Thoughts of A Dog Man

Steven Thomas
  • 5.0 (11)
  • How To
  • Updated Daily

Thoughts of A Dog Man is the ultimate podcast for new hunters who want to unlock the full potential of their four-legged partners. If you are starting your journey with hunting dogs, on the fence about getting started, or even a seasoned vet, this show dives deep into training techniques, proven strategies, and real-world experiences to help you and your dog succeed in the field. The podcast focuses on Hunting Beagles, Treeing Dogs, and Pointing Dogs. Join me as I share useful, practical, and knowledgeable advice, personal stories, and hard-earned lessons to guide new hunters in the right direction. You're in the right place if you’re passionate about hunting and the incredible bond between man and dog!

  1. 5d ago

    5 Easy “Secret” Training Tricks You Need For Your Hunting Dogs

    There are a lot of little things I do when training hunting dogs that probably wouldn’t sound like “secrets” to everybody—but they’re techniques I’ve picked up over the years that have helped me get more out of my dogs. In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, I break down five of those little training techniques and explain how I actually use them. We talk about teaching a hunting dog to hit the ground running so that when you cut that dog loose, it already understands that it’s time to GO HUNT. I explain how I work toward that with beagles and how I use a similar idea with tree dogs. We also get into using tracking bells, knowing when to stop a training session while the dog is still at its most excited, and why I believe young dogs need opportunities around enough game to learn that putting in the effort can actually lead to success. None of this is magic, and none of it guarantees that every dog will turn out the same way. These are simply small things I’ve used over the years to increase the chances of developing the habits, confidence, excitement, and hunting desire I want to see. Sometimes getting more out of a hunting dog isn’t about finding some complicated training system. Sometimes it’s about paying attention to the little things. 🐾 JOIN DOG MAN INSIDER: https://www.skool.com/dog-man-insider-5478 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🔔 COASTAL PET PRODUCTS — MY AFFILIATE LINK: https://s.creatorcommerce.club/1dbbc452 🔔 WATER & WOODS TRACKING BELL: https://www.coastalpet.com/products/detail/?id=WWCB1 I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through my Coastal Pet Products affiliate link. 🐆 ALCBA ONLINE REGISTRATION: https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🐆 ALCBA REBUILD / PERMANENT REGISTRATION PAYMENT: https://buy.stripe.com/8x228kcui1PZ5Wu2bV7bW04 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast What’s one little training technique you use that has made a difference with your dogs?

    5 Easy “Secret” Training Tricks You Need For Your Hunting Dogs

  2. Sep 16

    What Does A Champion Title Actually Tell You?

    What does a Nite Champion title really prove? In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, I take a deeper look at competition titles and ask a question I think is worth discussing: does the title tell us enough about the dog, or do we need to know more about the road it took to get there? We talk about the difference between a dog that earns its wins quickly versus one that needs considerably more opportunities, how much the handler behind the leash can influence competition success, and whether home-field advantage matters when a dog is competing on familiar ground. I also get into the idea of different “conferences” or regions of the country and how terrain, game population, weather, and hunting conditions can create very different challenges for dogs depending on where they compete. Then we take it a step further and ask whether a dog’s competition record should follow the title. Would seeing something like: NITECH — 5 wins / 7 starts tell you something different than: NITECH — 5 wins / 22 starts? Would that information matter to you as a hunter? A breeder? Somebody looking at a potential stud? I’m not taking anything away from anybody’s title, and I’m not saying I have the answer. Maybe the title system is doing exactly what it was designed to do. Maybe the bigger question is whether we’re asking the letters in front of a dog’s name to tell us more than they were ever intended to tell us. A title may tell us WHAT the dog accomplished. The record, the handler, the country, and the story behind it may tell us HOW. 🐾 JOIN DOG MAN INSIDER: https://www.skool.com/dog-man-insider-5478 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🐆 ALCBA ONLINE REGISTRATION: https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🐆 ALCBA REBUILD / PERMANENT REGISTRATION PAYMENT: https://buy.stripe.com/8x228kcui1PZ5Wu2bV7bW04 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast What do you think? When you see NITECH in front of a dog’s name, what does that title mean to YOU?

    What Does A Champion Title Actually Tell You?

  3. Sep 9

    Rabbit Season Safety: What Every Beginner and New Hunter Should Know

    Rabbit season is open here in Iowa, and before we get too caught up in the dogs, the races, and putting rabbits in the bag, I wanted to spend some time talking about safety. In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, I go through several things I think every rabbit hunter—especially somebody new to hunting with dogs—should think about before heading to the field. We start with muzzle control and the habits that matter while carrying a gun around other hunters and dogs. Then we get into knowing where your dogs are before taking a shot, being selective about who you hunt with, and why I think a quick safety conversation before turning dogs loose can save a lot of problems later. I also talk about choosing which dogs to put on the ground when hunting with somebody new, paying attention to roads, property lines, weather and dog condition, and remembering that you never HAVE to take the shot. There will always be another rabbit and another race. A successful hunt is everybody—and every dog—making it home safely. 🐾 JOIN DOG MAN INSIDER: https://www.skool.com/dog-man-insider-5478 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🐆 ALCBA ONLINE REGISTRATION: https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🐆 ALCBA REBUILD / PERMANENT REGISTRATION PAYMENT: https://buy.stripe.com/8x228kcui1PZ5Wu2bV7bW04 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast Sometimes the safest and smartest shot is the one you never take!

    Rabbit Season Safety: What Every Beginner and New Hunter Should Know

  4. Sep 2

    What Are You Looking For in A Young Tree Dog?

    When you’re working with a young tree dog, it can be easy to focus on one question: Is he treeing yet? But there’s a whole lot more I’m watching before I ever decide what I think that young dog might become. In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, we talk about some of the things I look for while a young tree dog is developing—hunt and desire, how they use their nose, whether they seem more track-minded or tree-minded, problem-solving ability, independence, confidence, and how they respond when things don’t go perfectly. Treeing is exciting, but it doesn’t tell you the whole story. How did the dog get there? What did he do when the track got tough? Can he correct his own mistakes? Is he making his own decisions, or depending on another dog or the handler to do everything for him? And maybe most importantly, are we judging that young dog off one exciting moment—or are we paying attention to the patterns he continues to show us over time? Especially for beginners, I think there’s a lot you can learn about a young tree dog long before everything completely comes together. Hopefully this episode gives you a few more things to watch for the next time you’re in the woods with a young dog. 🐾 NEW JOIN DOG MAN INSIDER: https://www.skool.com/dog-man-insider-5478 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🐾 DOG MAN INSIDER FACEBOOK GROUP: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1562828264897293 🐆 ALCBA ONLINE REGISTRATION: https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🐆 ALCBA REBUILD / PERMANENT REGISTRATION PAYMENT: https://buy.stripe.com/8x228kcui1PZ5Wu2bV7bW04 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast Don’t get so caught up asking whether that young dog is treeing yet that you miss everything he’s showing you before he ever gets to the tree.

    What Are You Looking For in A Young Tree Dog?

  5. Aug 26

    Practice What You Preach

    Practice what you preach. Recently, Bawlin Out Kennels crossed 10,000 followers on Facebook. It’s a milestone I’m proud of, but it also made me think about the process it took to get there and how similar that process is to developing a young dog. There were times when 10,000 followers felt a long way away. Times when growth was slow, things didn’t work, negativity showed up, and I questioned whether I was even headed in the right direction. Sound familiar? Because we go through the exact same thing with our dogs. You start with a young pup and have an idea of what you hope he’ll become. You put the work in, see little glimpses of progress, hit plateaus, have setbacks, and sometimes wonder if that dog is ever going to put it all together. In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, we talk about continuing to show up before the results are obvious, dealing with plateaus and outside opinions, knowing when to adjust without abandoning the process, and paying attention when those breakthroughs finally happen. Because a breakthrough isn’t just something to celebrate; it’s something to study. I spend a lot of time telling new handlers to be patient, trust the process, stop comparing their dogs to everybody else’s, and give that young dog time to develop. Sometimes I have to remind myself to practice what I preach! Thank you to everybody who has followed, listened, shared, commented, and supported Bawlin Out Kennels along the way. 10K is a milestone, but we’re nowhere close to finished. 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🐾 JOIN THE DOG MAN INSIDER COMMUNITY: https://www.skool.com/dog-man-insider-5478 🐾 DOG MAN INSIDER FACEBOOK GROUP: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1562828264897293 🐆 ALCBA ONLINE REGISTRATION: https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🐆 ALCBA REBUILD / PERMANENT REGISTRATION PAYMENT: https://buy.stripe.com/8x228kcui1PZ5Wu2bV7bW04 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast Whatever you’re working toward, whether it’s developing a dog, building something of your own, or improving yourself, don’t mistake slow progress for no progress. Keep showing up!

    Practice What You Preach

  6. Aug 19

    Are You Helping That Young Dog Too Much?

    Are you helping your young dog too much? In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, we talk about something that can be easy to overlook when training a young dog: sometimes the best thing you can do is step in—and sometimes the best thing you can do is get out of the way. We get into the difference between teaching a dog and doing the work for him, why a little struggle can actually help build problem-solving ability, and how constantly directing a young dog can create one that starts waiting on you for every decision. I also talk about knowing when help is actually needed, recognizing when your help may have become a crutch, and why different dogs need varying amounts of support depending on their confidence, maturity, and personality. One question I think every handler should ask from time to time is: Did the dog actually learn it… or did I just make it happen? Especially with young tree dogs, the goal isn’t to manufacture every success. The goal is to help them understand the job, build confidence, and eventually be able to go do it without needing us to walk them through every step. Hopefully this episode gives you something to think about the next time you’re working with a young dog. 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🐾 DOG MAN INSIDER COMMUNITY: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1562828264897293 💳 DOG MAN INSIDER — $10/MONTH: https://buy.stripe.com/7sYcMYdym52b4Sq8Aj7bW02 🐆 ALCBA ONLINE REGISTRATION: https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🐆 ALCBA REBUILD / PERMANENT REGISTRATION PAYMENT: https://buy.stripe.com/8x228kcui1PZ5Wu2bV7bW04 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast What’s one situation where you’ve learned to step back and let your dog figure it out?

    Are You Helping That Young Dog Too Much?

  7. Aug 12

    Do You Know What Motivates Your Dog?

    Do you actually know what motivates your dog? A lot of us have a certain way we like to train dogs, but one thing I've learned is that the same approach doesn't necessarily work the same way on every dog. In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, we're talking about learning the individual dog in front of you. Is that dog motivated by food? Praise? Play? Chase? Does pressure make him work harder, or does it cause him to shut down? And are the things we think are rewards actually rewarding to that particular dog? We also get into rewarding effort versus only rewarding success, accidentally teaching behaviors we didn't intend to teach, knowing when a training method isn't working, and why sometimes the handler has to adjust before we blame the dog. Because at the end of the day, dog training isn't only about teaching a dog what you want. It's also about figuring out what makes that particular dog want to give it to you. Hopefully this one gives new and experienced handlers alike something to think about the next time you're working with a young dog. 📘 PRODUCING A FUTURE RABBIT DOG — BOOK + 3 BONUS AUDIOS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios 🐾 DOG MAN INSIDER COMMUNITY: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1562828264897293 💳 DOG MAN INSIDER — $10/MONTH: https://buy.stripe.com/7sYcMYdym52b4Sq8Aj7bW02 🌐 BAWLIN OUT KENNELS: https://bawlinoutkennels.com ALCBA Permanent Registration Application https://forms.gle/ZzTbuJkBXsf6Rec97 🎙️ Thoughts of a Dog Man Podcast What have you found motivates YOUR dog the most?

    Do You Know What Motivates Your Dog?

  8. Aug 5

    Female Recovery After Weaning Pups For Beginners

    Have you ever wondered what happens after the puppies are weaned? Most people spend all their time talking about raising the puppies—but very few talk about helping the mama dog recover. In this episode of Thoughts of a Dog Man, we’re discussing the weaning process from both sides: preparing the puppies for independence while safely helping the female transition out of nursing. We’ll cover:
• Preparing a female before breeding
• Deworming before, during, and after pregnancy
• When to begin the weaning process
• My step-by-step approach to gradually separating mom and puppies
• Helping reduce the risk of mastitis and other health concerns
• Preparing puppies to confidently eat on their own
• Why recovery for the female is just as important as raising the litter Whether you’re raising your first litter or your fifteenth, this episode is full of practical experience and a few things that are easy to overlook. Something to think about… breeding doesn’t end when the puppies are born. A successful litter also means making sure the female has the opportunity to recover the right way. Rabbit Dog Starter Bundle + 3 Bonus Audios:
https://bawlinoutkennels.com/products/rabbit-dog-starter-bundle-book-3-bonus-audios Join the Dog Man Insider Community:
https://bawlinoutkennels.com/pages/dog-man-insider Become a Dog Man Insider ($10/month):
https://buy.stripe.com/6oU3cv4bQfQJ9AAbII Website:
https://bawlinoutkennels.com Follow Bawlin Out Kennels:
 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bawlinoutkennels
 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bawlinoutkennels
 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bawlinoutkennels If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow the podcast, leave a rating and review, and share it with another dog man who’s getting ready to raise a litter.

    Female Recovery After Weaning Pups For Beginners
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About

Thoughts of A Dog Man is the ultimate podcast for new hunters who want to unlock the full potential of their four-legged partners. If you are starting your journey with hunting dogs, on the fence about getting started, or even a seasoned vet, this show dives deep into training techniques, proven strategies, and real-world experiences to help you and your dog succeed in the field. The podcast focuses on Hunting Beagles, Treeing Dogs, and Pointing Dogs. Join me as I share useful, practical, and knowledgeable advice, personal stories, and hard-earned lessons to guide new hunters in the right direction. You're in the right place if you’re passionate about hunting and the incredible bond between man and dog!

Information

  • Creator
    Steven Thomas
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    77
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Thoughts of A Dog Man