Hound & Herder

02/12/2024

🐾 Join Our Dog Training Pack Walk! 🐾

We’re excited to announce our upcoming group walk, led by two fully qualified and experienced trainers. This on-lead, structured walk is a fantastic opportunity to work on foundational skills and build a stronger bond with your dog in a calm, controlled environment.

What to Expect:

• Structured Walk: No ball games or sticks; the focus is on connection, not distraction.
• Confidence-Building Exercises: Help your dog feel more confident and comfortable.
• Foundation Skills: Practice essential obedience skills to improve your dog’s responsiveness.

This pack walk is designed to strengthen the relationship between you and your dog while providing socialisation and training in a safe, supportive setting. Perfect for dogs of all skill levels!

📅 Date: Sunday the 7th December
📍 Location: Dartmoor
⏰ Time: 10am

Bring your dog, your lead, and a positive attitude—let’s make it a walk to remember!

Please contact Zoe on 07568478158 to secure your spot.

02/12/2024

After a long week off, I’m back with my Nala-bear! A brilliant walk, despite starting off really quite excitable 🥹❤️

02/12/2024

🚶‍♂️🐾 Walk and Train Services Now Available in Saltash and the near surrounding areas🐾🚶‍♀️

Looking for more than just a dog walker? Need help with training or behaviour while ensuring your dog gets the exercise they deserve?

I’m thrilled to offer Walk and Train services in Saltash, designed to give your dog a productive, enriching experience tailored to their needs. Whether you’re looking to improve leash manners, build focus, or address specific behavioral challenges, I combine physical exercise with structured training to make the most out of every session.

🐶 How It Works:

• Initial Consultation: We’ll discuss your goals for your dog, identify any specific behaviours to work on, and create a tailored plan.
• Training on the Go: During the walk, I’ll implement positive, practical training techniques to address your dog’s unique needs.
• Updates and Tips: After sessions, I’ll provide a progress report and suggestions to help you reinforce training at home.

💡 Perfect For:

• Dogs needing better leash skills.
• Reactive or overly excitable dogs who need controlled socialisation.
• Young dogs building focus and confidence.
• Busy owners who want expert help but lack the time to train consistently.

📍 Why Choose Us?

With over six years of hands on experience dealing with a variety of behavioural problems. Working with high drive sporting dogs. Competing and successfully trialing my own dogs in obedience, Scentwork competitions and protection work. I am proud to be a certified scentwork instructor and I’ve recently passed my NePoPo Silver School. Whether it’s fine-tuning manners or tackling bigger challenges, I ensure your dog comes home happy, tired, and on the path to better behaviour.

📆 Limited slots available! Contact me today to book your spot and take the first step towards a happier, more well-trained dog.

📞 Call Zoe on 07568478158

21/11/2024

Merry Christmas to me… 🤭. A huge thank you to Richard at Adornum who kitted us out for winter. Richard’s communication, quick turn around and fantastic quality of clothing has made the whole ordering process a dream.

16/11/2024

🎯 Dog Training Boot Camp – Every Tuesday evening at 7:30pm🐾

Looking to strengthen your bond with your dog? Whether you’re starting from scratch or refining advanced skills, our Dog Training Boot Camp is the perfect place to train, connect, and grow together.

🔑 What to Expect:
• A controlled environment designed to set you and your dog up for success.
• Training tailored to all skill levels—from basic obedience to advanced work.
• A focus on building a stronger relationship with your dog through trust, clear communication, and teamwork
• Connecting with fellow dog owners who want what’s best for their dog, join our WhatsApp group to discuss all things dog!

Join us on Tuesdays at 7:30 PM and let’s work towards your training goals!

📩 Message us to reserve your spot or for further information.

15/11/2024

💜💥

15/11/2024

A lovely walk today with the boys… xena claiming yet another boyfriend 😬🤣🐾

14/11/2024

With heart and soul 🧠🐾 …. And possibly some nightmares for our viewers tonight 😆

14/11/2024

Nala was a dream today, we are now proofing the behaviours we have taught her over the past couple of weeks. It’s important not to rush this stage of learning. Intermittently rewarding behaviours we want to see. Creates desire and motivation towards our end goals💥🐾

14/11/2024

Bonnie - in for her second session today! We had a lovely loose lead walk from her house to the park, some free time then we worked on helping her through some minor reactivity towards other dogs. She’s quick to learn 🧠

14/11/2024

Miss H, working hard today 👏

13/11/2024

Xena 💚

12/11/2024

“Erm excuse me, I would like the entire contents of your pocket. Thank you” 🤭🐾

12/11/2024

Fantastic post 😁

A problem I am familiar with in the working dog world: trainers—especially women—who choose positive training methods are often met with criticism or even outright bullying from those who believe only in harsher, hands-on approaches. This isn’t just unproductive; it’s disrespectful to the diversity of training styles that make our community strong.

Here’s the reality: training should be about the dog and what brings out the best in them, not about proving how “tough” or “dominant” we are as handlers. Positive doesn’t mean permissive. For many trainers, using reinforcement-based methods means skillfully guiding their dogs to be confident, engaged, and eager to work—without necessarily making them robotic or suppressing their natural character.

Experienced positive reinforcement trainers know that balance matters. Most stay away from labels like “force-free” because they understand that, especially with working dogs, a completely force-free approach is usually unrealistic. Working dogs need clear boundaries and structure, and a 100% force-free approach can often backfire, creating confusion or even safety risks for both the dog and handler. Good positive trainers recognize there are situations where firm guidance or correction is necessary; they just prefer to use it judiciously and only when it truly benefits the dog’s understanding.

Yes, there are times and places where punishment may have a role, especially for behaviors that need a firm boundary. But if a handler chooses not to use punishment, recognizing there are other ways to handle the issue effectively, that choice deserves respect, not judgment. Positive trainers understand that discipline and structure are key, and they are often just as committed to shaping a reliable dog. Reinforcement-based methods can produce strong, skilled, and dependable dogs without having to lean on punishment as the first or only answer.

When we allow a dog’s personality to shine, we’re creating partnerships that are both powerful and joyful. A positive approach doesn’t make a dog or trainer inferior; often, it requires an open mind, patience, and skill to use methods that guide rather than force, that correct without breaking spirit.

Instead of judging, let’s stay open-minded and remember that each handler and each dog is different. There are many ways to create successful, balanced working dogs. Supporting each other’s paths, learning from different approaches, and staying respectful is how we build a better training community.

So let’s keep egos in check and focus where it matters: building strong bonds and bringing out the best in our dogs.

11/11/2024

Today, Nala and I worked on building impulse control, a key skill as she moves toward consistency and stability in the behaviors we’ve been developing over the past few weeks. We’re in the intermittent learning stage, where it’s all about solidifying her understanding and creating a sense of hope and desire toward the reinforcer. This phase is crucial for helping Nala learn that even if rewards are not immediate, her efforts will eventually pay off. It’s wonderful to see her focus and self-control grow as we build that mental endurance and deepen her foundation. I say it every week but I really do love working with this girl! 🐾

08/11/2024

My coworker having some cooperative play after helping me work a few of the dogs today. She loves nothing more than throwing me around like a kite 🪁 🤭

08/11/2024

Dreaming of a hike like this one, I’ll definitely be ticking a couple off when I go back up for a visit 😍

07/11/2024

I absolutely adore this beautiful girl!