Anyone who knows me well will understand that I don’t pay for something unless I absolutely have to, or really really want something, so it occurred to me that some people may do a little research into getting help with their dog’s naughty behaviour, find out some prices and go for the cheapest one, or find out some prices and decide that they don’t mind the behaviour that much, so rather than spend a little bit of money on it, they’ll just put up with the behaviour, after all, it’s part of their character…  I don’t know of anyone for sure who would do this, but I am someone who will go without something rather than spend the money on it, so I can imagine that there are others out there like me who may categorise dog training as an unnecessary luxury.

The truth of it is that bad dog behaviour is normally a sign that your dog is stressed.  If you name a type of bad dog behaviour, I can tell you how that is the dog showing stress.  For example chewing things when you are out, this is because your dog is worried about you and so is chewing to release endorphins and relieve stress.  Excessive barking, your dog thinks that it is responsible for keeping you safe and keeps hearing/smelling/seeing things which it thinks might mean you are all in danger so barks a warning to the danger to leave you alone, being stressed about things that we know are no problem, e.g. the post man!  I could go on.

The point of this post is to urge people like me to reconsider decisions not to get help on a financial basis.  If your dog is stressed, you can relieve that stress by learning and applying a simple technique to show it that you are in charge, and take the stress from its furry shoulders.  In my (ridiculously frugal) book, that help is worth a dog’s weight in gold.  Also I would advise against shopping around for the best price.  Shop around for something that makes sense!  If you get cheap dog training, does that mean you are getting good dog training?  My service is inexpensive, but I’m sure there are cheaper trainers out there.  I know many many dog owners who have gone to trainers to be told that their dog is ‘untrainable’, or to be given things to do which are bordering on animal creulty.  If you have my help you are dealing with an experienced and Highly Recommended Dog Listener who will provide you with a LIFE TIME of back up support by phone and email if you need it.  If this method didn’t work I wouldn’t be able to do offer this!  And most importantly, what I will ask you to do is in your dog’s best interest.  I’m not interested in getting quick results by using gadgets or force, I use Jan Fennell’s method of Amichien Bonding, which forms a relationship of trust between you and your dog, and releases your dog of its burden of stress.  So can you now see what a good investment a consultation would be…? 

Prices range up to a maximum of £200 depending on travel distance and I am based in Leigh on Sea, near Southend and work in Essex, Kent or London.  Ask for a quote for your location, and this is all you will have to pay - no hidden extras!

I have the conversation about whether castrating dogs will calm them down or not so often that I felt it a subject worthy of a blog.  There is a school of thought that your dog is hyperactive, or aggressive because of testosterone, or with a female, because she has had a season, and therefore the resolution to the behaviour problem is to neuter or spay your dog or bitch.  The reality of my clients who have gone through with the process is that the dog’s behaviour has not improve at all, if anything it has got worse.   The truth is that a dog is not aggressive or hyperactive because of its hormones.  It is so because it feels that it has an important job to do, thinking that it is the top dog, because of the signals that it is getting from its owners default behaviour.  If you remove the hormones, you simply remove a feeling of strength from that dog, yet it is still getting the same signals from its owner, so it still thinks it has the same job to do, just with fewer resources.  The leader is the one who protects from danger; aggression is usually because the dog feels fearful of something so is warning or defending against it.  In the wild the Alpha male and female in the pack make these decisions and the rest of the pack accept them - they do no castrate or spay the other members of the pack, the rest of the pack trust in the Alpha pair to make the right decision.  It has nothing to do with the presence or absence of body parts of hormones.

So if you are thinking “Should I neuter my dog?” neutering for health reasons, or to avoid unwanted puppies is a completely different scenario, but if your dog is aggressive or hyperactive, before you spend lots of money having it castrated or spayed, think about your best option - showing your dog through your own behaviour that it doesn’t need to protect or look after you anymore!  I have even seen leg humping dogs that are castrated.  Give me a call if you aren’t sure whether your dog will benefit from neutering or not… 

Yesterday I looked out of the window to see a young man being taken for a walk by his two dogs.  The word ‘waterskiing’ sprang to mind!  Dogs pulling on the lead think that they are ‘leading the hunt’, which means that they think that they are in charge of your pack.  If your dog pulls on the lead, no matter how relaxed or obedient it may be at other times, it is thinking that it really ought to be in charge of the walk.  The common misconceptions is that your dog is pulling because it is so excited to be going out, or because that is what it has been bred to do in the case of husky owners.  Not true.  What looks like excitement is adrenalin surging through your dog’s body.  It is getting ready to take charge of the hunt.  In the wild, the Alpha pair are in charge of the hunt, therefore if you can take the role of Alpha, part of that will include you taking charge of the walk and your dog will choose to walk with you (not because it is being checked, or is on a halti).

If you are interested in knowing more about this, I’d recommend reading “The Dog Listener” by Jan Fennell.  If you would like one-to-one help to learn how to stop your dog pulling on the lead (and any other behavioural problems you may have) then please give me a call.  I provide in home consultations in Essex, and parts of London, Kent, Suffolk and Hertforshire.  Dog training in a way that makes sense to your dog!

I like to spend a little time reflecting at the beginning of the year on what I want to achieve and what I have to offer.  I found myself thinking about what I offer to people as a Dog Listener…  Well most people will come to me looking for Dog Training, because there is some sort of problem which is making life a bit difficult.  The problems are highly varied, from aggression to other dogs, aggression to people, resource guarding and the other ‘scary’ dog behaviours, to the annoying behaviours like pulling on the lead, barking at the slightest noise; to behaviours which show a real anxiety – destruction when you are out, whimpering and hiding at noises, toiletting when they see strangers…  the types of behaviour are so varied and vast, but ultimately what I give everyone is an understanding of their dog.  It goes without saying that when they hire me as a dog trainer they are going to see improvements in their dog’s behaviour (provided they continue the training we discuss), but what every single client I’ve visited has ALSO benefitted from is having their eyes opened when it comes to what is important to their dog.

This thought made me think a little bit about bringing children up.  When a child does something that we don’t want them to, we can teach them ‘no’ and explain to them why not, because that child is also growing up to understand English.  Our dogs are never going to understand English, you will never be able to rationalise with them in a human way, so you may as well stop now!  If you want to reason with a dog, you need to learn to understand your dog.  To understand what your dog’s perspective is, what is important to him/her.  Your dog came to you with a ready made set of instincts, no matter how young you take that dog in.  Work with the instincts, and your dog will want to work with you.

Anyone ready to start off the New Year with an understanding of your dog which will improve your relationship with your dog, and any other dog you ever have, forever…?!

When I go to help my clients with their dog training, to resolve the problems they are experiencing with their dogs; I am always asked how long will it take until my dog’s behaviour improves? I get asked this by every owner, whether their dog is a biter, barker, has separation anxiety, pulls on the lead, jumps up, or isn’t toilet trained. Whatever the behaviour, whatever the breed, people always want to know how long it will take. What I am there to do is to teach the owners how to show the dog that they are in charge, the dog then will not need to do the problem behaviour anymore. When the owners start to change their behaviour, their dog needs to clearly understand what the new status is and that will take some time…

A friend of mine recently told me about his new work situation which nicely illustrated this point. He is in the Army, and has always worked on a pretty operational basis, so status and hierarchy was always clearly identified by the badges worn by each person, so the instant you looked at someone new, you knew straight away their status with respect to your own. However this friend recently changed roles and found himself working in an office wearing a suit, sitting at a desk. Everyone else also dressed in suits and sitting at desks, all ranks mixed in together, and he didn’t know who was who. Imagine that, you’ve spent your working life knowing your place all the time, and then suddenly all signals are different and you have to work it out for yourself, treading carefully as you do.

This is what happens to our dogs. They have lived in a household where they are given signals within their pack hierarchy that they are the leaders for all their lives (much as many of my clients have liked to think that they are the “top dogs” in their pack, I have yet to go to a house where the dog didn’t think it was in charge). Then it all changes as the owners start implementing Amichien Bonding, showing their dogs that they can be in charge instead. All the signals are now different and the dog isn’t as sure of its place anymore. Just like my friend in the army, the dog then has to spend some time working out its place in this new dynamic. Only once it is happy with its place will you see the behaviour change. It is up to you to prove yourselves as leaders, then your dog needs to recognise what you are doing, then it needs to be happy with what you are doing in all different situations and you can be trusted to continue to do this. How long this takes depends on how consistent you are, and how stubborn, or how anxious your dog is!

Everyone notices improvements very quickly.  Some declare to me that it’s like they have a different dog within 2 weeks, as their dog is so much calmer, for others the problem behaviour takes a little longer to resolve, but they can see the progress so are motivated to keep going with the training method.  Everyone who has a consultation with me get a free life long back up by phone and email, so as the relationship changes there is always someone to ask questions, and support you as you make the transition to leader of your pack.  I can’t wait to help you get started.  Please give me a call today 07908 192656

Recently we heard news of the legislation regarding dogs which “go out of control and bite”, and how this is now extending beyond the original breeds which were classed as ‘dangerous dogs’ to all breeds and will go further than the destruction order, to in some cases include imprisonment for the owner for up to two years. 

The reality is that ANY dog can bite.  Not just dogs with ‘aggression’.  It doesn’t matter what has been said about the breed in books or by dog trainers, breeders or the media, or how lovely a temperment your dog has; every dog is an animal, and any animal could decide to defend itself if given a cause to do so.  I have never been involved in a physical fight in my life, but if it came to the crunch I think that I would lash out if I felt that was the only option available for me to defend myself or those I am responsible for protecting.  I have come across many dogs who have bitten, or warned that they may bite.  The following are the typical reasons that they may do this:

1.  Feeling threatened by someone coming into their personal space – rolling over to show the tummy in this case does not always mean ‘tickle my tummy’, if the dog is nervous, or unfamiliar to you it means ‘I am afraid, so I’m showing you my most vulnerable area so you’ll know I’m not a threat and will leave me alone’. 

2.  Seeing a visitor as a threat to the family – who is this person, what are their intentions?  Do I need to protect my pack?

3.  Protecting the family from strangers on the walk – joggers, children, people wishing to pet your dog, all can be seen as a threat.

4.  Neighbours leaning over the fence into their ‘territory’ – in the wild, encroaching the territory would lead to a fight to the death.

4.  Feeling the need to protect their resources, e.g. food, toys (do not try to take food from a dog!)

5.  Trying to stop owners from doing something they perceive to be dangerous – like slapping a childs hand away from a hot stove.

This is not an exhaustive list, and it is not intended to scare, it is simple to point out that there are lots of different occasions which could give a dog reason to bite and I have had numerous clients who’ve called me in because their dog has bitten someone ‘totally out of character’.  I wish to equip you with the information that you need so you can make a choice to ensure that you protect your dog and yourself from any mistakes it may make.  The key is LEADERSHIP.  A dog which makes decisions at times of perceived danger is a dog which thinks that it is the leader of your pack.  In extreme cases, the decision may be to bite.  Let me point out here that I have also had numerous clients who have called me in, insistant that their dog knows its place and that the owners are top dogs, however I have yet to visit anyone where this has actually been the case.  Obedience does not mean your dog trusts your decisions!  For more information I recommend that you read “The Dog Listener” by Jan Fennell, or call me for an informal chat.

If you would like one to one help call Vicky to arrange a consultation on 07908 192656