Heal&Lead

09/09/2024

We were so lucky to have a few days away - and even luckier it didn't rain where we were!!!

We found perfect woodland paths for Rosie's pram and lots of opportunities to practice disengagement from squirrels 😆

08/09/2024

Rosie's made a new friend - we bumped into another tripaw on a weekend away. I'm not sure the dogs thought it was anything special, but us humans had a lovely time swapping tips for helping our dogs 🥰

Seaton beach (Cornwall) was perfect for a tripaw - dog friendly all year round, mostly sandy (pebbles aren't good when you're a leg down) and a nice level entrance so she could walk on and not be carried (Rosie is a very independent spirit and thinks it's undignified to get carried anywhere!!) and, the ultimate luxury, a nice shallow freshwater stream for after walk drinks!

08/09/2024

Big shout out to my newest top fans! 💎 I really appreciate you liking and sharing my posts, thank you 🙏

Jessica Richardson, Kimberley Grimsted

07/09/2024

Thank you Donna for this wonderful review - I'm so pleased you found my classes helpful and would love to welcome you back for a top up at any time!

"My very anxious dog (Cooper) and I started training with Erica in February. Cooper could not cope with being in the company of other dogs and most people. He would go into complete meltdown, barking and being reactive.
For weeks, we had to have chairs with blankets surrounding us to shield him and slowly he became more confident and relaxed.
Erica was very knowledgeable and gave us individual support to make sure that we were making the most out of our sessions and helping Cooper progress.
Moving on to this summer, I have taken Cooper on holiday with me, walking past other dogs, in close proximity, with no reaction, using the techniques that Erica has taught us. We even sat in a coffee shop, with other dogs nearby.
I never thought that we would get to this position and I am so grateful to Erica for all her support and guidance and would recommend her classes to all dog owners as, even though I knew the issue I wanted to work on, we have learned so many new and fun things along the way that has made mine and Coopers bond so much stronger."

06/09/2024

Well done to all the dogs in my Super Stars class - we played a mix of games to teach our dogs to listen to us even when exciting things are happening and we worked on what I call their 'dimmer switch'. This is their ability to choose an appropriate energy level and to bring themselves back down again once something exciting has happened.

We also played some 'no rules cavalletti' which is perfect for helping dogs who find the world a bit scary to move in a relaxed way, whilst loose lead walking with their human pal.

05/09/2024

Welcome to all the new and returning pups in the All Stars class (sorry I didn't get photos of you all, will try harder next week!) - you all did super well and I hope you enjoy playing the games at home this week.

Quote of the evening (having told me beforehand I wouldn't want their dog in my class because he was so naughty) "Look, I can't believe it, he's just sitting still on his bed without me even having to ask!' - it never ceases to amaze me how fast our dogs learn and how quickly we can make a difference when we know how to help them.

04/09/2024

Thank you to Pete and Charlie for allowing me to share their pulling on lead to loose lead walking success story on my website.

I loved having you both join my classes and am so pleased you found games based training worked for you!

Read all about their journey here: https://www.healandlead.co.uk/case-studies/pete-and-charlie

28/08/2024

Now then young Rosie and Gracie you can't fool me - you're pretending to relax on your boundaries but you're not doing a very good job and I happen to know you're really hunting squirrels.

Look at their eyes, totally on the look out for the slightest movement in the trees and practicing hunting (which I don't want to encourage) - otherwise known as 'false calm'.

27/08/2024

Well done Rosie girl - first hydro swim The Animal Rehab Clinic Ltd She was a tiny bit uncertain for her first retrieve, but soon got into the swim 😉 of it!!

We were so sad when Chapel Farm Rehab closed, just really pleased to have found somewhere else that works for us.

24/08/2024

I love boundary training (cueing our dogs to get on and off their beds or a target mat) and it can be hugely useful in multi-dog households.

My dogs both understand their boundary cues (which for sighthounds isn't always straightforward) but my current struggle is getting them to act independently - at the moment they both get off at the same time, even if the cue is directed to only one. So I've had a think about how I can take this forward and am currently practicing this as they get in and out of the car, which is the place they find these cues the easiest and means I can build on them being successful - I'll let you know how we get on as we build their skills!

23/08/2024

Jumping up is a real pain point for many owners and is something that's often listed as one of the things owners would like to change when they first contact me.

Luckily there is so much we can do to change this, the simplest being to get the value on the floor ie before your dog jumps up sprinkle a few small pieces of food on the floor for them to sniff out. Other games build value in calmness, which is always one of my priorities in my classes.

In this photo we're actually teaching Gracie to jump up on cue to build her confidence and whilst building a cue for jumping up can help dogs who make a habit of it, it probably wouldn't be my first recommendation!!!😉

22/08/2024

It's so lovely remembering the special moments in your past, especially when they involve dogs - I hope you also enjoy this trip down memory lane!
https://www.healandlead.co.uk/new-page
Photo credit: https://www.facebook.com/clare.anderson.charity

21/08/2024

When you first bring your precious puppy home you will have so many questions and one I'm often asked is 'what should I be feeding?'.

Luckily we have some really great shops locally with knowledgeable staff who I often recommend and have had great feedback about how helpful they were - they are Natural Treats Bristol (Warmley) and Canine Craze (Timsbury) - let me know if you have found other great places, it's so helpful to have recommendations to pass on.
https://www.naturaltreatsbristol.co.uk/?srsltid=AfmBOorDFBtxs7PjnY1F5JeT7P4InxsaSgytREU3WrAYaTOOIJGGj_sJ https://www.caninecraze-shop.com/

20/08/2024

Thank you to everyone who came to my classes during August, I've loved teaching you and hope you really enjoyed yourselves and learnt masses to practice at home and while out and about.
In the All Stars puppy class we took a look at games for a great recall - they are growing and learning so fast!
In the Super Stars class we played scent games and games to promote relaxed and steady movement. All of the dogs in this class originally joined because of over excited or anxious barking - it would be a lie to say there was no barking during the whole class, but massive improvements and large parts of the class with silence - well done all of you!

19/08/2024

Pulling on lead can be a huge struggle for so many dog owners, whether they just love life and can't get ahead fast enough, or whether they want to say hello to every dog ahead, or grab the chicken bones off the pavement in the High Street.

Your life with your dog doesn't have to be like this, there is soooo much that can be done to help turn you into a partnership that enjoys your walks, both on and off-lead together, whatever the age of your dog (old dogs definitely can learn new tricks).

Have a look at my classes in Pensford - your arm and shoulder (not to mention your dog's neck) will love you for it 😉
https://www.healandlead.co.uk/services

18/08/2024

We love getting out and about with our dogs - check out my favourite Keynsham and area walks for summer on my website!

Explore the best dog walks in and around Keynsham this summer! Discover scenic routes like Keynsham Memorial Park, Somerdale Loop, Willsbridge Mill, Saltford to Kelston Cheese Shop, and Woollard to Lord’s Wood. Each walk offers different environments, from shaded paths and rivers to dog-friendly c...

17/08/2024

I’m now taking bookings for September - 6.15pm Monday evenings - Chapel Farm, Pensford, 10 minutes drive from Keynsham.

https://www.healandlead.co.uk/services

Games based, life-skills classes suitable for puppies, rescue dogs and any dog/human partnership wanting a training top up.

To book your place, message or email [email protected] - I’m very happy to answer questions and to discuss whether the class is right for you and your dog.

Games based training is great fun and effective, using games to build the skills our dogs need to build a really great relationship with their human family.

Topic covered: Loose lead walking, Recall, not jumping up, arousal up/arousal down, ‘Can you hear me?’, household manners, handling, loving equipment (harness, collar, muzzle, lead/longlines), plus any extra topics the participants want to cover.

Cost: £15/class, paid monthly (5 September classes = £75). Your place is confirmed once payment is received.

Each class is an hour long and is followed up with an email with descriptions of the games played for your future reference.

To book your place message or email [email protected] - I’m very happy to answer questions and to discuss whether the class is right for you and your dog.

AbsoluteDogs trained ProDogTrainer to Geek and Genius level and passed Video Assessment.

Photos of current and past students.

16/08/2024

We love finding new walks that work for us and no idea why we haven't done this walk in Warmley before as it was perfect. There was a cycle track which will be great for pushing Rosie's pram when she needs a rest day, lots of open space for playing frisbee (we didn't this time as the grass hasn't been cut yet and we didn't want to startle any deer), a shallow stream for doggy drinks and the Warmley Waiting Room cafe at the end - we will definitely be back!

13/08/2024

What a perfect evening for an outdoor dog training class - I love being outside as much as possible.
Last night the puppies were learning their boundary and crate release cues (sooo important to keep it fun so they love their crate at every stage - even if you don't plan to use a crate at home it's still a great skill for them to learn as it applies to so many other areas of life, like getting in and out of a car).
We also had fun using the movement of our bodies to reward the puppies for looking at their family members with plenty of space for everyone to run around.
In the later Super Stars class we were asking our dogs to wait on their beds while we hid food for them to find, starting close to make sure they could build on their success - we were then playing games to build our dog's ability to look at us over any distraction in the environment - I was truly impressed at how well everyone did🥰

10/08/2024

I'm so excited to introduce my new website www.healandlead.co.uk - A huge thank you to www.luciegray.co.uk for designing the site, the process of working with you and your guiding hand made the whole thing sooo much less scary 😉

Thank you to all the dogs and their families who have put their faith in me over the last few years - working (and playing) with you all is my absolute pleasure and I hope the joy of games based training comes through in the pictures.

09/08/2024

I've really enjoyed teaching games to this beautiful and very intelligent girl and her family.
We all felt some 1-2-1 sessions would be the best place to start for her as she gets very excited very quickly which resulted in barking which was hard to stop.

So we've put in place protocols at home to help her relax and calm down, plus some games to keep her attention on her humans rather than rabbit and deer smells when out and about.

We've also introduced figure of 8 walking with pace changes to help her learn that energy levels can come down as well as up, as well as a settle cue.

Our aim is to try just one class in a couple of weeks time, giving her as much space as she needs and visual barriers, in fact, she may not even come into the same space as the other dogs - we will work at her pace and keep building for success 😊

08/08/2024

Over the years we've worked out the best way for us for feeding our dogs. I like to feed them most of their food when we're out on walks or playing games at home and for this I use a mixture of kibble, cooked liver and various other lean meat chopped up into small pieces.

I also like to feed them vegetables which we mix with raw mince, fish or eggs. I also stir in their supplements which I will explain in a different post. If I needed to, I could use this element of their food for training by mincing it all up and using a squeeze tube, but because my dogs are 25kg I have quite a big daily food allowance, so for me it's not necessary.

So each morning I chop up and microwave a dish of vegetables (I've got so used to it that it hardly takes any time). For most breeds of dog I wouldn't include potato - I do for mine because they can loose weight fast, and in any case potato should always be cooked before being fed to a dog.

My dogs have always been really healthy eating this way and I completely understand this won't be for everyone - though it's good to know we don't always have to only feed factory prepared foods to our dogs. Worth noting, I'm not a nutritionist and so can't recommend this way of feeding in a professional capacity, though finding ways to get a few veg like carrots or courgettes into our dog's diet is a great thing to try.

07/08/2024

I love this photo of me and my sister, this must have been about 1975 ish. Despite constant nagging, our parents wouldn't let us have a dog (until we got one by accident, but that's another story!) - so every opportunity we could we loved playing with and walking friend's dogs.

This one was called Dr Woo and he was the gentlest dog with children. I'm sure he didn't need the choke chain, but back then that was what everyone used - so much has changed for the better.

06/08/2024

I loved teaching last night's classes - in the All Stars puppy class we played games to build calmness at home and to teach our puppies that checking in with us is the very best deal.

In the Super Stars class we also built calmness whilst making sure anxious dogs built their optimism - all dogs our welcome in my classes (whether they won't stop barking or are anxious and scared of the world) I always set the space up so everyone is comfortable, safe and able to learn. Talk to me if you and your dog have a struggle you'd like to overcome - it may be going straight into a class isn't right for you, and that's OK, we can talk through options. Nothing makes me happier than seeing week on week changes in the dogs that come along and the joy that brings their human families.

05/08/2024

We were thrilled that Kate from Release The Hounds Clinical Canine Massage came and massaged Rosie at home.

We met Kate at Chapel Farm and so were very pleased that she will be able to carry on with Rosie's regular treatments - now we just need to find the perfect pool for hydro 🥰

01/08/2024

It's been a hot few days and whilst Gracie loves the heat, Rosie really doesn't. So we've been walking nice and early, just short walks near to water - we haven't managed to get to the park before Coffee Co. so we've all had a drink before heading for home.

30/07/2024

Lovely class last night outside under the shade of a lovely big tree so we stayed nice and cool.

Lots of learning on setting our dogs up for success when friends visit our home and staying nice and calm in the All Stars class.

Then we had a look at fitness in the Super Stars class, an area I've been looking at a lot more since needing to build core muscle strength for our tripaw lurcher - but also essential for keeping all of our dogs free from pain as they age. Just like us humans, our four footed friends do better with strong muscles to support their joints.

I've two places left in my All Stars class for August if anyone would like to come and try games based training. Next week we will be looking at lowering energy levels so our dogs can hear us - an essential starting point if we want to be able to train our dogs.

28/07/2024

Great to see this natural Paw and Nose soother based on bees wax for sale at Conscience Foods in Keynsham - you can take your dog in while you shop as well!

26/07/2024

So pleased to get this review, always great to get feedback! Well done for keeping going with the training long after you finished classes.

I hope you'll be as pleased as we are that we can now safely let T**** off the lead on walks! This is in no small.measure thanks to your training, and it's transformed our experience. We have work to do on recall and socialisation, but she's good enough to be allowed to gallumph freely out in the fields, which is fantastic!

25/07/2024

I had a lovely experience at the weekend, I bumped into a lady walking her dogs who recognised me from my FB and Insta posts. First time this has happened to me!!

She told me how they inspired her to keep going training her dogs - I was really touched!

It would be lovely to see pictures of everyone who sees this playing games with your dog!!