Katie's Canines Mantrailing

29/12/2024

Since I'm new to Okehampton, I thought I'd share a little information about me 👋

My name is Katie, I have just made a huge move from Scarborough, north Yorkshire to Okehampton, Devon with my border collie, Ember, and my fiancé.

I am loving my new life so far, and can't wait to get stuck in with some training this month.

Offering :
🐾1-1 training.
🐾Mantrailing
🐾Scentwork
🐾Dog walking

www.katiescanines.co.uk
[email protected]

QUALIFICATIONS:

Level 4 Advanced canine behaviour and training with the British college of canine studies.
Accredited CPD qualification in Canine behaviour and training (distinction)
Accredited CPD qualification in Canine Psychology (Distinction)
Accredited CPD qualification in Canine behaviour (Distinction)
Accredited CPD qualification in Puppy development (Distinction)
Qualified Mantrailing instructor.
Currently working towards UK scent sport qualification.

24/12/2024

Wishing all of my friends, followers, and customers past and present a very happy Christmas and new year! 🎁🎄

18/12/2024

25 signs that you might be a dog trainer 🙊😂

1. Being told that you are like the dog whisperer is an insult, not a compliment.
2. Funny viral dog videos often make you sad due to the constant stress signals you see.
3. You own more dog harnesses/ leads/collars than actual clothes for yourself.
4. You have gone to mark and reward a child on more than one occasion.
5. You have loud conversations about arousal in public while people around you give horrified looks.
6. Your wardrobe only consists of leggings, hoodies and waterproofs.
7. At any time, no matter what, you probably have some poo bags and dog treat crumbs in your pocket.
8. You actually don't care how obedient your dog is.
9. You're banned from facebook dog breed groups for constantly trying to quel the misinformation.
10. Every time you see a dog owner carrying a treat pouch and a long line you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
11. You'd rather go to a pet shop than go almost anywhere else.
12. You have numerous Facebook friends who you regard your personal friends, yet you don't know why they're on tour friends lists or how they got there, other than the fact they own dogs.
13. You've had numerous people cry to you because of their dogs behaviour and all you can think about is how your dog is probably worse.
14. You've offered to take home more than one of your clients dogs.
15. You've been asked approximately 3 million times how to stop a puppy biting in the last week.
16. You earn money as a dog trainer so you can spend it on becoming a better dog trainer with endless courses and webinars.
17. People repeating cues 10x makes your toes curl.
18. You are constantly finding bruises with 0 idea of their origin.
19. You think travelling 12 hours for some CPD is totally reasonable.
20. You'd happily take the lead of a reactive dog but if someone threatened to pass you a screaming child you'd run a mile.
21. You physically cringe at the word "alpha" or " pack leader".
22. Your dog is under a constant state of management techniques which is near impossible to pass onto someone else.
23. You spend more on dog food than human food.
24. Despite your unconditional love for all dogs, you never touch or pet dogs you don't know.
25. Everyone expects you to have a perfect dog and you look at your dog and wonder where they got that idea from.

Working with dogs isn't easy. It's emotionally very taxing, it's high pressure and it's physically difficult work. It is not a career, it's a lifestyle, and I don't know who I would be without it!

18/12/2024

3 years ago I discovered an amazing dog sport - Mantrailing.

This sport teaches pet dogs to find missing people. I was immediately drawn to it for a few reasons :

🐾 As far as I'm aware, it is the only dog sport that lists "no obedience " in the rulebook.

🐾 The aim of the training sessions, are to do exactly what you got a dog to do- have fun with them, as a team!

🐾 It indulges your dogs natural tracking instincts, allowing them to practice a natural behaviour in a constructive way.

🐾 It is one of the only sports that is inclusive to reactive, friendly, nervous, young, old and pretty much any dog!

🐾 It's great fun!

🐾 Dogs need no basic obedience or prior training to start Mantrailing.

🐾 It's low impact, but extremely mentally tiring.

🐾 It's great for confidence building.

Almost immediately I decided I wanted to teach it, and after lots of hard work I completed all requirements to become an instructor 2.5 years ago. I've spent the last few years teaching classes in Scarborough and loving every second!

Did you know that a dogs sense of smell is around 100,000 times stronger than ours. To put that into perspective with sight, if we could see a sign down the road, our dogs could see it from the moon! Their nose is specifically built to enhance this amazing sense, and Mantrailing allows our dogs to use it and challenge it in fun ways.

I'm really excited to introduce some new recruits to this sport in Okehampton, and I hope you'll love it as much as I do!


⚠️ Warning : Mantrailing is highly addictive!

Available sessions can be viewed via this link.

https://bookwhen.com/katiescanines

17/12/2024

Today Ember had a social visit with Whiskers Veterinary Practice ! I chose this vet specifically because of their dedication to fear free practices.

Appointments here are 20 minutes, which is longer than the standard and allows your pet to get accustomed to the vet before examinations start.

Immediately I was impressed when they suggested a pain trial for my nervous dog ( Ember has already done many, but some vets wouldn't think to consider pain when looking at behaviour!).

Ember struggles with strangers, so the vets can be a challenge. Having a vet willing to do these fun confidence building visits with us is a life saver, it means next time we go in, she hopefully won't be trembling and trying to escape!

Today Ember got her favourite treat ( wet food in a squeeze pouch) played a bit of ball and had a sniff. This will help her to learn, it's not all that bad in here.

I'd highly recommend this vet to anyone, even though they are a bit of a drive for me, it's worth it for the care they provide!

Thanks again whiskers team ☺️🐾

16/12/2024

This Christmas, please do this one thing for your dog! 🌲

If you're having lots of visitors, or even just a house busier than usual with people off work and school, ensure your dog has somewhere safe to retreat to.

All dogs should have a safe space, where they will not be bothered by anyone. This space should be somewhere they can retreat to if they want some time alone!

This could be a room, a pen, a crate or gated off area.

Baby gates can make a huge difference in navigating visitors, busy houses can be overwhelming especially if children are involved, even for friendly/confident dogs.

This should be a space your dog loves to be in, so start getting them used to it now! It is a space you can securely keep your dog in if needed, and where people/ children and other animals will not enter. You need to put in quite a bit oftime to help them love the place you’ve chosen for them.

A pen/ gated off area may help a dog who likes to be included, while also keeping them safe.

Safe spaces are not just for nervous dogs, there are times when they are very useful for all dogs. For example, during mealtimes, when children are playing with strange/noisy toys that may alarm a dog. When you have visitors who are frail/ don't want to be jumped on. It's also useful to ensure your dog gets enough sleep when routine changes as people and children might be home all day.

Make sure you're prepared with lots of frozen Kong toys in the freezer, ready to pop out when needed for your dog to enjoy in peace in their safe space.

Christmas is a time where unfortunately so many children and adults end up with dog bites. Dogs can struggle with the mass of visitors, lack of sleep, and excited children. Creating a safe space for your dog and using it is a great way to prevent this happening.

Picture credit: Whole dog journal

15/12/2024

Remember the importance of sleep.

Dogs need 12-18 hours of sleep per day, depending on their age and may need more sleep when they are physically, mentally or emotionally tired. Dogs will only spend around 5 hours a day active, and the rest either asleep or resting. Their sleep is split up into various naps during the day, rather than one long stretch of sleep.

Often we may suddenly expect our pets to be awake for long stretches of time, for example : at a daycare, on holiday or during festive periods when family and friends are here. ( If your dog goes to daycare full time, ensure at least half of that visit is dedicated to sleep, or you may find problem behaviours will develop).

This can lead to tiredness and behavioural changes as just like us dogs have a lower tolerance for frustration when tired and may be grumpier than usual. Tiredness can also cause excessive barking, destructive behaviour and chronic stress.

If you have a busy household, it's a good idea to provide your dog their own quiet space to sleep, where they will be left alone. Also be mindful that if your dog is used to an hour's walk a day, suddenly doubling or tripping that may not be in their best interest.

Remember working on any behaviour involves ensuring all your dogs needs are met : emotional needs, diet, sleep and excercise. And once all these basic needs are being met, only then can training be beneficial.

Here's a funny picture of my puppy looking quite demonic, refusing to sleep at a Mantrailing session.

12/12/2024

Unsure what to get your dog loving friend for Christmas?!🎄

How about the gift of Mantrailing!

Contact us to purchase yours! 🎁💝

10/12/2024

Mantrailing is now available to book in Okehampton!

Thanks for your patience while waiting for these dates to come available.

💚 Suitable for all dogs.
💚 Puppies welcome.
💚 Intense mental workout, gentle on joints.
💚 Teach your dog to track and find people!.
💚 No commitment required.
💚 Locations TBC, okehampton area- you will need a car.

For January only, use code JAN25 for 10% off your booking.

LINK TO BOOK IN COMMENTS.

Please get in touch with any questions:
07375500903
[email protected]

04/12/2024

The plight of small breed dogs 😢.

Have you ever wondered why you see so many videos of growling, snarling chihuahua's and other small dogs? Have you ever thought that these breeds are innately "bad" or " aggressive" ?

The truth is, small breed dogs are not naturally aggressive.

The problem is, small dogs are generally not treated like normal dogs.

Small breed dogs are often not socialised, many are not taken away from home while they are young and some barely ever at all. Many spend all of their critical socialisation period in isolation.

Small breed dogs are often overlooked in terms of exercise and mental stimulation requirements. Just because they are small, does not mean they don't need their needs met, and not doing so leads to stress related behavior problems.

Small breed dogs are often denied behaviorist care when problems begin to arise, because it's " just a small dog thing" these problems are left untreated to escalate, unlike they would be in larger breeds. Despite these problems signifying that the dog is living with chronic stress 😢.

Small breed dogs are manhandled their whole life, in a way no other dog is. They're routinely scooped up with no prior warning, manhandled because it's easy to do so. This creates fear in so many of these dogs, who learn to escalate to aggression. There is no cooperative care, no "choice" given. Because when you weigh less than a bag of sugar it's so easy to have your choices taken away from you.

Small breed dogs are rarely taken to dog training classes, they're seen as " easy" or " starter" dogs who don't need the help of a trainer while growing up.

Some small breed dogs do have a higher instance of resource guarding behaviors ( just like some larger breeds dogs do, like spaniels and border collies). But because of their size, this behavior is often not dealt with appropriately, and they are often antagonised or encouraged until the behavior escalates hugely. This would not happen in larger dogs.

When a small dog communicates they are stressed, people tend to find it funny. This communication is so often ignored. As with any other dog, when the dog feels continuously ignored in their communication attempts they escalate, to the point they are behaving in the ways you see in these videos. But if that was a bigger dog, they'd have never got to that point. Their owners would have listened to early signs of distress.

It is not that these dogs are inherently bad, far from it. These dogs are not treated like dogs, they're not respected, and they're continually scared on purpose because those around them find it amusing.

Please, for the sake of small dogs, scroll past those videos. And recognise them for what they are, an animal living in extreme distress!

Did you know Chihuahua's are highly intelligent dogs? They thrive in working homes and have been known to be incredible at obedience! Dachshunds love to sniff, and thrive at scentwork and mantrailing. Papillons are a type of spaniel, they are energetic and love to learn. They are not ornaments, they are not cats, they are not playthings...they are dogs!

28/11/2024

What do you think when you see a nervous dog?

A dog that growls, barks, cowers or hides?

Do you think, why didn't they socialise that dog? Why didn't they train that dog? That is a nasty dog?

Some dog's struggle with everyday life more than others, just like some people do. More often than not, that isn't because of a lack of socialisation and training!

While this sometimes is the case, there are many more much more likely causes of fearful behaviour in dogs; Genetics, early learning and trauma are some reasons a dog might grow up to be reactive or nervous, regardless of the amount of socialisation or training they receive.

Now, does that mean these dogs can't be helped? Of course not! Naturally nervous dogs can be taught to cope with their fears without reacting, they might never be completely normal, but they can build confidence, they can learn to be more curious and less fearful, and they can learn to ignore things that worry them. Ember had a tendency to be reactive as a young pup, but now she is more than happy to ignore most things and isn't reactive, her confidence with people has grown in some situations, she is no longer worried by traffic, even though once she couldn't be walked near a road, but she isn't your average dog, and still worries about life a lot.

It also doesn't mean socialisation and training isn't important, it very much is. It is just one piece of the puzzle. Puppies are not blank slates, all good socialisation and training will help, but it won't change genetics, early learning or personality.

So next time you come across a dog who is nervous, try not to judge. Instead have some sympathy, and know that the behaviour you are seeing, is not representative of how lovely that dog truly is in the right situations.

13/11/2024

You've got a new puppy, so how do you discipline them best?

I'll let you in on a secret, I've never disciplined my now 2 year old dog. She's never been shouted at or hit, she's never had her face rubbed in her own wee, she's never been corrected, yanked by the neck or otherwise punished.

You're probably thinking, well she must be an absolute nightmare, puppies need discipline!

Well, she isn't. She doesn't pull on the lead, she doesn't steal things, she doesn't chew my house up. She doesn't bark excessively in the house, I can eat with her right next to me, or even leave food on the side without her stealing it. Her recall is fantastic, she's constantly looking to me for instructions outside, and she hangs off my every word so incredibly eager to do what I say, as fast as possible! She trusts me completely, she comes to me when she's scared, and she's fantastic with handling and grooming.

Without getting bogged down with science and everything else, put very simply there really are two reasons a dog will do anything you ask them to:
1. They're scared of the outcome if they don't do it.
2. They want to do it.

If you're teaching using method number 1, you've got a relationship based on fear. You have a dog who doesn't actually want to work for you, they do because they have to. This brings in some resentment towards training for the dog, they don't enjoy it, they're scared to try new things, and your relationship and trust is low. The behaviour you want doesn't always happen, because the dog finds not listening to you much more rewarding sometimes. Low trust, can breed into low confidence, which can escalate into aggressive behaviour, especially in more sensitive working breeds.

If you're teaching using method number 2, the dog wants nothing more than to work for you. They love training and if they get things wrong, they'll just try harder. They can't wait for the next job to do, because listening to you is the best thing in the world.

So, how do you survive puppyhood, without telling your puppy off?! Puppies are constantly naughty!

It's all about your set up. Give your puppy more opportunities to do the right thing, and less to do the wrong thing!

Rather than snatching shoes from your puppy, place them out of reach, provide lots of dog safe chews, and reward them for swapping stolen items. Rather than shouting at your dog for weeing inside, take them outside more regularly and reward them for peeing outside.

Remember, these babies have only been on earth for such a short space of time. They have no idea what they are supposed to do. Shoes are dog toys and so are your fingers. The floor is the toilet because why wouldn't it be? Expecting them to know complex human social norms is unfair and unrealistic.

Would you shout at a newborn child for chewing on your fingers? Or would you hand them a teething toy instead?

Confidence is what we want, it's the goal of puppyhood. We want a dog who is confident with you, with strangers, with new objects and with animals. There are a multitude of ways to achieve this, and one of the foundations lies in how you teach your puppy about the world.

You can teach your puppy that doing the right thing, and listening to you, is more fun than anything else. You can teach them new things, aren't scary, they're fun! You can easily prevent common problem behaviour such as resource guarding. All without any harsh treatment.

If you want help on how to do that, my puppy guide is available via the link below!

https://unleashingpossibilities.thinkific.com/courses/Virtual-puppy-life-skills-class

11/11/2024

My heart is happy again!🤩

Here's to all the dogs out there, healing a broken heart that they didn't break.

09/11/2024

One for those who have young dog's/puppies, who have started to show problem behavior. Could this be the answer? 🤔🐾

What does pain look like to you?

Is it a dog limping?
Is it a dog growling?
Is it a dog yelping?

Over 90% of behavioural cases I see are pain related.

The most common answer from owners when I suggest that the dogs reactivity or car chasing maybe because of pain is... well they aren't a dog in pain, they never yelp and love running off the lead.

Dogs primal instinct is survival/safety. To show weakness is a risk. Dogs do not go out of there way to make themselves a target.

What we have to ask oursleves is how are we to judge the dogs measure of pain?

I don't remember the last time my dog told me "Mum my joints hurt".

Dogs communicate in so many ways we don't choose to recognise. A dog may be freezing when you stroke them, they could be refusing to walk, they could be off their food, they could be sleeping more. Every dog is different and pain in every dog is different.

Today my puppy got diagnosed with Hip-Displayia. My puppy began to get reactive a few months ago, she has been hard to train, hard to work with. In general just hard work.

I wondered after all the work I put into socialising and making poistive associations why my dog is suddenly, so scared of life.

The simple answer is pain.

Since Cassidy was a tiny puppy I kept mentioning to my partner that she had a suspicious gait. I was almost aware in my gut she had issues in her hind.

Today I got her checked by the vet. Today I was reading my dogs signals. She was clearly in pain.
My dog isn't reactive because she's a bad dog, she's not hard to train because she's "stubborn". It's because all this time she's been in pain.

It is always, so important to investigate further.

Pain is the biggest contributor to dog behaviour.

Consider what does pain look like to you?

06/11/2024

How to enjoy bonfire night while being considerate and conscious of our wildlife and animals.

🎇 Deer, foxes and other mammals become so scared they run into and are impaled by fences/trees. Some have been reported to have run off cliffs.

🎇 Dog's and cats spend the night in absolute terror, some are put down having been triggered into heart attacks/shock.

🎇 Dogs and cats go missing from their homes, some not making it home alive.

🎇 Resting birds flee from their nests, some flying so far out to see they cannot make it back alive.

🎇 Birds become lost and disoriented with some flying into buildings. Sometimes, whole flocks end up miles away from home.

🎇 Farm animals and horses can injured themselves or other people when attempting to flee.

🎇 Deaths caused by stress occur in other wildlife such as fish.

🎇 Fireworks trigger PTSD in veterans or refugees, and can be very upsetting to some with learning difficulties.