Group classes and one-2-one young dogs or new to dog ownership families

Lesson plans are formatted to provide you, the human part of the team, with:

• The skills to pre-empt and manage situations so that you are in control when the unexpected happens.
• Understanding how our dogs communicate with us, and how to make our communication with them clear and easy for them to understand. How can we use more visual language, as they do, with our body positioning and gestures to keep them focused and engaged with us?
• Not all dogs are the same, but all dogs are dogs. Just like us, our dogs all have different personalities and characters, and just like us, they need to learn good manners behave appropriately, so we teach you how to help them with this, and be able to determine when dogs are or are not going to get along so that you are able intervene before problems happen.

What we specifically set out to teach your dog, as the canine part of the team, during our training sessions:

• That yes, there are other dogs and exciting things around, but our humans come first!
• Locate beside us on lead and match human pace when walking (aka loose lead walking)
• Good manners when meeting and greeting other dogs and people
• Stop and stay still / recall to voice and whistle – emergency drills
• To settle down switch off when humans need to do stuff

Please note that we are not currently offering group training sessions at the moment, but we are happy to help with one-2-one training sessions locally. Please contact me for details

The longer read, for those interested in the why’s and wherefores behind our training programme

Every family has its unique dynamics, and before bringing dog in to the family, most people have a bit of a ‘master plan’ about what they expect from their new family members. Some folk are happy out in all weathers and want a dog to go for long walks, camping or running with; some might just want a ‘family mucker’ a dog that’ll get on well with the kids, that can skip a few walks if need be and doesn’t demand too much time or attention; for some maybe a dog is the companion that they want to dedicate their hobby time to, one that they can participate in some kind of competitive sports with. Every family is different and lives with a different set if ideas as what they want with a dog in their life.

Its great that with so many breed types, there really is a dog out there to suit everyone, but that we live quite complex lives these days, its not just our own immediate environment that we need our dogs to be able to fit in with, so as well as teaching our dogs what is acceptable behaviour in our homes, now more than ever, we need to ensure that we can control and manage our dogs in all sorts of different circumstances, even when events occur out of our own control, so that our dogs cannot cause harm or be harmed.

I’m walking the dog, what could possibly go wrong?

A relaxing walk is something of a myth! Imagine, you are innocently walking your adolescent pup across a grassy field, when suddenly a group of horse riders appear and gallop straight across the path ahead of you, you had no reason to expect them to appear, and your dog’s natural hunting instincts have been well and truly kicked into gear – I’ve been here myself!; or a heard of deer appear and dart off into the woodland – that ‘Fenton’ moment; pheasants, sheep, hare, motor cross bikes, joggers, other dogs that really do not want to play and have no intention of being friendly!

I’ve even had people, both adults and young children, run up and wrap themselves around my dogs as I’ve walked them down the street. This not acceptable behaviour but still, putting all legalities or rights of way aside, its that ‘in the moment’ that you need to have an immediate handle on, and that is ultimately the goal we set out to give you, teaching you a solid, scientifically based formula that your dog will not only enjoy learning, but will also help make your dog feel happy and confident to comply with your requests at all times because you have built that bond of trust and good communication.

General good manners at home

Most dogs in their every day home environments are quite quick to find their own place in the family dynamics, and because every family is different, training really needs to be pinpointed at your own specific needs, so this is not something we put so much weight on in a class or general every day training session, but we do try to ensure that you understand the approach we use so that you can modify it to suit most general situations that arise. Maybe you were always happy for your dog to come upstairs with you, but du to building works, or maybe a new baby, you need to change the dynamics, then we hope that you finish our training courses well equipped to deal with these needs as they arise, however, if you would like help addressing any issues that you have indoors, please do get in touch.