Dog Training & Behavioral Therapist

3 lovely little chihuahuas who have seen quite a few changes in their lives over the past year As a result, they have become very reactive and defensive around strangers We are working on improving their confidence and giving the owners the techniques to interrupt the barking

Rupa is a boisterous little border terrier with a lovely personality. We are currently working on channeling his natural energy in positive ways and teaching him to listen to his owner so that their walks together will become more enjoyable

Wonderful family who are expecting their first child and have a Chihuahua who finds it hard to cope with some things.  They are forward planning to ensure that he can cope with the huge changes that are coming.  

Poppy's brain damage means she constantly circles when worried or excited.  She also barks frequently.  It has been impossible to walk her up the road as she circles and barks every time she sees people.  There is no quick fix to this, but Poppy has patient owners and they have been working on communicating with her so that she can calm down and walk with them. I do not know how much we will achieve because of the damage, but she is already successfully walking short distances along the road.   

Marnie is a Portuguese Water Dog who recently has nipped several people with serious consequences.  This has been a very difficult time for the owners because they didn't know what to do for the best.  Fortunately they have committed to working with Marnie to overcome her fears around people.  There are many ways to train a dog and in this instance precision was needed to help Marnie know when she got it right.  The clicker means "yes a reward is coming".  This is not a quick fix.  There is no quick fix with aggression, but it is one of the quickest ways to make a difference.  I am looking forward to continuing to work with Marnie.   

Sam is a 6 month old Labrador who has always been friendly and bouncy. Now that he has reached adolescence he is becoming BIG, FRIENDLY and BOUNCY!! Once his owners were shown how to talk to him and focus his enthusiasm he began to change before our eyes. By the end of the session he was jumping less, listening more and we were able to get him to walk calmly on the street. He will be a work in progress for a while yet, but I think he will be a lovely, obedient dog that his owners can be proud of. 

This is one of those cases that just tugs at your heart strings. Zeus is an adolescent Bull Mastiff who weighs at least 60kg and is still growing!! His previous owner died in tragic circumstances and Zeus ended up in kennels for a number of months before his current owner found him and adopted him. As is common with the breed, he is BIG, friendly and stubborn. We have been working on improving his obedience and recall and giving him clear rules regarding how to greet people (really important with such a large dog). Zeus is responding well and is becoming a bit of a celebrity at his local park. 

This owner took on a dog that was dumped in her daughters garden.  Gypsy is a little whirlwind and had been causing havoc for her owner, but she is very bright and responded so well to being given direction and boundaries.  I was really impressed with her owners commitment to bringing up Gypsy when she came into her life totally unplanned.  

A lovely family (with very nice kids!!). They have two Jack Russells who were prone to barking at visitors and in the back garden. This is fairly typical for the breed but it has gotten worse in recent months and had also escalated into aggression outdoors on walks. Mum no longer enjoyed taking her dogs out for walks due to the stress and mayhem that this involved. Between us we figured out the main reasons why things had gotten to this stage and were able to start fixing things on the first session. It was wonderful to see the dogs responding and the owner's confidence returning. Great owners who recognised that they had a problem and weren't afraid to ask for help. 

Buss belongs to the Daughter and is looked after by both Mother and Daughter, .  He wasn't keen on being away from the Daughter and was very upset whenever she went out.  Needless to say this was upsetting for all concerned.  This is not unusual  It can be traumatic for some puppies leaving their siblings and they can latch onto either all humans or in some cases just one human to make them feel more secure.  His owners are working now on building Buzz;s confidence and is already much happier.