E12 | Jessica Hekman DVM, PhD - The Functional Dog Collaborative

In this conversation, Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD discusses the work of the Functional Dog Collaborative (FDC) and the need to improve dog breeding practices in North America. She highlights the issues with current breeding practices, including the prevalence of large-scale commercial kennels. Jessica emphasizes the importance of moving the needle towards responsible breeding practices and reducing the number of dogs ending up in shelters. The conversation concludes with a discussion on the concept of heritability and its implications for selective breeding. In this conversation, Jessica Hekman discusses the concept of heritability in dog behavior and the role of genetics in shaping traits. She explains how selective breeding can influence behavior and the importance of considering both genetics and environment in understanding dog behavior. The study she conducted on breeds and behaviors was also discussed. The conversation concludes with a discussion on the importance of early socialization in shaping dog behavior. The functional dog collaborative        Podcast and Facebook group, Instagram, and Tik tok Groundbreaking study Companion dog project with associated companion dog registry  Dogzombie.com for more on Jessica and Jessica's webinars, teachings, and to get on her mailing list Lisa Gunter on The Functional Dog Collabrotive Poscast