EDUCATION
A COLLECTION OF OUR CONTINUED LEARNING
I created this page with the intention of encouraging continued education for all dog lovers. This page will serve to showcase the certificates I have earned through taking courses as well as document the books/articles that I have read and recommend to others. This page will be updated periodically with new recommendations.
Showdown Stables is dedicated to continued learning and increasing our knowledge across all areas of dog ownership.
We will always strongly recommend learning more about your four-legged best friend. Feel free to browse the recommendations below or reach out to us to get additional recommendations.
Certificates
Reading
I try my best to read books and articles written from many different perspectives to avoid bias and attempt to understand the full picture. I encourage everyone to do the same. (This page is not meant to be a collection of everything I have read, but rather some of my favourites that I recommend to others.)
!! Remember to read everything with a critical mind and look for multiple sources !!
From the back of the book:
Modern canine nutrition demands we trust the science more so than actually understand it because to pull back the curtain just a little reveals the magic show for what it is – a very clever elusion.
From the vet health professional to the avid home raw feeder. Feeding Dogs is a fascinating and at times shocking page-turner. It is a reference manual which provides for us the irrefutable evidence that if good health and longevity are what we desire for our pets, we must urgently reconsider so many of the lessons currently being fed to us by the industry.
With a tangible passion for the subject but with an entertaining, highly readable style, Dr. Conor Brady forensically translates the available research on a great variety of topics, detailing for us not only what dogs should eat but what they are currently being fed. Crucially, modern diet strategies are linked to many of the diseases that plague our pets today, including obesity, cancer, pancreatitis and bloat. As the scientific and corporate tricks reveal themselves, the fantasy of a complete diet falls away, replaces with the knowledge that formulating a balanced dog diet by ourselves is not only uncomplicated but utterly essential.
From the back of the book:
A big, inside look at the shocking lack of regulation within the pet food industry, and how readers can dramatically improve the quality of their dogs’ lives through diet.
What’s really going into commercial dog food? The answer is horrifying.
Big Kibble is big business: $75 billion globally. A handful of multi-national corporations dominate the industry and together own as many as 80% of all brands. This comes as a surprise to most people, but what’s even more shocking is how lax the regulations and guidelines are around these products. The guidelines―or lack thereof―for pet food allow producers to include ever-cheaper ingredients, and create ever-larger earnings. For example, “legal” ingredients in kibble include poultry feces, saw dust, expired food, and diseased meat, among other horrors. Many vets still don’t know that kibble is not the best food for dogs because Big Kibble funds the nutrition research. So far, these corporations have been able to cut corners and still market and promote feed-grade food as if it were healthful and beneficial―until now.
Just as you are what you eat, so is your dog. Once you stop feeding your dog the junk that’s in kibble or cans, you have taken the first steps to improving your dog’s health, behavior and happiness.
You know the unsavory side of Big Tobacco and Big Pharma. Now Shawn Buckley, Dr. Oscar Chavez, and Wendy Paris explain all you need to know about unsavory Big Kibble―and offer a brighter path forward for you and your pet.
From the back of the book:
Straight from the experts comes the Fear Free program, a positive-reinforcement plan with proven results in helping fearful, anxious, and stressed dogs. From the knowledge and experience of “America’s Veterinarian” – Dr. Marty Becker – and an esteemed group of pioneers in veterinary medicine and behavior, From Fearful to Fear Free addresses fear, anxiety, and stress, issues that dog owners frequently encounter but seldom understand. Filled with anecdotes from their own practices, detailed techniques, and helpful resources, this informative volume can be a lifesaver for concerned owners and their fearful dogs.