K9 Care Dog Training

16/04/2025

Why Are There So Many Reactive Dogs in the UK?
As a professional dog trainer, one thing I see more and more is reactivity — barking, lunging, growling, pulling, or overreacting to dogs, people, or the environment. It’s becoming increasingly common… and owners are often left wondering why.

Let’s take a look at what’s causing this rise — and more importantly, how I help dogs overcome it using a calm, structured approach without the need for harsh tools or extremes.

🐾 1. Lockdown Puppies & Lack of Socialisation
COVID-19 led to a boom in dog ownership, but it also meant many dogs missed out on vital early experiences. These “lockdown puppies” didn’t get properly socialised during key developmental stages, leading to:

Anxiety around other dogs or people

Overreactions to normal environments

A general lack of confidence

These gaps in early life experience often show up as reactivity later on.

📲 2. The Rise of “One-Method” Training
Owners are often overwhelmed by conflicting information online. The trend of “purely positive” training tells people to:

Distract the dog with treats

Avoid walking the dog to let it decompress

Avoid saying “no”

Ignore unwanted behaviour

While positive reinforcement is a huge part of what I do, it’s not the only part — and it’s rarely enough for dogs with serious behavioural issues like reactivity.

🧬 3. Breeding for Demand, Not Temperament
Many popular breeds and mixes today have been bred more for appearance or social trends than for stability or suitability as family pets. This includes high-drive working breeds living in homes without enough structure or stimulation — a recipe for frustration and reactive behaviour.

🧠 4. Lack of Boundaries Creates Uncertainty
Many well-meaning owners are afraid to set boundaries for fear of being “too strict.” But dogs need calm, consistent guidance to feel safe. When they don’t have it, they start taking on the role of decision-maker — barking, reacting, and controlling situations themselves.

That’s where balanced training comes in.

⚖️ My Approach: Calm, Clear & Ethical
I offer a balanced, modern approach that:

Uses positive reinforcement to build confidence and trust

Sets clear, calm boundaries to stop unwanted behaviours

Helps owners communicate fairly, clearly, and consistently

And importantly:

❌ I do not use prong collars, choke chains, or e-collars.
✅ I rely on ethical, real-world training tools and techniques that keep your dog safe, supported, and stress-free.

My aim is always to build a better relationship between you and your dog — not to overpower them, scare them, or shut them down.

🤯 The Impact of Modern Life
Busy streets, unpredictable off-lead dogs, stressed-out owners — modern environments can be overwhelming for dogs. Without proper guidance, structure, and confidence, reactivity is often the natural result. But it doesn’t have to stay that way.

You Don’t Need to Struggle Alone
If you’ve been through multiple sessions with a “reward-only” trainer and seen no real improvement — or if things have gotten worse — know that your dog can improve.

With over 15 years of hands-on experience and a focus on reactivity, lead pulling, and real-world behaviour, I help dogs find calm, confidence, and control again — using methods that make sense for both the dog and the owner.

📩 Ready to take the next step?
Reach out today and let’s turn those stressful walks into calm, controlled, and enjoyable ones — no gimmicks, no gadgets, just solid, ethical training that works.

Call now to connect with business.

02/10/2024

Not my words but this my dog training philosophy.

For those of you who are not already aware, I am a reward-based dog behavioural trainer. I focus on finding incentives for the correct behaviour with EVERY dog I work with, whatever issues it has. However, sometimes although aware of the reward being offered, the dog disregards it, as it has already chosen what it considers to be a more profitable one. Some of you reading this may have already found this. You offer your dog a treat to stop it barking at another dog, but it ignores the treat as it finds the barking more rewarding. Or you offer it a toy to stop it from chasing a squirrel, but it ignores the toy, as chasing the squirrel is much more fun.
Much as I would love to train the dog using only rewards, sometimes there is no reward I can offer greater than the one the dog can get itself. So what do I do now?
A force-free or reward-only trainer may tell you to ignore the bad behaviour and it will just go away given time. But you've probably already found that although a great theory, it really doesn't work well in practice. In reality, the training that works the quickest, and the most effectively in my humble opinion, is if the dog is aware of both the benefits AND the costs of the choices that it makes. This will help it settle for the reward the owner is offering, since it understands it can't ignore them.
So when I work with owners, I will try to create effective rewards for whatever the dog gets right, but I will also create effective, non physical consequences should the dog choose to reject the reward the owner is offering.
This is not rocket science. I believe that pretty much everyone is aware that reward only training is only effective if you can always offer better rewards than the dog can get itself. If you are not aware of this, I hope you are not charging people for dog training. You might be the last chance for the dog you are working with.

13/08/2024

Not my words but well worth sharing.

I want my dog to be Sociable!
This is a phrase that I often hear from clients and indeed from many other dog owners. Perhaps it is worthwhile investigating exactly what “Being sociable” really means.
Do we really want our dogs to interact with everyone that they see? Is that a good thing? I think not.
If we encourage our dogs to interact with everyone that they see, then we are teaching them that the correct thing to do is make every effort to approach all and sundry regardless of the circumstances. The result then is the dog that may run off in the park to greet a perfect stranger or when on the lead may pull determinedly towards any passerby.

Surely the correct way of encouraging sociability in our dogs is to set the rules as to who they can and cannot interact with and indeed, how that interaction should take place.
There is no way that I would allow a stranger to interact with my dog by fussing, petting, making encouraging noises or even giving tit-bits. The only persons allowed that privilege are myself and my inner circle of family and friends.
There are many people who feel that they have a God given right to interact with every dog that they see. They do not! At the very least permission should be sought from the owner before interacting with any dog. If the wish of the owner is that their dog does not interact with strangers then that wish should be respected.
Whilst it is everyone’s choice what they want their dog to do with regards to “Being sociable” I do feel that that choice should be made having full regards to the possible outcomes. Surely our dogs should tolerate people but do they have to be their best friend?

07/01/2024

I rarely post on Facebook but so many dogs and their owners are being failed by some trainers that I felt compelled to share this video. It seems to me that common sense is now a rare thing in dog training. Make your own mind up.