Essence Dog Training

10/08/2023

Taking some time to recharge on this beautiful sunny day ☀️

10/07/2023

ED weekly round up 03/07:

- Jessie the spaniel who I had the pleasure of looking after. That face 💗
- Helping Bodhi gain more confidence in the water
- Prioritising learning. We can never know everything and learning is what fuels my passion, so I’ve decided to make it a priority 🤓 This week I’m reading Canine Enrichment for the Real World by Allie Bender and Emily Strong.
- Reuniting with baby Fargo. Isn’t he the cutest?!
- Relaxing with Bodhi, even if he does take up 3/4 of my side of the bed. And why is it ALWAYS my side?!
- 7.2km run to end the week 🎉
- Buiding desire in the clam toy to be able to use it as an effective reward when out and about.

I hope everyone had a wonderful week, and here’s to a new one ahead of us!

03/07/2023

I had the pleasure of helping Dexter’s owners learn how to manage his typical young bouncy Labrador behaviour. Here’s what they had to say:
“Zoe is patient, knowledgeable, and makes training fun for both us and Dexter! The difference in this crazy pup is amazing ❤️”

They are so committed and worked so hard during my time with them that I’m sure this goofball and his human family will have lots of happy times ahead of them 🤗

07/06/2023

The result of training your dog to seek out any sort of boundary 😆

Do you do boundary training with your dog? Is your dog able to stay on their boundary despite distractions happening all around them? Let me know in the comments!

If you’re not sure why I recommend boundary training to all dog owners then comment below and I’ll be happy to chat to you about it 😊

22/05/2023

Essence Dog Training is taking a little break whilst I’m off on my honeymoon 💕

I will respond to all messages once I’m back in June.

12/04/2023

Jessie is clearly enjoying her homemade Snoozy Snacks! 👅

29/03/2023

It’s important to exercise your dog’s brain as well as their body. Think about what their breed was designed for and see if you can incorporate some activities that harness those breed-specific skills into your day. Provide them with an outlet for their natural behaviours.

Schutzhund or IGP/IPO is a dog sport designed to test German Shepherds in three key areas: obedience, protection work, and tracking. Unfortunately there is nowhere near me that offers this sport, but nor do I have the time to commit to it. So how do I provide an outlet for my dog’s natural behaviours? I’ve opted for mantrailing (a search and rescue style activity) because it is offered in my area and puts that long snoot to good use! Sure, it’s not tracking, but it is pretty close and serves me well for my purposes. Bodhi gets to use his brain, his nose, his strength (because he drags me along - I’ve had several close calls where I nearly landed flat on my face as a result of his enthusiasm to find the missing person) and gets a fantastic game of tug at the end of it all!

What do you do, or could you do, to fulfil your dog’s needs? If you’re unsure or would like to discuss ideas with me then send me a DM or comment below and we can get brainstorming how we could enrich your dog’s life 🌟

28/03/2023

To snip or not to snip?

I know I certainly felt a lot of pressure to get my dog castrated when he was not yet a year old, but armed with research papers I had the knowledge to stand my ground and wait until he was fully mature. I also opted for him to be chemically castrated first so that I could check what the impact on him behaviourally would be.

It’s so important to understand why you would get your dog castrated and what the impact of it behaviourally could be. This talk should be super interesting, and if you’re considering getting your dog castrated I would encourage you to sign up and attend (virtually).

Join Certified Dog Behavior Counselor Sara McLoudrey to learn how to live with and have intact dogs in classes. As dog trainers, walkers, and daycare providers, it's time to re-evaluate policies on intact animals in our care.

22/03/2023

“People have commented today on how they can see a calming change in my dog. Calm and well-mannered!!!! THANK YOU!”

It’s my absolute pleasure 😊

15/03/2023

Dexter is a 6-month-old, VERY bouncy Labrador. His owner came to me to help her teach him some basic life skills and manners.

I like to start nice and simple to create a solid foundation from which to progress. In session one, amongst other things, we worked on introducing markers and the concept of luring (see video in comments). If you’re not sure what these are and why we need to teach them, then drop me a DM and I’ll be happy to provide some info.

With young children at home, fitting training into the day was a concern for Dexter’s owner, but here is evidence of what you can achieve in short 1-minute bursts of training whenever you get a spare minute throughout the day 💁🏼‍♀️

I’m excited to see where this team ends up in a couple of months’ time!

08/03/2023

Bodhi would like to wish you all a very happy International Women’s Day 💐 May your day be filled with happiness, flowers and puppy dog eyes 💗

04/01/2023

I love seeing children getting involved in taking care of their dogs 😍