Puppy Brain, early socialization, and what to ask a breeder with Kerry Nichols

Send us a text

Zazie chats with Kerry Nichols, bestselling author of Puppy Brain: How Our Dogs Learn, Think, and Love.

We talk about:

• How Kerry got into breeding dogs
• Why we both love Golden Retrievers
• How the book, Puppy Brain, came about
• What puppies are like when they are born
• Examples of the socialization that Kerry does with puppies
• Her favourite part of the first 8 weeks of a puppy's life
• Advice on finding a responsible breeder (for any breed)
• And Kerry reads from Puppy Brain for us!

Puppy Brain: How Our Dogs Learn, Think, and Love is out now in hardback. The paperback will be out on April 29th and can be pre-ordered now from all good bookstores.

The books we recommend in this episode are:

• Dog Poems: An Anthology by Various and Christopher Wait
• The Kindest Lie by Nancy Johnson

OFA - The Canine Health Information Center is at https://ofa.org/.

Kerry Nichols is a former attorney turned canine educator and advocate whose journey into the world of dogs began nearly fifteen years ago. With the founding of Nicholberry Goldens, she devoted herself to raising the healthiest Golden Retrievers possible. This evolved into a mission to instill emotional resilience and agency in her own puppies, a pursuit she now shares with an audience of hundreds of thousands of followers across social media. Her methods continue to garner support from leading veterinarians, trainers, and psychologists, and notable owners of her Goldens include executives from Facebook, Microsoft, and Tinder. 

Kerry's website: https://www.kerrynichols.com/home

About the co-hosts:

Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online teaching and consultations. Kristi is on staff at the Academy for Dog Trainers, helping to shape the next generation of canine professionals. Kristi’s dogs are rescue sled dogs, mostly retired and thoroughly enjoying a good snooze in front of the woodstove.

Kristi Benson's website Facebook

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and also has a column at Psychology Today. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, one dog, and one cat.

Facebook Instagram BlueSky