Episode #134 - Try It: Identify Your Home's Grumble & Growl Zones

Create safer, calmer spaces for your pets (and your family)

September 30, 2025

TLDL (Too Long, Didn’t Listen):

1️⃣ Grumble vs. Growl Zones – Grumble zones are crowded spaces without escape routes; growl zones are tight spaces, without an escape path and/or there is a valued resource nearby.

2️⃣ Management is Your Friend – Tools like baby gates and rearranging furniture aren’t failures—they’re simple, effective ways to keep pets and kids safe.

3️⃣ Read the Subtle Signs – Learning your pet’s ladder of escalation and body language helps you intervene early and prevent conflicts before they escalate.

Episode Overview:

Ever notice your pet getting tense in certain spots around your house? Spaces like the hallway, under the table, or right next to you on the couch? Those tricky spaces might actually be grumble or growl zones.

In this episode, Pet Harmony behavior consultant MaryKaye walks you through what these zones are, how to spot them, and simple steps you can take to prevent conflict before it happens. Whether you share your home with dogs, cats, or even bunnies, you’ll learn how to identify areas that could spark tension, rearrange your space to reduce stress, and give your pets safe, comfortable places to relax.

You’ll leave this episode with practical strategies for management, creating pet-friendly safe zones, and reading your pet’s body language so you can keep everyone in the family safe and happy.

Links & Resources from the Episode

🧾 For full episode transcripts: Arial l OpenDyslexic
✅ Family Paws Parent Education
🎧 #95 – How to Identify Your Own Ladder of Escalation
🎧 Episode #121 – Try it: Learn Your Pet’s Ladder of De-Escalation
📚 Becoming Bilingual: Reading Your Pet’s Body Language
💻 Learn to Observe with Your Senses, Not Your Stories – Free Live Sessions
📚 Why I Don’t Settle for “Fine”
📚 Grumble and Growl Zones

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Meet the Hosts

Allie Bender, CDBC, CPDT-KA, SBA

Allie Bender is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant, Certified Professional Dog Trainer- Knowledge Assessed, and a Shelter Behavior Affiliate. She has been in the animal welfare industry since 2006 and professionally training since 2012. She is the founder and co-owner of Pet Harmony, co-author of Canine Enrichment for the Real World, and a national speaker.

While in the animal sheltering industry, Allie realized that her passion lied in helping pets with maladaptive behaviors. Specifically, she wanted to help prevent animals with rehabilitatable problems from being euthanized. She loves working with dogs and cats displaying stranger danger, resource guarding, and leash reactivity. Her favorite thing about working with pets and their people is seeing relationships grow and seeing harmonious households develop.

EMIly strong

Emily Strong is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant and Shelter Behavior Affiliate. She has been in the animal welfare industry since 1990 and has been a behavior consultant since 2008. She is the co-owner of Pet Harmony, co-author of Canine Enrichment for the Real World, and a national speaker.

Emily started working with animals at a young age and struggled with the notion that you have to hurt, scare, or intimidate animals to help them. When she discovered the behavior sciences and learned that it wasn’t necessary to do so– that we can care for emotional, mental, and physical health simultaneously– she plunged headfirst into animal behavior. Emily loves helping current and prospective behavior professionals and working with pet parents through our in-depth services. She enjoys working with all species.

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