Sarah Tweedle - The Behaviour Nurse

Sarah Tweedle - The Behaviour Nurse Sarah Tweedle RVN
Registered Veterinary Nurse
MAPDT (01147) Some of it is fabulous, whilst some is downright dangerous. Why do I do this? What breed? Where from?

Google ‘Why does my dog…’ or ‘How do I stop my dog from….’ and you are faced with a tidal wave of conflicting information. How on earth are people supposed to know which is which? I help owners who may be bewildered, overwhelmed or can’t see the wood for the trees, but just want to get it right. I pull together the information they need and we build a plan together, for how to move things forward.

They can be confident they are not going to accidentally make things worse, that I’ve got their back and will support them through the issues they are facing. I once visited a rescue kennel containing around a hundred dogs. Kennel, after kennel, after kennel, of souls that had lost their special family or person, for dozens of different reasons. Nearly every one of them was once someone’s beloved puppy, someone who had dreams of what their life with their dog would be like. But somewhere along the line, something went wrong.💔 It might’ve been down to decisions made around getting a puppy – When? It might’ve been down to just how hard it can be to train a puppy for the life you need them to cope with. Most commonly, it could be down to unruly adolescent behaviour and people having no idea how on earth to get past it. I want to reduce the numbers of dogs and people facing that heart breaking situation, by making it as easy as possible for people to get the information and support they need. As a dog owner, I had a reactive Border Collie who used to attack, pick up and shake other dogs. I have been there. I have experienced how hard it is to live with and work through. I am a Veterinary Nurse and a Dog Trainer, with 20 years of studying and 15 years experience working in this field. I know things! I have an enormous Mary Poppins carpet bag FULL of information and experience, having seen where things can go awry and how to prevent or repair them. The skill comes in pulling out exactly what is needed for THIS owner, with THIS dog, in THIS situation. I bridge disciplines. I teach, explain, guide and translate:
✅ what the dog is trying to say to the owner
✅ what the owner wants to say to the dog
✅ vet to owner...owner to vet...

Some of my best clients may have no idea how things could have turned out badly, if we anticipated and prevented something from becoming a problem in the first place. And for those that could see an issue brewing, and reached out for help and support, the relief is tremendous! If you need someone to listen, to understand, and help you find your way forward, I'd love to sit down with a cuppa and have a good long chat with you. Message me on [email protected] 🐾🐾

11/12/2024
And off we go!
18/11/2024

And off we go!

Meet Sarah 💚

Sarah qualified as an RVN in 2009, and joined Castle Vets in November 2024 as our dedicated Liskeard Branch nurse.

She has worked mostly as a consulting nurse, with a particular interest in behaviour and training and preventing problems in puppies. She is a Fear Free Certified Professional, a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, and holds the BVNA Certificate in Companion Animal Behaviour.

Her favourite part of her job is running puppy classes, and helping worried dogs overcome their fear of the vets.

Sarah enjoys life on the edge of Bodmin moor with her family, has 3 alpacas and enjoys knitting (hence the alpacas!), music, and bobbing about in cold water.

If you are passing by, feel free to pop in and say hi 💚

Well, I’m going to be hitting the ground running!!
30/10/2024

Well, I’m going to be hitting the ground running!!

Exciting NEWS incoming... 🤩🥳🐾🐶🐕

Its time to Pawty!!!!! 🥳

Starting Monday 18th November - Puppy Preschool will be available from our Liskeard Branch 6.30pm - 7.30pm ⏰

As a new puppy owner, you may have heard about socialisation.
Within these sessions we aim to demonstrate how to give your puppy the very best start by ensuring that socialisation is carried out correctly.🐾

We will explain the importance of early positive associations and how to help your puppy grow into a confident, relaxed adult dog.

❓The sessions also give you the opportunity to ask any questions about any concerns/issues you may be having

🩺Your puppy must be less than 12 weeks old at the start of the course and 1 week clear of their 1st vaccination.

📆This is a rolling 4 week course

What to expect
- We aim to limit sessions to a maximum of 6-8 puppies.
- On arrival you will be welcomed and your puppy weighed and introduced.
- There will be a short talk on a different topic each week
- Puppies will be introduced to others supervised by our qualified staff to ensure that each puppy has a positive experience.
- Each week you will get a party bag to take home containing information on that week’s topic and a small gift from us.

What to bring
- Your puppy
- A lead which should be attached to a soft flat collar or harness. No extendable leads please
- Tasty food treats (we will supply some cooked chicken, but you are very welcome to bring your puppy’s favourites)
- We welcome all immediate family members who will be involved with the puppy’s care, including children but would ask that if young children are attending then two adults accompany them (one to look after the puppy and one to supervise the children)

💸The cost of this course is £33.65 to be paid in advance. However, if you have signed up to the Castle Care Club Juniors Plan, the cost is included.

We hope that both you and your puppy will enjoy these sessions and look forward to your future Vet visits.

For more information about our new puppy preschool parties and to pre book please contact the practice on 01579 208072 or email [email protected]

BOOKING IS ESSENTIAL. ⏰📞📧💌

𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘!!After 12.5 years, this is my last week working Westmoor Vets in Tavistock. Next week I'll be starting as the...
28/10/2024

𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗘!!

After 12.5 years, this is my last week working Westmoor Vets in Tavistock.

Next week I'll be starting as the Liskeard Branch RVN for Castle Veterinary Group!

I'm having a real rollercoaster of emotions at the moment, so sad to be leaving my lovely clients and colleagues, and incredibly excited to be doing my 'thing' in a new practice, within cycling distance of home!

25/10/2024

Video No2 - some very good points!

19/10/2024

I’m looking forward to rest of this series!

200 hundred litters of puppies over a period of a few years :(How do we get potential owners to be more savvy in sourcin...
04/10/2024

200 hundred litters of puppies over a period of a few years :(

How do we get potential owners to be more savvy in sourcing their puppies? Until we all vote with our wallets and demand high standards, people like this will continue to ignore welfare while chasing £££’s

22/07/2024
When Trago have fake crocs for £8.99. Job lot for all my nursing colleagues!
16/07/2024

When Trago have fake crocs for £8.99. Job lot for all my nursing colleagues!

Apparently it was National Sarah Day today! I had no idea that was a thing, but I was already feeling very appreciated a...
26/06/2024

Apparently it was National Sarah Day today! I had no idea that was a thing, but I was already feeling very appreciated after gifts and flowers from lovely clients today ❤

I’ve been covering shifts at a different practice over the last couple of weeks. It’s frightening stepping outside your ...
24/06/2024

I’ve been covering shifts at a different practice over the last couple of weeks. It’s frightening stepping outside your comfort zone, but they were lovely and it was interesting and stimulating, thinking and talking about different things to my norm.

I’m back at Westmoor again now, in the midst of the usual Monday morning frenzy. Captain Chaos is back!

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Liskeard

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Videos

Parading spaniel
Parading spaniel

Spaniel is as spaniel does!

'The Puppy Blues were real, hard, and unexpected'
'The Puppy Blues were real, hard, and unexpected'

After an intense couple of days consulting at Westmoor, I must admit to shedding a tear when I got this message last night 🥰 𝑯𝒊 𝑺𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒉. 𝑰 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 ***** 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓. 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒕. 𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒑 𝒕𝒊𝒑𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑻𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚, 𝒘𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂 5 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒉 𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒑𝒖𝒑 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒐𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌, 𝒔𝒍𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕, 𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒂 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆. 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒘 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒌𝒔 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒃𝒍𝒖𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒓𝒆

I took Tinkerbell out yesterday with the *intention* of doing some loose lead walking training. Tinkerbell, however, was distracted by every gnat that broke wind or flapped it's wings. She really is at 'kindergarten' level with that, working in very low distraction environments, and it was clearly too soon to bump it up to 'junior school' on that particular day. Her recall training though, is quite a bit further along, so we took the opportunity to reinforce the 'junior' training she has already done. This included the challenges of: ✅Fun environment (gnat and farting sparrows included) ✅Considerable distance ✅Call when she's looking away ✅Call when she's moving away ✅'Premium' sausage rewards What it deliberately DIDN'T include was: ❎The distraction of other people ❎The distraction of other dogs Tink is really drawn to social interactions, but simultaneously a tad worried by them. That puts the presence of people and dogs at the 'secondary school' level of recall distraction training for her right now. Choosing the right level of distraction to practice with is really important, as we want to very gradually make things harder, but still want to set her up to win, to make good decisions and get massively rewarded for it, to strengthen the almost automatic, turn on a dime, lip licking response to hearing her recall cue 👍👍👍👍 If you want to get a bit more of a 'strategy' for your youngster's recall, I've put a link to my FREE 'Total Recall' video in the comments 😎

Well Denise & Alistair, if you want a hand setting up Puppy Parties, I can certainly help! #thearchers The Archers

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About Sarah Tweedle

Google ‘Why does my dog…’ or ‘How do I stop my dog from….’ and you are faced with a tidal wave of conflicting information. Some of it is fabulous, whilst some is downright dangerous. How on earth are people supposed to know which is which?

I help owners who may be bewildered, overwhelmed or can’t see the wood for the trees, but just want to get it right.

Why do I do this? I once visited a rescue kennel containing around a hundred dogs. Kennel, after kennel, after kennel, of souls that had lost their special family or person, for dozens of different reasons. Nearly every one of them was once someone’s beloved puppy, someone who had dreams of what their life with their dog would be like. But somewhere along the line, something went wrong.💔 It might’ve been down to decisions made around getting a puppy – When? What breed? Where from? It might’ve been down to just how hard it can be to train a puppy for the life you need them to cope with. Most commonly, it could be down to unruly adolescent behaviour and people having no idea how on earth to get past it.

I want to reduce the number of people facing the heart breaking situation of having to part with their dog, and keep families together by making it as easy as possible for people to get the information and support they need. Once we fix what went wrong, we can get them the life they are yearning for.