Katie The Dog Trainer

08/11/2026

✨Firework Recovery ✨

Firework stress lasts more than just one night. The decompression process takes time while the body returns to baseline.

When a perceived threat is detected the amygdala, the brains alarm system, sends messages to the hypothalamus activating the sympathetic nervous system preparing the body to be ready for action and self preservation. Initiating the fight, flight, freeze, fidget, fawn, faint response.

Fireworks have a massive negative impact but this doesn’t just last the night. Stress hormones can remain in the system for up to 72 hours depending on the intensity, consistency and longevity of the exposure. This remains keeping the body ready for action leading to impaired decision making, hyper vigilance and increased startle reflex at sudden noises.

A studying undertaken by The Kennel Club in 2024, highlighted the increase in dogs going missing during fireworks season, with a report 81% increase in dogs reported missing by their owners during the two weeks of November 2023 (Bonfire Night and Diwali). Keeping your dog on lead in the days following firework night is a simple management technique to prevent them becoming another bonfire night missing dog.

Keep them safe, keep them on lead 🧡

01/11/2026

🎃Pumpkin Recycling🎃

Halloween might be over but don’t throw out those pumpkins.

Pumpkins can make great novel enrichment for dogs with so many benefits including supporting digestion and overall gut health.

As long as they’re still in good condition, no mould, candle wax or paint. These can provide simple long lasting entertainment for your dog.

Some of my favourite pumpkin activities 🎃

👩🏼‍🍳 Bake, steam or boil to create a puree to add directly into their dinner or lickmat
🥎 Hollow it out, fill with their food or tasty treats to create a giant treat ball.
🎃 Give them a whole pumpkin to destroy. It’s a fantastic outlet for natural shredding behaviours.
🍪 Mix the pumpkin puree with flour, an egg, and dog-safe peanut butter to create tasty cookies.
❄️ Stuff a small pumpkin with tasty treats and freeze. This means the fun can last for longer.

Although eating uncooked pumpkin in large amounts can be trickier on their stomachs, pumpkins can provide a great outlet for natural behaviours such as ripping, shredding and tearing.

‼️ Safety First: Remember dogs should always be supervised with any enrichment to keep them safe and monitored their behaviour.

16/10/2026

11/10/2026

✨Rescued doesn’t mean broken ✨

We need to stop approaching rescue dogs as if they’re damaged goods…they’re living animals not wonky veg 🥕

Rescues are over capacity, facing never ending requests from people looking to hand over their dogs. Yet, rescue dogs are often seen as problematic, as if coming into rescue automatically means there is something wrong with them.

While some dogs come from difficult circumstances and may have more complex behavioural needs, this simply isn’t the case for all dogs in rescue.

There are many reasons why a dog might find themselves in rescue and more often than not it isn’t because of abuse or a significant welfare concerns. A large majority have had very stable, loving homes before coming into rescue care.

Relationship breakdowns, changes in finances, housing restrictions,sudden illness, death or a change in family circumstances can all mean a dog suddenly needs a new home, through no fault of their own.

The experience of being in rescue can be stressful, having their lives turned upside in a blind of an eye can come with trauma, stress and anxiety for some but that doesn’t mean these dogs are ruined beyond repair.

We need to stop using “sorry they’re a rescue” as a warning label. Rescue dogs aren’t any less capable of learning, problems that need fixing or less deserving of a loving forever home.

Rescued doesn’t mean broken
Rescued doesn’t mean untrainable

23/08/2026

What, like it’s hard to treat small dogs with respect ? 💅🏼

06/08/2026

✨Forcing your dog to interact with their triggers isn’t going to “fix” their reactivity ✨

09/07/2026

☀️Hot Weather Activities ☀️

In this weather when walks are an absolute no go it’s important to make sure our dogs needs are still being met while still keeping them cool.

A sudden change to their routine can be difficult for some dogs but that doesn’t mean risking their lives walking is the right move. Instead, get creative with how you meet their individual needs.

Enrichment doesn’t need to be expensive, in fact the least expensive options are often the best received and most rewarding.

Here are some alternative activities for hot days to keep them mentally and physically stimulated:

🐽 Hide their favourite toy or treats around the house or garden.
🍦Freeze natural yoghurt inside a container, bowl or slow feeding.
🫑Stuff dog safe novel fruits and vegetables with some tasty treats then freeze.
🧀 Practice a new trick.
🥎 Enjoy short, low impact toy play sessions.
📦 Create free-work areas with novel textures, sights, tastes and scents.
🪤 Hide treats under several bowls, plant pots or cups for them to sniff out.
🌱Set up new soil dig pits with hidden toys inside.
💦 Offer water enrichment with paddling pools, sprinklers, water fountains or introduce more water bowls.
🐇 Ask friends or family for pet fur or bedding to provide new scents for safe sniffing activities.

Aim for activities which encourage natural behaviours and incorporate functional problem-solving such as sniffing, tugging, digging, licking, chewing, searching while avoiding adding unnecessary stress or frustration.

🔥 Remember: Your resilience and tolerance decreases in the heat, this is no different for our dogs. Make sure they get plenty of rest and keep activities short.

How are you keeping your dogs entertained and cool during this heatwave ?

21/06/2026

Stop focusing on trying to fix their behaviour

When we think of resolving reactivity, often most of the focus, if not all, is on training to change their behaviour however training alone will rarely supports long term progress.

When implemented correctly, training can change the emotional response to their triggers therefore reducing their reactivity while creating alternative responses. However this is just one piece of a much larger puzzle.

Instead of focusing on fixing or stopping the behaviour we need to:

☀️ Create a safe, stable, predictable environment.
🐽 Prioritise activities that they truly enjoy.
🍃Introduce frequent decompression & rest days.
🩺 Investigate pain, discomfort and other potential underlying conditions.
💊 Speak with your vet about behavioural medication support.
🫐Provide a diet which supports their overall health.
🌳Introduce games which promote functional problem solving, boost resilience and increase overall confidence.

To help dogs feel confident, safe, secure and become emotionally regulated we need stop thinking of reactivity as purely a training issue and instead think how they experience the world around them.

02/06/2026