Common Questions
What is your approach to dog training?
I have a very flexible approach to dog training, all dogs and owners are different. I have worked with a wide variety of breeds over the years. Even within the same breed you get many different behaviours.
Firstly I see what motivates the dog, whether that be; food, playing with a favourite toy or just a mad game with their owner - whatever works, works for me.
I am a balanced, reward based, trainer who believes in using the word ''no''.
Is my dog too old to be trained?
No pet is ever too old to be trained. I've worked with many elderly rescue dogs over the years and the transformation is beautiful.
Dogs tend to live in the moment but they do have a certain amount of 'baggage'. The longer they have been exhibiting a behaviour the longer it can take to fix - but most things are possible!
How do your sessions work?
Clients do not have to see me on a weekly basis. Sessions are normally about 1.5 hours long so there is a lot we will cover in that time. Clients usually go away and practice, then book another session when they feel ready to move onto the next stage, this is normally 2-3 weeks.
In each session the dog will not be training all the time, a lot of the lesson is spent talking, explaining exercises or discussing behavioural problems. I do not like to end the sessions until I am confident the client understands what has been covered and they feel confident in what they are doing.
Ideally I like to come to the client, whether that be at their home or where they regularly walk their dog. That way I can see the normal behaviour of the dog because they are in surroundings familiar to them.