life, a cat named Haroldwhat parallels there are between your work with your pet and your work with yourselfwhy "self care" most likely isn't the way to go Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Pet Relationship Feelings and Stories Marissa and I play two truths and a lie... I lose (shocker) 0:05:00 - From the Shelter to A Home Marissa and I discuss strategies for helping clients adopt dogs with a history of living with cats, shelter evaluations, and their ability to predict behavior. 0:13:05 - Introducing a Dog to a Cat We discussed introducing cats and dogs, active management, safety, and the joy of watching them become friends. 0:29:53 - Hold Space in Pet Training Clients learn to accept their situation, set boundaries, measure success, and celebrate attempts to transform with their animal. 0:39:23 - Resourcing Yourself vs. Self-Care (and Fun!) Marissa and I discuss resourcing ourselves, shifting mindset, and strengthening relationships with animals. Want to dive a bit deeper? Check out this episode's show notes for Marissa's full bio and contact info, as well as pictures of Peru and Harold - praiseworthypets.com/podcast-shownotes/65 If you're a pet professional... Check out my mentorship and consulting options - I can be a second set of eyes on one of your current cat-dog clients... or you can shadow some of my cases! And if you love the podcast and want to support me as I continue to create new episodes, join the other cat-and-dog people in the Podcast Supporters space inside the Cat and Dog Coexistence Club! Go to praiseworthypets.com/support-the-podcast to learn more ❤️ 😺❤️🐶 😺❤️🐶 😺❤️🐶 😺❤️🐶 If you enjoyed this episode, please help me spread the word to other cat-and-dog people! You can: subscribe to the podcastleave a review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen to your podcasts)DM me on Instagram - tell me what you liked about the episode, questions you have, or suggestions for the podcasttell a friend about It's Training Cats and Dogs - there's no link, cause that's a real life kind of thing 😁