Debbie Topping IMDT -Dog Training

01/09/2025

EYE FOCUS EXERCISE 👀
Show the dog you have a treat.
Hold the treat out to one side
Other than looking at dog don’t move or say anything. Dog may bark, jump up at the treat etc. eventually out of a form of frustration and because they are already learning to look at you for solving their problems, dog will glance at you as though to say “ how do I get the treat?”
You say “good” and offer the treat to them.
Focus is an important exercise to teach as it is required to assist learning in many of the exercises going forward.
Next level there is another video in comments.

19/08/2025

Do our expectations of our dogs cloud our judgment of what THEY want❓⁉️

🐶 Not EVERY dog wants to go to dog parks, daycares, have multi house guests and have birthday parties with other dogs!
🐕🐶🦮🐕‍🦺🐩🐾

To think that every dog has to be “social” with other people 👨👩🧑🤷‍♂️🤷‍♀️🤦‍♂️🤦🤦‍♀️ and dogs is wrong. Not all dogs need to like your friends. Love and advocate for your dog enough to respect their boundaries. ❌⛔️

If your dog doesn’t want to meet every dog. Stop making him ‼️
Learn to read his body language, he’s probably already read some dogs body language and made his decision, the right one for him, it should be a freedom of choice that we shouldn’t remove.
If that’s his choice get him out of there, don’t hold him there while the dog approaches.

Your dog can be perfectly happy without overstimulating daycare or doggy birthday parties. 🎂🥳🎉🎊Those things are certainly fun for some dogs, but not for all.
It doesn’t make you a better owner 🥇🎖️🏆of your dog, it just makes YOU think that you are. 🤔

“I want to take my dog everywhere, I want my dog to run around the park playing with all the other dogs “,
Let’s ask the dogs what do they REALLY want?🤷‍♀️🐕

I think a lot of their replies, not all, would answer like this;
Dogs want more sniffy walks. 🐿️🦌🐾🐇
Plenty of quality time with their favourite people. 💕
A set of familiar and well matched dog friends. 🐶🐶🐶🐶
Streams, lakes and mud to play in. 💦🦆
Activities and games that complement their breed traits and needs.🐏🥎🦆🐀
A quiet safe place to decompress, 💤💤
Space to stretch their legs and run 🎄👟
and for us to learn and to respect their body language and boundaries.

They do talk to us; we all should learn to listen. 🙉👂

The above doesn’t mean to say that we shouldn’t encourage their confidence in situations, but it’s important not to lose sight and think they are enjoying something because we want them to. 👓🤓

11/08/2025

Look at this gorgeous Romanian rescue girl 😍 I was privileged to be asked to work with this girl and her adopter from a few months ago. I love these sessions as they are not about what this dog has been taught to do but all about her state of mind. Her adopter, who is extremely tuned in with her girl, rates success in how she now rarely feels the need to use her dens under bushes in the garden. Which dogs she is comfortable to greet out walking and which are her favourites ( this girl is not reactive but her parent reads her subtle body language) which rooms in the house she is most comfortable in. The way this girl has learned subtle communication with a look, the physical contact that she most enjoys, her preference in games, her love of zoomies 😂
They are in no rush and it’s very special to witness how this girl is now feeling so happy, loved and safe. She’s truly learnt that her adopter advocates for her in all situations. Our sessions are a breath of fresh air for me.
She’s a very lucky rescue girl.

05/08/2025

Re posting as this is relevant to a few dogs I’m working with atm

02/08/2025

31/07/2025

Rosettes and certificate day for completion of puppy foundation course at Lancashire Dog Training & Behaviour centre. What a fun & supportive group.
Next puppy foundation course and puppy advanced course start Wednesday evening 6th August at 6.00pm and 7.00pm.

31/07/2025

This is Maddie, (smaller pup) a totally blind pup that I was given the honour of fostering to train by Doodle Rescue. She has gone on to be adopted by an amazing family Kt St and has the most wonderful life.

26/07/2025

We’re been having fun at Puppy foundation class Lancashire Dog Training & Behaviour centre, Next new puppy course starting soon.

23/07/2025

Let's meet another finalist in the Animal category for the BBC Radio Manchester Make a Difference Awards!

Debbie Topping from Bury volunteers at a dog rescue changing the fortunes of disabled and neglected dogs by training them and transforming their lives!

Listen to the full story on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/4o0KQKg

19/07/2025

Yesterday I yet again saw a close call using a flexi-lead on a pavement. Young girl walking her small dog. Dog swerved at something, girl dropped the flexi-lead. It made a clatter as it hit the ground and as little dog shot forward recoiled at speed, terrified dog ran straight across a busy main road. Fortunately no harm other than lots of shocked tears, but that’s only because of luck.

Flexi-leads; ⚠️one of my pet hates.
How often do we pull them out to their full extent to check them for wear and tear? And yet they retract so quickly that it becomes a highly likley occurrence that they will wear thin in places.
They are rarely longer than 8 metres , so hardly giving pup that feeling of freedom.
Unlike a long lead you do not have the luxury of gradually being able to feed out and in, pups will run to the extent of the distance and get stopped with a sickening jolt, especially if they are longer than 8 metres.
It’s very easy to knock the brake off by mistake and for that reason should NEVER BE USED ⛔️as replacement of a short lead on public highways
They are no good for training, you need both hands to help indicate to and reward a pup and with the cumbersome plastic handle, pup invariably gets a wallop from the handle.
Should for whatever reason the handler drop the flexi-lead, usually because pup has run into the end of it’s extension and the handle is unexpectedly yanked from the handlers hand, it immediately starts to retract at speed, the noise of it, especially as it bounces on cinder or stony tracks of this noisy object chasing them and on catching them up bashing painfully around their legs, causing a terrified pup to bolt is sadly a frequent occurrence.
I’m not saying there is never a use for them, but in my opinion these occasions are rare‼️

06/07/2025

CLASSIC FAIL! ; A video taken 12 months ago, I wanted to demonstrate starting to proof the stay so adding distraction. 😂 convinced I was inviting a game Eliza went into full blown zoomies 😂

04/07/2025

This course is now fully booked!
4 week scent work course starting soon in Birtle. Ideal for any age of dog including pups and veterans. This class will be limited to 4 dogs only ! Please WhatsApp or text Debbie for further information or to secure a place on 07967 720758