{"podcast":{"title":"Soul Touched by Dogs","slug":"soul-touched-by-dogs-6619614","podcast_index_feed_id":6619614,"rss_url":"https://feeds.transistor.fm/soul-touched-by-dogs","website_url":"https://soultouchedbydogs.com","image_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/FdhzIRkj_rft2MCANJ-0ZQW88lT1ipgXJxAbKs5GCwk/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:1400/h:1400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8wOGZh/MzRiNTI3NWRlYzQ0/MDliYmYzNGY2NDA3/YmZjZC5qcGc.jpg","author":"Anke Herrmann","episode_count":129,"summary":"Welcome to the Soul Touched by Dogs Podcast, the show for dog lovers who see dogs not as toys or tools, but as wise souls worth our respect and care. The 30-minute interviews with \"Pawsome Humans\", people who do great work for dogs and their people, you're listening to here on the podcast are one of the ways we celebrate the human-canine connection and advocate for holistic approaches to canine health and well-being.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-26T12:17:42.240939+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/soul-touched-by-dogs-6619614"},"episode":{"title":"Assistant Dogs Transform Wheelchair Life: Daily Tasks and Freedom | with Claudia Hendrix","slug":"assistant-dogs-transform-wheelchair-life-daily-tasks-and-freedom-with-claudia-hendrix","published_at":"2026-05-26T14:40:20+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/soul-touched-by-dogs-6619614/assistant-dogs-transform-wheelchair-life-daily-tasks-and-freedom-with-claudia-hendrix","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/soul-touched-by-dogs-6619614","url":"https://soultouchedbydogs.transistor.fm/episodes/assistant-dogs-transform-wheelchair-life-daily-tasks-and-freedom-with-claudia-hendrix","audio_url":"https://p.podderapp.com/1495290720/media.transistor.fm/fb8a0d5a/ecbf74ad.mp3","summary":"Assistance dogs do far more than most people realise — not just guiding, but helping their humans shower, get dressed, and move through the world with dignity and independence. This conversation with Claudia Hendrix reveals what life with an assistance dog actually looks like when you're a wheelchair user living alone, and how a Labrador named Katya (yes, Cat) became the reason Claudia doesn't need round-the-clock care. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN How assistance dogs are trained from puppyhood through foster families, school, and personalised instruction — and why only about 80% graduate What daily tasks an assistance dog performs that most people never think about, from pulling wheelchair users upright in bed to pushing a shower chair out of spray range How the matching process works between dog and handler, and why it's more like dating than a waiting list What retirement looks like for working dogs, including how families are chosen and why handlers don't always get to keep their dogs How to navigate public spaces when not everyone understands the law around assistance dogs — and the creative ways Claudia educates as she goes Why assistance dogs wear specific harnesses and what's being developed across Europe to make identification clearer What happens during the transition period when a handler says goodbye to one dog and begins training with another A FAVOURITE MOMENT \"Do you expect me to leave my wheelchair outside also? Because that's what you're asking me to do.\" — Claudia ABOUT CLAUDIA HENDRIX Claudia Hendrix is a connector, speaker, and advocate living with chronic illness and using a wheelchair in Alkmaar, Netherlands. She's an ambassador for KNGF Guide Dogs, where she speaks openly about how her assistance dog Katya makes independent living possible. Claudia also wor…","meta_description":"Assistance dogs do far more than most people realise — not just guiding, but helping their humans shower, get dressed, and move through the world with dig…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2327,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/soul-touched-by-dogs-6619614/episodes/assistant-dogs-transform-wheelchair-life-daily-tasks-and-freedom-with-claudia-hendrix/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/soul-touched-by-dogs-6619614/assistant-dogs-transform-wheelchair-life-daily-tasks-and-freedom-with-claudia-hendrix.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}