The Good Dog Coach

13/06/2026

This!

***The Importance of the Heel Position ***

The Number One Reason the Heel Position Is Probably the Most Important Thing You’ll Ever Teach Your Dog;

When people think about dog training, they often focus on recall, tricks or off-lead freedom. Whilst all of those things are important, there is one skill that underpins almost everything else: the heel position.

In my opinion, teaching your dog to walk calmly and attentively by your side is one of the most valuable things you will ever do. It doesn’t just improve your walks. It changes the way your dog experiences the world.

The Legal Reality;

In the UK, Section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act states that it is an offence to have a dog that is dangerously out of control. Many people assume this only applies to aggressive dogs, but the legislation goes further than that. A dog can be considered dangerously out of control if a person reasonably fears that it may cause them harm.

Think about how different a dog looks when it’s walking politely in heel compared to one that’s dragging its owner down the street, barking or lunging. A solid heel position instantly communicates that your dog is well-mannered, trained and under control. To members of the public, that matters.

Give Your Dog a Job;

Many unwanted behaviours such as pulling, lunging, barking and overreacting to the environment stem from a combination of genetics, life experiences and the freedom to repeatedly practise those behaviours.

Dogs are constantly processing the world around them. Every sight, sound and smell can influence how they feel and how they respond. If a dog is left to make its own decisions on every walk, it will often become overly focused on the environment rather than the handler.

The heel position changes that. It gives the dog a job to do.

When a dog is focused on maintaining position and paying attention to its handler, its attention shifts away from everything happening around it. Instead of being consumed by the environment, it becomes engaged with the task at hand.

When the Environment Fades Into the Background;

Something remarkable happens when a dog has purpose. The environment becomes less important.

Dogs that are fearful, reactive or overexcited are often highly tuned into everything around them. They notice every movement, every dog, every person and every sound. Their attention is constantly being pulled in different directions.

When a dog is genuinely engaged in a heel position, many of those distractions lose their significance. The dog is no longer looking for guidance from the environment. It is looking to the handler.

This makes potentially challenging situations much easier for the dog to process.

Evidence From Working Dogs;

One of the best examples of this comes from search and rescue dogs. During major disaster responses, including the aftermath of 9/11, dogs were able to work in incredibly stressful environments filled with noise, confusion and danger.

Yet many of these dogs showed remarkable confidence and focus. The reason wasn’t that they were immune to fear. It was because they were on purpose.

Their focus was on completing a task that had been heavily reinforced through training and reward. The environment faded into the background because their attention was fixed on the job in front of them.

The same principle applies to pet dogs. Whilst your dog isn’t searching for survivors, a strong heel position provides purpose and direction, helping them navigate the world with greater confidence and stability.

Why We Prioritise Heel Work;

At Unleashed, we run monthly pack walks for our clients. Every month we change the environment, increase the exposure and challenge dogs in different ways.

What always stands out is how positively members of the public react when they see a group of dogs calmly walking in heel. No pulling. No barking. No overarousal. No tension on the lead.

Sadly, society has normalised dogs frantically pulling, zig-zagging and reacting to everything around them. Calm, controlled walking has almost become the exception rather than the rule.

Yet it is one of the clearest signs of a dog that is comfortable, engaged and under control.

The Bigger Picture;

Teaching a solid heel position isn’t about creating a robot. It’s about giving your dog clarity, guidance and purpose.

A strong heel position improves communication, reduces unwanted behaviours and helps your dog make better decisions in the real world. It allows them to focus on you rather than becoming overwhelmed by everything around them.

Most importantly, it creates a stronger relationship between dog and handler.

Final Thoughts;

A strong heel position helps keep your dog under control, improves public perception, reduces reactivity and gives your dog a meaningful job to do.

More than anything, it helps your dog better understand and navigate the world around them.

That’s why, if I could only teach one thing to a dog owner, it would be this:

Master the heel position.

Because a strong heel position doesn’t just build a better walk. It builds a better life for both you and your dog.

10/06/2026

Whenever I see someone asking "can someone recommend a dog trainer?", I don't simply put my name down. Because I don't know if I am the trainer to solve their problem. I always ask questions first: What do you need help with? Are you looking to improve basic obedience, start a specific sport with your dog and do you have a behavioural problem that needs sorting? Because if you want to do agility, gundog work, bite sports or personal protection, I will refer you to another trainer. Too many trainers will pretend that they will take on any dog for any type of work But you can't tell me that you'll help that reluctant retriever as effectively as the specialised gundog trainer that deals with this day in, day out.
Always speak to the trainer and ask to speak to previous clients who had similar issues to yours. When you speak to previous clients, you don't want to hear "what a nice person" the trainer is. You want to hear how "transformative" and "life-changing" the work with the trainer has been. How their relationship with the dog is better and the quality of life has improved for everyone around, including the dog. If the trainer doesn't have previous clients with dogs of similar breed with similar issues who are willing to speak to you about those life-changing transformations, then that trainer is not the right one. Keep looking, there are plenty of us about.

SO YOU NEED A DOG TRAINER

One of the first things people want to know is what you do for a living.

You're a doctor? Fantastic. What kind?

You see that matters.

Both a dentist and a proctologist are doctors, but they work on different parts of the alimentary canal. If you need medical attention, it's a good idea if the doctor is looking in the right hole!

You're a lawyer? Awesome. What kind of lawyer are you? Criminal, drunk driving, divorce, bankruptcy, employment, tax, estate? You "do it all"? Right. No more questions need to be asked on that score, as far as I am concerned.

You're a plumber? Terrific! Do you put in high pressure boilers or work on nuclear reactors? Do you install gas lines or do you stick to water pipes on new construction? Do you do old house rehabs?

Or are you really a plumber at all?

That last question is an interesting one, as about half the time when you call a plumber you do not actually get a plumber; you get "Joe the Plumber" which is to say a plumber's assistant whose specialty is snaking toilets, unclogging sinks, and maybe putting in a new garbage disposal or swapping out an old hose bib.

What's this have to do with dogs?

Simple. If you are looking for a dog trainer, and someone presents themselves as such, I urge you to ask a few questions.

What kind of dog trainer are they?

Ask that question, and you tend to get a philosophy answer. "I'm a positive trainer." "I'm a balanced dog trainer."

Right. But what do you train dogs to DO?

Ask that question and you may get a puzzled look. If so, ask if they are training dogs for shutzhund, truffle hunting, agility, or go-to-ground?

Are they training dogs for doggy dancing, obedience competition, or herding?

Are they training bird dogs, sled dogs, hunting terriers, or running dogs?

Are they training bomb disposal dogs, guard dogs, or drug-sniffing dogs?

Are they training circus dogs or therapy dogs?

These kinds of simple questions tend to knock most self-styled dog trainers on their ass because they don't do any of that.

So what DO they do?

Well, that depends.

A lot of self-described "dog trainers" are little more than trick trainers. They can teach a dog to walk at heel, or to sit when you come to the corner, or retrieve over a barrier. They can teach a dog to carry a basket, or to get their own leash.

But is that the kind of thing you need done? Will any of this fix "the dog problem" that brought you to this trainer's door?

Probably not.

Trick trainers, and the folks who teach "basic obedience" are a bit like the "personal trainers" down at the gym.

If you go to a gym and tell them you need to lose weight, they're going to push you to sign up for a gym membership, and they're going to get you running, weight lifting, and doing squats.

That's all good stuff, but science has shown that those activities actually have very little to do with the problem that brought you to the gym in the first place: losing weight.

You want to lose weight? Eat less, and make sure what you eat is mostly vegetables. About 80 percent of weight loss is due to changing what you eat, not exercise.

But if you go to a gym, and tell them you need to lose weight, they are not going to say "this is not the place for you." After all, the business of a gym is signing people up for gym membership, and that is what they are going to do whether that is the right remedy for your problem, or not.

To be clear, there's nothing wrong with getting fit and tone, and there's nothing wrong with a dog learning classical obedience training. That said, obedience training is probably not going to solve your critical and urgent "dog problem" any more than doing squats, leg lifts, and bench presses alone is going to solve your 40-pound weight gain since college.

So what IS your "dog problem"?

The most common issues are lack of recall, leash pulling, leash reactivity, jumping on visitors and family, jumping on furniture, mouth biting and nipping, separation anxiety, crate anxiety, chronic barking, and fighting between two dogs in the house.

How do you solve those issues?

One word: Punishment.

Punishment sounds like a heavy word, but it's not. It's simply a negative consequence, i.e. it's the OPPOSITE of a food, toy, or play reward.

Punishment can be so light that a human cannot even feel it, and it is never violent or injurious.

But many dog trainers don't know much about punishment, and some visibly recoil at the word.

If you are presented with a dog trainer that does not know how, or when, to punish a dog, you are dealing with a trick trainer. These are fine people, but they are not going to solve your chronic or critical "dog problem" in a timely manner.

Instead, they are going to address the chronic and critical problem in an oblique and inefficient manner. And from their perspective, why not? Efficiency is actually counter to their business model. As soon as your critical dog training problem is fixed, your need for a "trainer" may abate, and payments may soon stop. Who wants that? Not the dog trainer!

Here's a simple test. Give a dog trainer a common problem like not having a reliable recall, barking, leash reactivity, or jumping up on guests. Ask him or her how they will work to solve that problem in a quick and efficient manner. What would they do to stop that behavior NOW? How will they PROOF the behavior so that it remains solid?

If they go off in a wild diversion about needing to get to "the root of the problem" or "starting with basic obedience" or "pack behavior" or "dog psychology," they are probably not the trainer you need to address the serious and immediate dog problem you came to them to resolve.

To be clear, getting a dog to "lock in" a behavior can take time and repetition. Some breeds and some individual dogs are more biddable and phlegmatic than others.

That said, getting a hard-wired dog to stop a self-rewarding behavior is not rocket science, and it is rarely achieved with a clicker and a bag of treats alone.

If your prospective dog trainer only knows one side of the two-sided coin that is real dog training, I advised holding on to your money and keep looking.

25/05/2026

Our dogs have had no time to acclimatise to this heat. Dogs die in these temperatures. Please don’t risk it!

☀️ YOUR DOG DOES NOT NEED A WALK IN THIS HEAT. ☀️

They need to stay alive.

We are seeing far too many dogs being dragged around parks, pavements and fields in temperatures that can KILL them.

Let’s be blunt.

By the time your dog is collapsing, vomiting, unable to stand, drooling excessively or struggling to breathe… the damage is already happening.

Heatstroke is not “a bit overheated.”
Dogs DIE from this - Dogs have died in LEAMINGTON from heatstroke!

And even the ones that survive can suffer organ damage for the rest of their lives.

Your dog panting heavily is not funny.
It is not them “loving the sunshine.”
It is their body desperately trying not to overheat.

If you are sweating in shorts and a T-shirt, why are you forcing an animal wearing a fur coat to walk on boiling pavements?

NO dog has ever died from missing one walk.
Dogs HAVE died because owners ignored the heat.

So please stop:

❌ Marching dogs around retail parks
❌ Throwing balls until dogs collapse
❌ Taking dogs on walks in midday sun
❌ Walking dogs on scorching pavements
❌ Assuming water alone prevents heatstroke
❌ Leaving dogs in cars — even for 2 minutes.

If it is hot enough that YOU are uncomfortable — it is too hot for dogs to exercise safely.

Walk them at sunrise.
Walk them late evening.
Or don’t walk them at all for one day and use enrichment toys and ideas off the internet.

Because we can promise you this:
The guilt of skipping a walk lasts minutes.
The guilt of carrying your dog into an emergency vets surgery lasts forever. 🐾

(*And before the Tesla owners start writing essays in the comments 😅 yes… we know your dogs are sat in ‘Pet Mode’ with air con, mood lighting and probably watching Netflix. We’re not talking about you.🙄)

13/05/2026

Skilled trainers don’t learn reward based methods further down the line. That’s where we start. Then we add other things on top.
These arguments just show that these “trainers” weren’t good trainers, lacking the skill and understanding to using both reward and aversives skillfully.

23/03/2026

This!

18/03/2026

Today the changes to the law are coming into force. While it is great that attacks and worrying are now clearly defined, higher penalties do not result in fewer incidents. They simply result in fewer reports being made, meaning farmers will not get the compensation they are due. I think these amendments fall short of bringing about actual, meaningful change that PREVENTS the suffering of livestock rather than focusing on penalties after the fact.

The Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) Act 2025 has come into effect today, Wednesday 18 March 2026. It updates the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953.

Farmers, gamekeepers and livestock owners now have clearer and stronger legal protection against livestock worrying.

Livestock worrying can happen when a dog attacks, chases or is loose among livestock. Dogs don't need to make contact for harm to occur. Fear and stress alone can harm livestock, and, in severe cases, cause them to die. The resulting impact on livestock keepers can be devastating. They face financial loss as well as personal distress.

THE CHANGES

The act:

▪️is worded so that attacking livestock is treated separately from worrying livestock. This reframing helps make the violent nature of livestock attacks much clearer. It doesn’t create a new offence as both behaviours are already covered in the 1953 act, but it does make the distinction explicit

▪️extends the law to cover livestock worrying and attacks that take place on roads and paths

▪️ includes camelids (as llamas and alpacas are commonly farmed)

▪️introduces a new defence for dog owners to exempt them from liability where the dog was in the charge of another person at the time of the offence without the owner’s consent, for instance if the dog was stolen

▪️introduces new powers allowing a court to order an offender to pay expenses associated with seizing and detaining a dog

▪️provides a clear deterrent by increasing the penalty from a fine of up to £1,000 to an unlimited fine

In addition, the law gives police new and improved powers to improve their investigations, including:

▪️the power to seize and detain a dog where they have reasonable grounds to believe there is a risk that the dog could attack or worry livestock again. The dog can be detained until an investigation has been carried out or, if proceedings are brought for an offence, until those proceedings have been determined or withdrawn

▪️ the power to take samples and impressions from a dog or livestock where the police have reasonable grounds to believe the dog has attacked or worried the livestock, and that a sample or impression might provide evidence of an offence. The sample or impression could then be used as evidence to support a prosecution

▪️the powers to enter and search premises to identify, seize and detain a dog for the prevention of future incidents, to collect samples or impressions, or seize any other evidence

This legislation is only for England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own legislation on this matter.

Read our news article here: https://www.nationalgamekeepers.org.uk/articles/dog-owners-and-walkers-livestock-worrying-law-important-update

Read the full act here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2025/32/enacted

12/01/2026

Obesity is an ever growing problem in the dog world. About two thirds of my clients i have to have this conversation with. They usually don’t see it. And, annoyingly, their vets often told them the dog was fine regardless of how overweight they are.
The thing is, I have no gain from telling you your dog is fat. On the contrary - I might risk offending you and you not wanting to work with me.
Your vet, on the other hand, benefits financially from the medical issues your dog is going to have as a result of being obese.

New year, new me… and an immediate influx of weight clinic patients.

Apparently January inspires reflection, resolutions, and dogs of increasingly generous proportions.

On the Examination of a Dog of Indistinct Boundaries

“The subject presented as a Labrador in spirit, though its physical composition suggested a near equal union of retriever and lipoma. Anatomical landmarks were rendered largely theoretical, owing to a generous and enthusiastic accumulation of adipose tissue, complicating efforts to locate anything of clinical interest.”

Palpation proved speculative.
Dietary advice was offered.
Compliance remained uncertain. 🕯️🐕

04/01/2026

If you want maximum freedom for your dog while protecting the safety of other animals, join ARDO. 2026 update article below.

Keeping Our Supporters Informed On 22 December 2025, the Government published its “Animal Welfare Strategy” (applies to England only) Included in this was its intention to carry out a consultation, "later in this Parliament on whether to ban the use of electric shock collars” While no dates or...

16/12/2025

There's a lot of good content on that page and I certainly enjoyed reading this particular post. Very well written and a point well made.

THE “P WORD” SOME DOG TRAINERS HAVE FORGOTTEN

Training is going on all around us all the time.

So too is bad behavior.

Most of the time, however, bad behavior is put in check, not by rewards but by aversive consequences.

These two men will stop fighting pretty quickly once the police come, and they will not be quick to fight again after the police haul them to the station, book them, and they have to explain to their spouse, children, and boss why they have to go to court, pay a fine, and spend the weekend in jail.

No policeman ever said: "We have to know why they are fighting in order to change their behavior"

No policeman ever said: "It will take a long time to teach them not to fight."

Police and the criminal justice systems know something; Fighting is a self-rewarding behavior.

Sometimes it feels good to get the adrenaline up and pop someone in the nose.

And yet, it doesn't happen too often in our daily lives because time and experience has shown us that staying calm and walking away results in a better long-term outcome almost every time.

When did we learn that? Was it second grade when we were pulled down to the principals office and our parents were mortified because we were suspended for a day?

That didn't take? Then the penalties got higher until they did. How much do you want to lose? Your allowance? The car? Your freedom? Your job? Your future?

Our entire legal system swings on penalties to stop self-rewarding behavior, whether they are penalties for simple assault or robbery, sexual assault or embezzlement.

Why is our legal system focused on penalties?

Because they work.

Rewards are great for encouraging people to show up early, study hard, and help paint the gym, but none of those behaviors are internally self-rewarding, which is why they have to be externally self-rewarding.

How do you stop internally self-rewarding behavior, and how do you stop it pretty damn quick?

Punishment. The "P" word.

And does punishment work? What if it physically hurts these two men? What if it psychology damages them or their community? Is there a better way?

Those last three questions are good ones to ask, but they are subordinate to the FIRST question: Does it work?

Did having the police show up, book these guys, and send them to court and jail (while taking a deep dive into their wallets) discourage them from rushing out to fight again?

Yep. That works. Significant memorable consequences are remembered and shape future behavior.

That's why punishment is the core response used to stop self-rewarding anti-social behaviors all over the world.

But that's not how the modern dog trainer does it, is it?

They suggest we try to distract these two men with something shiny or fun. Perhaps a girl, or a martini, or a five dollar bill.

They suggest we exercise these two men more so they are too tired to fight.

They suggest letting them fight and as soon as one slows down and is not swinging quite as hard as the other one, that we jump in and say "what a good boy" and toss them an Oreo cookie to encourage more of that kind of behavior.

They suggest turning our back on them and just ignore the fighting.

They suggest having one work the night shift, and the other the day shift, so they never run into each other.

They suggest that we try to figure out why they are fighting. Maybe they need to be socialized more? Maybe it's a medical thing? Maybe they're bored or its a dominance thing? Have they both been neutered? Is it smell? Are they resource guarding? Is a woman in heat nearby?

But you know what they never quite get around to suggesting? Punishment.

And you know what they never quite get around to asking? Did the punishment work?

Ask the trick trainer how to stop a dog barking at every squirrel it sees through a window, and it's either "pull the blinds" or "teach a down stay," or my absolute favorite: "teach the dog to bark on cue and then never give the cue."

Putting a bark collar on the dog is not suggested. That's too easy. Where's the 50-hours in training at $20 an hour in that?

But does it work?

Like new money.

09/12/2025

“Humane”
“Safe”
“Revolutionary!”
“Incredible!”
“So clever!”
“Conservation in action!”
“Amazing technology!”

But when it’s a dog wearing something that actually delivers NOWHER NEAR the electrical pulse that that chain delivers, and the purpose is not to ‘guide grazing’, but to ‘save f4cking animal lives’ … We hear ..

“Barbaric!!😡”
“Shock!”
“Pain!”
“Fear!”
“Abuse!!😡”
“Cruelty!! 😡😡”
“Sign our petition to BAN THEM!!!😡😡”

That’s how screwed up society is.

Spoon fed whatever bu****it narrative the mainstream media is influenced to feed you.

To any WELSH politician with children who sees the collars for livestock and dogs as being somehow different - who sees the livestock collar as being more morally acceptable …

Remember, a cow can feel a fly land …

Let me put each one on your child.

The dog collar first. I will completely control that collar. I will incrementally match what your child feels in accordance with their individual sensitivity, the behaviour required to protect them and the given context. I will TEACH your child without ever subjecting them to harm.

Then the other one - the livestock collar … I’m not prepared to attach that one to your child I’m afraid. I know better.

You can do that.

You’re “OK” with that one …

Now let technology demonstrate how humane it is - minus any human judgement. The tech doesn’t require any kind of human understanding - it’s fabulous right! It’s a ‘breakthrough in conservation grazing and livestock movement control’.

Let the lack of human compassion, understanding and empathy guide what your child experiences.

You are not to get involved at all. That’s a definite, because YOUR involvement renders the technology abusive and subjects your child to untold harms.

Your government banned one - the one which is repeatedly proven to save lives, and allows for human decision making as to the necessity and benefits of it’s occurrence, yet welcomes the other with open arms - the cattle collar - which simply does what it does, at whatever level the electrical pulse is set to, regardless of context or
Individual sensitivity.

It’s a one size fits all - to protect grasses and cut the trouble and costs of standard fencing and training.

So there it is .. A simple offer …

Yes or no?