Mabel and I

Mabel and I 🐾Dog Walker - 4 Dogs per walk max
πŸ“Newbury and Surrounding Areas
πŸ•Trainer for Anna Balch Dog Trainer
πŸ’š Postive Reinforcement Only

28/01/2025
16/01/2025

Yesterday and today I saw clients who were using these instruments of torture.
They were told to use them by their previous β€œtrainers”
They were told that they didn’t hurt.
They hurt and damage the delicate neck, the thyroid gland, the trachea….many get terrible arthritis in their neck as they age, from this equipment.

I train humans.
I train humans to treat their dogs with kindness, love and care.

Does pain and intimidation work?
You bet it does.

Does the little boy threatened with a beating clean up his room before his dad gets home? Of course.

οΏΌ Does the little boy down the street clean up his room just as well when his dad promises a hot fudge sundae if he gets it accomplished?

I don’t know. Maybe the little boy who is threatened cleans up his room better? Maybe the boy excited to get a hot fudge sundae does a better job?

One relationship will leave the child living in a state of fear. Emotional scars will last.
Nobody wants to live their life afraid of what’s around the corner.
Nobody should want to inflict this on their dog.

I want my dogs to be happy and excited when I walk in the door. Happy about what fun we will have and what wonderful thing we will do next. Not afraid about what will happen and what pain will be inflicted.

Can’t believe this kind of stuff still goes on, but it does.
It’s not OK. It does hurt.
It really really does.
β€οΈβ€πŸ©ΉπŸΎ

Grateful to have made a difference today.
We can’t help every dog, but for those that we do help, by training and educating their humans, their lives have been changed forever. οΏΌοΏΌ



01/12/2024
Refreshed First Aid Course completed for another few years with the lovely Kerry Stubbs and the lush venue of Aquatic Ca...
11/11/2024

Refreshed First Aid Course completed for another few years with the lovely Kerry Stubbs and the lush venue of Aquatic Canine Therapy - ACT Now!

16/10/2024

Halloween can actually be scary for our dogs. Here are some top tips to plan ahead.

So proud to be part of such a fantastic team πŸ’“
08/10/2024

So proud to be part of such a fantastic team πŸ’“

We did it! Another year as one of the Three Best Rated Dog Trainers in Newbury and super proud.

Autumn walks and my favourite
08/10/2024

Autumn walks and my favourite

What kind of walk are you going on today?
29/09/2024

What kind of walk are you going on today?

Do you feel that your dog needs a 'proper' walk, twice a day? Think again, your walks might not be meeting your dog's needs.

18/09/2024

JOIN US for our 'LOAD UP YOUR LEAD SKILLS' workshop! 🀩

Perfect for working on:
β˜‘οΈStop your dog pulling on lead.
β˜‘οΈMore attention from your dog around other dogs and distractions.

βœ… Theory & practical elements
βœ… Personalised advice for each dog
βœ… Fun, positive, game based training methods
βœ… Friendly atmosphere

Saturday 5th October
9:30am - 11:00am
Curridge WI Hall
Β£40

Book here: https://www.annabalchdogtrainer.com/book

16/09/2024

Do you feel that your dog needs a 'proper' walk, twice a day? Think again, your walks might not be meeting your dog's needs.

16/09/2024

This is becoming a welfare issue!

Im tired of hearing β€œthe vet says there is no pain” by a guardian after they have taken their dog to the vet. It leaves me deflated and frustrated and feeling so sorry for the dog.

Myth Bust:

PAIN CANNOT BE RULED OUT IN ANY ANIMAL (dog, cat, horse or hamster), by anyone!

* A quick palpation - CANNOT RULE OUT PAIN

WHY?

The dog may shut down due to environmental factors or dislike of a strange human touching them, they keep still to get it over with ASAP!

The dog may be over aroused or overwhelmed by the clinical environment (excited/scared etc) to the point that adrenaline is so high it blocks pain!

* Blood Tests - CANNOT RULE OUT PAIN

There is currently NO blood test that can detect pain.

* Diagnostic imaging - CANNOT RULE OUT PAIN

Yes they can pick up a variety of conditions, but even the GOLD standard MRI doesn’t pick up everything, but NONE of them can detect PAIN.

Just because a source cannot be found doesn’t mean there is no pain.

PAIN is subjective, it is whatever that being (human or animal) perceives it to be!

Pain can come in many different forms, it is extremely complex, and can effect the individual in many different ways. A dog may get injured, the injury may have healed, but the pain remains … this is known as maladaptive pain.

Behaviour can be a HUGE indicator for PAIN:

* There could be a change of behaviour that has been directly caused by PAIN.

* There could be a worsening of behaviour due to an increase or new presence of PAIN.

* There could be a lack of β€œnormal” behaviour due to PAIN.

* There could be behaviours that are present but that the guardian/owner don’t deem to be problematic that are indicators of PAIN.

* The dog may have ALWAYS displayed behaviours that are indicators of PAIN, but they have been ignored and put down to β€œjust the way they are”.

* There may be NO problematic behaviours at all …. And the dog might still be in PAIN!

* The dog might be energetic, always on the go … and still be in PAIN.

* The dog might be lazy … and still be in PAIN.

* The dog may zoom up and down stairs … and still be in PAIN.

Diagnosing PAIN is not simple and can be difficult to get on top of.

A PAIN relief trail can be great! But often only one type of analgesic is tried and sometimes this doesn’t get results leading to the ASSUMPTION that there is no PAIN!

Here’s why:

* The drug was only trialed for 2 weeks - when living with chronic pain it can take longer to relieve. 2 weeks is not enough.

* The drug used wasn’t targeted to the type of pain the animal is feeling; soft tissue, bone, nerve or a combination of all.

It might take a number of different medications or a combination OVER TIME to see a difference.

ALWAYS keep in mind, NO ONE can rule out another being’s PAIN.

NO ONE. Not me. Not you. Not a Doctor. Not a Vet.

11/09/2024

Lovely lead walking from Miss Figgy Puds and Miss S.

10/09/2024

FIREWORKSβ€”Like them or hate them. If you have a dog who struggles with fireworks, then NOW IS THE TIME TO START PREPARING so you and your dog can survive them with little or no stress.

♦️Do you worry about your dog when it’s time for fireworks?
♦️Do you feel like you’ve tried everything to help, and nothing has worked?
♦️Or you just don’t know where to start?

There is ALWAYS a way to help your dog get through fireworks with a minimum of stress (and ideally little to no stress at all). It doesn’t have to be hard, and it is so, so important.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE SUPPORTED, WEEK BY WEEK, TO MAKE THIS YEAR’S FIREWORKS AS LOW STRESS AS POSSIBLE? This year we’re offering you the chance to do this FOR FREE.

With 8 WEEKS TO GO you need to start NOW, have your plan in place and ready to go when Fireworks start (usually from the end of Oct).

How:
β–ͺ Just a tiny bit of preparation every week.
β–ͺ We’ll guide you through it, a step at a time. We'll be on hand in the group to answer all your questions,
β–ͺ A short weekly lesson (just 15 minutes or so),
β–ͺ Short easy to do exercises to follow (another 15 minutes)
β–ͺ We will review your exercises with you and then guide you to the next steps.

You can do it all at a time that suits you or hop into the live sessionsβ€”whatever makes it easiest.

So what are you waiting for? Come and join us and let’s make this year the safest, kindest year yet for our wonderful canine family members.

Just hop onto the canine thinking website and you’ll find the link to sign up. It’s on the homepage and under courses.

We want this to be available to absolutely everyone, to offer every dog the best chance of being free from fear and suffering. So this year we are offering it on a β€˜pay what you can’ basis. You can sign up COMPLETELY FOR FREE, or, if you’re in a position to pay the suggested price (or anywhere in between, whether that’s Β£5 or Β£50 or the full Β£90) then that will help us offer more things like this for free in the future.



The choice of what to pay is yours – our priority is simply your dog’s wellbeing.
https://caninethinking.com/fireworks/

Interesting
05/09/2024

Interesting

⚠️ π‘Ύπ’‰π’š 𝑰 π’˜π’π’'𝒕 𝒃𝒆 π’‚π’‘π’‘π’†π’‚π’“π’Šπ’π’ˆ 𝒐𝒏 π‘«π’π’ˆπ’” π‘©π’†π’‰π’‚π’—π’Šπ’π’ˆ (π‘½π’†π’“π’š) π‘©π’‚π’…π’π’š

Yesterday, I received the following email from a researcher for the TV programme *Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly*:

"𝑀𝑦 π‘›π‘Žπ‘šπ‘’ 𝑖𝑠 (redacted) 𝐼 π‘€π‘œπ‘Ÿπ‘˜ π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘‘β„Žπ‘’ 𝑇𝑉 π‘ β„Žπ‘œπ‘€ β€˜π·π‘œπ‘”π‘  π΅π‘’β„Žπ‘Žπ‘£π‘–π‘›π‘” (π‘‰π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘¦) π΅π‘Žπ‘‘π‘™π‘¦β€™.

𝐼 π‘€π‘Žπ‘  β„Žπ‘œπ‘π‘–π‘›π‘” π‘‘π‘œ π‘’π‘›π‘žπ‘’π‘–π‘Ÿπ‘’ π‘Žπ‘  π‘‘π‘œ π‘€β„Žπ‘’π‘‘β„Žπ‘’π‘Ÿ π‘ π‘œπ‘šπ‘’π‘œπ‘›π‘’ π‘“π‘Ÿπ‘œπ‘š π‘¦π‘œπ‘’ π‘‘π‘’π‘Žπ‘š π‘€π‘œπ‘’π‘™π‘‘ 𝑏𝑒 π‘–π‘›π‘‘π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘ π‘‘π‘’π‘‘ 𝑖𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 π‘Ž π‘π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘‘ π‘œπ‘“ π‘œπ‘›π‘’ π‘œπ‘“ π‘œπ‘’π‘Ÿ π‘’π‘π‘–π‘ π‘œπ‘‘π‘’π‘  π‘€β„Žπ‘–π‘β„Ž 𝑀𝑒 π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘’ π‘“π‘–π‘™π‘šπ‘–π‘›π‘” 𝑛𝑒π‘₯𝑑 π‘€π‘’π‘’π‘˜ 𝑖𝑛 πΏπ‘Žπ‘›π‘π‘Žπ‘ β„Žπ‘–π‘Ÿπ‘’ π‘›π‘’π‘Žπ‘Ÿ πΏπ‘¦π‘‘β„Žπ‘Žπ‘š.

π‘Šπ‘’ π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘’ π‘ π‘β„Žπ‘’π‘‘π‘’π‘™π‘’π‘‘ π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘ π‘œπ‘šπ‘’ π‘“π‘–π‘™π‘šπ‘–π‘›π‘” π‘œπ‘› π‘‡π‘’π‘’π‘ π‘‘π‘Žπ‘¦ 10π‘‘β„Ž π‘†π‘’π‘π‘‘π‘’π‘šπ‘π‘’π‘Ÿ π‘Žπ‘›π‘‘ π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘’ π‘™π‘œπ‘œπ‘˜π‘–π‘›π‘” π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘Ž π‘π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿπ‘šπ‘–π‘›π‘” π‘‘π‘œπ‘” π‘‘π‘Ÿπ‘Žπ‘–π‘›π‘’π‘Ÿ 𝑒π‘₯π‘π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘‘ π‘‘π‘œ π‘π‘œπ‘šπ‘’ π‘œπ‘›π‘π‘œπ‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘‘ π‘Žπ‘›π‘‘ π‘“π‘–π‘™π‘š π‘€π‘–π‘‘β„Ž 𝑒𝑠 π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘œπ‘’π‘›π‘‘ π‘Žπ‘› β„Žπ‘œπ‘’π‘Ÿ 𝑖𝑛 π‘‘β„Žπ‘’ π‘Žπ‘“π‘‘π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘›π‘œπ‘œπ‘›. π‘Šπ‘’ π‘Žπ‘Ÿπ‘’ π‘™π‘œπ‘œπ‘˜π‘–π‘›π‘” π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘Ž π‘π‘Ÿπ‘œπ‘“π‘’π‘ π‘ π‘–π‘œπ‘›π‘Žπ‘™ π‘‘π‘œ π‘ β„Žπ‘œπ‘€π‘π‘Žπ‘ π‘’ π‘ π‘œπ‘šπ‘’ π‘‘π‘Ÿπ‘Žπ‘–π‘›π‘–π‘›π‘” π‘‘π‘œ β„Žπ‘’π‘™π‘ π‘œπ‘›π‘’ π‘œπ‘“ π‘œπ‘’π‘Ÿ π‘‘π‘œπ‘”π‘  π‘‘π‘œ π‘›π‘œπ‘‘ π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘ π‘π‘œπ‘›π‘‘ π‘‘π‘œ π‘Ž π‘‘π‘’π‘™π‘’π‘β„Žπ‘œπ‘›π‘’ π‘Ÿπ‘–π‘›π‘”π‘‘π‘œπ‘›π‘’.

π‘Šπ‘’ π‘€π‘œπ‘’π‘™π‘‘ π‘–π‘‘π‘’π‘Žπ‘™π‘™π‘¦ 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 π‘“π‘œπ‘Ÿ π‘¦π‘œπ‘’ π‘‘π‘œ π‘π‘Ÿπ‘–π‘›π‘” π‘¦π‘œπ‘’π‘Ÿ π‘œπ‘€π‘› π‘‘π‘œπ‘” π‘‘π‘œ π‘‘β„Žπ‘’ π‘“π‘–π‘™π‘šπ‘–π‘›π‘” π‘‘π‘œ π‘ β„Žπ‘œπ‘€ π‘ π‘œπ‘šπ‘’ π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘ π‘π‘œπ‘›π‘ π‘–π‘£π‘’ π‘‘π‘Ÿπ‘Žπ‘–π‘›π‘–π‘›π‘” π‘‘π‘œ π‘›π‘œπ‘›-π‘£π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘π‘Žπ‘™ π‘π‘œπ‘šπ‘šπ‘Žπ‘›π‘‘π‘ , π‘Žπ‘›π‘‘ π‘šπ‘œπ‘ π‘‘π‘™π‘¦ β„Žπ‘Žπ‘›π‘‘ π‘”π‘’π‘ π‘‘π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘ .

π‘ƒπ‘™π‘’π‘Žπ‘ π‘’ 𝑙𝑒𝑑 π‘šπ‘’ π‘˜π‘›π‘œπ‘€ 𝑖𝑓 π‘‘β„Žπ‘–π‘  𝑖𝑠 π‘ π‘œπ‘šπ‘’π‘‘β„Žπ‘–π‘›π‘” π‘¦π‘œπ‘’ π‘‘β„Žπ‘–π‘›π‘˜ π‘Žπ‘›π‘¦π‘œπ‘›π‘’ π‘€π‘œπ‘’π‘™π‘‘ 𝑏𝑒 π‘–π‘›π‘‘π‘’π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘ π‘‘π‘’π‘‘ 𝑖𝑛. 𝑂𝑓 π‘π‘œπ‘’π‘Ÿπ‘ π‘’, π‘‘β„Žπ‘’π‘¦β€™π‘‘ 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 π‘‘π‘œ 𝑏𝑒 β„Žπ‘Žπ‘π‘π‘¦ π‘‘π‘œ 𝑏𝑒 π‘œπ‘› π‘π‘Žπ‘šπ‘’π‘Ÿπ‘Ž, 𝑏𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑑 π‘€π‘œπ‘’π‘™π‘‘ 𝑏𝑒 π‘Ž π‘”π‘Ÿπ‘’π‘Žπ‘‘ π‘œπ‘π‘π‘œπ‘Ÿπ‘‘π‘’π‘›π‘–π‘‘π‘¦ π‘‘π‘œ π‘ β„Žπ‘œπ‘€ π‘‘β„Žπ‘’π‘–π‘Ÿ π‘ π‘˜π‘–π‘™π‘™π‘ !"

My first thought was to delete the email. I'm not a fan of Graeme Hall. I've watched a few episodes of his show, and in my opinion, he seems to make things up as he goes along, relying on outdated training methods.

However, I was puzzled. Was the β€œcravat” unwell, and they needed a stand-in? I'm a nobody – why on earth would they want to film me training a dog when there are so many high-profile trainers out there? Curiosity got the better of me, so I decided to give the researcher a call.

I'm still in shock as I write this. The researcher explained that they wanted to invite me to Lytham with my Border Collie to "demonstrate" to Graeme Hall how I would train my dog not to respond to a phone ringtone.

Graeme would then take my training method and use it to teach the Border Collie of the family seeking help – all while filming it for his TV show!

WTF 😳😳😳

I decided to dig a bit deeper and reached out to the force-free dog training community to see if anyone else had experienced something this bizarre.

It turns out that many trainers had also been asked to attend filming sessions to show Graeme how to train dogs before the cameras rolled. Most reported that they refused because of his methods, but a few had shown him and his team how to train a dog, only to be dismissed without any credit for their expertise.

I then did some open-source research on "The Country’s Best Dog Trainer," as the *Daily Telegraph* calls him. He has no formal training in canine behaviour or training. He’s essentially winging it with the help of whatever trainers are willing to show up and assist him.

According to his website, he charges Β£875 per session πŸ€”πŸ˜§

Now I’m not someone who normally criticises other trainers. I prefer to let my clients decide if I’m the right trainer for them based on how I work with their dogs.

However, I couldn’t let this pass without making it public knowledge.

If you're looking for a dog trainer, please avoid this programme and this man. You have no idea whose techniques he’ll be using week to week, and given that most qualified and accredited trainers want nothing to do with him, the quality of training you’ll receive is questionable at best.

Instead, do your own research and find a local trainer who aligns with your own dog training ethics. Organisations such as The IMDT or APDT - Association of Pet Dog Trainers can help guide you to qualified & accredited trainers in your area.

𝑷𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒑𝒖𝒕 π’šπ’π’–π’“ π’…π’π’ˆπ’” π’Šπ’ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒔!

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