Alyssa and Dougal

10/01/2023

Mood can make all the difference in training.

This photo makes it look like Dougal actually quite likes grooming - like he'll just lie there and enjoy the attention.

But this, most definitely, is not always the case.

We've come a long way with Dougal and grooming - he will willingly partake (most of the time), even if only for short sessions. He doesn't run away at the first sign of a brush, comb or scissors any more. But he doesn't actively *love* it.

He loves the training side; he tolerates the actual grooming process.

But, if he’s in the right mood, he really enjoys it.

This is something that we, as dog owners, often overlook. We think about our training in the grand scheme of things: “is our dog improving?”

However, it’s much more nuanced than that.

Our dogs, just like us, experience different moods - and these can change multiple times a day!

And this most definitely affects our training.

Think about a toddler. If they were in a giddy mood (maybe you told them they were going to Disneyland), they’re more than likely going to be fidgety, jumping up and down in excitement and anticipation. Now tell that same toddler they have to go sit on a chair quietly for an hour.

They’re not going to do that! It’s a huge ask when they’re bubbling with emotion and just want to go have FUN.

If you’re anything like me, you’ve definitely experienced that situation yourself and know that it could be equated to some level of torture 😅

So now let’s bring it back to dogs. If your dog was feeling full of beans and up for a play, they’re going to be wriggly, bouncy, and a barrel of laughs.

If you then tried to get them to stand still whilst you brush them, they’re more than likely going to try to play with or eat the brush, or just run around like a madman.

Long story short, you’re not going to get much grooming done.

If, however, your dog is feeling pretty chilled out, pottering around the home or asking for cuddles, they’re going to naturally be a lot more accepting of things that require stillness. They’re also more likely to be seeking out contact with you - which grooming relies on (unless you glue a comb to the wall and train your dog to brush their own fur).

This will mean you get LOADS more grooming done.

For Dougal, if he’s feeling giddy, I’m lucky to get anywhere near him with scissors. Clippers are definitely out. Even brushes are a stretch.

But if he’s feeling cool, calm and collected? We can do loads!

This photo was taken last night, when Dougal was actively asking for cuddles and just wanted to be in the same room as us.

There was no trickery, no hiding the scissors, no waiting for him to fall asleep.

He knew full well what I was doing, and he let me do a full back leg and some of his belly before he called it a night.

For most of it, he snuggled with his dad (hi, Luke!). He buried his face into Luke’s legs and had ear rubs. Every now and then, he’d pick up his head and sniff the scissors or brush, then go back to snuggling.

When he was done, he simply moved his leg away from me, and that was that!

We all had a wonderful bonding experience, and Dougal now has a lovely, fluffy leg!

30/12/2022

We did something a little different today…



One of the ultimate goals for Dougal and I has been to go to a cafe to have lunch and a coffee whilst D is chilled out relaxing.

This has always seemed so far away for us, but we took a huge leap closer today.

We went to try out a cafe - not to eat, drink or order anything; just to explore it and become acquainted with it.

Before doing anything with D, I popped into the cafe to see if they were okay with it. It was 20 mins before closing, and there weren’t many customers coming and going, so it was all guns blazing for Doogs. 

I gave Dougal lots of time outside to sniff and get used to seeing people and cars moving around.

We then moved into the foyer, where Christmas decorations provided some interest for him to sniff - along with the mystical corks-in-a-glass decoration that he was somewhat intrigued by.

Finally, we took a deep breath and opened the door in to the actual cafe. The coffee machines were revving and you could hear people having conversations - plus lots of new sights and smells for D to get used to.

I just let him figure it out. We stayed at the entrance for a short while, letting him sniff things and connect back with me a few times. Every time he engaged with me, I rewarded him.

Before long, he wanted to go and explore the room - my mum was in there having a drink with a friend, so he got to go and say ‘hi’ to them. He stayed calm and collected this whole time, so I didn’t have a problem with him having a wander. He was very much in control of his emotions (as Danielle Beck would say, he was in control of his meerkat!), so we explored together. 

After a few more mins of this, he was still enjoying it and really calm, but I wanted to leave on a high note and before something could upset him. So, we went back to the car where he settled in for a nap.

This is something I have dreamed of for years, but am only now actively working on. 



I’m beyond proud of how he handled today, and can’t wait to go back and actually order a drink next time!

06/12/2022

Sometimes, we have bad days, too.

Today was annual boosters day. So, an early morning vet trip was on the cards.

I was actually looking forward to it this year - we'd been proofing his chin rest and getting him used to all sorts of handling, and he was smashing it (see photo taken last night).

But today, the dog training gods were not shining down on us.

We always hang fire in the car park, waiting to be called straight into the consult room. This gives Dougal breathing space, keeping his bucket empty and setting us up for a good session. This bit went swimmingly.

But, as we went in, a reactive shepherd in the waiting room lunged at us. He was no more than 1m away.

Obviously, Dougal was shaken by this. He was agitated. Minimal barking, easily distracted (wahey!), but very antsy.

He struggled to explore the consult room because of it. He was on edge.

Of course, this meant that all of our work on chin rest was a bit defunct.

If he doesn't feel safe, we can't expect him to opt into anything that makes him feel more vulnerable.

Luckily, I've also been working on getting Dougal used to restraints (more on this later), so we were able to go through the health check and vaccination process physically unscathed.

Emotionally, this process also didn't seem to affect him too much - he was mostly concerned with the shouty dog on the other side of a thin door. In hindsight, this is a win.

But his bucket was getting undeniably full.

The shepherd kept barking, and the door to the consult room was rattling in its frame every time someone walked past.

We ended that consult with Dougal having a full-blown reaction at a painting of a dog on the wall. He was so overwhelmed, a painting (that he'd already looked at and processed calmly) pushed him over the edge.

The drive home was distressing for both of us. Dougal was upset and shouting at nothing in particular. This filled up my bucket to the point that I had a little cry when we finally walked in the front door.

I harp on about how training is never linear. We all experience setbacks and holes that we need to climb out of. But living it is hard. It's emotionally taxing.

So, it's time to live by what I preach. We have a calm day ahead of us. I have a hot chocolate and an easy work day, cuddled under blankets. Dougal has a choice of rooms at different temperatures, extra chew opportunities, and lots of lickimats and stuffed kongs scheduled throughout the day. We'll do a touch of scentwork later, too.

Now, though, it's time to breathe and reflect...and eat chocolate.

01/12/2022

Today, I committed the cardinal sin. 😱

I took Dougal out for a training session…without treats.

It was an “on-the-fly” kind of walk: we weren’t intending to go but somehow we ended up there.

The field looked quiet to start off with, but we soon ran into trouble. We ended up surrounded by 8 dogs, all of differing levels of activity and volume.

Dougal started offering some beautiful disengagements, and he deserved some stonkingly good rewards for them. So, without treats, how did we make this work?

Let me introduce you to something called functional rewards.

These are when we use the environmental motivation of our dogs as reinforcers for behaviours we like.

In this situation, Dougal offering a disengagement meant we made more distance between us and the dogs (something he was keen to have). This also enabled him to sniff the hedgerows - another big reinforcer for him.

The beautiful thing was that, through the ten to fifteen minutes it took us to leave, he never once felt the need to be vocal. We had a bit of a running, but not much, and he was able to leave the situation calmly (we could predict where each dog was going and how quickly, so we could plan the best escape route).

In fact, for the majority of it, Dougal was calmly walking nearby and offering lots of check ins.

For me, this is great proof that you can train a dog with rewards that aren’t just food.

After all, every dog has a motivator - we just need to work out what it is for that individual.

(Saying that, though, food is what’s called a primary reinforcer, and every living thing is motivated by it to a degree. If your dog isn’t, it’s worth exploring why that may be, as it’s commonly down to not feeling safe enough to eat, and that needs tackling in itself)

27/11/2022

🌿It’s time for the mud-pit reveal! 🦛🐾

Last weekend, Luke and I decided to finally tackle the bottom of the garden. This has been on our to-do list since last summer, but took a backseat as we tackled the inside of the house. However, you may have noticed it’s been a bit wet over the last few weeks, so to make our lives a smidgen easier, we hired a mini-digger! 🚜��The one problem with this plan, though, was (of course) Mr Dougal himself. ��Dougal is the dog that, only a couple of years ago, lost his mind because a cardboard box appeared on his usual walking spot. We’re talking cowering into the ground, completely frozen, and refusing to move or even take his eyes off of this cardboard box for about 15-20 minutes.

He has improved a remarkable amount in those few years, and is overall much more relaxed and confident, but I was still wary of what his reaction to this new garden feature would be - especially when the engine was running and it was shifting dirt.

I had planned to keep him inside as much as possible, only letting him into the garden when the digger was safely off. I also expected to need to do some counter-conditioning work around it.

But, much to my surprise, Dougal saw the big yellow beast outside and instantly wanted to investigate 🧐

I let him out cautiously, but he was so keen to get over to it and give it a good ol’ sniffing. Things were so positive, that we eventually decided to let him stay out whilst one of us manned him, and one of us manned the digger.

He couldn’t have cared less! ��We even got to the point where he was ignoring it and just chilling out watching the whole thing unfold. He basically became our project manager👷🏼

So, the moral of the story?

Sometimes, even the most nervous and under-confident dogs can really surpass expectations and have those little glimmery moments of bravery 🤩

27/11/2022

Oh how true this is 😂

24/11/2022

Here’s a little snippet of tonight’s training session. With the garden now being a mud pit (all will become clear and, no, it’s not for naked ladies to wrestle in!), Dougal’s paws are getting filthy every time he goes for a bimble.

To save having to wash his paws in a bucket, we’re finally trying out the MudBuster. But those silicone bristles are going to feel weird on his feet, so I’m giving the control back to him - I just hold it still!

You’ll also notice a Kong Replay in frame - this is one of his favourite puzzle feeders, and is filled with the exact same stuff I’m using as rewards (a mix of Eden kibble and Natures Menu training treats).

This serves to give him choice. At no point should he feel like he *has* to train with me to earn food. He gets two “free” meals every day (no prerequisites, not even a ‘sit’), plus at least one puzzle feeder, chew, and/or training session. By giving him options at any one time, he gets to actively choose what he wants to do.

And if he opts out of training? No big deal! We wrap up and try again another day.

I feel like this video shows just how much he loves training and engaging with me (which makes me incredibly proud!). The puzzle feeder is RIGHT THERE, and yet he chooses to come back to me time and time again.

This is what training should be for you AND your dog - fun, valuable time together, that you both get to opt in to.

08/10/2022

I used to absolutely hate walks with Dougal. They were so stressful and I would always come home feeling drained.

I decided to get a dog in the first place because I wanted company on walks and a reason to go out exploring new places. Instead, I found the opposite - I started to hate walking and felt guilty because it was almost like I hated spending time with Doogs. These feelings spread into my everyday life as well. Even just driving down a road, or walking down the high street by myself, I would see a dog and freak out, looking for escape routes.

Of course, this makes sense in hindsight. My body had learned that dog = barking/lunging/snarling, sore arms, potentially being pulled over, not to mention the feelings of shame! My body was just trying to protect me.

But it's hard to remember that in the moment.

I guess I just want to say that there is no shame in it if you hate walking your reactive dog. There's no need to feel guilty. It's completely normal to feel like you made a mistake taking on a dog like this.

The good news is that is does get better.

Once you get the training right, you start to have more and more positive walks. You come home feeling proud, like you've made a massive achievement. Those feelings start to outweigh the dread, and you can look forward to your walks again.

Case in point, I just had the most wonderful walk with Dougal. A few triggers at some very short distances, and he nailed it. And now I'm feeling so proud of him and can't wait for the next one.

If you have a reactive dog, keep going. If you put in the right sort of training, it gets better and you can fall back in love with your dog all over again

20/05/2022

Happy Friday from this little goofball!

20/05/2022

Happy Friday from this goofball! 😍

16/05/2022

The best training happens in short stints, and the opportunities usually arise when you’re busy doing something else!

Today, I was digging out the garden ready for us to start putting some decking in, when our back-neighbour’s dog ran out and started barking.

Dougal usually responds to this by barking himself, and they end up yelling at each other until one of us calls our pup in.

Today, however, I was right in the war zone! So Dougal learnt that if I’m out here, the other dog isn’t worth barking at, because we can play BALL!

All in a good day’s work 😂

16/04/2022

When your dog finds comfort in small spaces 😂

14/04/2022

🚨NEW DISCOVERY ALERT 🚨

If you’ve ever owned or worked with a reactive dog, you know how tough it is to find an appropriate place to walk.

It’s T-O-U-G-H.

There are usually too many people, pinch points where you inevitably have to get too close to others for comfort, or off-lead dogs running amok.

Well, I’m very excited to have just discovered this app, “AllTrails”.

It looks like it’s designed primarily for hikers, but has information on all the walks, including whether they’re dog-friendly, and IF DOGS HAVE TO BE ON-LEAD.

I can’t wait to try out a few local ones to see if people pay attention to the rules, but I had to share it here in case it helps anyone else out on their journey!

14/04/2022

🚨NEW DISCOVERY ALERT 🚨

If you’ve ever owned or worked with a reactive dog, you know how tough it is to find an appropriate place to walk.

It’s T-O-U-G-H.

There are usually too many people, pinch points where you inevitably have to get too close to others for comfort, or off-lead dogs running amok.

Well, I’m very excited to have just discovered this app, “AllTrails”.

It looks like it’s designed primarily for hikers, but has information on all the walks, including whether they’re dog-friendly, and IF DOGS HAVE TO BE ON-LEAD.

I can’t wait to try out a few local ones to see if people pay attention to the rules, but I had to share it here in case it helps anyone else out on their journey!

11/04/2022

This is one of Dougal’s favourite past-times 😂

Just as I'm falling asleep. Everytime.

📷 Richard Skipworth

06/04/2022

31/03/2022

Dougal has taken over the workstation today!

He’s been reading up on how his ancestors became dogs 🤓

Thankfully, the coffee was decaf 😉😂

31/03/2022

Dougal has taken over the workstation today!

He’s reading up on the latest research on how his ancestors became dogs 🤓

(Thankfully, the coffee was decaf 😉😂)