Smith and Snout

12/08/2024

Summer so far….. ☀️🌧️😍🐾

05/08/2024

Reminiscing on a lovely week walking Riley and Bailey. These cheeky boys are not regular clients for me but I had the pleasure of taking them whilst their humans were away this last week. I hope to see you very soon boys 🐶🐶

Please get in contact if you need ad hoc or holiday cover. Although my regular slots are full, I can normally do some tweaking for short term☀️

22/07/2024

And that’s a wrap. 6 weeks working with a lovely group of puppies. Everyone has worked really hard and learnt lots of useful life skills using positive reinforcement and rewards.
We have covered:
🦴 Settle
🦴 Recall
🦴 Loose lead walking
🦴 Scent practice and the importance of sniffing and mental stimulation to our dogs wellbeing
🦴 Emergency Stop
🦴 Drop/Leave (and the difference between the two)
🦴 Chin rest
🦴 Down
🦴 Send Around
🦴 Middle
🦴 Wait

And the best part? No dog had to be punished, told off or yanked around in order to achieve these things.

It can be very distracting for puppies to be around other dogs that want to play, and new environments. Not only are these classes useful for teaching important skills, but they help dogs to learn to ignore external stimuli and concentrate on their handlers. This fosters better connections and desirable behaviours in any setting 🐶

If you have any training queries, please do not hesitate to get in touch ☺️

Keep an eye out for more of my classes soon in a brand new location📍

12/07/2024

A wonderful week of walks. A couple of gorgeous new faces for me and new friends made for some of my regulars

Seeing your dogs happy is the best feeling in the world 😃💜

09/07/2024

Don’t trick your dogs.

They’re not stupid. They’re not goldfish (although goldfish actually have decent memory). They will remember and they will learn for the next time.

Picture this- your dog doesn’t have a good recall, and they’re off-lead. You pretend to have a treat to coax them back, they come to you and you grab them. Excellent! You win! Except, that will work a total of one times, because as you clip their lead back on, laughing about how you outsmarted them, your dog is learning that you are untrustworthy. There was no reward, and you ended the fun, so they’re not going to fall for that again.

It’s not just recall, but recall is the most prominent example of this that I see. There are only so many tricks we can play on a dog to get them back before they are suspicious of everything you try. They know that you lie to them, so why should they believe you?

The short-term gain isn’t worth the long-term loss of trust.

If your dog doesn’t recall, instead of letting them off-lead and inadvertently teaching them every trick in the book of how to avoid being caught, just keep them on a long line and train recall until it’s solid enough to work properly.

If your dog doesn’t like coming inside from the garden, teach it as a behaviour, instead of waving toys around and slamming the door behind them if they come to investigate.

If your dog needs eye drops, put time aside to teach them how to accept handling comfortably instead of springing it on them and making them wary of hands around their face.

If your dog steals something, don’t pretend to distract them for a second then sn**ch it away- instead teach a solid swap cue. It’s about being prepared for situations instead of jumping in headfirst and having to wing it.

And sure, there might be times when we do have to trick them, it’s rare but it can happen. The next step is to totally rebuild that trust and ensure it never happens again.

They’re dogs. They’re intelligent. We don’t need a GOTCHA moment, we should be on the same team. Every time you trick them, they’re learning, and there will come a time they’re one step ahead of you if that trust is broken too often.

24/06/2024

22/06/2024

What an awesome week of walks! 🐾
This week 3 of my solo clients have successfully completed walks with other dogs.
Rico, Dougie and Odin have been reactive in the past and I have been asked to work on their confidence around other dogs and have very slowly built up to introducing them to others.
I do not take this lightly and I very carefully handpick the dogs and the environment to suit, reading body language and making sure everybody is comfortable at all times.

I am immensely proud of you boys 🥰

If you have any training needs or concerns, please contact me for 1:1 sessions or walks 😃

13/06/2024

Yesterday ☀️ vs today 🌧️

A very gloomy contrast, summer seems to have gone before it’s even started

The main thing is that the dogs have a wonderful time no matter what the weather 😃

10/06/2024

Please get in touch if you want your puppy or young dog to learn important life skills in a fun, relaxed environment. A different skill each week and a chance to socialise with like minded dog owners 🐶

29/05/2024

Getting the steps in today 👣
Group walks followed by individual training walks with Lexi, Finn and newbie Dougie
Seeing improvements in your pooches everyday makes my heart sing 💜

22/05/2024

Wishing a very Happy Birthday to two of my wonderful Collies 🐶
Myla is 1 🎈
Rico is 5 🎈
Hope you get throughly spoilt by your pawrents today ❤️ 🎂

19/05/2024

Have you recently got a puppy?
Are you wondering how to proceed and give him/her life skills in a positive, rewarding way?
Classes starting Monday 17th June in Carbis Bay.

Also a couple of spaces left for the adolescent group at 8pm (6-18 months) 🐶

15/05/2024

Some awesome views today and of course awesome doggos to share them with 🩵 💙

Still got rained on on every walk though 🤔

02/05/2024

Two of my favourite things 🌅 🐶 🩷

01/05/2024

What a stunner today was 🐾

Come on sunshine, just stick around now 🙏 ☀️

28/04/2024

Happy Gotcha day darling boys! 6 whole years of unconditional love, fun, drama, hard work, and many stressful moments. I am so so proud of how far they have come since they arrived from Romania💜💙💜💙

25/04/2024

💜A match made in Heaven 💜

Ace and Red are total opposites. Red is a very energetic bouncy lab who just wants to say hello to everyone and everything. Ace is an older rescue with the sweetest, calmest nature

I’ve walked them both separately for some time and been working on Reds calmness and focus. Both owners were looking for their pooches to make other dog friends, but understood that these matches can be hard to find.

I think I’ve hit the nail on the head with these two

Ace calms Red down, and is very patient with him whilst he figures out his social skills.
Red gives Ace a new lease of life, he runs and plays

They say opposites attract…

If you choose me as your dog walker, rest assured that I will always match dogs based on their personalities. Introductions are slow and calm, and I am constantly watching body language to make sure all parties are happy 😃

25/04/2024

I’ll say it again 💜

20/04/2024

I echo every single thing Vicki says here ☺️

🐶 TRAINING V’S BEHAVIOUR 🐶

Do you ever feel judged about the way your dog behaves?

I have done, many times.

Sam finds lots of things challenging. He particularly finds people he doesn’t know really difficult. This can sometimes be hard when we’re out on walks. We do what we can to keep him feeling safe, but there are times when we get it wrong, or there’s not enough space to give him the distance that he needs.

He reacts by barking, lunging and trying to make the ‘scary’ person go away. He’s a big dog and when he behaves like this, regardless of the reason why, he looks intimidating and ‘aggressive’.

I’m a dog trainer. Surely I should have a well trained, well behaved dog?

Here’s the thing. I’m a dog TRAINER. And Sam is well trained. He can sit, stay, walk on a loose lead, come when called… he even knows a few tricks.

Sam being scared and reacting the way he does has nothing to do with TRAINING. It’s about BEHAVIOUR. It’s about how he feels. It’s about past experiences. It’s about what displaying that behaviour does for him. It’s about how his brain works.

If we were to compare the roles of ‘dog’ professionals to ‘people’ professionals, it look something (loosely) like…

Dog Trainer = Teacher - teaching new skills and providing an education to help a dog / person successfully navigate life. As learning new skills and behaviour do co-exist, an experienced trainer / teacher will also have some knowledge of behaviour.

Dog Behaviourist = Psychologist / Counsellor - understanding how a dog / person interrupts and makes sense of the world around them and gives them ways to cope in situations that they find difficult. Does not prescribe medication.

Vet = GP - diagnoses medical conditions and treats with medications where necessary. Refers onto specialists if out of their area of expertise whether that’s medically or psychologically.

Vet Behaviourist = Psychiatrist - deep understanding of how the brain and behaviour works from a medical perspective. Can prescribe medication as part of the treatment.

Each of these roles exist to support you and your dog, and whilst there is often an overlap in an individual’s skill sets, experience and qualifications it good to have an understanding of what each can offer you.

Sam has been really well supported over his lifetime by our vet, a behaviourist & a vet behaviourist and with their help he copes with the world around him better than he would otherwise be able to.

Why is all of this important? What’s the point of the post?

It’s this.

I will NEVER judge you on your dog’s behaviour. I’ve been there. I know and understand what it is like to have people stare at you, tut at you, approach your terrified dog making the situation worse, tell you to ‘put your dangerous dog to sleep’ and worse.

If I can help you I will. But please remember that I am a dog TRAINER.

Which means that I may not be the right person to help you and if I’m not I’ll be honest and tell you. We’re lucky here, there are a number of brilliant behaviourists that I will happily refer you to if I feel that they can help you.

Don’t dread walks with your dog. Don’t worry about being judged. There’s lots of support out there. Just ask!

18/04/2024

☀️ WHAT A DAY ☀️

15/04/2024

This is so true! I always tell clients to take food out on every walk to reinforce those awesome things our dogs do, particularly recall 🐕

"𝘿𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠?"
Normally, yes. I've almost always got a few pieces of food in my pockets.

"𝘿𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙩?"
Well, that depends on what you mean by "need". Will Charlie come back when called without it? Yes. Will he ignore other dogs if I need him to without it? Yes. Will he walk on a loose lead without it? Yes. Will he do the things I need from him without it? Yes.

I don't "need" food on me for him to do any of these things. He does them because they all have a strong history of reinforcement which we've built up over the years. It's not the reinforcement he gets today which makes him come when I call him, it's the cumulative effect of all the reinforcement he's experienced in the past.

So why take food out with me?

• Because it's fun...he likes to search out a treat that's been tossed into the long grass (& he thinks I'm amazing because I know just where the good hunting spots are 😉)
• Because if he does something awesome (like recalling away from something he loves to do like hunt for mice or stalk squirrels) I want to be in a position to reinforce that. Every. Single. Time.
• Because he can sometimes be spooked by things around him and predictable games with food help him settle if that happens
• Because why not? I have to carry a lead, poo bags and my phone so popping a few pieces of food in my pocket isn't a burden.

For most dogs food is fun. It's a reinforcer and a motivator. It can strengthen behaviours we like. It can help settle and soothe. Taking food on your walks isn't cheating and it's not bribery. So instead of asking why maybe we should ask why not?

14/04/2024

12/04/2024

Absolutely glorious walks today with gorgeous dogs 😍

10/04/2024

I love this job 😍 🐾

02/04/2024

There’s a huge amount of conflicting information about dog training online and for owners seeking help it can seem hard to know what to follow. But, ultimately, it all boils down to a single question....

"𝘼𝙢 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙤𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙩, 𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙤𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣?"

If a trainer uses…

• Slip leads
• Choke chains
• Compressed air sprays
• Rattle cans
• Water sprays
• Prong collars
• E-collars / shock collars
• Anti-bark collars
• Sharp tugs on a flat collar

…then they 𝗮𝗿𝗲 using discomfort, fear, pain (or the threat of these things) to teach dogs. Because that's how these tools are designed to work in order to change behaviour.

It’s a simple question. What’s your answer?

01/04/2024

⭐️ WORKSHOPS FULLY BOOKED. Thank you so much for your interest. Keep your eyes peeled for more dates, or PM me if you want me to update you on further group classes or need any 1:1 training ⭐️

Does your dog pull you when on the lead?
Do you panic when they are off the lead incase you can’t get them back?
Do you feel anxious or out of control when out walking?
I am now offering evening workshops where we will be working on the foundations of Loose lead walking, recall and emergency stop in a small group. These are 2 hours long and all ages of dog are welcome. I use completely force free methods and lots of positive reinforcement 😄
At the moment I have the following dates available in Carbis Bay:
Monday 15th april
Monday 29th April
Please get in touch for booking or if you have any questions 🐶

31/03/2024

Happy Easter to all my wonderful clients and followers 💜🐣🐰
I will be spending the day tackling this amazing Cocoba Chocolate 4kg egg (thanks to my amazing sister, she knows me so well 🍫)

Remember that whilst we are enjoying chocolate and hot cross buns, they can make our lovely pets very poorly, please take care ❤️🥰

27/03/2024

A Wednesday of many seasons. Warm sunshine and freezing hail storms ☀️🌧️

23/03/2024

🌈 A tribute to Milo, who has sadly crossed the rainbow bridge. What a wonderful life you had with your wonderful family. I hope you are surrounded by water with every shape and size of pebble you could possibly want. RIP beautiful, gentle boy 🌈

Hands down, the worst thing about this job, it’s the only time animals break our hearts 💔