Kennel Club Good Citizen

December 1st saw three of the class feel prepared enough to go forward to take their test for the Kennel Club Good Citizen.  Audrey and Flath completed the Bronze Award and Moira with Gambit and Les with Fly completed Silver.  We are very proud of all 3 and they will go onto the Tynewater Hall of fame once we get the website sorted for photos!

Audrey and Flath

Moira and Zak

 Les and Fly



















The Beginners class did their test too on the 1st and all were brilliant.  It is so satisfying to see little Belle be able to join in with the group now and bark just for the sheer hell of it rather than fear.  Little Oscar has amazed his owner as he isn't fearful at all.  That's the value of small classes and suffcient training support to provided one-to-one where required.

Christmas party this week as postponed last week due to the weather.  Looking forward to it!

Another Training Day!

We had a fantastic days working trials training day today. We had 8 dogs - 2 Labs, GSP, 2 Clumbers, Springer, Cocker, Collie and all did really well.  It's amazing how little confidence owners have in their dogs!  Most of them said their dog wouldn't be able to do one or other of the exercises and to their surprise their dog was great!

Here's Twig doing the clear jump

And a lovely photo of Fudge

They all enjoyed it so much we are now having a monthly class!

Thanks to Liz for the photos.

My Little Therapet

Very proud of Callum tonight.  He passed his test to be a Therapet.  We will be the very first Therapet visitors at the new local hospital.  He was a very well mannered little man and the Assessor was full of praise for him.

Just got to get all the paperwork sorted and we can start.

Take Three Dogs.......

and do some clicker training and see varying results.  Did some clicker training with all three dogs at the weekend.  First up was Hector who started off well but then decided that he would just sit and stare at me to see if that would get him what he wanted! We moved on though and got some nice behaviours offered in the end. 

Maisie was next and what a little show-off, just offered one behaviour after another and we really made progress on her barking. 

Then it was Callum's turn.  He was hilarious! Started off with standard stuff then glided into backing up, rolling over and on and on it went all the time with that serious little face of his - made me laugh out loud!

An enjoyable hour though and we all had some fun.

They Passed!

What an enjoyable night! Putting the 'late brigade' (our late training class!) through their Bronze KCGCDS has been an interesting experience.  Not because the dogs have been a problem but some of the owners have a real lack of confidence in their own ability and in their dog.  However, they all did really well tonight and all passed the test. Very proud of them all.  From little Sybi the Shih Tzu whose owner didn't think she would be able to do anything to the lab Gambit whose view on life is 'Just Chill'! they all proved they can train their dogs and enjoy it in the process.  As for 'Patch' well what a star!

Follow Up on the Mighty Patch!

Well, Patch and Mary have worked hard on their issues.  It hasn't been easy for them and Patch has had a couple of setbacks along the way but....... he made it all the way to class last week! We were all delighted to see him and he just sat and watched what everyone was up to but what a huge step forward.  So proud of them.  Still a way to go but well on their way.  It is a pleasure to work with Mary who is so determined to work through this with Patch.  They are coming to class tomorrow to do their Bronze Good Citizen - we have had to make some adjustments so he isn't put under too much pressure but he will still have the same test as everyone else and I'm sure he will pass with ease.  So keep fingers crossed!

Mulling Over the Issues of the Week

Just been mulling over two issues that have arisen this week. Firstly a little dog who came to us for help after being with another trainer who dealt with the dog's aggression to other dogs by stabbing it in the ribs with two fingers (this dog weighs under 12lbs) and now the dog is aggressive to humans. Secondly the little JRT on the One Show with resource guarding issues and the awful way in which Jordan Shelley decided this issue should be addressed.

Please ensure that before you take your dog to any trainer/behaviour advisor you obtain recommendations, you see them in action with other dogs and most importantly that they have the requisite experience and knowledge/expertise to deal with the issue. A qualification means nothing without experience and experience means nothing without studying canine behaviour and continuing professional development.

As pointed out by a friend, there are students new to the field who don't have a lot of hands on experience but have an understanding of the science of learning theory.   So don't close your mind to a newbie on the block, that's why it's important to go and see them in action to get a feel for their methods. If you are uncomfortable with someone's method walk away no matter how much experience they may have. There are some out there who continually highlight how much experience they have but doesn't make them good at what they do, just the same as having a qualification doesn't mean they are good at what they do either. It's the same in any profession.  

See the results then make up your mind if it's the right trainer/behaviour advisor for you and your dog.