Building excellent relationships through mutual respect, belief and cooperation.
Using only kind, positive training methods.
I have worked with dogs throughout my life both as a dog owner myself and working with owners on a one-one basis, to help them overcome doggie problems and to build, and foster a healthy trust-based relationship with their dog.
We are now in a ‘golden age’ of dog training with a far greater knowledge and understanding of our canine friends than ever before. We no longer(thankfully) constrained by leaky and now largely discredited dominance theory and punishment. Positive reinforcement is now recognised as the most effective dog training method.
From help puppy training, loose lead walking and recall, aggression, over excitement I can help you have the relationship you have always wanted with your dog.
As a prerequisite I always conduct a consultation first either in person or the telephone. I look for commitment from the owner that they are able and willing to carry out the training required. Training a dog never really ends, your best friend is always learning either on his own or preferably with you! Make sure its with you and fun for both of you.
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Providing your dog with at least some training is the best and most loving thing you can do for them. Training your dog ensures that they are safe and welcome everywhere they go and that they are easy to live with. When beginning obedience training, you need to keep in mind a few do’s and don’ts, and you should start with a few basic exercises.
The following pages are for your guidance only. If in doubt or difficulty, then please consult a professional.
REVIEWING THE DO’S AND DON’TS OF DOG TRAINING
Yes, dog training is based on common sense. However, you do need to keep in mind a few specific guidelines — the do’s and don’ts — to make sure that you’re successful at fostering a healthy relationship with your dog. The following strategies are to help get you started.
DO’S
Try and exercise your dog before beginning any training and burn off a little of any excess energy.
• Do be nice to your dog every time he comes to you (even if they are just coming back from an unexpected romp around the neighbourhood).
• Do get into the habit of giving a command only once. If your dog doesn’t respond to a command you have taught them, reinforce the command. (ie: a treat!) (Remember a sit down is two commands!!!) Just sit
• Do Train eye contact with your dog
• Do use your dog’s name to get their attention, and then tell them what you want them to do.
• Do use a normal tone of voice when you give a command. Your dog’s hearing is quite acute. In other words, don’t shout!
• Do be consistent in your actions and expectations.
• Do provide an outlet for your dog’s energies.
• Do keep your dog mentally stimulated by training him.
• Do understand that your dog is a social animal. Train him/her so he can be a part of the family.
• Do socialize your dog with people and other dogs.
• Do become your dog’s teacher.
• Do make learning fun for your dog.
• Do consistently reward with praise for the correct behaviours.
• Do spend plenty of time with your dog and give him lots of exercise.
• Do keep trying, and your dog will reward you by getting the message. Be patient!
DON’TS
• Don’t do anything your dog perceives as unpleasant when he comes to you.
• Don’t nag your dog by repeating commands — nagging teaches him/her to ignore you
• Don’t use your dog’s name and then expect them to read your mind as to what you want.
• Don’t overuse your dog’s name. When your dog hears their name being called, they should ALWAYS expect and receive praise!!!!!
• Don’t expect your dog to know what the word “no” means.
• Don’t yell at your dog. They are not deaf. Raising your voice doesn’t improve understanding.
• Don’t confuse your dog with unrealistic expectations.
• Don’t try to suppress behaviours that need an outlet.
• Don’t let your dog stagnate.
• Don’t lock up your dog or put him out because you haven’t trained him to behave.
• Don’t isolate your dog — he’s a social animal.
• Don’t expect your dog to obey a command you haven’t taught him.
• Don’t get too serious in your training.
• Don’t reward undesired behaviours. Remember that to him/her there are NO bad behaviours, they are just being a dog!
• Don’t make your dog neurotic by neglecting them.
• Don’t give up when the going gets tough; keep trying.
• Don’t blame the dog; you are their teacher.
When giving commands to your dog during training, be sure to give them in a firm, yet upbeat tone of voice. Don’t pose them as questions; otherwise, they won’t obey. And be sure to use only one command at a time and say it only once.
For a happy and obedient dog then, good foundations are the key to success. One of the key foundations is eye contact. Your dog can’t pull on the lead if they are glancing up at you, they can’t be barking at other dogs if they are looking at you and they can’t be jumping up at you if they are looking at you. Eye contact is the basic key to all training and is often overlooked!!
Once good eye contact has been achieved then we can move onto loose lead walking. Remember a dog can’t be pulling on the lead if they are glancing up at you!
Once your dog is good at eye contact and loose lead walking then we can move onto the holy grail!! Recall. You have already built good foundations and now the recall is the ‘final brick in the wall’. If your dog is always checking in with you then the chance that you are going to be ignored during recall have now fallen drastically!!