The South Shields Dog Trainer

The South Shields Dog Trainer Dog trainer

🏆 Twice Voted UK Best Dog Trainers by the public
🥇 5x Winner Dog/Puppy Trainer/Behaviourist of the Year
🌟 500+ 5 star Reviews
🎓 Qualified and Accredited
🐶 5000+ Dogs
🤝 Recommended By Vets, Dog Groomers, Dog Walkers, Pet Shops and More!

This 6-Month-Old Pup Was Reactive and Scared of People 😟 Here’s What We Did 🐾Today we’ve been back to see Alun from Newc...
07/07/2025

This 6-Month-Old Pup Was Reactive and Scared of People 😟 Here’s What We Did 🐾

Today we’ve been back to see Alun from Newcastle, and we went down to Whitley Bay.

Alun’s only six months old and had a bit of a hard start. He was really reactive to people and really scared of them. It takes him quite a long time to warm up, and he struggled in a fairly busy part of town.

We focused heavily on just getting him around different environments, people, sights and sounds – all at a distance where he was comfortable.

✅ Letting him have a lot of his own choice
✅ Rewarding him for checking in
✅ Reassuring him when he struggled
✅ Giving him all the space he needed

It worked wonders 🙌 Alun is now fine walking past people and no longer reactive!

He’s still a little bit nervous and stressed when he’s out without the other dog from the house. So today we built up his focus and gave him things to do on walks to build confidence.

We taught him some parkour – jumping on and stepping on things that used to be nerve-wracking.

We also trained movement activities like:
👉 Spin
👉 Middle
👉 Hand touch
👉 Other trick training

This boosts confidence and focus, so he spends less time anxious and more time in a dopamine-fuelled state of mind 💥

The world can pass him by – and he’s got something else to do 🐶💛

Once again, Cece has smashed her training this week! From 10 seconds settled last week to 15 minutes in a room on her ow...
03/07/2025

Once again, Cece has smashed her training this week! From 10 seconds settled last week to 15 minutes in a room on her own this week. Cece is also choosing to settle away from her owner, out of sight and in new rooms. All of this indicates Cece is feeling more comfortable on her own and doesn’t feel the need to keep an eye on her owner at all times. This week, we looked at how to introduce new, more challenging criteria to Cece in easier ways. In particular, when her owner is heading towards the front door - a huge trigger for dogs with separation anxiety. Cece did wonderfully in our session and was able to stay relaxed in the lounge whilst her owner walked all the way to the front door.

Looking forward to seeing what progress Cece makes before our next session!

Cece has made great progress in the last few weeks, able to stay comfortable whilst she was left in room on her own for ...
23/06/2025

Cece has made great progress in the last few weeks, able to stay comfortable whilst she was left in room on her own for a whole ten seconds - a big deal for Cece. Next up is continuing to build this time and Cece’s confidence when her mum goes out of sight. Whilst her mum continues with this training, we looked at some other things to help Cece feel more relaxed in her own home.

In this session, we delved into some of her herding behaviours and introduced some games and training to help Cece and her owner manage these behaviours. To start, an outlet. Whilst Cece can be affectionately described as ‘energy-efficient’, it’s still important for her to have an outlet for these behaviours so we’ve introduced a new way for her to play with balls. Secondly, some impulse control. Cece wants to move, follow and herd others so we’ll ask the question, ‘Can you wait there whilst I do this?’. This will give her the opportunity to learn that she doesn’t have to follow to feel safe or access a reward, and that actually the reward will come to her. Thirdly, management. So Cece and her mum can have visitors over without them feeling like sheep, we’ve introduced a new greeting routine so Cece can meet visitors and stay relaxed in her own home.

Cece and her owner are making great progress and spending dedicated time every day to achieve their goals. We’re looking forward to seeing a more confident and relaxed Cece in the near future!

Puppy class fun!like any learning if you enjoy it you learn. Second class for this group and their confidence and attent...
18/06/2025

Puppy class fun!
like any learning if you enjoy it you learn.
Second class for this group and their confidence and attention has improved already.
I can't wait for next week.

More puppy graduates!Both puppies did amazing and have learned so quickly.
18/06/2025

More puppy graduates!
Both puppies did amazing and have learned so quickly.

🐕 Calm & Focused Luna! 🌟Back to see Luna, the mixed rescue from abroad 💛Originally, Luna really struggled with other dog...
13/06/2025

🐕 Calm & Focused Luna! 🌟

Back to see Luna, the mixed rescue from abroad 💛
Originally, Luna really struggled with other dogs.

Even from really far away – the other side of the field –
As long as they were in sight, she wanted to go and see them 😬
She would freeze, stalk, put the brakes on, and couldn’t be distracted.

But now… it’s a massive transformation 💥

✅ She sees a dog
✅ Has a look to see if it’s interested in her
✅ Then looks at her owners or disengages and gets on with something else!

She’s learning how to read body language of other dogs 🐾
She’s more appropriate, getting more socialisation, and has more focus
She’s checking in more with her owners too 🙌

This is absolutely fantastic progress for Luna!
👏 Big well done to her owners
👏 Big well done to Luna 🐶

Cece had her second session this week helping her separation related distress so her mum can leave the house without Cec...
12/06/2025

Cece had her second session this week helping her separation related distress so her mum can leave the house without Cece becoming anxious.

Since our first session 7 days ago, Cece has made wonderful progress! She’s been choosing to sleep away from her owner, stayed settled on the sofa whilst her mum left the room and has been progressing with her training exercises.

Due to her owner's consistency and hard work we’ve been able to progress to the next stage of Cece’s training. No longer are we just walking towards a closed door but opening it, walking through, closing it and standing on the other side - all whilst Cece stays settled on the sofa, often upside down! Whilst this may seem simple, for Cece and any dog with separation related distress this is a huge step forward and true testament to the trust Cece’s owner has been building.

Once again, Cece was an absolute star in our session taking it all in her stride. We’ll Cece back soon to continue her training and keep building her confidence. Well done Cece and co!

🐶 Meet Kuma the Akita! 💪We’ve been to see Kuma in South Shields – a six-month-old American Akita 🐾This was our first ses...
12/06/2025

🐶 Meet Kuma the Akita! 💪

We’ve been to see Kuma in South Shields – a six-month-old American Akita 🐾

This was our first session.

Kuma is struggling:
🚫 Around other dogs
🚫 Around being left alone when he knows his owners are nearby

If they’re cleaning the car or gardening, he barks and travels the house, frustrated he can’t be with them 😩

He really wants to go and see all the dogs…
But he gets too hyper, paws at them, and is a bit inappropriate.

Other dogs have started going for him.
He’s losing his puppy card, getting very, very big, and can be wild on the lead 😬

We started by teaching Kuma (spelled K-U-M-A!) a good stay, moving out the door calmly 🚪

We did a walk to assess him around dogs, and started some counter-conditioning
We’re teaching him to look back at his owners when he sees another dog 👀
Eventually, this will mean he gets to greet calm, friendly dogs – but only if he checks in first!

By the end of the session, Kuma was automatically looking back when he saw Chloe come round the corner 🎯

He’s a very, very sweet, very, very playful, and very, very friendly dog 🐕
So if you see Kuma out and about, and you have a calm, friendly dog – ask if they can say hello!

👏 Well done to Kuma
👏 Well done to his owners

We’ll be back soon to take this on the road 🚗

😱 Barking Non-Stop to Calm & Quiet! 🐾We’ve been back to see Rollo the Dachshund 💛A friendly little dog… but he gets anxi...
11/06/2025

😱 Barking Non-Stop to Calm & Quiet! 🐾

We’ve been back to see Rollo the Dachshund 💛
A friendly little dog… but he gets anxious and overwhelmed.

There’s a lot of kids in the house, as his owner looks after her grandchildren.
Rollo used to bark non-stop, follow his owner around, and bark out the window at pretty much anything that happened 😩
He wouldn’t settle down. He really struggled with this.

But now… 💥
✅ The barking has dramatically reduced
✅ He didn’t even bark at me when I came in!
✅ He doesn’t bark at the little girl anymore
✅ He’s just a very very nice dog

Fridays are still a bit difficult 😬
There are a lot of children and adults around.
So we’ve taken the decision to send Rollo away with a dog walker for a few hours at peak times.

He doesn’t like being separated from the kids –
He stresses if he’s in a different room.

So this is the best answer for everyone for this final little step 💡

👏 Well done to the owners
👏 Well done to Rollo

He’s coming on really really well – and will continue to do so 💪

📣 Going to miss little Hovis! We just had her last session! 🐾Hovis the Norfolk Terrier used to run up to every dog when ...
10/06/2025

📣 Going to miss little Hovis! We just had her last session! 🐾

Hovis the Norfolk Terrier used to run up to every dog when she was off lead 😅
She just wouldn’t come back at all!

But now… 💥
She’s doing really, really well!

✅ Sticking with her owners
✅ Coming back when moving towards other dogs
✅ Lovely with other dogs
✅ Doing fantastic out and about

She’s not quite fully trusted off the long line yet — but she’s very close to it! 🙌

Her owners have done fantastic throughout the training.
They know exactly what they’re currently doing to move forward.

This was our final session with Hovis 🐶
She’s such a cute little dog – absolutely lovely 💛

Well done to Hovis 👏
Well done to her fantastic owners 🎉

Keep up the good work, helping Hovis, and developing that relationship! 💪

✨ Got a dog who barks at the window? Meet Zelda – and the “Pot” Game! 🪣🐾Zelda is a clever young dog who used to bark eve...
09/06/2025

✨ Got a dog who barks at the window? Meet Zelda – and the “Pot” Game! 🪣🐾

Zelda is a clever young dog who used to bark every time she spotted another dog out the window. Her humans were stressed. She was on edge. Sound familiar?

That’s when we introduced the Pot Game – and it’s been a game-changer 👇

🔹 How it works:

As soon as Zelda sees a dog outside (before the barking starts), her humans say “pot,” walk to the treat cupboard, and scatter high-value treats on the floor.

Over time, Zelda started to learn that dogs outside mean something amazing happens inside. Instead of barking, she now looks to her humans with a waggy tail and hopeful eyes.

It’s simple. It’s effective. And it works beautifully alongside other focus-building games like:
✅ Counting Game – for long-distance recall & distractions
✅ Treat Cue – teaches dogs to come flying when they hear “treat!”
✅ Mighty Middle – builds calm focus by your side
✅ Spin & Boop – fun tricks that strengthen connection
✅ Rewarding Eye Contact – because looking at you should always pay off

Zelda’s not “perfect” – but progress? Oh yes. And it all started with a pot and a plan.

🐶 Want help turning reactivity into calm confidence? Send us a message – we’d love to help.

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