Love Your Paws

06/09/2025

🐾🧡 SAYING GOODBYE WITH GRATITUDE 🧡🐾

Today feels a little bittersweet. I’m saying goodbye to our current logo, and to the little dog who has sat at the centre of it from the very beginning.

When Love Your Paws first started, we were a dog walking business. From there came puppy classes, one-to-ones, workshops, and eventually a whole calendar of classes. Over time, our path has led us more and more towards scent work, which is now at the heart of everything we do.

Through all of these changes, one thing has always remained the same: our ethos of thoughtful training. For us, that means truly understanding our dogs, seeing life from their perspective, and putting them at the centre of every decision. That has never changed, and it never will.

Our logo has carried us through this whole journey, but it no longer reflects where we are now. It has served us so well, and today we say goodbye with much love and gratitude.

Tomorrow, I can’t wait to share what comes next. 💫

05/09/2025

🐾😊 CHANGE IS COMING...😊🐾

"Without change we stand still.
With change, we create possibilities”

(Anon)

04/09/2025

🐾🧡 DOG TRAINING COMPANY OF THE YEAR 🧡🐾

Earlier this summer I received notification that Love Your Paws has been named

South West England Prestige Awards Dog Training Company of the Year 2024/25 🥳

I’ll be honest, I didn’t rush to share it (it’s taken 3 months to do so! 🫣). I do this work because I love it.

I love seeing dogs and their people learning about each other, building strong partnerships, and finding ways to thrive together in the world. That’s always been the real reward.

It felt a little odd to make a post about an award, but when I mentioned it to friends recently, they gently told me off for keeping quiet. They reminded me that this is something to be proud of, and that being recognised for doing what I love is worth celebrating.

So here it is.

Love Your Paws has been named South West Dog Training Company of the Year for the second time. I’m proud of that, but even more proud of the community of thoughtful owners and wonderful dogs who make Love Your Paws what it is. ❤️

04/09/2025

🐾🧡 COLLABORATION THAT PUTS DOGS FIRST 🧡🐾

If you want to know what collaboration looks like in real life, picture this: three women, three businesses, and a group of dogs enjoying a walk together.

When I first started out, Jodie (Trails With Tails) had already been working as a dog walker for a while. Instead of guarding her patch, she welcomed me in, passing clients my way, giving advice, and helping me get established. That generosity set the tone for how I’ve always wanted to work.

A number of years ago, Jess (Smith and Snout) came to me as a training client. I watched how much effort she put into working with her dogs, supporting them through some tricky challenges, and I absolutely encouraged her when she later asked if dog walking might be right for her. Since then it’s been a joy to see her journey unfold, including qualifying as an IMDT trainer.

People sometimes imagine that we’re all in competition. In reality, the opposite is true. Each of us brings something slightly different, and that’s the strength. It means more choice for owners, more opportunities for dogs to get exactly what they need, and a community that grows stronger through support rather than rivalry.

Yesterday’s walk showed that in another way too. More than half the dogs with us had been through Love Your Paws training at some stage. For me, that highlights just how connected we all are, and how much the dogs benefit when professionals support each other rather than compete.

Collaboration will always matter more than competition, because when that’s the focus, it’s the dogs who win.

04/09/2025

🐾☀️ STILL A LITTLE BIT OF SUMMER LEFT ☀️🐾

September sessions are nearly full, but there are a handful of spaces left if you’d like to make the most of the sunshine before autumn arrives.

Here’s what’s still available:

🐶 Scent Work
• Intro to Catnip Workshop, Catnip Skills, and Catnip Adventure
• Foundation Kong Workshop
• Track n’ Trail sessions in Tehidy and Godolphin Woods
• Scent Club with Gun Oil for experienced teams

🐶 Community Sessions
• Chat n’ Train
• Mooch n’ Mingle
• Adventure Walks in beautiful Cornish spots

🐶 Hoopers
• Foundation and Progression classes

Plenty of choice whether you’re keen to try scent work, build life skills, or simply enjoy time with your dog and like-minded people.

01/09/2025

🐾🥳 HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAM 🥳🐾

Sam is 14 today ❤️

Life has never been straightforward for him. He’s found the world tricky in so many ways, and living alongside him has sometimes been a real challenge.

But age does have a way of softening things. These days he’s calmer, copes better, and there’s a gentleness about him I treasure more with every year.

He’s given me grey hairs, taught me countless lessons, and I love him all the more deeply because of it.

Happy birthday, my Sammy 🥳

30/08/2025

🐾🐶 NOSE WORK MAGIC 🐶🐾

Ever wondered what your dog’s nose is truly capable of?

At Love Your Paws, we explore nose work the following forms:

🐾 Scent work – dogs searching for specific odours in a variety of environments

🐾 Track n’ Trail – following the scent of a person across different terrains, using both ground disturbance and scent carried on the air

Nose work isn’t just “another class”. It’s a chance to see the world from your dog’s perspective, letting them use their most powerful sense in ways that are natural, rewarding and fun.

Why dogs love it

😊 Builds confidence as they learn to problem-solve
😊 Strengthens your bond as you work together as a team
😊 Keeps their brain and body active
😊 Offers a brilliant outlet for energy and stress

All dogs can take part – puppies, adolescents and adults, no matter the breed.

Foundation Scent Workshops are the perfect starting point, with Skills and Adventure sessions to progress to.

Track n’ Trail sessions run regularly and are for all experience e levels, from complete beginner.

If you’d like to see your dog light up with excitement while learning something new, this could be the perfect place to begin.

29/08/2025

🐾💬 ARE YOU A TREAT TRAINER? 💬🐾

It sounds like a simple question, but the answer is usually “no”… with a little smattering of “hmmm, yes.”

The “yes” part depends on who is asking. If you’re new to dog training, “treat trainer” is often just another way of asking if I use positive reinforcement, rewards-based, kind, thoughtful training.

The answer to that is an absolute yes. 🧡

But in every other sense, the answer is no.

To reduce thoughtful, rewards-based training to “treat training” is to miss the point entirely. Dogs learn through the consequences of their actions. If they perform a behaviour we like, and we reward that behaviour with something they like, they are more likely to do it again.

The important bit is this:

🐾 All dogs are different, and don’t all value the same things.

🐾 What they value can change depending on the situation.

🐾 The dog decides what is rewarding, not us.

When we truly understand this, our training improves and our relationship with our dogs deepens.

So if you’ve ever thought “treat training doesn’t work” because your dog won’t eat chicken near other dogs, or still pulls despite being given sausage, or ignores recall even if there’s a biscuit waiting — you’re right. Without understanding how reinforcement works and how to apply it, that is just treat training. And it doesn’t work.

Thoughtful training is about knowing what matters to your dog in that moment. Building behaviours layer by layer. Building predictability.

We can use food, toys, praise, a fuss, the chance to sniff a patch of grass or follow a scent on the wind. Rewards are as varied as our dogs are.

And yes, we do use food to reinforce behaviours when it’s the right choice — but there are no “treat trainers” here.

Just kind, dog-centred training that works. 🐶🐾

28/08/2025

🐾🐶 SNIFF, SEARCH, FIND IT! 🐶🐾

Imagine your puppy following their nose through a line of cones, working out which one hides the prize. At first they might try with their eyes, but soon their noses take over. Tails wag, confidence grows, and suddenly they’ve found it.

Every puppy can take part in scent work. It’s natural, rewarding, and full of small moments of success that help us understand our puppies better. 🧡

This Saturday we’re running a Puppy Scent Workshop designed especially for young dogs to take their very first steps into the world of scent work. It’s a fun, thoughtful introduction that will leave you amazed at what your puppy can do.

For full details or to book https://goteamup.com/p/9703411-love-your-paws/e/90830645-puppy-paws-scent-foundations-kong/

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28/08/2025

🐾🥰 SUNSHINE AFTER THE STORM 🥰🐾

Yesterday’s Adventure Walk took us to Pendarves Woods. The forecast had threatened rain, but instead we had sunshine breaking through after the storm. In places the shafts of light through the trees were absolutely stunning 🌳☀️.

Molly, Toby, Misha, Dottie, Nora and Nancy made up the pack 🐶🐾. Molly and Toby hit it off straight away, the kind of easy connection that sometimes happens when dogs of the same breed meet. The whole group loved splashing about in the stream and exploring together.

It was one of those mornings where everything just came together,happy dogs, good company and the beauty of the woods after rain.

These walks are about more than exercise.

They’re about connection, community and sharing time with people who love their dogs as much as you do 🐾🥰.

27/08/2025

🐾🐶 TRACKING ‘n TRAILING 🐶🐾

Could also be described as….

🙈 Hide & seek with your dog!

🆘 On lead search & rescue

🤩 The best fun you can have with your dog!!

Last week our Trackers n’ Trailers took to the woods & country lanes.

Aged tracks, cross tracks, distractions of other people & dogs, blind searches… each of the the dogs stamina & search resilience is growing with experience 🥰

Who knew it possible to have this much fun with your dog on lead!

Interested in learning more? Ask below or check out our website 😊