Greatest K9

Bootcamp student Beau is getting his first park session to work on building engagement. Since at this point he has no recall, he is on a short long line to ensure his safety as well as make it easier for him to make good choices. I spent time initially teaching Beau training markers in his garden, so bringing it out to the big world is the next step. Before worrying about teaching any recall command, I need to build focus and make it clear that checking in with the handler is a good decision. You can see from the video I am doing very little, only marking the right choices and giving him freedom to explore. This is exactly how I build engagement with a young puppy on a long line or short lead. It's a great way of creating sharp and enthusiastic focus. Sorry for the long video! But this is raw, unedited material and shows repetitiveness. I am using his breakfast kibble so I can reward him plentiful without affecting his diet.

With a dog as excitable as Beau, it's important to start at the basics in a 'boring' environment. For his first session, I introduced the markers (anyone who works with me will know how important these are for clear communication!) as well as how to stay at the heel position on a slack lead. All of this was done in his back garden to avoid him failing straight away through uncontrollable distractions and smells.

Meet Beau, a 1 year old working Springer Spaniel. I've started working with him on my bootcamp program. This little guy has a huge amount of energy and drive and has learnt some bad habits along the way. He is an extreme lead puller (the 'kangarooing' type - if you know, you know!), is reactive to everything that moves and has zero recall. He is an extremely lovely boy and a wonderful challenge! I'll be posting his progress and explaining the process. Watch this space!

It's all about the game. Fetch is one of my favourite games to teach as it's cooperative and non-competitive. I forgot to bring Phoenix's ball, and instead, we made use of a bottle he found 🙃 Of course, we put it in the bin after! For dogs that love to find things, especially when they're at the puppy stage, I like to turn a 'find' into a retrieve rather than getting worried and snatching the 'find' away. This creates a great retrieve, but also keeps a dog's emotion positive about finding treasures that could potentially turn into resource guarding behaviours in some breeds.

There have been a few long distance stay challenges going around on social media, so I thought I would give this a try with Phoenix in a park. I don't usually practice this, but if your dog has a good understanding of a behaviour and you have shown him through various different scenarios what it means, there should be a good level of reliability.

It really matters! Best way to stop door dashing and start your walks with calm control.

The emergency sit/down is incredibly useful as a backup or instead of your recall. I practice this regularly with phoenix, especially when he is mid chase during a game of fetch. Pick your dogs strongest position, sit or down, and start by working on the speed at which your dog gets into the position before challenging the distance and finally the distraction. If you want your dog to learn this skill, get in touch.

Reactivity training session with Cedric the Romanian rescue. I am very proud of this boy and his guardians. Cedric suffered from extreme reactivity to dogs... the scent of another dog was enough to send him into a lunging barking frenzy! We've worked on lead walking, and after a couple of sessions with Phoenix, Cedric has improved brilliantly. His guardians have taken his training head on, and their commitment is getting some serious results 💪 This clip is a breakdown of our last session with Phoenix. For Cedric, it was important to keep changing the picture as novelty situations caused the biggest reactions.

Always finding ways to work on confidence exercises. Jumping on a wobbly surface and working on static positions is not as easy as it looks! Adding these small exercises to break up your normal walk are great for bonding and mental stimulation. 🐕

Always finding ways to work on confidence exercises. Jumping on a wobbly surface and working on static positions is not as easy as it looks! Adding these small exercises to break up your normal walk are great for bonding and mental stimulation. 🐕 #dogtraining #malinoislife

Another great Train 'n' Walk workshop this morning with the assistance of Amy from Watsons Dog Services . The only workshop like it! The ultimate way to work on socialising your dog appropriately while working on building your dog's engagement and control. This workshop is ideal for any dog struggling with excitement, focus and reactivity. You can join the workshop after an initial assessment or having completed a training class with us.

Training is about creating clarity in your communication with your dog. Good obedience is simply your dog understanding what you're asking and working towards creating reliability in the motivation to perform a specific behaviour. A good example is lead walking. Many dogs that I work with genuinely don't understand what is being asked of them, nor do they have the motivation to perform the task reliably. Some dogs need more guidance than others simply because they are more stimulated by the environment rather than walking calmly. My dog Phoenix is one of those, and he does best when told exactly what to do rather than leaving it up to him. In the video above, he shows he understands the difference between walking calmly on a loose lead and being allowed to explore and sniff. Some dogs are fine with doing both without issue, however many dogs I come across struggle on this 'grey scale' of being allowed to sniff as they choose but also expected to pay full attention and walk calmly. If your dog is very stimulated by its environment, then your dog may benefit from being given clear instructions on when to sniff and explore and when to walk calmly next to you.