Wagology Dog Behaviour & Training

11/07/2025

☀️ It's getting hot out there – think before you walk your dog! 🐾

I was out early this morning with my spaniel girlies, just a gentle, shady walk with plenty of stream stops for drinks and splashes. Even then, we kept it short and sweet.

Fast forward to now… I’ve just popped out for a few errands and it’s already 25°C AND it’s only 10:30am!
We could easily be hitting 28–30°C by lunchtime. 🔥

Before you grab the lead today, please ask yourself:
🤔 IS THE WALK REALLY NECESSARY?

💡 Instead of a walk, try:

Keeping the house cool by closing blinds or curtains that get direct sunlight!

Using cooling mats, fans (if your dog is used to them), or a cooling bandana

Making doggie ice cream with natural full-fat yoghurt, mashed strawberries, raspberries & blueberries on a Lickimat, then freeze! 🍓🍦

Swapping physical exercise for brain games or enrichment activities

Or simply letting your dog rest somewhere cool

Your dog doesn’t need that walk in this heat. Be kind. Be safe. ❤️🐶

08/07/2025

Foundation Life Skills week 2!

One of the exercises we began working on was a hand target. This simple tool can be used for building focus and engagement with you, particularly around distractions like other dogs, and it can help to boost confidence in your dog too!

Are you ready to start your training journey? Our next foundation life skills course in Barnoldswick begins Monday 18th August, please get in touch for more information!

04/07/2025

👀 New Venue Alert ⚠️
We will be starting our popular Foundation Lifeskills 6 week course at St Mary's Centre Lower Hall, Clitheroe on Thursday 24th July. For further information or to book onto to the course you can comment below or send a message

02/07/2025

I've seen so many people recommending trainers and behaviourists, so this really hits home and should do with you next time you look at employing a dog professional.
You can check out our qualifications, cpd and our memberships to organisations go to
https://www.wagologydogbehaviour.co.uk

Read the original post from Bone Canis
👇👇👇👇

The industry is currently unregulated: contrary to the belief of some, there is no organisation that regulates the dog training and behaviour industry, each organisation should be regulating their own members, so it’s a minefield when you are looking to get some help for your dog.
There are so many people advertising their services as ‘behaviourists’ and trainers that you get overwhelmed with information.

Here are a few questions that you should be asking, when looking for a behaviourist, trainer, or dog-walker.

🐾What qualifications – are they current, and if not, what CPD are they currently doing? It’s very important to employ someone who is constantly updating their knowledge, as science is always moving forward, and so should we. Do they have a relevant level of qualification for your particular issue?

🐾 What experience - how long have they worked with dogs and in what capacity? Have they worked with all types of dogs and issues, have they had experience with your dog’s particular issue?

🐾 What insurance – are they fully-insured for the service they are providing you with?

🐾 Organisations – are they members of any organisations, if so, which ones? Are these organisations well-known and do they have an ethics policy that is being adhered to? You should also be able to find your person on the organisations page, if you can’t, then ask the organisation to clarify (they may have been missed-off).

🐾 What methods – are they modern, force-free and science-backed? What happens if the dog gets something wrong? What ‘tools’ will they use? What happens when the dog gets something right? Do you want someone to hurt or frighten your dog, to get what they/you want?

These few basic questions should help you to find the right person, and they should be happy to answer these questions for you too. If they don’t answer them, find someone who will…
A good professional will always consider the dog’s emotions…

Some phrases to be aware of… If your selected person uses words like: ‘pack’, ‘leader’, ‘corrections’, ‘dominance’, ‘alpha’ ‘balanced’, then run away…! These are all very outdated terms and should be avoided; the use of these words may even give you an indication of the level of CPD your person has completed…!!

The UK dog training and behaviour charter was set-up to instigate regulation from the government and all of the signatories have signed-up to promote regulation, modern, science-backed and ethical methods of training.

02/07/2025

I've seen so many people recommending trainers and behaviourists, so this really hits home and should do with you next time you look at employing a dog professional. Read the original post from Bone Canis 👇👇👇👇

The industry is currently unregulated: contrary to the belief of some, there is no organisation that regulates the dog training and behaviour industry, each organisation should be regulating their own members, so it’s a minefield when you are looking to get some help for your dog.
There are so many people advertising their services as ‘behaviourists’ and trainers that you get overwhelmed with information.

Here are a few questions that you should be asking, when looking for a behaviourist, trainer, or dog-walker.

🐾What qualifications – are they current, and if not, what CPD are they currently doing? It’s very important to employ someone who is constantly updating their knowledge, as science is always moving forward, and so should we. Do they have a relevant level of qualification for your particular issue?

🐾 What experience - how long have they worked with dogs and in what capacity? Have they worked with all types of dogs and issues, have they had experience with your dog’s particular issue?

🐾 What insurance – are they fully-insured for the service they are providing you with?

🐾 Organisations – are they members of any organisations, if so, which ones? Are these organisations well-known and do they have an ethics policy that is being adhered to? You should also be able to find your person on the organisations page, if you can’t, then ask the organisation to clarify (they may have been missed-off).

🐾 What methods – are they modern, force-free and science-backed? What happens if the dog gets something wrong? What ‘tools’ will they use? What happens when the dog gets something right? Do you want someone to hurt or frighten your dog, to get what they/you want?

These few basic questions should help you to find the right person, and they should be happy to answer these questions for you too. If they don’t answer them, find someone who will…
A good professional will always consider the dog’s emotions…

Some phrases to be aware of… If your selected person uses words like: ‘pack’, ‘leader’, ‘corrections’, ‘dominance’, ‘alpha’ ‘balanced’, then run away…! These are all very outdated terms and should be avoided; the use of these words may even give you an indication of the level of CPD your person has completed…!!

The UK dog training and behaviour charter was set-up to instigate regulation from the government and all of the signatories have signed-up to promote regulation, modern, science-backed and ethical methods of training.

30/06/2025

🌟 Spaces are already being booked for our next Foundation Life Skills course in Barnoldswick beginning Monday 18th August!

This 6 week course has been designed to help teach your dogs and puppies the basics to all the training skills they need:

🐾 Loose Lead Walking
🐶 Recall
🐾 Focus on you
🐶 Settle
🐾 Sit

… And so much more, with plenty of more useful tips and tricks along the way!

We only use reward based training which is scientifically backed, force free, and will enhance the bond between you and your dog or puppy!

We understand not all dogs receive training as puppies for various reasons, therefore this class has no age limit! Puppies and adult dogs are all welcome here 😊

For more information, and to book you place please message us 😊

29/06/2025

This lovely girl was brilliant in her 121 session yesterday! She is worried around other dogs, so we are working hard to help her learn some tools to build her confidence and focus with little-to-no distractions around initially, before we can begin to use them around other dogs!

25/06/2025

🦮🐾 Dog Training: Not All Approaches Are Created Equal 🐾🦮

In an industry that's still largely unregulated, from dog walkers and groomers to trainers and behaviourists BUT how do you know who to trust with your beloved dog?

It often comes down to two things: ✅ Qualifications and ✅ Real-world experience.

But even more confusing? The different styles of training out there. You might hear terms like “Positive Reinforcement,” “Force-Free,” or “Balanced Training”
BUT
What do they actually mean? Are they just buzzwords, or do they reflect real differences?

🔹 Positive/Force-Free Training focuses on rewarding the behaviours we want, by building bonds through trust, communication and socialisation skills to lead a happy, healthy life.

🔸 Balanced Training uses both rewards and corrections, including aversive tools or techniques, depending on the situation.

While all trainers may claim to “love dogs,” the methods they use can have vastly different effects on your dog’s emotional well-being and long-term behaviour.

So here's a question for you:
💬 What qualities or approaches do YOU look for in a dog professional?
Let’s start a conversation because our dogs deserve the very best. 🐶❤️

23/06/2025

Let’s talk about what socialisation really means 👣🐾🐾

It’s a term that I find many people struggle to understand.

Quite often, it can be confused with simply introducing our pups or adopted dogs to as many other dogs as possible, usually through play, sometimes to the point of over-arousal. While we understand that as dog owners you want your dogs to be able to play, the learning process of how to meet and interact appropriately with other dogs is a valuable part of socialisation, but by the same token it is only a small piece of the jigsaw to a much bigger picture.

We live in a world where human perception of how our dogs are expected to greet, play, and behave politely with every dog they see but sometimes without the underpinning socilaisation/training. By constantly encouraging these interactions, we can unintentionally create a dog who sees every other dog as a guaranteed source of excitement and stimulation.

This is NOT socialisation

True socialisation is better understood as way to help our dogs navigate their new world so they feel safe, calm and able to build on their confidence in a postive way.
Such as;
🌦 Weather
🪵 Different surfaces underfoot
🐄 Other animals/livestock
🚶 Crowds of people of differing ages, movement styles, clothing, hats, glasses
🔊 Noises
👃 Scents

This is the heart of what true socialisation is

Think of it as accepting, not reacting.
Confident, not overwhelmed.
Building positive associations, not overstimulation.

That’s what real socialisation looks like.
It lays the foundation for a calm, resilient, and well-rounded dog and this is how we help you and your pup develop on your relationship together during our group session.

Feel free to contact us for more information 🐾🐾

23/06/2025

I’ve hung up my walking boots and treat bag for the week 🥾🥾 (they’re currently enjoying a well-earned holiday). Meanwhile, Emily is still holding the fort, answering all your questions and getting ready to welcome our fresh-faced Foundation students tonight. Be nice to her, she’s doing the work of two people… and only one of them packed snacks 😉🐾🐾

18/06/2025

The weather is getting warmer and affects all our dogs. This post from The Brachy Nurse talks about the do's and dont's in hot weather with flat faced breeds, the elderly and large breeds with underlying health conditions 👍👇👇