Dog Nerd

05/08/2022

Day 2 of lazy enrichment didn't load sorry guys!
Yesterday was brought to us by an unfinished deck and a handful of treats.
It got Spud sniffing, doing some parkour, using his brain and building confidence.

05/08/2022

Day 3 of lazy enrichment. 1 big box + packing paper + treats = a very happy Thistle

02/08/2022

I have once again managed to injure myself 🤦‍♀️.
I haven't been able to do as much as I normally would with my dogs. So we are doing quite a bit of lazy enrichment.
Today the dogs get a goat horn smeared inside with doggy peanut butter (do not get it mixed up with your peanut butter it has offal mixed in 🤢. Gross on toast, super delicious for dogs).
I got my goat horns from Out of the Wild Petfood. I love that they are hollow, brilliant possibilities for stuffing and enticing even the laziest chewers. They are smaller pieces so may not be suitable for big dogs or extreme chewers.
The dog peanut butter is from our good friend at Confident Canines Active Outlet.

19/06/2022

Today I got to meet June the gorgeous little lovebug.
Sometimes when she is over excited she let's the Huntaway and Border Collie parts take over.
I'm looking forward to working with her family to help teach her some more appropriate behaviours and to teach her family how to give her outlets for all her skills and talents.

13/06/2022

Come join Toni and I at Club K9 to start your relationship with your pup off on the right foot!

Next Puppy School starts this weekend.
Get in contact for more information.

05/06/2022

A big Dog Nerd welcome to Tupac!
This tiny little guy has some big feelings about his treasured possessions and places.
He is super smart and loves learning so we are going to be able to iron out the miscommunications between him and his awesome family

23/05/2022

Thistle and I did this imprinting and had a lot of fun.
Whether you are wanting to get in to the sport or just want a fun activity for you and your dog to play around with at home, I can not recommend this enough!

08/05/2022

Happy mothers day to all the many different kinds of mums out there

05/05/2022

24/04/2022

Tifa's mum sent this beautiful picture from a bush walk they enjoyed together.
Spending time together doing things you both enjoy is a great way to build your relationship with your dog.
Working on communication, feeling safe and secure and finding joy in each other's company will all help strengthen your relationship. Great training starts with a great relationship.

23/04/2022

This ridiculously gorgeous fluffy girl Tienie needed some help to engage more with her amazing mum when other dogs are around.
Spud was happy to help out by being a very boring pugtato.
As Tienie is still just a baby, we can introduce more exciting dogs as she matures and as her communication and relationship with her mum continues to grow and flourish

11/04/2022

Tifa and Tienie had a great time getting to hang out with my sensible, dog tolerant dogs in the forest.
Their respective owners got some pointers on when to redirect play, how to recall in exciting environments and how important decompression walks are.
Hugely proud of Moss who I did not think I would ever get to class as a dog tolerant dog.
Get in touch if you would be interested increasing your confidence and relationship with your dog so you can broaden their horizons.

03/04/2022

I am so incredibly proud to announce that all of my Novice trick dogs passed with flying colours. Alistair and Millie, Ngaire and Tifa, and Donna and Bambi you were amazing to have in class and I can't wait to see what you do with your dogs next!

06/02/2022

Dog hack- have enough money to support the dogs you already have, but nowhere near enough to get the rest of the dogs you desperately need

31/01/2022

Empathy and kindness are crucial in all things but bring them to your training and you will be amazed

One of the BIGGEST episodes YET! Join Jane for a stunning conversation with U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), U.S. politician, attorney, and author as they share their unwavering commitment to the power of hope. Together they talk about the harms of current politicization and divisiveness we face, factory farms, the climate crisis, and ultimately the transformational opportunity to use empathy to build a better world for all. DON’T MISS IT! Out everywhere you get your podcasts tomorrow 2.1 >> get ready at http://janegoodall.org/hopecast

30/01/2022

Trick training for me is all about putting the joy and fun back into our relationship with our dogs.
Judging by the looks on these lovely ladies faces the teams taking part in this terms Novice trick training course are nailing it!
Club K9

23/01/2022

The perfect dog myth.
Something I have noticed in a lot of my dog trainer friends and people who are dog people (not people that have a dog, the nutters amongst us that take our dog "hobby" way too far🤣) is this intense pressure we put on ourselves to have perfect, well behaved, never pull on the leash, dog social, human loving, dogs.
I don't know if it's imposter syndrome or ego or what. It doesn't do much for the dogs we choose to share our lives with, and it can be absolutely detrimental to our own headspace.

Spud had two gigs today. Helping out as a demo dog in my Novice trick training class and helping a dog reactive dog learn to feel comfortable working around a dog (even if he is quite a potatoish 🥔 dog).

During the trick training class Spud was... challenging. He yelled at the students for treats. He pushed Thistle off the platform. He broke out of a pen to resume the Spud show. He forced kisses on the students. He is usually really solid and thoughtful and easy for students to practice with. Today he was not feeling it. So I put him away in a quiet room with a large scatter of treats and used Thistle as my demo dog.

We had 15 minutes to shake that off and head to the park to help a reactive dog feel comfortable working around other dogs. And he did amazing! He did a brilliant job of showing calm, boring, no thanks I don't really want to be friends, body language. His lack of interest and abundance of chill made the dog we were helping feel safe enough to do some really lovely work with his mum.

So yes the Spud show during the trick training was a bit embarrassing. But hilarious hijinks are a huge part of why I love Spud. He makes me laugh even on the days I don't particularly feel like laughing.
Spud is a sentient being with all that entails. He is a complex being, with thoughts, feelings, opinions and a range of different personalities squished into a tiny adorable body. It's my job to help him figure out which personality is best suited to each situation we find ourselves in, or advocate and change the situation for him if that is not working.
Its also my job to love all of him.
The mischief maker, the bed hogger, the food obsessed pig, the nutter, the clown, the calm confident worker of dogs, the tyrannical tantrum thrower, the snuggler of cats and rats, the humper of small fluffy dogs, the workaholic and my best lil buddy.
So yeah its my job to love all of him, and not just the bits that make me look like a good trainer and him like a perfect dog.

20/01/2022

Congratulations Shona and Bandit for qualifying for your Novice trick dog title. I loved witnessing your tricks and can't wait to see your team learn even more!

18/01/2022

Thistle is in a rush to tell you about Dog Nerds first ever competition!
Tell me in the comments below why you and your dog would like to attend our Novice trick training class and you could win the course for half price! Tag a friend who would like to attend for an extra entry.

18/01/2022

This Sunday is the big day when Novice and Intermediate Trick Training classes start! There are still spaces in both classes so get in touch to sign up.
You and your dog will have a whole lot of fun!

06/01/2022

If your new years resolution included doing more fun stuff with your dog, Dog Nerd and Club K9 have got you covered!

01/01/2022

Happy New Year everyone!
I spent last night playing card games with my family so Spud got to play some games of his own!
Some muffin tins (which belong to my poor long suffering mother) may have been harmed in the making of this video 🤣

15/12/2021

My goal just got a whole lot closer. Getting Karen Pryor accredited has been a dream of mine for a long time!
Time to get my hussle on. If you want to support a broke dog trainers dream I will be looking in to adding merch soon!
Novice and Intermediate trick training classes are starting in January plenty of time to sign up if you are keen.
And I am getting back in to private consults. Please message if you want to help to improve your relationship with your dog, polish up your training skills, work through "problem" behaviours or any other dog nerdiness.
So much excitement!
Hayley 🐕 🤓

13/12/2021

I am super excited to announce that I will be running my Do More With Your Dog trick training classes again in January!
I will be running a Novice class and an Intermediate class (please note you must already have the Novice trick dog title if you wish to get the Intermediate trick dog title).

Classes are held at Club K9 in New Lynn. We do 4 weeks of classes, a break week to practice, an assessment and then a graduation ceremony when the official certificates arrive from America.

I am gauging interest for what time suits people best. I can do Mondays 6:45pm til 7:45pm. Or Saturdays 9am til 10am. Or Sundays 9am til 10am. If there is enough interest I can also do one Monday evening class and one weekend class.

Please get in touch if you have any questions, I would love to see you and your pups in class!
🐕🤓

02/08/2021

This Saturday Toni from Club K9 and I start our Novice Trick Dog Certification course! Super exciting and we have 2 spots left! Get a certificate and ribbon from Do More With Your Dog! to prove you have the nerdiest pooch!