The Positive Canine - Behaviour Specialist

09/07/2025

The last one is the most important 🩵

Adopting a foreign rescue can be life changing, for you and for them.

📩 Need help? Get in touch using the link in bio. I offer behaviour support for rescue adopters ❤️‍🩹

05/07/2025

Old dogs can learn new tricks 😉

Neurogenesis may be happening in a brain region essential for memory and learning.

27/05/2025

“Just ignore it and it’ll stop…” Ever heard that advice when your dog’s doing something ‘bad’...like barking, jumping, or whining? 😬

Let me tell you why that doesn’t work, and what to do instead.

I recently worked with two lovely little dachshunds who were constantly barking in the garden and at home. Ignoring it not only didn't stop it, but they would grow more frustrated.

Why? Because behaviour is communication. Dogs don’t act out for no reason. When we ignore them, we’re not addressing the cause, we’re just ignoring the symptom.

These two weren’t being “disobedient.” They were overwhelmed, under stimulated, and trying to tell us something the only way they knew how.

So instead of ignoring them, we started listening.

We looked at why they were barking, made small changes to reduce their stress, and gave them healthier, more appropriate ways to express themselves. And guess what? The barking started to ease, without punishment or constant “no’s.”

Here’s what happens when we ignore behaviour:
⚠️ Dogs can get more stressed and escalate the behaviour
⚠️ Or they shut down, which might look like improvement—but it damages trust
⚠️ The root cause is still there, so the behaviour often returns later

Have you ever tried ignoring a behaviour and found it made things worse?

24/05/2025

Does your dog get bored easily on walks? Instead of doing repetitive fetching, try getting them to use their nose and put those amazing senses to use!