Kaizen Dog and Handler Training

Kaizen Dog and Handler Training 121s session address issues you/ your dog are having, in a local location (e.g.

home, local park or I can recommend a location depending on the issue we are looking at). Sessions normally last 1 to 2 hours and cost £40.00 ( +⛽️ depending on distance).

Get asked what I feed my dogs all the time. Here's what's on tonight's menu. I generally add dog friendly stuff that's i...
03/02/2025

Get asked what I feed my dogs all the time. Here's what's on tonight's menu. I generally add dog friendly stuff that's in the fridge/ cupboards/ that I've cooked for myself and because I've been shopping at the weekend it looks quite colourful, however by Friday it's not as interesting😂.

Love testing out healthy ingredients with the dogs. Everything went down well tonight with them all, except Milly found her blueberries and left them, however Twiggy pinched them.

Raw food isn't for everyone and you need to get the right; protein, bone and offal mix, but it works for us as the older dogs have allergies. Also allows me to see what's in their food as some kibble seemed to also negatively impact their behaviour. Far from being an expert dog nutritionist but I do take an interest in learning about it.

Feeding raw requires: a lot of freezer space, being organised with defrosting and I have a kitchen counter allocated only for dog food. I also wash my hands throughly after handling anything in contact with their bowls/ food, and sanitizer counters/ space after prepping every meal.

We recently joined Wolf Instinct Dog Training to try a new sport - mantrailing. This involved meeting at Beamish Woods a...
02/02/2025

We recently joined Wolf Instinct Dog Training to try a new sport - mantrailing. This involved meeting at Beamish Woods and Andy our trainer took us through the theory and the basics for our first session of mantrailing. We then had the opportunity to follow the more experienced dogs. I worked Rosie for this session which started with quick searches behind trees gradually increasing the search to be what I would consider a "canny distance" out of sight. It was amazing to see the dogs natural ability and instincts kick in and put to good use. This is an amazing sport for all dogs breeds, in our class there was Rosie (labradoodle), German Shepherd, Mali cross, Mali, staffie cross and a dachshund and the dogs all had amazing results finding the people they were scenting. Would definitely recommend everyone getting in touch with Andy to book in, great learning experience for both dog and handler.

Another 121 this weekend involved meeting the gorgeous Bronson and his dedicated family. This super clever young staffie...
02/02/2025

Another 121 this weekend involved meeting the gorgeous Bronson and his dedicated family. This super clever young staffie was a credit to the hard work his owners have already put in. We were there to just tighten a few things up which included:
- chilling out in the house/ switching off from constant working/ playing
- reducing attention seeking behaviour/ more independence
- focus on his owners when outside
- playing and games
- remaining in the sit while dogs and people approach.

This enthusiastic young pup took on all the challenges that were set/ adapted to suite his needs and aced them. Using his brain/ nose and energy productively to produce some great results.

With the hard work and dedication from his family, I'm excited to see what the next few months bring.

The Kaizen Dogs had a pack walk/ meet up with the lovely Rhea who only found her forever home in August and in that shor...
02/02/2025

The Kaizen Dogs had a pack walk/ meet up with the lovely Rhea who only found her forever home in August and in that short time period her amazing new-owner has worked tirelessly to achieve some amazing results. The progress they've made with focus around dogs and remaining in the sit while dogs go past blew my mind today, a tremendous achievement from the last visit we had. We worked today on pulling/ heel work and walking along side the pack, which went really well.

Walk location was Hawthorne Dene just near Dalton Park and the dogs had fun on the beach at the half way/ turn back point, so much so they've all been asleep nearly for the rest of the day. A great adventure with some great results.

Well done to this amazing team.

Myself and Caroline had the pleasure of visiting Arris this weekend, the amazing assistance dog who is a massive help to...
02/02/2025

Myself and Caroline had the pleasure of visiting Arris this weekend, the amazing assistance dog who is a massive help to his owner. We did some work around calmness in the house, focus around dogs and touched on his very clever assistance work with light switches. Arris' assistance work is self taught by his fantastic owner, who called us in to tighten a few things up. They both make an amazing team and have been a great support to each other. Lovely to see you both again.

A bit belated, but congratulations to Archie who achieved his Stage 1 award before Christmas but only just got his certi...
02/02/2025

A bit belated, but congratulations to Archie who achieved his Stage 1 award before Christmas but only just got his certificate. This very clever dachshund was able to demonstrate his keenness to learn throughout. Well done to him and his handlers, very well deserved.

Busy weekend with 121s started with crate training basics with Winnie and Dotty. They are struggling a little with separ...
02/02/2025

Busy weekend with 121s started with crate training basics with Winnie and Dotty. They are struggling a little with separation anxiety and we looked at crate training to support/ address these issues.

Separation anxiety is really hard to manage and one way of training it involves developing the dog's independence by having them in a space that they find secure/ safe, teaching them to chill/sleep, initially for short periods of time and building this up gradually.

Things that also help address this is; plenty of exercise to reduce excess energy, having crate time after walks to encourage sleep, a health diet and not letting dogs follow owners around the house.

These girls are coming on so well, demonstrating how the hard work/ training by their owners is paying off. Well done everyone.

Just to give you all an update on how things are going and the reason for reassessing weekend classes. Last weekend Rosi...
18/01/2025

Just to give you all an update on how things are going and the reason for reassessing weekend classes. Last weekend Rosie and Twiggy achieved 10x 1st places between them and then a few other spaces spotted in. Today they got another 3 x 1st places between them. Twiggy also grades up in her agility grades and Rosie got a win towards grading up. This is all part of our winter training and the plan of entering 2 day competitions where possible.

Thank you again to all of our customers who were so understanding with the adjustments that have been made to classes, to allow me to do this.

Tomorrow we are trying out mantrailing, so will give you an update on this ASAP.

Wishing you all the best for 2025, with achieving your dog training goals and having fun.

Merry Christmas and Best Wishes to everyone and your amazing dogs
25/12/2024

Merry Christmas and Best Wishes to everyone and your amazing dogs

Look at this training paying off in different situations. Sit stays in with different distractions and with different p...
23/12/2024

Look at this training paying off in different situations. Sit stays in with different distractions and with different people are hard to achieve but these dogs have cracked it. Great work with Christmas celebrations.

23/12/2024

Stan practicing his chilling in different locations, including very busy ones including the Christmas Fayre.

Don't forget to train "chill" in different situations.

Love when training/ homework pays off and makes handlers so proud.

23/12/2024

Willow's amazing heel work, all wrapped up and with her watch command combined

We recently had a 121 with the fantastic Ollie who is going from strength to strength with his training. The 121 focused...
23/12/2024

We recently had a 121 with the fantastic Ollie who is going from strength to strength with his training. The 121 focused on tightening up on a few little home points from putting on his coat to general routines. A little sponge for learning and pleasing his family, he took on all the challenges set. Great work from the whole family.

We recently had an update on the fantastic Max. He has posed quite a few challenges for his dedicated family, who are ve...
23/12/2024

We recently had an update on the fantastic Max. He has posed quite a few challenges for his dedicated family, who are very experienced with dogs, however at times they have doubted their ability, describing his behaviour as very tough at times. The break through that happened was Max chilling in the front room with the family, something that they've dreamed about for the last 3 years. Being able to do this has been a challenge that would previously blow Max's mind and was far too excitable.

Sharing this update we hope will provide some hope and motivation to others struggling with young dogs, especially those of working lines. Things that have made the biggest difference (listed by his owner), other than time and maturity has been working on positive reinforcement for calm moments (as rare as they were to start with). Working on focus and impulse control, small sessions of play and 'games', routine with a rhythm of active and calm.

In addition to his breakthough at home, he's also making amazing progress with other dogs, who are a positive influence and supporting his maturity, and supported his work with a great dog boarder.

Dog training is not all about the big steps and sometimes the important progress comes in smaller chunks. This family are so dedicated and I'm excited to hear about the coming months to find what further progress is made.

The gorgeous Coco has been recently adopted by her amazing family. The target for our 121 was to address her nervousness...
23/12/2024

The gorgeous Coco has been recently adopted by her amazing family. The target for our 121 was to address her nervousness and some irrational fears, possibly linked to previous experiences. With any irrational fears, its important to deal with them in a optimistic and independent way for short periods of time, to develop a positive association with the situation that is manageable. It's really important to not cuddle/ baby dogs in a nervous head space as this can re-enforce the nervous behaviour and make the dog think they should be nervous.

Coco's family are so dedicated to helping her that I'm excited to see what the next 6 months brings, as she has settled in so well in the short period of time she's been with the family. She's definitely hit gold with her current family.

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Videos

Stan practicing his chilling in different locations, including very busy ones including the Christmas Fayre. Don't forget to train "chill" in different situations. Love when training/ homework pays off and makes handlers so proud.

Willow's amazing heel work, all wrapped up and with her watch command combined

Been having loads of enquiries for puppy training to start in January with all different breeds. Here's a list of things to consider when deciding on getting a puppy (please send more friendly advice for new puppy owners - this list is not exhausted and is in no particular order): - Why are you getting another dog? If it's to be company for your first dog, this in my opinion isn't the right reason e.g. separation anxiety very rarely is sorted with a 2nd dog. In addition, you don't want the 2nd dog bonding more with the first dog than with you. -What equipment will be necessary? E.g. crates etc. -Have you got room in the house for necessary equipment? - Have you got suitable flooring in the house for a dog? What fabric is the sofa made from - easily cleaned? -Is the car big enough? Can the dog at full size be secured/ crated in the car? - Have you checked with landlord or house deeds that you can have a dog? -Who will look after the pup when it's fully grown if you go on holiday? E.g. big dogs with elderly relatives might not work and boarding your dog is about £30 per day (£420 for a 2 week holiday) - If you needed to go into hospital or worse what would be the arrangements for your dog? - Does the breed require owners with previous experience? How much experience do you have? - How much does the breed shed hair? How regularly do you need to hoover? Groom? E.g. dog grooms cost between £30 and £60 per cut for poodle crosses, every 6 to 8 weeks - What medical issues are typical for the breed? How much are vet bills linked to these conditions? Does the insurance company cover it? - What is the life expectancy for the breed? - What was the breed bred for? What activities/ training might you need to do to fulfill their natural instincts safely? - How energetic is the breed? Is it from working lines or show lines? - How much is Pet insurance for the breed? - How much is it to feed the pup once it's fully grown? - What was the temperament of the Mothe

Along the medical theme at the moment - Erik has been recently diagnosed with Pannus, a condition where UV light rays affect his eyes, the solution is eye gel (another type of training) and Doggles. Here Caroline shows the steps that she takes to ensure the doggles are a fun experience (like any training session) and that Erik feels confident putting them on. This is part of Erik's winter training to have them back on in the spring during the day when the UV rays are high. Just like muzzle training it's a gradual process that can be fun. Remember the perfect time to train most things is sitting on the floor watching the TV when you and your dog are really relaxed. More photos and videos in the comments due to FB restrictions.

We had our 2nd 121 with the very cute Otis, where the focus was heel work and attention/ focus while walking, play around distractions, drop command, leave it commands, recall, long line work and sit stays. Otis and his amazing owner have done their homework well and in the weeks between our first and second visit, this little puppy has come on leaps and bounds. It's hard to see your progress when you see it everyday, however in a few weeks Otis is coming on so well, so much so I kept forgetting he's only 14 weeks old. Excited to see what progress he makes over the coming months.

Flints off lead work and recall are coming on a treat. Well done.

Homework for September: Turn your kettle on, it should take approx 3 minutes to boil and video what training you can do in that 3 minute time period, using the kettle as your timer. This could be a sit stay for the whole time or a mixture of different exercises just like the amazing work carried out by Bonnie. Don't forget to reward and work through distractions just like Bonnie did here with the other family member (cat) having a mooch past while she was concentrating, an example of great training. Send in your videos.

Bonnie recently seemed hesitant about going into the car, a very normal puppy behaviour, but it's something that her handlers have worked hard on, boosting her confidence and showing Bonnie that the car is a lovely place to be. These are the results so far, showing great progress. A 🌟 star indeed.

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