S01 - E01 - Kathrine the dog groomer

In today's episode, I speak to my friend Kathrine about dogs. We also cover vocabulary for the most essential dog commands so you can train your dog in English.

Follow Kathrine and her dogs on Instagram =)

https://www.instagram.com/indieeandjuno/

SO1: E01 Kathrine the dog groomer

Full Intermediate level ESL Podcast transcript

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Intro Music

Richard: Hey Kathrine (inaudible)

Kathrine: Hey, Richard. Hello.

Richard: Hi welcome to the podcast, and thanks for doing this.

Kathrine: *Thanks for having me.

NOTE - "thanks for having me" means thanks for any of those hospitable things. It in no way denotes or implies that the listener should thank the speaker for showing up.

"Thanks for" + something is always an expression of appreciation, and never a demand for such.

Richard: All right, perfect. So we're going to open up today with a few basic questions. The interesting thing I think for listeners is always just comparing prices in different countries. How much does a dog cost on average in the U.K?

Kathrine: This is the really broad question. (This is really broad question)

Richard: What do you mean by broad? Sorry.

Kathrine: So broad means- it could be anything really. So one of my dogs didn't cost a lot of money and the other one did. So, you could talk from 10 pounds, 20 pounds. If you look in strange internet places, or you know, one of my dogs is from a rescue and she cost a couple of hundred pounds, and I got my other dog from a breeder, so she costs over a thousand pounds. So you could be looking at anywhere, really, depends on the breeding, where you get them from. Obviously, if it's a registered dog, like with the kennel club, you would obviously then be paying more.

Richard: Just two words. I want to go over then. So breeding, what’s breeding?

Kathrine: Yeah. So, breeding is when someone will decide they're gonna breed a dog to a specific standard or a specific level. So, it would be a breed of dog, such as a Bichon Frise, a King Charles.

(A Bichon Frise is a small breed of dog of the bichon type. The Bichon Frise is a member of the Non-sporting Group of dog breeds in the United States, and a member of the Toy dog Group in the United Kingdom.)

(The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a small spaniel classed as a toy dog by The Kennel

Club and the American Kennel Club, which originated in the United Kingdom.)

Richard: So..is the type? (Talking over - quite inaudible)

Kathrine: A spaniel is the type of dog. So some people would dedicate their lives, I suppose, to breeding dogs, which fit a breed standard, which is usually set by the kennel club. So there's the American kennel club, UK kennel club, all over the world.

(The Kennel Club is the official kennel club of the United Kingdom. It is the oldest recognised kennel club in the world. Its role is to act as governing body for various canine activities including dog shows, dog agility and working trials.)

Kathrine continued: So they will work on - They will put girls and boys, dogs and bitches together.

Richard: Just to explain. So bitch is a...? (Talking over)

Kathrine: Bitch is a female term..(Mermers), a term for a female dog...Not offensive.

NOTE - offensive- adj - causing someone to feel deeply hurt, upset, or angry.

Richard: Uhhm, so the..

Kathrine: (Interjects) 5 Minutes in and we are swearing..

NOTE - to be swearing - the use of offensive language.

Richard: (Inaudible)

Richard: So the other thing I wanted to ask about is a kennel, so, can you tell us what a kennel is?

Kathrine: I think by definition, a kennel is a place where a dog would live, so that would be almost like an outside run or building where they would live. The kennel club is a very old organization, which I think started in the UK, and they just monitor and give guidelines on how dogs should be bred and, you know about dog welfare. So you know Crufts dog show? (It’s) run by (the) kennel club.

Richard: Okay, very interesting. So crufts is the famous..?

Kathrine: (Interjects in agreement ) famous show.. Yeah in Birmingham, every year, where dogs all through the previous year compete to get a place at Crufts and then they will...(At) The very end, one dog is named King or Queen of the dogs.

(Crufts is an umbrella term for an international canine event held annually in the United Kingdom. Crufts is centred on a championship conformation show for dogs but also includes a large trade show of mainly dog-related goods and services and competitions in dog agility, obedience, flyball and heelwork to music.)

LINK - Crufts’ YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/user/OfficialCrufts

Kathrine continued: And they are the ideal standards. So, I said earlier about breed standard. They are what the judge at the show decides is that best specimen... of a dog..?

Richard: So it's the best sample..?

Kathrine: Best sample.. Yeah.

Richard: (over one another) The best example of a dog..?

Kathrine: Yeah, yeah (in agreement) best example of a dog.

Richard: Considering how expensive getting a dog can be. Do you think it's better to get a dog from the shelter than to buy one? So, just to introduce that vocabulary. So a shelter is a place for dogs that don't have an owner - that don't have a home. So, they will be rescued sometimes from quite bad conditions. What are your thoughts on getting a dog from a breeder versus getting them from a shelter?

(An animal shelter or pound is a place that stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals, mostly dogs and cats and sometimes sick or wounded wildlife, are kept and rehabilitated)

Kathrine: I have one of each. So my dog from the shelter, I had her when she was four months old. Her mom... it was an accident, the litter.

NOTE - Litter has two meanings in English. It can mean rubbish/trash. But, in this context it means a group of young animals born to an animal at one time. For example, a litter of five dogs. .

Kathrine continued: So that's like - the puppies were an accident and they couldn't find a home for her. So, I got her from a shelter and she's very cool. She's a really, really good dog. Ahh, but she is, she can be nervous. She doesn't like *strangers. So it's really tough to know, in her case, what you know, the four months that I didn't have her. That's a time when you really want to bond and make a partnership with your dog. So, I don't think she had that. And now that she's older, she's a little bit more nervous. She’s a little bit more weary. Whereas my dog - from the breeder - So by weary, she can be nervous of loud noises...Nervous of strangers. She's always, not always, but she's often looking around, being cautious and thinking...And I think probably hoping that nothing bad is gonna happen.

NOTE - *Strangers are people you do not know.

Richard: Yeah..

Kathrine: So, I think in those four months, I don't know if she had, like really positive relationships that (which) my breeder dog had. My younger dog is from a breeder and I was sent pictures of her the day she was born. I knew the day that her mum was pregnant, I was told. And then from day one, where she was living until I took her home. There were children visiting the dogs and they were exposed to loud noises in the kitchen and.. things like that, have made a real difference to her - I think. She's more confident and she's probably, like a little bit healthier.... (Inaudible speech).

Kathrine continues: Her mum and dad were chosen because they were healthy, happy dogs, so she was almost guaranteed to be a healthy, happy dog. It was with the older dog I have, I don't know her mum and dad, so they often like (have) different traits (which are) carried down, from the parents to the puppies.

Richard: So carried down means that they are...?

Kathrine: ...genetic?

Richard: Genetic, yeah.

Kathrine: Yeah.

Richard: So, they are passed on - we are using another phrasal verb here... (Kathrine in agreement: Yeah) ... to explain. So, the other thing you said as well was traits. So a trait is a characteristic...?

Kathrine: Mhhm, which is often passed down. So for example, Juno - the dog from the breeder. When I want to take her on a walk, she stands by the back door and she barks barks barks. She's so excited and the way she tells me is by barking. Her mum does exactly the same...Juno’s mom does the same barking.

Richard: Just to explain as well, so bark, is the noise?

Kathrine & Richard: ...the noise a dog makes. (In agreement)

Richard: So, a dog barks. Actually in different languages, it's very interesting that animals have totally different noises. So, we kind of assume that animals have the same noise as every language.

Kathrine: Yeah.. mmmhmm.

Richard: No, not necessarily.

Kathrine: (Laughing) No, not the same.

Richard: No, not the same. (In agreement)

Richard: So yeah, so it's a bark in English, is the noise that dog makes and (in) other

languages it’s very different.

Kathrine: So I can't say if it's better to get a shelter dog or to buy one. Both my dogs are really cool.

Richard: Yeah

Kathrine: They're awesome. Both of them. I think it depends on...

Richard: It depends...Mhmmmm..

Kathrine: ...it just depends.

Richard: So, how did you get into grooming dogs?

Kathrine: So... (interrupting)

Richard: This comes from a verb to groom, to groom and means to, to clean...? Right?

Kathrine: (in agreement)...to clean, to like cut the dog's hair. Yeah...we *trim their nails. We just, it's like looking after them. People pay me to look after their dogs. (Laughs)

NOTE - * To trim means to cut something a bit shorter.

Richard: They must trust you... So how did you start with that...What was your...(Inaudible)?

Richard: Yeah, so my sister started the business. Um, when I was...I was living abroad and when I come (came) home...I went to help her out by just washing the dogs and then she would do most of the work and I decided to do the training course and join her in business. So, we both own the business. And then I just, I just, that's how I got into it. I just went up there to help. I really, really enjoyed spending time with animals every day. I think that's a lot of people's dream job. It is really fun. And it's really nice to see different dogs and you can, you know, give them a really nice experience, a really happy experience as well.

Richard: Yeah...I suppose the dog, dogs, enjoy it, right? Or not.. it depends on the dog.

Kathrine: Mhmmm... (in agreement).. some dogs are not, some dogs can be nervous, but when I groom them and I can show them that it's not scary and train them and help them...then you know, they do come around to enjoy it a little bit more.

Richard: So, we have some little facts about dogs and language in general, as this is a language podcast. So, the average dog can actually learn around 165 words, but that's of spoken language. So, in terms of commands, dogs can learn a lot more than just…

Richard and Kathrine: (Inaudible - talking over.)

Kathrine: Yeah, I think, I think.. I read somewhere that dogs are one of the only domesticated animals to be able to read your body language. They know when you're happy....when you're sad. When you're going out with them or when you're going out and leaving them at home, they like… know.

Richard: Very perceptive..

Kathrine: ...intuitive..

Richard: Intuitive.. What does that...?

Kathrine: another word. So they, they have an idea of... or a sense of what's going on other

than what you tell them.

Richard: Do they have like, an extra sense?

Kathrine: Yeah..

Richard: :...very intelligent. I think...

Kathrine: Mhmmm (in agreement)

Richard: I did also find an example of a dog...that knows over a thousand words.

Kathrine: This dog makes my dogs look rubbish. This dog knows so many words.

Richard: So, you actually were explaining earlier that they train this dog slightly differently to the way they do normally, right?

Kathrine: Yeah...so, in the article, it’s described that they train the dog four or five hours a day and they repeat, repeat the words to train.. their training this dog

LINK - (Dog that knows 1022 words

https://theweek.com/articles/487971/genius-dog-1022word-vocabulary)

Kathrine continued: ... the names of toys so that the dog can then differentiate, and make the choice between the different toys. The way that I would train my - it's not wrong - The way that I train my dogs, is quite different. So, … I give them a choice of... I take what they're showing me, in front of me and shape that into what I want it to be.

Richard: shape..?

Kathrine: Yeah...so it's more free flowing, cause I think then they have a deeper understanding. But they don't know over a thousand words. So, maybe I am doing it wrong. (Laughs)

Richard: I'm thinking about trying this with some students.

Kathrine: (Laughs)

Richard: Maybe, it will work. (inaudible)

Kathrine: (Laughs)

Richard: Okay, so for the final part today...I want to review a few basic dog commands. So, obviously when people come here, they're going to interact with dogs. So it's useful to know at least a few, a few (repeating) of the basics. So, would you like to tell us the first one?

Kathrine: Yes. So the first one is sit. So if you've got a dog, you'll know. This one is really useful, really easy... to teach them and you just ask them to sit down. And similarly, there is a down command on the list, which is just having them lie down with their *belly on the floor. A stay command, which can be very useful when you're out, so about stay...

NOTE - Belly means stomach.

Kathrine continued: If you put your...if the dog is sitting or in a down position. You can move away and you expect them to stay in the same place. And then here.. they've written come, which would mean come to me, leave where you are and come to me. I don't know why they've written off, maybe get off...that *slipper that you're **chewing (Laughs)

NOTE - * a slipper- is a comfortable shoe often used inside the house and at night.

** to chew - to bite and work (food) in the mouth with the teeth, especially to make it easier to swallow.

Kathrine continued: and heel... Oh, my dogs don't know heel. Heel is when, so it's H E. E. L. This is when your dog is on a lead and they're not pulling in front of you...they're walking to heel. So, they’re walking next to you..

Richard: Uhhh, is that...do you say that if you want them to do it or if you don't want them to do it..?

Kathrine: If you want them to do it, if you want them to stop pulling...you would say heel. And then they should... walk next to you.

Richard: Okay...So...

Kathrine: I don't know why it's called heel. I don't know what that word means. And the last word is...no (Laughs)

Richard: Ohh...the last one is no, just a simple no.

Kathrine: Just no.

Richard: No...don't do it.

Kathrine: No, stop eating that.

Richard: All right. So I think that's everything for today's episode.....Thank you so much for agreeing to do this...

Kathrine: Thank you...

Richard: ..and hopefully. See you soon.

Outro music

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