Where You Lead Dog Behaviour and Training

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Melbourne, VIC
Where You Lead Dog Behaviour and Training

WYL is a dog behavioural and training service specialising in fearful behaviour and aggression.

Our trainer is NDTF certified and experienced with dogs of all shapes, sizes and temperaments.

24/12/2024

Merry Christmas from us and ours to you and yours! (Yes even from the disgruntled Kelpador who is ready for her holidays to begin!) Have a safe and enjoyable New Year!

Take some time to rest and relax like the gang got to after their photoshoot in their new pool ❤️

23/12/2024

Part 2 of dealing with off-leash dogs: If asking the owner to call their dog doesn’t work and you have nothing on you to help with the situation:

All of these suggestions work best if you have taken the time to practice them before you need to put them into action.

Practice is the best preparation – work on a solid drop at home then proof it on a long-line and in many different environments!

• Do not run. It will almost certainly be your first instinct so you will need to fight it. Running encourages the other dog to follow you. We use running away from a dog as a way to INCREASE their desire to come to you in recall – don’t make that mistake here.

• Avoid picking your dog up unless you are confident you can keep them away from the other dog and the other dog won’t hurt you trying to get to them. Generally, picking your dog up is more likely to encourage jumping or frustration from a non-aggressive dog and can escalate a situation. It also puts you in more danger as you now have your hands full and can’t move as freely.

Instead:

• Loudly bellow, “No” and/or “Sit” – some dogs will listen automatically. Make your voice deep, not high. Practice this on your own so you are better prepared when the situation arises. It’s hard to control your voice when you actually see the dog approaching!

• If you have a really solid drop-stay with your dog, drop them between you and a fence, tree or other barrier and keep your body between them and the other dog. Make yourself bigger and harder to get past by putting your arms out on a forty-five-degree angle downwards like a soccer goalie – your dog is the goal net and the approaching dog is the ball you’re trying to keep away.

As the other dog approaches - Act confident even if you don’t feel it! This will give your dog confidence that you have control of the situation and make them less likely to react or try and take control themselves, as well as making the other dog more likely to pay attention to you.

Stand tall, put your shoulders back and speak with a deeper voice. AVOID making eye contact with the approaching dog. If they are aggressive this can increase the chance of reaction.

Please also note: These actions may work well with dogs who are approaching because they want to greet your dog or out of excitement, but will be less effective for truly aggressive dogs. If you have other tools to scare the dog away, getting your dog dropped somewhere safe with you standing in front is still a good option with an aggressive dog.

• Retreat without running away. If you are near a fence or gate and can get behind it, use it as an additional barrier for you and your dog. Many ovals have gates you can open and close. Get yourself and your dog through by moving towards the gate while maintaining visual on the dog (do not run or turn your back). Get your dog through the gate first and then shut it behind you.

If you are able to pick your dog up you can also put them over a nearby fence for protection while you catch the approaching dog or wait for the other owner to do something. Do NOT let go of the leash if you do this. You still need complete control. If safe to do so, you can tie your dog to the fence while you catch the off-leash dog.

There is always a risk that a dog may potentially be hidden on the other side of a fence or gate. Be careful.

Remember: All of these suggestions are situational and you want to make the choice which is safest for you and your dog.

Practice for the situation in case it arises. Practice so often you don’t second guess yourself when it does happen. Proof your dog so they are comfortable moving with you as you carry out these steps.

A common error I see with proofing a dog’s behaviour is believing a dog your dog has a solid drop-stay, but only ever walking away backwards from the dog while still watching them and making eye contact. You will not be able to do this when you are trying to protect them. Once your dog is confident holding their drop when you are watching them, practice walking away without watching them. A second helper to yell out can be really handy here – otherwise you can set your phone up to show what is behind you and watch your phone as you walk away if you aren’t confident you will be able to sense your dog breaking their position.

This is all general advice. I would love to go into far more detail but it is too hard to do in a Facebook post. Please ask any questions you have to clarify anything I have said.

Our next post in the new year will be full of suggestions of handy items you can carry to help keep the approaching dog away if none of the above works!

16/12/2024

As promised, here are some tips for what to do when an off-leash dog approaches you and your dog when you're just trying to enjoy your walk like Paddy and his owner here. This turned into a bit of a monster of a post so it will be broken up into a few days’ worth of information!

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 -𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭- 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐟𝐟-𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐡 𝐝𝐨𝐠 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡:

First call out to the owner of the dog to recall their dog. You don’t need to be polite here.

“Recall your dog now.” “Get your dog.”

If you get the often-inevitable reply of “He’s friendly” or a half-hearted recall which the owner clearly knows won’t work, you can step it up to, “My dog is contagious.” It is amazing how much faster someone will move when they are worried for their dog instead of you being worried about yours.

You can ask someone to recall their dog even in an off-leash area. In an off-leash area dogs must be under effective voice control and within sight of their owner. There is no requirement for you to allow that dog to approach yours even if they are friendly. In a perfect world, owners would have the courtesy to keep their dogs away from other dogs until they had permission to approach – just like we teach kids when wanting to pat a dog on the street!

If the other owner gets angry with you for saying your dog is sick when they aren’t – remember you are in the right and walk away. The important thing is keeping you and your dog safe!

If asking them to call their dog isn’t working, you will need to move onto stage two which will be posted in the next few days.

28/11/2024

How often have you taken your pup for a nice peaceful walk only to have an off-leash dog come bounding up out of nowhere? An owner is inevitably wandering nearby and will casually call out “he’s friendly” or may not even be watching their dog to see it approach you at all.

This scenario is becoming more frequent. I see clients every day whose dogs have been doing wonderfully with their training – whether it be focus work, loose leash walking or reactivity – until the dreaded off-leash dog barrels up to them. You can almost guarantee a daily post on the community pages on Facebook by fed-up dog walkers experiencing this.

It is incredibly frustrating for the owner as well as being potentially damaging for both the dog on leash AND the off-leash dog.

It is also part of the reason there are more calls to stop areas being available for off-leash dogs, which restricts freedom from those who are able to use it responsibly.

In any area where a dog is allowed to be off-leash, whether enclosed or not, it is the legal obligation that the owner have them under verbal or hand signal control. This means that they can be called away from any distraction when needed. This is the bare minimum many people do not follow.

On top of that the common courtesy of not letting your dog approach another dog without permission is frequently ignored.

Many ‘friendly’ dogs I have come across on my walks are actually displaying behaviours which are really inappropriate for greeting any dog, let alone an anxious or nervous dog. Inevitably the dog who snaps or growls is labelled the “bad” dog in this scenario, even if they are simply trying to say, “hey mate, that’s not cool” as an approaching dog invades their space.

Does this sound familiar to you? Tell us about your experience in the comments! What did you do to keep your pup safe?

In the next week we are going to post some strategies for helping keep you and your dog safe if you are rushed by an off-leash dog.

29/10/2024

Say hi to Paddy - an adorable Beagle in his second session. Our first session was cut short due to bad weather but Paddy had been working hard with his mum to learn how to behave.

Paddy's main issue is loving too much. Jumping on every person and dog he sees, plus walking all over the place following his nose! His owner is a little older so sudden movements can send her head over heels.

We worked on a number of things with Paddy, but the main one was a good walk with 'swap' as a command to go to the other side when things might be more interesting. His owner is keen for him to follow his nose, just not to the point of tripping her up!

We also worked on some free shaping with Paddy and his mum so they have something to keep his clever mind occupied when she might be less able to head out for big walks! As you can see our session sure tired this cute pooch out!

23/10/2024

The most impactful training is often the most boring to watch. This is why great training makes dull TV.

At a glance there doesn't seem to be anything exciting in these photos does there? This is Rollo. He's a beautiful but quite high strung Ridgeback. The first day we started working on his relaxation he took six hours (not joking!) to even drop beside me. He would occasionally sit but generally was standing, moving around and fretting.

Today he lay down as soon as we started our exercise. This is not a commanded exercise, it is all about the dog and learing to relax themself.

In the second photo you can see Rollo in a recent home visit choosing to chill out near the front door - no leash, all of his own accord. Previously he would have either paced, remained standing or at best chosen to lay down on his extremely comfortable bed. Any movement would have had him running around to see what was going on. On this day he settled down multiple times and stayed relaxed while his owners and I moved.

So how does this apply practically? It assists in almost everything in Rollo's life. A calmer mindset will help him feel more settled in the house, on the leash, seeing other dogs and sleeping better.

It may not look exciting - but it is!

11/10/2024

Leia is absolutely gorgeous! It's not a question - just look at her! She is a rescue pup from GSRV and her owners contacted me a little while ago because, as with many rescue pups, she was a bit nervous in her home environment.

They are incredibly dedicated and Leia is utterly gorgeous, repaying them with lots of love! We have been shoring up her obedience, especially with her trust in her humans and working around other dogs while teaching her that she can trust her people to take care of her outside of the home, as well as in!

27/09/2024

This ten month old cutie is Aldo! Aldo's owners got in touch because their very beloved puppy was displaying some naughty behaviours like barking at them for attention, jumping and counter surfing and they wanted to be sure they were reacting appropriately to stop these behaviours.

They also wanted to learn about how to make sure Aldo stays as happy and awesome as he is now. Aldo LOVED training and kept coming back for more even when he was exhausted.

Can you pick Aldo's breed? You've seen them on this page before! For bonus points - do you know what he was bred to do?!

Have a great long weekend!

21/09/2024

One of the most common mistakes people make with their dogs is not proofing their recall.

What does proofing mean? It means taking them to multiple locations and working on their recall under different circumstances. A dog may be brilliant coming back to you at home or at the local oval, but taking them off-leash to a brand new location without proofing can be a recipe for disaster. Distractions are higher and your value might drop.

Atlas has been working hard on his recall during his board and train but to proof it we headed out to his favourite off-leash area where he has previously frolicked and ignored his recall with abandon!

The key here is the long line. IF Atlas chose not to come back or got too distracted to listen, there is still control and the ability to make him come back, as well as ensuring his and others' safety!

Happily, Atlas has been learning to love recalling so we never had to use the long line. There is still more proofing to be done though, so it will not be removed just yet!

An extra month on a long line can do wonders for ensuring your dog has lifelong recall!

18/09/2024

A great follow up session with Neville and Ron yesterday working on Neville's reactivity and teaching both boys some brain work to help with their natural instincts. Once it became clear to Neville that barking wasn't getting him space from other dogs, he started looking to his owner and trusting him to get him the space he needs while he learns dogs and people aren't scary!

14/09/2024

Do you want to continue your dog’s obedience training but are worried it’s getting boring? Does your dog need some additional mental stimulation throughout the week? Are you hoping to do something with your dog to strengthen your bond?

We have the classes for you!

After our pilot classes last term we are excited to be opening our group classes up to new clients. We aim to put ‘fun’ back into working fundamentals with your dog by mixing up obedience with games, enrichment activities and trick training in a small group setting of no more than six dogs. It’s great for confidence building as well as keeping your dog’s mind sharp.

Did you know that, like humans, dogs experience cognitive decline as they get older if they don’t keep working their brain? A number of studies have suggested that lifelong training has a positive effect on sustained and selective attention in older dogs. This kind of enrichment and trick training is a great way to help your dog stay mentally young longer! Just ask Toby – a 12 year young Kelpie who attended our last training sessions.

If you are interested in taking part in our new classes starting late September, please reach out via Facebook for more information!

12/09/2024

Happy Birthday to my 2IC! If you've got a reactive dog or a puppy you've probably met Maggie while she's helped us teach your dog appropriate manners.

11 years old today! A visit to Collingwood Children's Farm to enjoy all the smells, then to the Doghouse cafe for a puppacino, turkey and birthday cookie!

02/09/2024

Say hi to Atlas! Atlas is our first board and train in our new, permanent home. With a better space to train we will be endeavouring to post more video snippets of training for you to see.

Atlas is with us because he doesn't currently have an 'off' switch which manifests in demand barking, as well as working on some resource guarding of furniture and to shore up some obedience to help make life with a baby in the house easier for everyone involved. Atlas and his owners will both be learning better forms of play to work his brain and body.

As part of our board and trains, Atlas' owners will be coming out to be an active part of his training each week.

26/08/2024

Happy International Dog Day! To celebrate we thought it was about time to introduce you to the newest member of our pack. Tim Tam the Border Collie!

You might remember Tim Tam from his board and train with us several years ago. Due to unfortunate circumstances his owner was unable to keep him and - well the rest is history! Tim has settled into his new life with us well and has started training to become part of the team helping with your pups, as well as being an all round good boy!

20/06/2024

Tip #5 to help your small dog develop into a well-adjusted pup:
Set expectations for their behaviour and training. Dogs of all sizes benefit from structure and boundaries. Size doesn’t determine intelligence in dogs and some of the smartest dogs I’ve ever met I could fit in a pocket!

Imagine spending every day being cuddled and fed and walking similar routes. It sounds fun to start with, but eventually you would start to feel restless and frustrated. Brains need challenges and stimulation!

Don’t underestimate your dog. Though they be little, they be fierce!

Pictured is smiling Samson - a gorgeous little boy who will be doing a lot more mental work to help him develop his own confidence. We also worked on Samson's gate dashing habits which saw him taking off whenever the opportunity arose to explore the neighbourhood!

17/06/2024

Due to a wonderful amount of interest we will now be running two classes - one on Sunday at 10am and another on Thursday evening at 6.30 in Bayswater. There are still a few spots available so reach out if you are interested or would like more information.

And a throwback photo for you - my childhood dog, Lucky!

12/06/2024

We are very excited to be trialling a group class aimed at mental enrichment and stimulation for your dogs rather than just obedience.

The class is open to all dogs including those with behavioural issues like reactivity! It will have a maximum of six dogs to allow you and your pup to work on training while having some fun. Our venue is indoors and heated with an option for outside work, weather permitting.

At this stage the classes are only open to existing clients. If there is enough interest this may change in future so if you are not yet training with us, please let us know if this is something you would like to see happen.

If you have any questions or would like to learn more, send us a message!

Photo of my current foster puppy Basil just because he’s adorable.

03/06/2024

Belle by name, boofhead by nature.

Belle's owners reached out after becoming concerned that she was having spats with other dogs and her leash pulling was out of control. They had tried every training tool they could to help and Belle happily pulled and choked her way through on all of them.

In our session it quickly became apparent that rather than having an aggressive tendency, Belle is simply too excited about life and channelling her energy inappropriately. Her humans, her walks, other dogs - they are all the BEST. Overstimulation was turning into arguments with other dogs.

Within ten minutes of having Belle outside, this beautiful girl was giving her owner's shoulder a break and walking with them rather than walking them. Addressing some areas in the house to give Belle other things to channel her energy into, as well as working on her social manners, means we're going to see some great changes in this lovely girl!

Address

Melbourne, VIC
3152

Website

http://www.whereyoulead.com.au/

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One of the most common mistakes people make with their dogs is not proofing their recall. What does proofing mean? It means taking them to multiple locations and working on their recall under different circumstances. A dog may be brilliant coming back to you at home or at the local oval, but taking them off-leash to a brand new location without proofing can be a recipe for disaster. Distractions are higher and your value might drop. Atlas has been working hard on his recall during his board and train but to proof it we headed out to his favourite off-leash area where he has previously frolicked and ignored his recall with abandon! The key here is the long line. IF Atlas chose not to come back or got too distracted to listen, there is still control and the ability to make him come back, as well as ensuring his and others' safety! Happily, Atlas has been learning to love recalling so we never had to use the long line. There is still more proofing to be done though, so it will not be removed just yet! An extra month on a long line can do wonders for ensuring your dog has lifelong recall!

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Our Story

Where You Lead is a dog behaviour and training service, specialising in fearful behaviour and fear aggression in dogs. We are also able to offer help for a full range of behavioural and obedience issues! We don’t believe in the word ‘untrainable’ and if we can’t help you, we will find someone who can. Our trainer is NDTF certified and a member of the International Association of Canine Professionals.

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