Wagging Tails Dog Training

17/06/2025

Do you have hard flooring in your home? If you do, listen to this video and find out why it is important to provide flooring for your dog that stops them from slipping, be it rugs or carpet. And that's not just for puppies, elderly dogs and dogs with mobility issues, but all dogs!

CAM was delighted to have Gemma back to talk about another hot topic - slippery floors! Gemma and Charlotte discuss how they can affect a dog in general and ...

12/06/2025

It's getting hot over the next few days. You know what to do to keep your dog cool, but if you have any unique tips that help your dog beat the heat, please pop it in the comments.

Well, here's Elijah, my lurcher, at our local secure dog park that has just installed this fabulous new pond. It is perfect to cool off and just to have some fun with if your dog enjoys water.

29/05/2025

Would you love some Trick Training at home, but you can't get to classes or there aren't any suitable classes nearby?

We have the answer. We have a Facebook Group that you can join for just £30 (one off payment) to learn 18 Tricks - and you can earn awesome Bronze, Silver and Gold rosettes.

What do you get for your money?

🔹️ List of 18 Tricks
🔹️ Videos of each of the Tricks so you can see the final result
🔹️ "How to teach it" videos for the Trick
🔹️ Online help any time you need it
🔹️ A supportive group

If you'd like more information and you'd like to join, check our website https://www.waggingtailsdogtraining.co.uk/tricktraininggroup

17/05/2025

Having fun with your dog using their instinctive abilities when out and about strengthens your bond and makes your dog more responsive on walks and around distractions.

Hiding treats on and around trees is a favouite activity for my dogs and it so appeals to their natural want to sniff things. Informal scentwork like this can also be used around areas busy with wildlife or livestock (or anything else your dog gets excited about) to promote and teach calmness around distractions.

This particular area here where Eli is searching is full of squirrels that he used to get uncontrollably excited in even if he couldn't see any. Since playing scentwork games in this particular area he is calm here and when he does see any squirrels he can now control himself much better and remains responsive.

Give it a go. 😁

13/05/2025

Do you use a Marker Word when you are training your dog? If not, you should. 😉

11/05/2025

Is your dog slower on walks than they used to be? Are they sniffing more? Then you have to listen to this video.

09/05/2025

I thought this might make you smile.

These two cool dudes are my lurcher Blake and my cocker spaniel Skye.

Both have an eye conditions causing light sensitivity.

Blake has Iris Atrophy which means his pupils don't adjust to light anymore as the muscles operating the pupils don't work anymore. So they are wide all the time and make bright light uncomfortable.

Skye has just been diagnosed with the start of cataracts and that too can apparently (I didn't know this before) cause sensitivity to bright light and glare as the light scatters when entering the eye.

So both wear sunglasses now during daylight walks and they are both much more comfortable and enjoying the walks again.

Who else has a dog that wears sunglasses?

26/04/2025

As the wildlife around here is getting very active again with the warmer temperatures, the topic of how to keep control of our dogs around hares, deer, rabbits etc. comes up fairly regularly.

I took this video a couple of days ago of my lurcher Elijah at Riddlesworth Dog Park where a rabbit was happily grazing on the other side of the fence.

It prompted me to give you a quick to-do-list to build more control around wildlife as that's not easy at all.

🔹️ Teach a solid wait and recall AWAY from distractions. If the behaviours you want your dog to do are not fluent and reliable without distractions, they certainly won't be with distractions.

🔹️ Reward your dog appropriately! If they need to come away from huge distractions then you need to compensate their work and effort with huge rewards.

🔹️ Use opportunities to practice. In this case the grazing rabbit was a fantastic opportunity to practice impulse control, recall and focus. If your dog can't do these things with a stationary animal, they won't be able to do it with a fast moving one. Grab opportunities and practice.

🔹️ Build value for yourself. If you don't make an effort to be fun around and for your dog to find value to be with you, why should he listen to you when you need them. Regularly play with them and do fun training on walks, make it worthwhile for them to be with you.

Click on the video to see all of it.

10/04/2025

PROOFING

Here's finally your last instalment of how to get your dog to do what you need them to do.

Remember
🔹️Teach (see previous video)
🔹️ Generalise (see previous video)
🔹️ PROOF

Today we are looking at proofing! Don't forget to proof eexercises/behaviour that your dog needs to do for you at any time. Practice things around distractions so your dog learns to comply everywhere and in any situation where you need them to. Don't just call them lazy, stupid or stubborn when actually it is down to us owners to proof their knowledge and skills.

Here's a short summary of the four important steps

🔹️ Only proof behaviours they are confident and fluent with in normal situations

🔹️ Make the exercise/behaviour you want to proof easier and expect less from your dog to start with. Gradually build it back up to full confidence and fluency with practice.

🔹️ Manage the level and value of the distraction (easier said than done in real life sometimes)

🔹️ Manage distance to the distraction. Start at a distance your dog can cope with and gradually get closer with practice.

If you'd like to see this and other videos on TikTok directly you can find it here.

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNdNxPKYX/

30/03/2025

It can all be so easy and pleasant when dog owners are considerate!

Today we came across an off-lead dog whose owner called her dog back when she saw me approach with my on-lead dog. We passed each other calmy (and I said "thank you") and it was all very uneventful! Perfect!

Don't forget to clip your dog on or keep under close control around other on-lead dogs. You never know why the other dog is on the lead.

A big well done to this owner. 👏