Big Dog Little Dog: Puppy and Dog training

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Big Dog Little Dog: Puppy and Dog training Kind, effective, reward based training for puppies & dogs; with emphasis on fun for all participants! In association with Puppy School.

Training and socialisation classes for dogs and puppies of all shapes and sizes. I am a fully qualified Puppy School Tutor and registered with ABTC: Puppy School tutors are carefully selected to ensure they have experience with animals, good communication skills, empathy, compassion and respect for others. Tutors attend regular courses in animal behaviour and training techniques, and keep up to da

te with information that may be useful to pet dog owners. Puppy School classes are monitored regularly to ensure the highest standards. All Puppy School tutors have undertaken a comprehensive training course, comprising residential training courses as well as home study. Courses in behaviour problem solving, run by Gwen Bailey, are attended twice a year to ensure the best advice is offered to owners with problem puppies. Tutors are kept up to date with new ideas by regularly attending meetings including Puppy School conferences and exclusive Puppy School courses by leading trainers/behaviourists such as Chirag Patel, Tony Orchard and John Rogerson. In addition, tutors regularly attend seminars and conferences run by groups such as CABTSG, APBC, BSAVA.

Puppy School courses now have limited availability:January 29th at 6.15pm - 1 space leftFebruary 24th at 6.15pm - 1 spac...
23/01/2025

Puppy School courses now have limited availability:

January 29th at 6.15pm - 1 space left

February 24th at 6.15pm - 1 space left

These courses are 6 weeks long, and are a great start to your puppy's training and socialisation journey.

I am keeping my number low to ensure plenty of space and 1:1 tuition for every puppy family.

Booking link:
https://client.puppyschool.co.uk/booking/PS/96908597-E329-4556-8FA5-C06AD2DAF424

Two sniffer sessions at the unit this week. First up was the daytime sniffers working on a new scent, and we welcomed ne...
23/01/2025

Two sniffer sessions at the unit this week. First up was the daytime sniffers working on a new scent, and we welcomed newcomer Pip - she was a natural!

Next we had Tuesday evening Sniffers on week 3 of their course where we began to work at distance and some wall searching.

Well done everyone, I'm loving having you all in my new space 🥰

Graduation congratulations to this wonderful bunch of puppies and owners! 🎓🎓🎓🎓I've loved watching them progress and grow...
21/01/2025

Graduation congratulations to this wonderful bunch of puppies and owners! 🎓🎓🎓🎓

I've loved watching them progress and grow in confidence, huge well done to Rolo, Wisp, Finn and Moose. See some of you for juniors in a few weeks 🥳

Copied and pasted (and slightly tweaked!) from a memory of 2 years ago because it's still relevant."Reactive" dogs....th...
20/01/2025

Copied and pasted (and slightly tweaked!) from a memory of 2 years ago because it's still relevant.

"Reactive" dogs....that word is in inverted commas because I'm not massively keen on it as a description.

Dogs can be "reactive" for a whole load of reasons (the list is endless 📜), yet as a rule we often blame ourselves:

✋ I should have socialised them more
✋ I could have asked for help sooner
✋ I didn't respond appropriately

Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda but here's the truth - while it can definitely be down to some/all of those things, it can also be a whole load more:

🤕 Pain

😨 Genetics - bred from anxious/nervy parents.

🐕🐩 Genetics - some breeds are more predisposed to sensitivities than others.

🤕Pain.

💔 Poor start to life (rescues, puppy farm, back yard breeder etc)

🗣️ Attacked/told off by another dog (remember for some dogs a simple bark from another dog is just as stressful as a full attack if they're really sensitive).

🐾 A forced break in social interactions (poorly owner, poorly dog, lockdown, bad weather etc) can set a dog right back in his social skills and confidence.

🤕 Pain - yes I've repeatedly put pain because people don't realise how big a part this plays in reactivity. Don't assume that because your dog isn't limping they're not in pain or discomfort, it can be something like tummy ache which is invisible or tight muscles which don't cause a limp. It can even be remembered pain from an interaction with a dog (even in play dogs accidentally hurt each other and this can be remembered by sensitive souls).

Owners of 'reactive' dogs - please stop blaming yourself! All is not lost, ask for help from a professional....I promise, you will not be judged.

Owners of non-reactive dogs - please don't blame the owners of sensitive souls, they're probably already doing that themselves. Just give them space, smile and keep your dog away - the other owner will be eternally grateful 🙏

Puppy confidence building.Do you have a puppy aged 16 weeks or below? This is a crucial time for confidence building and...
19/01/2025

Puppy confidence building.

Do you have a puppy aged 16 weeks or below? This is a crucial time for confidence building and socialisation in a puppy's life.

For this reason I have added a Puppy Explorer session to my diary. These one off sessions are designed to allow your puppy to explore new surfaces and items, building confidence as they go and making new friends if they want to.

Please note that this is NOT an off-lead, run around session, because sometimes puppies can get a bit wild and some can get a little overwhelmed - this will be a controlled session with lots of opportunities for puppies to move away and decompress if they wish to.

Venue: Larchfield industrial estate, Ilminster
Date: 7th February 2025
Time: 6.15pm
Cost: £15 per puppy (maximum of 4 spaces available)
Booking link: https://form.jotform.com/240422301325338

One to one sessions now available.Last week, I had the privilege of seeing little Cali for my first ever one to one sess...
19/01/2025

One to one sessions now available.

Last week, I had the privilege of seeing little Cali for my first ever one to one session in the unit. She's 6 months old and is finding life a little overwhelming, so we're working on helping her to navigate the stresses of the busy human world. This was literally the only photo I took....guess where the treats were?! 🥰

Now that I have a base I am able to offer more one to one sessions to help you and your dogs to navigate any training difficulties you may be having. Or maybe to introduce you to the world of hoopers or scentwork, or even to brush up skills you already have in these areas.

Drop me a message to discuss.

Last night was week 2 of the first Scentwork UK course, and the unit was much more ready to accommodate guests! Although...
15/01/2025

Last night was week 2 of the first Scentwork UK course, and the unit was much more ready to accommodate guests! Although we were missing Bruce, these guys worked hard. They've all imprinted on the new scent really well, and were showing they could discriminate between no scent and scent 🥳 (videos in the comments as FB won't let me add a mix of photos and videos 🙄)

I loved watching them work ❤️

14/01/2025

Fidget beating out the tune of his people....🥁. I didn't ask for any of these behaviours, he just knows how to perform for fish 🦭

Old cardboard boxes always get used for silly fun with my dogs...give it a try with yours.

14/01/2025

Puppy Classes.

Have you found your puppy's 'off button'?!

One of the many things we teach in my puppy classes is a 'settle'. This amazing group came for week 5 of their course last night, class hadn't even started yet and they all came in and settled down without any prompting from me. Absolutely LOVE this! Well done everyone 🥰(we missed you Wisp).

My next puppy class starts on 29th January in Ilminster and has just 1 space left on it;

https://client.puppyschool.co.uk/booking/PS/96908597-E329-4556-8FA5-C06AD2DAF424

12/01/2025

New flooring going down, so we should be a little warmer and not slippery now.....hubby and I are quite achy this week 😂👨‍🦳👵

**NOW FULL**Hellooooo 👋🏼....I see you.....wishing you hadn't missed out on puppy classes because your puppy was just a s...
10/01/2025

**NOW FULL**

Hellooooo 👋🏼....I see you.....wishing you hadn't missed out on puppy classes because your puppy was just a smidge over the age limit. Well listen up...

📢 Just Juniors course now booking! 📢

This course is aimed at older puppies who missed out on puppy classes due to being just over the age limit (aged 20 weeks to 9 months).

It's a 4 week course covering life skills such as loose lead walking, recall, sit/down, stay, and settle.

Don't forget that my class sizes are now limited to 4 so they fill quickly (2 spaces left on this one) - everything you need to know below;

Date: 6th February
Time: 6.15pm
Venue: Ilminster
Duration: 50 minutes for 4 consecutive weeks
Cost: £70
Booking link; https://form.jotform.com/241362908445358

Please don't hesitate to message if you have any questions.

And that's the soft launch done - first ever class in the unit has taken place! A big thank you to this lovely bunch for...
09/01/2025

And that's the soft launch done - first ever class in the unit has taken place! A big thank you to this lovely bunch for being so patient with random chairs and a chilly room. Sniffing out Kong pieces was the order of the night. A new scent for these super sniffers, and they all transferred amazingly.

Luckily Foreman Fidget was on hand for the preparation of the space! It was a bit manic (the first photo shows how it looked just 3 hours before class started!) but we got it cleared in true Changing Rooms style! 😵‍💫😂

I loved having a space that I could just shut the door on and go home, worrying about the sweeping for the next day!

A bit late posting but Monday was the first Puppy School classes of 2025. A big welcome back to Moose, Wisp, Rolo and Fi...
08/01/2025

A bit late posting but Monday was the first Puppy School classes of 2025. A big welcome back to Moose, Wisp, Rolo and Fin, and a huge welcome to the club to Finzi (doodle), Mable (flatcoat retriever) and Orla (golden retriever).

My class sizes are now limited to 3 or 4 dogs in preparation for the move over to the unit. I have 1 space left on a course starting at the end of January and have just added one for 24th February.

Booking link for these courses: https://client.puppyschool.co.uk/booking/PS/96908597-E329-4556-8FA5-C06AD2DAF424

07/01/2025

Please bear with me at the moment. I'm drowning in a sea of admin, the dreaded tax return, as well as sorting my own dogs and house and prioritising sorting the unit out!

The unit is coming along slowly (sneaky peak below!)

I have my first class there this evening amongst the chaos, but I will be officially opening the doors at the beginning of February 🥳🥳 .

*EDIT - course fully booked**

The first course is now available to book and it's another Scentwork UK course. It's limited to 4 dogs so book soon to avoid disappointment 😁

Date: 18th February
Time: 6.15pm
Duration: 1 hour, for 6 consecutive weeks
Cost: £95
Booking link: https://form.jotform.com/232013005354338

Junior courses for Puppy School graduates and new intake of adolescents will be next up to book so watch this space 👀

🐶 Upcoming Puppy Classes 🐶I have two January puppy classes starting and due to a cancellation there's now one space avai...
02/01/2025

🐶 Upcoming Puppy Classes 🐶

I have two January puppy classes starting and due to a cancellation there's now one space available starting this coming Monday:

6th January at 6pm in Ile Youth Centre: 1 Space

29th January at 6.15pm in Ilminster: 3 spaces

(Modelled by the handsome Bruce 😍)

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Videos

Fidget beating out the tune of his people....🥁. I didn't ask for any of these behaviours, he just knows how to perform for fish 🦭 Old cardboard boxes always get used for silly fun with my dogs...give it a try with yours.

Puppy Classes. Have you found your puppy's 'off button'?! One of the many things we teach in my puppy classes is a 'settle'. This amazing group came for week 5 of their course last night, class hadn't even started yet and they all came in and settled down without any prompting from me. Absolutely LOVE this! Well done everyone 🥰(we missed you Wisp). My next puppy class starts on 29th January in Ilminster and has just 1 space left on it; https://client.puppyschool.co.uk/booking/PS/96908597-E329-4556-8FA5-C06AD2DAF424

New flooring going down, so we should be a little warmer and not slippery now.....hubby and I are quite achy this week 😂👨‍🦳👵

Please bear with me at the moment. I'm drowning in a sea of admin, the dreaded tax return, as well as sorting my own dogs and house and prioritising sorting the unit out! The unit is coming along slowly (sneaky peak below!) I have my first class there this evening amongst the chaos, but I will be officially opening the doors at the beginning of February 🥳🥳 . *EDIT - course fully booked** The first course is now available to book and it's another Scentwork UK course. It's limited to 4 dogs so book soon to avoid disappointment 😁 Date: 18th February Time: 6.15pm Duration: 1 hour, for 6 consecutive weeks Cost: £95 Booking link: https://form.jotform.com/232013005354338 Junior courses for Puppy School graduates and new intake of adolescents will be next up to book so watch this space 👀

A huge well done to this lovely group of hoopers attendees! We missed Fig but the other 3 excelled as always! We pushed them a little bit more than I've pushed a beginners group before but they were fabulous. I'll miss this lot: Fig, Nellie, Ralph and Bruce ❤️

Fidget's FU's: As if my mum isn't embarrassing enough by taking a water bottle on our walks because I've got a bad tummy again (she could at least hide it to preserve my modesty! 🤷🏻‍♂️).....a middle-aged woman getting excited at a bearded stranger in a red suit is just a step too far 😤.

Winding down for the year means lots of graduation sessions. Last night it was the turn of this awesome group - Just Juniors, you were FAB-U-LOUS! A group of adolescent boys, whose owners were all so dedicated that I could just keep throwing extentions at them. They were so good that I nearly forgot to graduate them 🤷🏼‍♀️😂. Testosterone can mean they get a bit competitive and giddy but these boys were so social with each other 🥰 Well done to Freddie, Banjo, Roge, Balu, and Logan. We missed you Zippy ❤️

A huge well done to the last Scentwork class of 2024! What an absolute joy it was to see such a diverse mix of breeds all working, and succeeding at it! Congratulations to Pippin (collie x), Bonnie (cockapoo), Rudi (Kelpie), Apollo (Keeshond), Iroh (Labrador), Bruce (terrier) and Isla (Brittany spaniel) 🥰. Looking forward to seeing some of you back in the new year for more sniffing fun!

Fidget and his Super Snoot! I've been incredibly lucky this week to do 3 sniffy training sessions with Fidget, and even more lucky to have sandwiched them between the snow ❄️ and Storm Burt 🌬️! 🤷🏼‍♀️ Wednesday we saw Lyn at Happy Dogs Dorset for an awesome scentwork session, where Fidget worked his socks off in a variety of searches, and worked around a couple of unfamiliar dogs (including a gorgeous doberman which is a breed he's seriously struggled with in the past). And yesterday we spent a couple of hours Mantrailing with my Puppy School colleague Jas at What the Woof (and gas bagging with 2 more Puppy School tutors!), then we dashed off to a fab scentwork session for dogs who need space in the paddock with Jo at Paws4Teaching. How lucky are we to be surrounded by reward based trainers - please look these awesome trainers up if you fancy having a go, or contact me if I can help you on your Scentwork journey....but I must warn you...it's addictive!

The best kind of photo bomber! Gorgeous Annie felt that I should stop filming Rex and turn the camera on her ❤️

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