Agata Brzek - Dog Focused

07/04/2025

Yesterday we finished our 8 session programme with Baxter the spaniel.

Baxter was an unusual client for me, as he is not reactive, or over excited, and doesn't pull on lead.

In fact he's a perfect dog in many respects.

However Baxter developed a fear of the new wind turbine above Aviva in Perth .

The moment the turbine got switched on, something spooked him, and he started avoiding almost all locations where the turbine was visible from.

He would flatly refuse to move, and if off lead, he would charge past the scary places as fast as he could, and then wait for his owners.

No sweet talking, or treats, or balls would convince him that it was OK.

On the first session we couldn't do much. We got to a certain point, and tried some things, but he was not mentally available to work with.

But the last few sessions were really successful, and he was able to walk and engage with his people, take treats, or play with his ball, in places where he would not do that before.

The last session was at South Inch. On the way back home he needed to walk straight towards the turbine, and he did it with only minor hesitation.

All we did was introduce fun activities on walks, as we approached the scary places, and we always listened to what he was saying.

In this video he's searching for a few treats hidden around the tree. He loves scent games, so it worked really well for him.

Now Baxter is able to go for his normal walks, although this training must still be maintained, possibly for quite a long time.

Well done to his humans for putting in the work! They are absolutely fantastic, and committed, and I know Baxter will only get better now.

25/03/2025

A spaniel doing spaniel things😊

As a part of our training with little Skye, we introduced her to a gun dog dummy and it was an instant hit!

She loves searching for it in the garden, just like she would search for a bird out on a shoot.

It feels good in her mouth, the right shape, the right weight. Just like a little bird.

The majority of the gun dogs I meet absolutely love the dummies. I have a bigger canvas one, and also one covered with real rabbit fur.

The grin on the dog's face when he first grabs it is priceless.

We use the dummies to enrich the walks with breed specific activities, so the dog doesn't go hunting on his own.

We can practise retrieving, but what they enjoy most is the search. When the dog is busy elsewhere, we throw the dummy in the tall grass or other vegetation, and then call the dog for a search.

Great fun for a gun dog! And it's all with you, the handler, what could be better than that?

Dummies are available from any gun dog supplies store. They come in different shapes, weights and covers.

Ditch the old tennis ball and give your gun dog what he really wants.

24/03/2025

This cute little girl is Poppy. Yesterday we had our last session of the Training Walks programme.

Poppy came to me with some dog reactivity issues. Sometimes she would get so wound up, she would redirect onto her house mate, or her owner.

We took things slowly, at her pace, and I'm happy to report that she and her dad aced it!

They worked hard, and the results were obvious. Yesterday we walked in a very busy park, with lots of people and dogs, some of them running at full speed, and Poppy had only one little lunge, half-hearted I'd say, and then turned away.

At the first session this would have caused a massive explosion of barking and spinning and lunging, so we were very pleased with the improvement.

Well done team Poppy, you both rock!

If you're struggling with similar issues with your dog, please get in touch. We can definitely make your walks easier. I'm fully booked till the last week in April, but May is still almost all available at the moment.

22/01/2025

Do you play with your dog on walks?

Most people I talk to don't.

They also often complain that their dog doesn't come when called.

They complain that their dog prefers to follow other people and dogs than to stay with them.

They ask how to change that.

PLAY.

Your dog is your responsibility. You should provide entertainment for him, not rely on other people and dogs.

When your puppy goes out, he learns what out there is interesting, fun, exciting.

In most cases he quickly learns it's not you.

I never leave my house without food and a toy. Sometimes I don't use food at all, sometimes Arco just carries his ball but we don't play.

But with Merrick, who is just a baby, I use every opportunity to reward the behaviours I like.

Checking in, coming close, nice lead walking.

We play a lot, and I see that now he values staying with me more than chasing Arco.

And if we go to the town, he disengages from various distractions really quickly now.

I'm building strong foundations that will serve us well into the future.

And we're having fun.

As I was walking this morning I was thinking about all the dogs that run to everyone in the park, and how it makes my work so much harder, especially with reactive dogs.

And how my clients hate when an off lead dog charges at them, and how stressful it is, and makes them avoid walking their dog in any public places. ..

And, interestingly, how the dogs that play with their owners in parks are very unlikely to do that, they're engaged with their person, and ignore everyone else.

It's the dogs that never get to have fun with their handlers, that keep looking for something interesting to do and keep approaching everyone else.

The solution is so simple but people are so reluctant to do it.

Get a toy, put some treats in your pocket. Go out there and play with your dog 😊

05/01/2025

4 weeks ago my life changed, for the better of course. I welcomed this little cute dog into my family.

Meet Merrick, the Border Collie (I'm adding the breed here because many people already asked me what he was). He's 9 weeks old in these photos.

Having a puppy is an amazing experience. I'm aware that many puppy owners struggle with the typical issues of housetraining, biting, zoomies etc, so I'll give you my take and approach to this.

I'll tell you about Merrick's early life week by week, and hopefully you'll get some value from this. He is my puppy no 4, so I already have some habits and protocols that have helped with raising them.

Today we'll talk about week 1.

SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS: my puppies sleep with me in my bed, or I sleep with them in the living room. This time it's the latter.

I have a mattress on the floor, and Merrick can come to me and cuddle when he wants to. He's not crated at night, and I take him out every time he wakes up. It's not more than twice per night, usually once.

This is my best way to ease the puppy into a new home life. Remember until I brought him here, he was with his mum and littermates, and puppies sleep in a pile, not separately. They need to feel the warmth of each other, the heartbeats and softness of the little bodies. I provide that for him, and I've never had a single pip from any of the puppies I raised this way. They snuggle in and fall asleep instantly. They feel safe.

I do this until the puppy has a good bladder control over night, and enough independence to sleep all night on his own bed, without needing me (4-6 weeks).

HOUSE TRAINING: every 20-30 minutes the puppy is taken out. My whole attention is on him, and I'm super vigilant. We had a few incidents of course, which were cleaned with an enzymatic cleaner, but in general he was really good. No number 2s at all, only pees inside.

ALONE TIME: every day Merrick is left alone, in the crate, at least twice (Arco's walks). He's used to the crate, as the puppies had one at the breeder's home. He gets some goodies on a lickimat, and chews, so he's busy while I'm out. The maximum time alone is 2 hrs. I'm always watching for signs of anxiety, but I haven't seen any. None of my puppies never bothered with this. They just went to sleep. Of course I make sure the puppy has had some exercise, play, and potty break before I leave.

SOCIALIZATION: Merrick goes to work with me, so he meets some people there, and the first week he met one of the resident dogs, although he was in my arms, I didn't let them interact. At the end of the week we went to a village and he met some friends and one nice dog. He's super into dogs and people, very hard to distract, a big red flag for the future, we'll need to work on that.

He also went for a couple short walks with Arco, just in the fields near me. Again, totally obsessed with Arco, following him everywhere... as much as he could, of course, on his little legs. But able to engage with me and play with a toy a few times. Took treats as well, good treats, like cooked chicken or smelly puppy treats. I wouldn't even dream of offering him a kibble at that time.

PLAY: most of the time we just play. I want him to play with a variety of toys,, as well as food. I have lots of different toys at home, some are for everyday use, some are for walks only, and interaction with me. I want to see what his preferences are, and what he's clearly not interested in.

As with most puppies, he loves to chase long toys and catch them, and then tug. Also the horrible squeaky latex balls with faces are his very favourite (I think I lost a significant percentage of my hearing in the last few weeks).

And the flirt pole! Right from the get go, he loved it! At that stage he was still very clumsy and slow, so our play was a bit boring for me, but he had lots of fun.

Now for the biting part of puppy life, yes he was vicious that first week! I have scars to prove it. But as with the other puppies, I put on my padded working gloves and we played bitey-bitey with them. He quickly learned to only bite when the gloves are on, and leave my skin alone. He loves it, I love it, so it's a win for both of us. But I'm not saying that you should do that too. Especially if children are involved. In a single household it might work really well.

The alternative would be to get a big stuffed, realistically looking dog toy and play with it. Puppies really unload on a toy like this, and then you have peace and your hands are saved. I do use my stuffed black lab for this as well and Merrick can freely abuse it as much as he wants.

Play with food was introduced that week, again slowly and with zero difficulty, just dropping treats on the ground, or following a treat in my hand. Just to see what foods he likes, and how determined he is to get them.

TRAINING: only basics like food following. I'm more interested in play and engagement at the moment. I can teach him anything I want later. I was looking for some eye contact, a bit of hand touch, and a general prosocial attitude. And he's got lots of it.

RELATIONSHIP WITH ARCO: this was a biggie. Unfortunately Merrick wants to jump up at Arco and lick his face. Unfortunately this is the thing Arco hates most. Many of his angry outbursts at other dogs happened when the other dog jumped to his face. So it was, and still is, a constant work for me, although right now it's slightly better, but the first week was tough.

I have barriers at home, and I had to use them throughout the day, as the little dog was relentlessly trying to get to Arco, despite clear warnings. That week Arco went for him once, causing Merrick to scream and be terrified afterwards, but not enough to remember the lesson. for longer than half an hour...

There was a bit of friendly interaction towards the end of that week too. But generally Arco stayed on my bed knowing that the puppy couldn't reach him there.

In a multi dog house it may take a while to develop friendships, and it's our responsibility to be the mediator. I don't allow my dogs to 'sort things out themselves', I'm always there to offer support to either party. And if I can't be there, the dogs are separated. With Arco I know that he will be good with the puppy in a couple months at the max. But until that happens I supervise all interactions.

Ok, phew, so that was week 1. A lot of work, but also so, so rewarding! I'm absolutely loving it, although I'm still a bit sleep deprived. In a few days I'll post week 2. Now I have to go as the beast woke up...

01/12/2024

Sunday fun 😆

29/11/2024

Looking for something interesting to watch this weekend?

Look no further!

The Dog's Truth is a new free video that is a must for all dog lovers.

Previously only available as a paid course on Thinkific, it was recently released as a free resource for dog owners, as well as professionals who would like a simple introduction to the L.E.G.S. applied ethology model.

Watch and find out who your dog really is, and how to best help him to have a really good life that suits his individual needs.

The video is very engaging and beautifully made, and I'm absolutely sure you'll enjoy it.

If the contents resonate with you, and I'm sure they will, and you'd like to learn more about L.E.G.S. of your particular dog/s, get in touch, I've been a certified Family Dog Mediator for over 2 years, and can help you apply this knowledge in your everyday life.

Enjoy!

FULL PRO COURSE!https://kimbropheylegscourses.thinkific.com/courses/legs-applied-ethology-family-dog-mediation-professional-courseYOUR DOG is not broken, and...

24/10/2024

As we all know Dachshunds were originally bred to go down the badger holes.

They needed to be low and long, hence the short legs and super long bodies.

But, since we don't use them for this purpose any more, there's been a trend in recent years to breed shorter Dachshunds, which would also prevent some painful orthopaedic conditions.

Ogórek, in the picture, is a typical example of the new generation of Daxis. They're so short that their tails grow out of the back of their heads, so they never get any problems with their spines.

It's certainly a positive step in the history of dog breeding, one that I wholeheartedly support.
😉

22/10/2024

Only 2 spots left in November, both for Tuesday + Saturday.

Towards the end of the month there will be also some random appointments available, suitable for training and behaviour issues that do not requre frequent meetings.

The last week in November I need to keep clear, as I got the dreaded Jury Citation letter again...

So, if you're ready to work on your dog's outdoor manners, or interactions with other dogs, pop me a message, and we can book your in!

16/10/2024

Imagine your dog pulls on lead. Every single day.

When he was a puppy it wasn't so bad, and you could hold on to him with ease.

Now he's 11 months old, weighs 25 kg, is hyper social, and just drags you around like you're not even there.

He yanks the lead out of your hand, or he pulls you off your feet, you're exhausted by the end of the walk.

One day someone tells you to use this amazing collar, harness, lead, which will change your walks forever. So you buy it.

The transformation is instant! Your dog walks right by your side, or at least stops pulling the moment he hits the end of the lead. You're absolutely ecstatic, and you can't wait to go out with him again.

But a few days later you notice there is a little bit more tension on the lead, you need to stop your dog more often, bring him back to your side, correct more, or reward more, whatever your philosophy is.

Within a week or so you're back where you started: barely holding on to the end of the lead.

Sounds familiar?

It does for me. I've heard so many stories like this, that I now just nod and sigh, and I'm not at all surprised.

So what happened there? Why didn't this miracle equipment work?

That's because there is no miracle equipment.

No harness, collar, even head collar will cure your dog's pulling on lead if you don't put effort into teaching him how to walk with you.

What you experience with any new equipment is just that: novelty.

For your dog the sensation of having something new on his body will make him more aware of it, and may temporarily suppress his old ways of being.

He may pay a little less attention to smells, or be less excited to see his doggie buddies in the park. But as he gets used to the new equipment, all that goes back to normal levels.

Dogs will learn to pull on any harness you can imagine, on a slip lead, on a prong collar, and yes, on a head collar too.

They will ignore any discomfort they may feel, and just get on with their life.

It doesn't mean they don't suffer from it, it just means that other stimuli in the environment are more important in the moment than the tight collar, or the body distorting harness they're wearing.

Yet, I often recommend to get a new type of harness (usually) and perhaps a new lead, to jump start the training. Why?

Because we can totally take advantage of this "new harness" phenomenon.

Remember the first few days, when your dog's behaviour improved so much? Well, this is the time to really make sure we reinforce it, and keep working on the loose lead skills, and our handling.

These first days can really teach the dog how to walk, if we take an active part in it. If we're vigilant, plan our walks, choose where we go and who we meet., this can really be transformational.

But it rarely is. Because we believe that a piece of webbing on the dog's body has the power of teaching him anything.

It does not.

There is only one way to change the pulling, and it's called training.

Have a nice walk today😊

06/10/2024

I'm not great at taking photos of the dogs I work with. I'm too focused on actually training and, often, playing with them.

But I managed to take 2 pics yesterday, of Phinn the Lab, and Rex the Collie.

Both boys are adolescents, and struggle a bit with... life.

Between them they present with pulling, ignoring recall, having their own agenda, jumping at people, worrying about cars, wanting to meet every other dog, but also occasionally growling at them.

Rex is further on with his training, and recently his family took him to a cafe, where he actually relaxed and even watched other dogs calmly.

Phinn... well, we're working on it😂😉

But despite their struggles they're both awesome young guys, and very handsome, aren't they?

10/09/2024

We were on Bs today: Brambles, Bramble, and Bear😊

Little Brambles just finished her puppy package. She and her mum learned all the basics that a well behaved pup needs.

Bramble tends to bark at the world, so we're at the beginning of his training to help him develop better coping skills.

Young Bear is going through adolescence, and just discovered wildlife, so we're teaching him to ignore stuff and engage with his mum.

We had fun and games, and some sausage with the " canine students", and now it's time for me and Arco to have a relaxing walk by the river. X

21/08/2024

It's been a very busy summer, working with many lovely dogs and their people. As the days get shorter, we need to now think about the fast approaching autumn.

September's coming soon! How is it even possible?!

And with it a few available spaces for my Training Walks.

At the moment I have a Tue + Sat spot, starting on Sat 7th, and

Wed + Sun, starting on Wed 18th.

These are 1-2-1 sessions, held twice a week, for 3 or 4 weeks, depedning on what we need to work on. Price per session £35, so the 3 week package costs £210, and the 4 week package is £280.

All breeds and ages welcome. I've had the pleasure of meeting puppies, adolescent dogs, adults and seniors. From mini dachshunds, to Leonbergers.

Training Walks are a great option for you, if you've done your best to teach your dog, but you feel like you're not getting any further.

Or if you'd love to have a well trained dog, but you just don't have the knowledge, skills, or time, to do it right. At the sessions I can train your dog for you, and you'll only learn how to keep it going in the future.

Please note that not all behaviour struggles are a good fit for Training Walks, but I also offer weekly behaviour and training sessions, so please ask even if you are not sure if this is something for you.

Thanks🐾🐶

22/07/2024

Hello

I have 2 spots available for August Training Walks.

These are 1-2-1 sessions, we meet twice a week for 3-4 weeks, and work on yours and your dog's skills, confidence, and relationship out and about.

☑️ evening sessions available for those working 9-5
☑️ working shifts? - no problem, we can manage that too
☑️ multi-dog households welcome
☑️ great for puppies and young adult dogs
☑️ covering Perth and surrounding towns and villages

Price £280 for a 4 week programme, (8 sessions, for reactive dogs), £210 for 3 weeks (6 sessions - recall, lead walking and other training issues).

Please get in touch if it sounds interesting, or share if you know someone who could benefit from this training.