Staffies are not dangerous dogs. No more so than any other breed of dog, despite the bad press they frequently receive. The Brentwood Gazette reported on Staffie Cassie who has passed the test to become a Cynophobia Assistance Dog, helping children and adults overcome their fear of dogs. Cassie’s test included being brushed by a stranger, left alone with a stranger, being nudged and grabbed. This Read the rest of this entry

If you want to know how to stop a dog barking, I must first warn you that it is not likely that you will totally stop your dog from barking, because this is their natural way of alerting you that there is a danger. Many people don’t want to stop their dog from barking totally, as they are a deterrent to would be burglars. What it is useful to be able to do though, is stop a dog barking once they have Read the rest of this entry

A while back I asked for topics to cover in my blogs, as rather than just harping on about the dog related things that are on my mind, I thought it might be helpful to write blogs about questions that you guys have. Here is the first of such blogs, answering the question as to why dogs are scared of other dogs…

Well some dogs are scared of all dogs, some are only scared of dogs that come up to Read the rest of this entry

Fear aggression is referred to both in a canine and in a human psychological context, and it literally means aggression which is induced by fear. In potentially life threatening situations, adrenalin kicks in and the body responds with flight, freeze or fight. Which response the adrenalin generates will depend on personality and past experience. All animals can learn to ‘get the first punch in’ if Read the rest of this entry

When choosing a puppy or rescue dog for their family, the majority of people will research various breeds, wanting to find out what are the good breeds of dog in terms of behaviour, and to fit in with their lifestyle. I applaud this approach, as it shows a consideration which is very important in a responsible dog owner. The considerations that come into play are often:

• Which breeds of dog are Read the rest of this entry

Another published article from the original Dog Listener Jan Fennell sheds more light on Dog Behaviour. Really happy to be able to share these words of wisdom with my dog training clients:

“Once I learnt to avoid blaming others for things that happened to me I was able to improve, achieve and grow. The reason being, that we almost always play an integral part in every event that comes our way. Read the rest of this entry

I often get asked by dog owners whether they’ve left it too late to train their dog, and I get asked this question by owners with dogs from as young as 20 weeks, to as old as 10 years. So that begs the questions “Can you teach an old dog new tricks?” and “How old is too old for dog training?” and the answer is simple. It’s never too late.

Dogs see every day as a new day, a day that they wish Read the rest of this entry

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 Read the rest of this entry

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 Read the rest of this entry

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’. Read the rest of this entry