Jill O'Sullivan - Busy Bee Dog Training & Behaviour

11/11/2025

This dog is my aunt's dog, not a dog training client. She mentioned he had started randomly going for un neutered male dogs and had pinned a dog to the ground.

I gave her one piece of advice and the behaviour issue stopped almost over night.

Polo is an 11 yr old rescue. My aunt has had him 6 years. He's got the sunniest, happiest nature and enjoys off lead walks on the local promenade daily.

When my aunt asked my advice about the change in his behaviour, I knew straight away it was likely due to pain. Polo has signs of arthritis in his carpals (wrists) and we both agreed he was showing signs of being bothered by them (extra chewing his legs and spending long periods lip licking).

Polo had responded badly to pain killers in the past and my aunt was anxious about trying again but she went to the vet and Polo was prescribed something different.

By almost the next day he was back to his usual, sunny self. ZERO training required.

In my long career, I've yet to see a dog with aggression where pain is not part of the issue. Training is often also required, but pain management is usually a huge piece in resolving aggression and reactivity.

06/11/2025

I gained first hand experience of a dog's fear of fireworks last night. I'm exhausted and heart sore after a night of trying to comfort a terrified dog.

I've always felt quite lucky. My dogs are mostly ok with fireworks. Velma and Otto are alarmed and bit worried but cope and can be distracted. Bertie, who's 11 yes old has always been good with fireworks. We've done training. He's been well exposed in a great way. At one stage he actually used to look like he enjoyed them.

Last night Bertie could not cope and became very, very stressed. He's exhausted this morning and has chewed his legs red raw while trying to self sooth. The emergency sedation, did not help.

I've seen recent social media posts, from uneducated people who call themselves trainers, suggesting fear of fireworks is all about breeding and training. The blame lies with you the owner.

This is not the case. Fear is complex and influenced by many factors.

For Bertie, the reality is, his age and his body's physical vulnerabilities mean he is not able to metabolise stress in the same way it did before. He's a dog and can't rationalise "oh it's just fireworks " like a human might. Instead his brain takes in the information that something is wrong and then all those complex physical factors (pain, aging body, arthritis, his liver disorder) mean that stress accumulates and he can't cope. His body is physically reacting to the stress and each bang becomes conditioned to mean more unpleasant sensations in his body.

Ever felt anxious, grumpy, or stressed even when everything is OK? You have no control over it. This is how it works. Your brain takes info in and the complexities of your body influence how you react.

What happened to Bertie (and thousands of other dogs) last night is not the fault of the owners. Their bodies literally couldn't cope with that degree of unpredictability.

Bertie will have an appointment with the vet who knows him best and we will have a cocktail of drugs to help him at New Year. Next year we will be spending the 5th in the middle of nowhere avoiding this.

26/10/2025

This subject seems surprisingly controversial. Instead of insisting my dogs wear coats, I let them choose.

I can't imagine anything worse than being too hot and not being able to take a layer off and I presume it's the same for dogs.

As an experienced dog trainer, I know how small irritations can cause big and unwanted behaviours. I don't take those chances. I want my dogs to feel comfortable.

Throughout the winter, I ask my dogs if they want their coats on at the start of the walk. They will push their head in when they do, turn their heads away if they don't.

They mostly say yes when its raining and when they're freshly clipped. The rest of the time they mostly say no. Their own fur does it's job.

Interestingly, one dog frequently says no to his coat until its time for the drive home, then he likes it on, presumably because it's cold in the van and he feels it when he's sat still.

Do you give your dog a choice? If not, why?

(Please note, I'm in the UK where we don't get dangerously cold temperatures)

17/10/2025

Fancy having some fun with your dog this Sunday afternoon?

There are still some spaces on my 1 hour agility workshop. This is a fun workshop where you will learn agility skills.

Perfect for beginners.

Your dog doesn't need to be perfectly well behaved and they don't need to greet dogs but they do have to not be too stressed by other excited dogs being near by.

Held at Harperland in Dundonald, Kilmarnock

Booking link in comments

14/10/2025

07/10/2025

Does your dog find vet visits or routine husbandry like grooming, nail clipping or teeth brushing stressful?

Cooperative husbandry is when we teach our dogs how to tolerate procedures they find stressful in a way that promotes confidence and trust.

Would you be interested in learning more?

Which option would you prefer?

1. Webinar
2. Learn at your own pace online course
3. Live class with active coaching and recording