What are the opening hours?

Monday 9:30am - 4pm Tuesday 9:30am - 4pm Wednesday 9:30am - 4pm Thursday 9:30am - 4pm Sunday 9:30am - 3:30pm

Dog Skills For Life

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United Kingdom
Chesterfield
Dog Skills For Life

We teach life skills classes for puppies & dogs & advanced classes too. We promote fun, reward-based training. Supporting you and your dog for life :) Clare X
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Life Skills Training Classes Available for Puppies and Adult Dogs. These Classes Give Your Dog the Skills They Need to Excel in a Human-World. They Set up Your Dog for LIFE and Cover:- The ten life skills all dogs should know (including, confidence, ability to relax on cue, listening, manners around people, other animals and food)- Obedience- Walking nicely on the lead- Reliable recalls- Puppy pla

y sessions- Puppy advice (biting, chewing, toileting etc)- Dog body language- Lifetime Support Guaranteed- I also offer advanced classes and one to one's. Email me at [email protected] to find out more, or to book. I would love to hear from you.

13/12/2021

It was great to see some familiar faces on Sunday! We miss you all when you finish classes. Always lovely to hear from past graduates so keep in touch! 🥰 xx

13/12/2021

Good afternoon, I hope this post finds you all happy, well and looking forward to Christmas. We are looking forward to our festive themed social on 19/12, this Sunday, 10-11, at the Elm Tree pub. Cost is £10 per household. If you haven't already please let us know if you wish to attend. Then we can make sure we have enough dog friendly cookies and human friendly mince pies for everyone! We have planned a couple of games with the chance of winning a small prize. Also, if you attend you will automatically be entered into our lucky dip, which will be drawn from a Santa hat on the day. If your dogs name is drawn they will win the Santa sack pictured below which is filled with doggie treats and a toy! If you are new to us you are still very welcome. Hope to see you there!

07/12/2021

Hello Everybody! I hope this post finds you cosy and warm! Just wanted to let you know that we have two social sessions left this year. This Sunday the 12th and next Sunday the 19th. Usual time of 10.00-11.00. Please let us know as soon as possible if you wish to attend, so we can plan ahead! Thanks 😊

28/11/2021

Good morning! No social session today with the chilly weather (bit cold for us humans standing around)- instead I will be available online between 10AM and 11AM for anyone wanting free advice please do pop me a message.

20/11/2021

Hello everyone! I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. I can't believe it's that time of the week again! Our Sunday Social is tomorrow (21/11/21) 10.00 at the Elm Tree, Elmton. Cost is £10 per household. It's all very relaxed so turn up whenever you like and leave whenever you like! Make some new doggie friends and get some dog training tips too. Will be fantastic to see some familiar faces and get to know some new ones too! The weather should be dry but a bit chilly! So wrap up warm 😊

15/11/2021

We had so much fun yesterday at our Sunday Social! The weather was kind to us 🌞, the location was peaceful and beautiful in autumnal colours🍂 and the company was delightful! 😊
Pansy and Frankie made friends, and enjoyed quite a few games of tug! Come and join us! Our next one is on is on the 21st November. It is such a good opportunity for your dog to socialise in a safe and positive environment.

14/11/2021

Don’t forget our Sunday social today at 10.00. Come and join us for fun and playtime at the Elm tree, Elmton. £10 per household.

12/11/2021

Thank you very much Sue, for letting us use your handsome boy Frankie as a stooge dog. He started out as a student of ours and he has come so far! You must be very proud! He has been very helpful and an absolute pleasure to have around 💖

08/11/2021

Little Roo and Frankie certainly enjoyed themselves at our first Sunday social 💖

08/11/2021

06/11/2021

Don't forget our Sunday Social event tomorrow morning (Sunday) at 10AM. Bring a flask of coffee and come join in the fun. There will be opportunities for your dogs to play politely, discussing dog body language and building confidence, as well as chance to work on those all important recalls! Meet like minded folk and get any advice or support you need. We can't wait to see old faces and meet the new ones! Much love x

31/10/2021

It's a washout! Sunday social cancelled hope to see you next week instead x

24/10/2021

Dog Skills for Life is out of office until Saturday 30th October. Please note classes are still running on Sunday 31st. The Sunday social will still be running on Sunday at 10AM.

If you are interested in joining one of our classes, we have a new course beginning 31st October. It is not too late to sign up. The first class is online, so you can watch anytime, up until Sunday 7th November 11AM, which will be the first practical session.

and query on the voicemail.

15/10/2021

Sunday Social!

We have decided to run social sessions, for you and your dog, beginning 31st October every week at 10AM at The Elm Tree, Elmton. The cost will be £10 per session. Come to one or come to them all!
It will be an excellent chance for your dogs to socialise in a positive environment. You can meet other dog owners. Pick up some new tips and tricks, and get professional advice.
We are really looking forward to seeing some familiar faces and some new ones! If you are interested please get in touch, and if you are new then we can check beforehand that it is suitable for you and your dog.

10/10/2021

ALL CLASSES CANCELLED TODAY (10th OCT). Dog Skills for Life will be back at the Elm Tree next week 17th OCT. Thank you for your understanding

04/10/2021

We have available spaces in our Positive Start classes. Contact us now to secure your place and avoid disappointment! Come and join the fun!

04/10/2021

Check out our new Facebook shop!
Lots of products that will help you and your dogs with training. We are particularly proud of the tug toys which we made ourselves! There are some available in lovely autumnal colours. We also have a couple of Christmas gifts for your dog.
If you wish to collect any item in person to save on postage that can be arranged.

02/10/2021

Hello everyone! Saw this and instantly thought of Dog Skills For Life, where dogs enjoy their training because it is reward based! And it works despite what the picture says 😂

28/09/2021

Congratulations to our advanced class 😍🥳🤩 you have been an absolute pleasure to have in classes. Tico, Holly and Ivy are officially Dogs with Skills!! You are all fabulous and I hope you've enjoyed it. Keep in touch!!

27/09/2021

22/09/2021

Sarah and George have been in touch, and it has been so wonderful to hear from them both. Here is a pic of George looking confident and content after his haircut! So handsome! Keep in touch graduates and remember we are here if you need us ♥️

21/09/2021

Our advanced class were set a double challenge on Sunday. The positive pups played a shaping game with hula hoops, where we rewarded any advances towards the hoops, aiming for the dog choosing to go through on their own terms. The owners had a go with clickers, in place of a marker word and clicked every time the dog looked or made any movement towards the hoop. It takes a lot of patience and skill, well done owners! 😊

17/09/2021

Associating touch with a big reward is very important for our dogs to learn. Imagine if Louie wasn't expecting a treat when he received unexpected attentions this evening. . .

13/09/2021

We would like to extend a warm welcome to our new positive start members!
It was lovely to meet you all and we are looking forward to working with you!

13/09/2021

Congratulations to Pansy and Moose, and their owners Ann, Anne and John!
You have all worked very hard and have successfully completed our dog skills for life puppy class.
Moose has grown in self confidence and Pansy has improved her self control.
It has been a privilege to watch you progress and we hope you'll keep in touch!

Address

The Elm Tree, Elmton
Chesterfield
S804LS

Opening Hours

Monday	9:30am - 4pm
Tuesday	9:30am - 4pm
Wednesday	9:30am - 4pm
Thursday	9:30am - 4pm
Sunday	9:30am - 3:30pm

Website

http://www.dogskillsforlife.co.uk/

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Videos

Sunday Social 14/11/21

We had so much fun yesterday at our Sunday Social! The weather was kind to us 🌞, the location was peaceful and beautiful in autumnal colours🍂 and the company was delightful! 😊 Pansy and Frankie made friends, and enjoyed quite a few games of tug! Come and join us! Our next one is on is on the 21st November. It is such a good opportunity for your dog to socialise in a safe and positive environment.

Playtime!

Little Roo and Frankie certainly enjoyed themselves at our first Sunday social 💖

Associating touch with a big reward is very important for our dogs to learn. Imagine if Louie wasn't expecting a treat when he received unexpected attentions this evening. . .

Great progress being made at class!

Look at our smart puppies learning their Recalls. Some like their food, some like a toy but so long as it's fun and rewarding for them you'll make good progress. Notice how we use long lines to help them out whilst they're still learning. This way you can manage distractions and make sure they respond every time.

Look at this gorgeous boy! An absolute ⭐️

Please remember to check the pavement temperature with your hand and make sure it’s not too hot for your dogs paws 🐾🐾🐾

Doing a little bit of training on the sheep today! Working on frustration and confidence. 🐑🐏🧡🤍🧡🤍

Puppy classes

Take a sneaky peek into our classes! Next course start date is 4th July!! Puppy socialising, life skills & dog obedience training. . .

WORKING ON LIFE SKILL "I LIKE SURPRISES" When you hear a loud bang, reward your dog with a tasty treat. Stay calm and positive. In this video Louie heard a firework outside so I was ready with treats. After this video I put some music on to muffle the noise because as you can see he isn't as relaxed as I would like him to be and repeated exposure to the noise could have started to turn negative for him. #Lifeskills #puppytrainingtips #Ilikesurprises

A few more shots from the weekend. The weather and setting were beautiful, and the pups even more so! 😍

Does your dog have a good recall? Every time? We cover recall, loose lead walking and so much more in our group classes! Please let us know if you would like to join us on a Sunday. Our classes are a fun and supportive environment.

Hey, does your dog do this or have any other strange habits? Most dogs have an instinctual behavior of hiding important things. They often bury their most prized possessions to keep them safely stashed for later. This is a natural behavior inspired by their wild ancestors. Dogs cover and bury their food to protect it from predators, however... Some dogs will bury food because they are too stressed by the environment to eat it comfortably. Digging helps calm the dog down and gives them a chance to eat at their own pace.

Shortcuts

Our Story...

Anna and I have both worked in the animal rescue industry where thousands of unwanted dogs await adoption. Some rescue shelters are so overwhelmed by numbers they have a three-month waiting list for dogs coming into the shelter. Often, dogs are rehomed because of a behaviour problem that the owners are unable to live with. Some behaviour problems lead to euthanasia if the dog is not deemed fit to be rehomed. Some shelters are forced to euthanise due to a lack of space, which is incredibly harrowing when you think about it.

The precious bond between a dog and their owner(s) can so easily break down with a problem behaviour, whether it be aggressive behaviours or a dog that cannot be left alone without destroying the house. Sometimes problems arise due to a lack of knowledge on the owner’s part; be it a lack of awareness on the responsibilities of pet ownership or how to read the body language of a dog to clearly interpret his or her communication.

These are confused, unhappy dogs who are desperately trying to live in harmony with us and do what pleases us but have not been shown how. It is so easy to fall into the habit of reprimanding your dog for doing the wrong thing rather than showing them what to do. Times have changed for the better in terms of positive reward-based methods but some of our society are desperately falling behind and are still in the dark ages. Reprimands, lead jerking and other aversive methods are no longer the most effective means of training your dog, and they are certainly not the most welfare friendly. If some of the so-called professionals are using these training techniques, what kind of example is that to a dog-owner?

Dog Skills for Life is here to make a change; to make a difference to the number of abandoned and euthanised dogs through education. Education, for both the dogs and their owners. Our classes are based on the incredible Life Skills for Puppies classes developed by veterinary behaviourists Dr Helen Zulch and Dr Daniel Mills. We want to spread the word through our work and make a difference to the lives of everyone in the community. We plan on bringing the community together socially; providing support for dog owners, running events to bring families together, and teaching children how to interact safely with dogs. We want to promote responsible pet ownership so that dog owners are picking up after their dog and raising well mannered canine citizens.