“We Consider Us to Be the Clay Aiken of Greatest American Dog” – An Interview with Greatest American Dog's Runner-Up Team, Laurie and Andrew

Little Andrew could easily be called one of the bravest little dogs around. He faced an elephant not just once, but a second time in the finale and never appeared to be afraid. He was a shining example of what little dogs can do. Laurie, of course, is nothing but a proud mama over her little dog. She took some time to talk with us in an exclusive RealityNewsOnline interview. Read on.

RealityNewsOnline: Thanks for taking a few minutes to chat for the RNO readers again, Laurie. The last time we talked, you knew you had done well on the show. You did a great job of keeping that secret!

Laurie: Yes I did. Actually, it was pretty good. People didn’t try to drag it out of me.

RNO: You looked hopeful that you'd win the show, but were you surprised that Travis won it in the end?

Laurie: I wasn't surprised. Absolutely not! It came down to the top five and it was anyone’s game. I thought Andrew deserved and it could've gone any way. We have a lot of fans and consider us to be the Clay Aiken of Greatest American Dog.

RNO: I thought that your comparison between the long-married couple and the newlyweds was particularly astute and it was a smart comment to make in front of the judges.

Laurie: I'd been thinking about what to say and pretty much knew [that] with the remaining three I figured we’d be asked to compare on why I felt Andrew would deserve the title it more than the other two. I thought they did a great job and did so well.

When you get a young untrained dog, you'll have a sponge with a voracious appetite to learn. JD and I represented the old married couples [with our dogs]. We had a relationship and long standing love; few had it deeper coming in. [Travis & Presley and Andrew & I] were like comparing apples to oranges. I put it in [the judges] laps to show America what they think is worth promoting.

RNO: You must be proud that Andrew helped the little dogs of the world seem so much bigger.

Laurie: Oh my gosh, yes, amazingly so. As a trainer, I get few clients with little dogs. A lot of people with little dogs don’t' see the benefit of training them as much as they do a larger dog. I can pick a small dog up when it’s misbehaving and put them on the bed, but it's so much more when you can actually train them instead of just picking them up. Andrew showed that you can have a well-trained little dog. He’s not the stereotypical snippy, yappy little dog. He’s a rock star!

RNO: How were you cast for the show?

Laurie: I'm one of the few who filled out the application. Someone e-mailed the website and application to me. I looked at the 20-page application and waited until the last day to fax it over. I didn’t have an agent. I’m not in the talent business. We just have a little life here in Virginia.

RNO: You are very strong about your opinions about training. Did you go into the house wanting to be sure your points came across, or did it just sort of work out that way through your time in the house?

Laurie: I'm totally committed to positive training and fell that that's the way to go and create a lasting relationship with your dog. I certainly want to get it out there. But I'm not the type to shove my opinions down anyone’s throat.

I’ve been training dogs for about 25 years so I know both sides of the battles. All we did 25 years ago was the obedience method. It’s old school now. I know both sides and by example I know the relationships I had with dogs 20 years ago and it's night and day difference. You wouldn’t go back to technology of 25 years ago when you have new ideas today, would you?

I've learned so much over time and why go back to the old school if you don't need it? Postitive reinforcement is the best way to go.

RNO: Did you and JD butt heads about training more than what we saw a few episodes ago?

Laurie: It's funny because we didn't really butt heads, but we had some discussions. Even if you had ten positive reinforcement trainers, there would be very different opinions on approaches. But I did want to impress on him how it works, and it does work.

[JD and I] had a lot in common. His use of the ball and toys was positive training. It doesn't matter if you deliver a treat or toys and that's okay. He just couldn't wrap his brain around that. That was a little frustrating, but whatever you use to motivate a dog, it doesn't matter what the reward is, if it's positive.