This week we'll be showcasing some of the fantastic products we have in shop that I used on my last camping trip to The Lake District.
These aren't exclusive for the needs of the dog owner going camping but over the series of the videos you'll see...
The Best Drying Robe for The Soggiest of Dogs
Flea & Tick Repellents that won't harm your dogs
What to feed when raw isn't an option on holiday
Harnesses and Leads perfect for Big Adventures
Look at this Bucket Shaker!
Kev showing off our new Charity Bucket on our desk - this one's personal!
All donations will go to SupportDogs, who actually trained Kevin to be an Assistance Dog many moons ago.
But let's go back to the start of Kevin's story...
Kevin lived on the streets with a homeless man as a pup, this probably where his love of snuggling under blankets and sleeping bags stems from. We imagine Kevin did a VERY good job of looking after his first owner.
As far as we know, his owner unfortunately passed away, but Kev was lucky enough to be picked up by the Dog's Trust.
Support Dogs charity spotted him in Kennels and quickly realised they had a dog well suited to helping people and had all the right makings of an assistance dog. They took him on, trained him up and matched him to Wendy, Sam's Mum.
Ordinarily Kevin would have stayed with Wendy until retirement age, usually around 10 - but when he was diagnosed with Progressive Retinal Atrophy, it was expected he'd be blind within 6 months to a year. Its been over 2 years since his diagnosis and he still has 'some' vision but he was retired as soon as Wendy and the Charity felt it was in his best interest to hang up his jacket.
It was important Kev enjoy his retirement and not continue trying to work - so moving in with us was an obvious choice. We hadn't realised how huge a part Kevin would play in the shop but I think you'll all agree he's a flipping local celebrity now! He spends most of his days napping between greeting dogs and people as well as pestering certain humans that have built a reputation for buying him treats. (You know who you are!)
We'd love it if you have a few spare pennies to pop in our pot as Support Dogs are helping so many people around the country with dogs that literally transform the lives of people.
Take a look in the comments to see a picture of Penny, Kev's successor!
Have you seen we've got another our super popular Play & Meet Session coming up?
This Sunday!
Unlike Puppy Classes which are exercise based aimed at building useful behaviours and and skills foe the real world - these sessions are aimed at giving your pup a safe space to meet, socialise and have a play with pups of a similar age that are brand new to the dating gam- I mean social world.
During the session you'll be talked through useful ways to manage your Puppy when they get a little rambunctious, how to know if your Pup is worried and if so what to do - as well as tips on keeping interactions calmer and more appropriate.
The best thing is it's all in the safety and warmth (sort of warm!) of our shop.
Sunday 21st @ 4.15pm!
From Steam Train to Plodder!
Another great example of how making changes to your walks can get completely different behaviour. Lady is a 6 month old Lab with a whole lotta energy. She could and would drag Mum and the rest of the family around the walks and rightly Mum Vicki was getting concerned with her growing size and power.
This is after our first session, again work to be done, but proof that corrections, yanks and fighting or suppressing our dogs isn't necessary.
Understanding, patience and consistency.
Vicki and Lady still have a ways to go to solidify and proof this walking but whatn improvement!
Not a fluke!
Remember Mav's video from last week when I saw him?
Hard work has continued and so have the results. Looking even more relaxed on lead!
Leadwork is hard... like really hard. Teaching a dog to slow their Natural pace down and to travel at our snail speeds is generally one of the biggest challenges you'll have in dog training.
I'll be honest, developing it with my own dogs has taken years and often it's about learning how to relax that individual dog down so the pace can relax with it.
Some of it will be waiting for that dog to mature and just grow up but there's absolutely success to be had with our younger more rambunctious dogs like Maverick here. 9 months of floof, energy and love to give. He's just ace and I'm on his waiting list should he ever need another home.
Mav on many walks would have your arm out of the socket and pull you like a steam train. I'm sure many of you are familiar with the sensation!
With a few thoughtful adjustments to his routine, the walk and so importantly, his environment we achieved this in one session. There's no lead checks, corrections or jerks on the lead - unnecessary and often only serve to piss your dog off. (It'd piss me off, I know that much!)
This is us respecting the age and learning history of Mav and helping him to take his time and smell the flowers... literally!
It's going to be a long way before he's consistently like this and doesn't require as much management. Mav's Mum and Dad have got plenty of work to do, but it's a fantastic start and proof that we can improve things in the short term with long term realistic goals.
Say Hello to Baxter.
Baxter is a teenage Border Terrier - a really quite terrifying prospect!
When Baxter started his 6 week class with us he struggled to be in class without vocalising and getting very frustrated about not having access to the other dogs. His Mum Rachel and Dad Ian have been improving their own skills with my help as well as adjusting their walks and experiences outside of classes to set Baxter up for success.
Here we see him taking his time, processing new information all whilst in proximity of other dogs.
Let me stress, Baxter isnt now "trained", infact we still have a journey to go with Baxter as he matures over the next year or so. Helping Rachel and Ian to become clear, consistent, patient and compassionate with Baxter has unlocked a part of him they don't often see outside. If they keep this up this will happen so regularly that it gets easier and easier.
Keep up the good work guys.
If you've got a stressy, overwhelmed teenager shoot me a message! (DOGS ONLY!)
Many of you have been asking how Opie has been getting on and we're really grateful!
As you can see in the video below he's starting out on small walks learning to use his leg and getting him to start building that all important muscle.
He seems so much happier in himself already and we're very proud of the little bugger!
As it was our last day open before Christmas we wanted to let Kevin choose a toy for working so hard to entertain all the lovely folk that visited us over the last 3 days. He chose a squeeky Walrus, which he's very chuffed with!
We'd both like to say a very big thankyou to everyone that came to see us at such short notice. We've got much more planned for the shop to make it the best it can be.
For those of you that couldn't make it, we will be open for a couple of days between Christmas and New Year!
Have a wonderful Christmas everyone
Pair this with a game of tug, throwing off a ball or a y high tempo play that your dog adores and you're laughing!
Make sure you watch the whole video, you won't be disappointed!
Playing tug with Flynn today at the stall was a fantastic opportunity to build value and engagement in me whilst people and dogs walked past. It's also a great way to get him giving me toys to play and teaching that important drop!
Also, that spin dance is just my favourite thing.
If you're looking to communicate more consistently and effectively with your dogs whilst they're offload, this is a great start! #dogtraining #dogsofinstagram #dogtrainingtips
Settle Part 3
Taking the focus off ourselves
Turning that unnatural behaviour into a much comfier one!
#dogsofinstagram #dogtraining #dogtrainingtips
THE first part of a settle is making sure your dog can do a Down.
#dogtraining #dogsofinstagram
Does your dog struggle to relax in different environments?
#dogsofinstagram #dogtraining
Taking time to actually get a bit of training in with Opie. I liked to use a Whistle with him because the distance it can carry and to help Opie hear it through the fog of Spaniel brain.
