Dog Training By The Bark Park

27/05/2023

🩷🩵 BUSY BEES 🐝🩷🩵

We had a jam packed training day yesterday here at the Bark Park and we got to see these 4 absolute diamonds 💎

Lots to talk about and train which I will share some of over the coming week.

But it was an absolute pleasure to meet Muffin, Bear, Dougie & Lola.

Congratulations to their owners for a) seeking help as that's not always easy in the first place and b) being totally awesome owners accepting and understanding their own dogs feelings and how to move forward to help them.

These young ones are fluctuating in their emotions and training right now but will shine through now that we understand them a bit better.

Super proud of their owners 🫶

26/05/2023

🩵 PATIENCE🩵

Honestly, sometimes dog training for the dog and sometimes us is boring! 😳

But patience is not the ability to wait but the ability to keep a good attitude whilst waiting.

We live in a society of everything happening so quickly, we order from Amazon, boom it is there the next day. But when you are dealing with dogs who have emotions, feelings and other agendas, it's not that simple.

Especially dogs going through adolescence and dogs who struggle with interactions ( humans and dogs).

We need to tap into our inner ability to be patient and work alongside THEM and THEIR speed NOT OURS.

Yes, this can be inconvenient but if YOU was working through something and someone just kept telling you to hurry up, telling you off and making you do things you couldn't do or cope with, how would you feel?

Exactly....

25/05/2023

🩷 TEENAGE TROUBLES 🩷

Meet Tilly, the sweetest cutest Lhasa Apso 🫶

She is in prime adolescence, just like Bear the other day, and she is deciding that she can't hear you when you recall her 😳🙈

We have implemented some easy back to basic recall training and also what to do when it goes wrong and she doesn't listen.

Teenagers, like humans will have good and bad days so it is important to understand their emotional responses too.

She will get there 👊

24/05/2023

🩷TRAINING TIP OF THE DAY🩷

The 3D's are used when we want to make sure a behaviour on cue becomes reliable no matter what 👊

They are :-

⏰ Duration
🛤️ Distance
🤹 Distraction

The main principles to use them are :-

🩵 Low & Slow - Start with them super low difficulty wise and build slow
🩵 Increase one at a time - if your are increasing duration, keep distraction low for example
🩵 If you increase your criteria/level then pay well for it! More rewards please!
🩵 Keep sessions short and fun

23/05/2023

🩷 CUTE PUPPY ALERT 🩷

This is Lola, a 5 month old Doberman who is just the sweetest girl you could wish for.

She has had 2 sessions so far and she is absolutely smashing her training! 👊

She is going to be and already is an amazing ambassador for Doberman's.

All praise has to go to her owners though who are super skilled at understanding her and implementing her training from here at the Bark Park Training.

Honestly those ears though! 🫶 And her swishy toy face 🥰

Hope this has brightened your Tuesday morning with some puppy spam ☺️

22/05/2023

⭐ TOP TIP ⭐

It is such a common mistake to make our training sessions too long.

Not only is it tiring for your dog but also for us!

Mentally there is a lot to think about so we should keep our training sessions short and snappy so everyone doesn't get bored!

Something to bare in mind when your dog starts to not respond 😉

22/05/2023

💙 ADOLESCENCE 💙

Meet Bear 🐻

He is an 18 month old adolescent male rescue dog 🫶 who was displaying some unwanted behaviours to us but in his world, totally not a problem 🙈😅

He came to THE BARK PARK dog training yesterday to work on some skills that his adolescent brain had on the surface seemed like he had forgotten.

Adolescence (6 months - 2 years approx) can be a really tricky time for dogs to navigate, especially males and all their testosterone 🥴😳

So it is paramount we try and understand them and what each dog is going through and help them through this stage.

We worked on his recall and loose lead walking amongst other things and his owners were literally amazing at training him 👏👏

Understanding what he is going through at this age can really help reboot his training and help us to be compassionate and not get frustrated.

I think you will agree he is an absolute beaut and such a good poser 💙💙

21/05/2023

TRUTH BOMB 💣

One of the first things I tell owners when they first work on recall is "Your dog will only come back to you if it's worth it!"

It hurts that your praise may not be good enough sometimes but we have to look at what your dog finds reinforcing, not what you think they find reinforcing.

This is definitely applicable for dogs that struggle around distractions in particular.

Finding out what is worth their while is sometimes the challenge.

But part of the fun 😁

19/05/2023

Meet Bruno 💞

Please excuse the picture- his recall was so fast, it was hard to get a still of him! 🙈🤣

Bruno is only 20 weeks, I know, yes he is this big at 20 weeks! But what an absolute gentle giant 🫶

Bruno and his owners came to the Bark Park Dog Training just to implement some good foundations for recall and loose lead walking.

The bigger he gets, the stronger he will get, so kudos to his owners for forward thinking. It is much easier to prevent problems than it is to change them. Not that it can't be done. It just takes a little longer 💙

Huge congratulations to his owners 👏👏👏

Their training skills were on point and now it's a case of just implementing in lots of different situations.

Can't wait to see his progress 🩷

18/05/2023

TRAINING TIP OF THE DAY 🩷

If your dog is not listening to you then maybe you are communicating in the wrong information.

Try showing them what you would like them to do and stop just telling them what you don't want them to do. It may feel as though you are communicating in your way but if your dog isn't responding, they are obviously saying they haven't got a clue what you want them to do 🙈

Perfect example : Your dog pulls on the lead, we pull them back, they pull again, we pull them back, you get the idea.... Try rewarding your dog for being next to you and using your attention and communication for when they are next to you so you show them what you want, which is being next to you 👊

Refocus your energy 🫶😁

17/05/2023

Looking for professional, AFFORDABLE dog training services in the Ribble Valley areas? We can help! 🐶

THE BARK PARK have launched their very own dog training service, based completely on-site at their park in Whalley, Clitheroe, Lancashire. This wonderful service is provided exclusively by the talented Michelle Underwood.

This fantastic new service is based on-site at THE BARK PARK, Whalley. If you are interested in scheduling a session with Michelle, or if you'd like to receive some more information, you can do so via either one of the following ways:

- Contact Michelle directly via email: [email protected]
- Contact Michelle directly via phone: 07737 979659.
- Book your dog training session online, or receive more information via our website: www.thebarkpark.co.uk/dogtraining
- Send us message across our dedicated social media pages: Training By 'THE BARK PARK'

A little bit about Michelle:
- Michelle is a fully qualified dog trainer. She is a member of the APDT (01325) and the ABTC.
- Formerly a qualified Puppy School tutor under the internationally renowned dog trainer and behaviourist Gwen Bailey, she later became the Head Coach for the Dogs Trust Dog School in Devon.
- She is a qualified assistance dog trainer for Veterans with Dogs, a qualified Dog Yoga instructor & qualified trick trainer.

Despite initially specialising in puppies, as time has gone on adolescent dogs, older dogs and rescue dogs have become her passion too. She loves to train her own dogs in scent work, fun gundog activities, tracking and parkour. Two of her favourite things to help owners with is recall and loose lead walking.

In the past 10 years she has trained thousands of dogs and owners, helping them live harmoniously in the everchanging challenges of the modern world.
She is a positive, force free dog trainer and continuously develops her skillset, keeping up to date with the latest training methods. She is a firm believer that every dog and their owners are individuals, and working together to create harmonious relationships is the ultimate aim.

Michelle is very much looking forward to helping you with your best friend 🐕💕

Dog training at THE BARK PARK, Whalley, by Michelle Underwood. 1000s of dogs & owners successfully trained over the last decade! Specialising in puppy, rescue, adolescent and older dog training. Previously mentored by the internationally renowned dog trainer and behaviourist Gwen Bailey, Michelle ha...