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Paw Skills

A qualified & accredited positive dog trainer in Wiltshire & surrounding areas 5* Rated
(8)

12/09/2024

📸 fun and frolics with a smattering of blackberry picking 📸

09/09/2024

📸 Group walks 📸

03/09/2024

🐾 GROUP DOG WALKS 🐾

We have a rare opportunity for dogs to join our secure dog walks at our privately owned venue on a Wednesday and Thursday.

Dogs are picked up & dropped off and exercised off lead at our fenced paddocks with acres of space to frolic in 🤩 we have fun agility kit, paddling pools, etc and your dog can enjoy safe and secure walks. Each walk is £15 and we do discounts for multiple dog households 🐕

Due to dogs moving days we have availability on a Wednesday in Chippenham & Corsham and a Thursday in Corsham & Chippenham (as these tie in with existing routes)

Drop us a message or email us at [email protected] to book in 🐾

02/09/2024

🍂 Hello September 🍂

Over the summer we welcomed Steve from Dig Dogs to the team and all the dogs love him! Steve you’re a super addition to the team 🤩

Our puppy classes are back and we have agility & puppy classes on a Saturday coming back in October 🗓️

Today the group did some blackberry picking too! We’ve got lots coming through now so if you’re up at the venue you’re welcome to take some home 😋

Here are photos from todays fun and frolics 🐾

30/08/2024

Come and join us on Sunday at the Brinkworth show! We will be running and judging the dog show 🐾🤩

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/3tBxxGFRRnn7GRaW/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Here's a reminder of the classes for the dog show this year so both you and your four-legged friend can make sure you're well prepared to win one of our wonderful new rosettes.

Don't forget the first class starts at 11am

29/08/2024

Group Walk photos 🐾

26/08/2024

🐾 Puppy Classes are back! 🐾

Our next puppy class starts on Tuesday 10th September at 6-7pm and will run for 4 weeks.

05/08/2024

05/08/2024

📸

15/07/2024

☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️

11/07/2024

📸 Thursday funnnn 📸

10/07/2024

📸 Wednesday woofs 📸

10/07/2024

Who doesn’t love the sound of a shnuffling shhpaniel shnaz 😍

09/07/2024

This is a really important topic, I’ve been to meet several litters over the years and walked away from buying pups as the parents displayed behaviours that aren’t desirable or the pups were being raised in a stressful way.

Dont source a pup without checking these important factors!

People always say to me how did you get so lucky with your puppies; because I temperament tested their parents, I questioned breeders on their ethics, knowledge and how they’re raising the pups, etc.

I’ve often asked clients what their pups parents were like, how they were raised in the nest etc when I am presented in behavioural issues in young dogs as part of the assessment and 90% don’t know. We need to raise awareness for this as it can save guardians a lot of potential heartbreak when a pup doesn’t meet what they desired in a dog.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=986809263445355&id=100063488715781

Puppies are not clean slates !
You often hear people say 'get a puppy they are a clean slate'

As a behaviourist and breeder I can confidently tell you this is not true. Both nature and nurture has a huge impact.
A puppy will inherit genes from its parents and these genes will impact the puppies genetic potential to behave in a particular way.
Such as :
Using aggression as a strategy to deal with difficult situations
Sociability towards people and dogs
Fearful responses
Sound sensitivity
Strong instinctive behaviour to hunt, chase, grab, hold and guard.
Trainability which includes the ability to learn self control as humans desire it.

When people breed dogs they sometimes select for specific traits and sometimes not. If someone is breeding for a particular look, colour or just money then these traits can become altered becoming stronger or weaker or unbalanced. This can make a dog dangerous for example breeding a dog with gameness and reducing human sociability.

Then the puppy is born and the first 8 weeks learning with the breeder will have an huge impact on the development of all these genetic traits.

My five puppies have all come from the same parents and been reared in the same environment. They have very individual personalities. The training and socialisation they receive in their new homes will only influence the genes and first learning, it won't change their personalities.

So if you are looking for a puppy
Firstly learn about breed traits and instincts and make sure you pick a puppy that will suit your lifestyle. For example there no point getting a breed that is 'aloof with strangers' if you have 3 young children and lots of friends visiting.

Secondly meet the parents or (genes), see what they are like. Make sure you are meeting the actual parents, some people buy in puppy farmed litters and then 'hire' an adult of the same breed to pretend the puppies were bred there!!

Thirdly make sure the puppy has had plenty of early neurological stimulation and learning before it leaves the litter. Ask these questions.
1) What have the puppies seen?
2) Who and what have they met?
2) What have they learnt?
3) How have they learned to play?
4) What do they do if they get frustrated?
5) What do they do if they get bored?

A professional trainer can help support and guide you on the process of looking for a puppy. Don't wait till afterwards for help.

Prevention IS better than Cure. This goes for training and socialisation too, get a professional to help and guide you.

Puppies are building neural pathways with every experience, every day, make sure they're building ones you like.

First Learning is the strongest, make sure you get it right first time.

Written by Jane Ardern BSc (Hons) KCAI (WG)
WaggaWuffins Canine College
Bury Lancashire

*Permission to share this post from this source. No cutting and pasting please and pretending you wrote it yourself 🙄

09/07/2024

📸 Tuesday lunchtime group 📸

02/07/2024

Coming to us

There have been some unexpected works happening outside our premesis, there are road closed signs but there is still access to our property, go passed the signs as normal as access to us is approved.

We weren’t informed of the road closure to be able to prepare but have spoken to the work people in place and they are aware people will need access.

Do not follow the diversion it will take you miles out the way.

28/06/2024

🐕🐶🐾 WE ARE HIRING WITH AN IMMEDIATE START 🐾🐶🐕

We are looking for a part time dog walker on a self employed basis on a Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday for our clients in the Chippenham area.

We host group walks at our privately owned venue that has fenced paddocks, we have a wonderful group of well established clients and fantastic doggos that love to come and play.

You are welcome to bring your own dogs to work and the hours are school run friendly.

It is for 1 group walk a day with the possibility of expanding more / working more hours if you wish as we have quite a long waiting list!

If you are an already established dog walker or walk some dogs of your own you are welcome to combine the groups and bring them along 🙂

Our ethos is force free and positive working with dogs and so you will need to be of the same way of working with animals.

You will have a suitable mode of transport in order to transport multiple dogs safely and have your own insurance. We are able to help with recommendations for these if not already in place.

Experience of working with dogs and qualifications desirable but we will support the right candidate with CPD, mentorship and we will help fund a dog walking qualification if needed 📝

Due to insurance purposes this role is suitable for over 18s. We can also recommend a pet professional accountant to help with your taxes etc should this be your first time self employed. Rate of pay dependent on experience etc. Mileage rate included.

If you are interested in the role please email your CV and covering letter to Rosie at:

[email protected]

For any further questions/enquiries you’re welcome to email us too :)

26/06/2024

This week’s walks so far! We’ve welcomed Ian to the team and he’s been flying solo and survived!

Thank you to everyone being so accommodating with the earlier walks due to the weather ☀️

26/06/2024

We filmed this over a year ago with our boy Ocho, who is Rupert’s dog in the series.

A lovely production and Alex Hassell was a very kind and gentle artist to work with and he truly loved the dogs.

Please note, this won’t be a safe watch for all 🫣 for anyone that’s read the Jilly Cooper books will know this is going to be raunchy! I worked with a semi naked Alex every day on set 🤣

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/R6QzyuseczeCi9mv/?mibextid=WC7FNe

26/06/2024

Congratulations to Ruby & Thistle! This wasn’t an easy ride for them but they managed it! Great job girlies 😘

Thistle has been an absolute super star and has given me a wonderful 9 puppies of 6 girls and 3 boys!

She had delivered a whopping 12 puppies but 3 gained their wings 🪽

A busy couple of weeks ahead for us but thank you to everyone for being so flexible with us ❤️🐶❤️

25/06/2024

🐶☀️CLASS ANNOUNCEMENT ☀️🐶

For classes on 25th & 26th June please see the announcement in the Paw Skills Members group as there have been some changes made due to the heat.

The link to the members group is on your joining info sent to you 🙂

22/06/2024

🐶 Puppy Social 🐶

Lots of fun was had at the puppy socials yesterday evening, we have had lots of requests for another one so keep your eyes peeled on the page for a date! 👀

21/06/2024

FINDING US

Our neighbours have taken it upon themselves to relocate our Ravensroost Stables sign to their entrance to the stables without telling us 🙄

So while we get a sign sorted I have put up one of our old banners on our gate so you know which entrance to use 🐶

20/06/2024

Thank you Ruby for all you’ve done for us, we are going to miss you so much. Here’s to a new chapter 🥂

20/06/2024

4 years ago a little teeny weeny puppy came to one of my puppy classes and I text my best friend to say I’d absolutely fallen in love with her. Since then I’ve had the pleasure of being involved in her life every week.

She is the mummy to my boy Reef and I love her like one of my own. I’d have her in a heartbeat. I adore her.

It’s come to the time where she doesn’t need me anymore, she’s a well rounded, beautiful dog inside and out. I have shed tears over this girl because I’m going to miss her so much.

Thank you to her family for letting me be such a big part of her life and I can’t wait to still see her for some social walks because quite frankly I love her too much to not see her again and I know where you live 🤣🤣

Love you Beau 💕

17/06/2024

Chipolata visited our friends at Dogs Rock Ltd - Luxury Dog Grooming today for a nail clip 💅🏼

Here’s why we love Dogs Rock…

Pros of taking your dogs to Dogs Rock Ltd - Luxury Dog Grooming

✅ Award winning groomers
✅ Super patient and kind with your dogs
✅ Fab selection of treats, supplements etc
✅ The staff are very easy on the eye!

I’ve trusted Dogs Rock with my dogs and they’ve been incredibly patient with my rescues. We highly recommend them!

17/06/2024

☀️☀️☀️☀️

12/06/2024

🐾 Puppy Social 🐾

A structured puppy group where the pups get to experience different things such as a paddling pool, ball pit, bubbles, tunnels, etc. Held in our privately owned fenced paddocks. £5 per pup per session. You are welcome to bring other members of your household with you.

The pups will get a chance to have some off lead time and engage with other pups but this will be in a controlled and supervised environment with a trainer present. We also have multiple paddocks where we can create a safe space for pups that need more distance.

Calm & collected - pups that are younger and suitable for pups that need a confidence boost

Whizzy whirlwinds - the wild child types that want to engage with other pups and like to engage with people, things and other dogs

All pups must be vaccinated, not showing aggression and due to level of engagement this isn’t suitable for pups that are fearful/anxious.

When booking please consider your pup’s play style and confidence levels.

To book please email:

[email protected]

Address

Malmesbury
SN169RJ

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Videos

Buckey REALLY likes the paddling pool 🤣

Who doesn’t love the sound of a shnuffling shhpaniel shnaz 😍

This is Chip, he is an adolescent male hound who has recently joined my group. He came to me with minimal exposure and he had never been off the lead. Chip has only been with us a couple of weeks and something we’ve been working on is recall. Like all dogs there are times where he is better than others and we are now looking at recalling around distractions. Something Chip loves is running around with my other dogs, naturally this is exciting to him and he wants to be involved so I’ve been recalling him away from them as that’s a really big choice for him. All the foundations I teach in recall lead to this response, look how well he recalls away from my other dogs playing 🤩 Yes he fell over as he recalled back to me 🤣🫣

Sometimes training doesn’t go to plan and that’s ok! Here I am doing some training with Reef in a pet shop… The Plan - This was to ask him to wait next to food which he is stood by, Reef is a big foodie and LOVES food, he would take it at any opportunity from anyone 🤣 The plan was for me to move around the shop while he waited and really proof that wait behaviour around distractions and food. But things didn’t go to plan… There was a dog in the background that REALLY wanted to get to Reef, it was vocalising over excitement as you can hear in the video and dragging itself down the aisle towards Reef as you can also see in the video. Reef notices this, he makes a good decision to turn back to me but breaks his wait to move to me away from the other dog. I rewarded him and moved him away from the other dog, why? Because he made excellent decisions. He didn’t want to engage with a dog that was overwhelming to him, he wanted to move towards me and away from that situation which I admire in him. Situations like that can often lead to behaviours and reactions in dogs such as defensiveness, nervousness, worry and anxious responses due to it being a full on experience having a dog come towards you like that because our dogs do not know its intentions. So instead of reacting he chose to remove himself from the situation, I recognised this and moved to another part of the shop, allowed the dog to leave and carried on our training. The dog was a large breed who was very excited at the possibility of a potential friend but Reef wasn’t sure of its intentions and I don’t want Reef, a young adolescent dog, to have to possibly make a bad decision under pressure. In the real world these things happen so it’s good to be able to read your dog and change your plan on the spot. Yes Reef broke his wait I asked him to do but for good reason and that’s ok. So even if it doesn’t go to plan still reward your dog for trying, for making good decisions, for avo

Hoovers can be scary/exciting/overwhelming to a lot of dogs. With the right foundations in place your dog too can be as unbothered as our Ocho is about them! If you need help with your dog’s reactions around hoovers/brooms/lawn mowers etc get in touch :)

Our Slinkydog loves detection work. Here he is offering a freeze indication when he finds the correct odour. But there’s so much more to this than first glance. Not only is he searching for odour and indicating to let me know he’s found it but he’s ignoring all the people in the shop, the noises, movements and he’s searching dog treats and not stealing them. He of course got LOTS of high value treats for this as it’s such a lot for a dog to do. It just shows what you can achieve with fun training :)

You know you’ve trained the hoover right when your dog sleeps through it 😂

Can you spot Slinkydog?! 🎬 Our very own Slinky featured in this TV ad for Gala Bingo, it’s currently airing so keep your eyes peeled for him! 👀

⭐️🎬 Boast Post 🎬⭐️ A couple of months ago our very own Reef did some filming for a TV ad for Very. Some of you have already spotted him on your screens but here’s the finished advert! All the foundation socialisation and life skills techniques I teach in class I apply to my own pups and this made sure Reef was well rounded enough to thoroughly enjoy the day and not be phased at all by being on set. Huge thank you to Pets On Set for this amazing opportunity 🤩

Trainers train too! Locally there is a fabulous network of trainers and we love to get out and learn lots too! Thank you Charlotte Harding for a fab puppy workshop with Ocho 🐾

Dash & Beau’s babies are now 5 weeks old and are so much fun! Just look at those scrummy little pupperoonos 😍

💚 Crufts 💚 The best day of my life for sure! Winning Friends for Life with Boo meant the world to me and she truly was my soul mate. I miss her every day. But Boo wasn’t just any dog, she came to me in a time of need, a time of pain… 12 years ago today I lost my first baby and almost my life as a result of a misdiagnosed ruptured ectopic pregnancy. I had originally been told I was miscarrying but after going downhill very quickly and ending up in A&E, thankfully it was picked up and I was operated on before I became another statistic in the high mortality rate the condition carries. I then lost my second pregnancy to miscarriage. I survived but what is easily forgotten are the lasting conditions and effects… • PTSD • ME (Myalgic encephalomyelitis) • Chronic pain • Multiple surgeries to remove adhesions caused by the internal bleeding • Unable to have children naturally • The complete knock of confidence thanks to 11 incisions into your stomach and 1 into your bikini line • Having to have the conservation when starting a new relationship that you can’t give them children. • Grief • Pain in the bladder from where they’ve had to remove scar tissue • Endometriosis • Pain/sickness when eating sometimes due to scarring in my bowel from having multiple sections of adhesions removed • Random bouts of internal bleeding where the adhesions grow and temper So instead of being a Mum I threw myself into dog training! Dog training gave me such relief from it all - for those moments it’s just you and your dog, nothing else matters. It’s helped me rebuild my life. I love working with people and their dogs, especially those that need their dogs for those extra things whether it be to support their physical disability or their mental health. I pride myself in adapting training programmes for those in need and hope that my story can resonate and give someone out there hope 🐾❤️

In light of yesterdays heartbreaking news let’s have a happy post. The paddling pool was a hit in yesterdays puppy class 🥰

We looked at forward drive and distance handling with Gus and he was absolutely fab at it! Look how far he went to take those jumps and find the tunnel without his Mum! 🤩🤩

Who put that jump there?! We went to a puppy camp at DALT and STEPH Agility in the New Forest last week and I managed to put myself in the wrong position and almost tripped over the jump! Thankfully I managed to quick think and leap over it 🤣

💦 The paddling pools and water games have been such a hit in the warm weather 💦

A snippet from some training we did last month with Happy Dog Training. This was a person search workshop where the dogs were tasked to alert to which person was carrying the ‘gun’. Slinky freezes to indicate - can you spot who had the concealed weapon?! 🔫

🐕 Disability and Dog Sports 🐕 You may or may not know but I was born with femoral anteversion in both legs and I have hypermobility not only in my legs but also my shoulder, elbows and hands. I am on lifelong medication to manage my conditions but experience chronic pain and my joints dislocate with certain movements. This makes activities such as agility pretty hard! I have been doing agility for many years now and I wasn’t ready to give it up when my conditions worsened so changed my handling technique to a method called distance handling. Distance handling is where the handler doesn’t run alongside the dog and the dog drives on without the handler, relying on verbal commands much more. Here’s a snippet of Dash doing some distance handling work in the ring, he was particularly fabulous driving down to the end 🤩