Canine Coaching with Sam

05/11/2026

🎆 Bonfire Night – sending love to all the dogs (and their humans!) who will struggle tonight. ❤️🐾

My dog has always been pretty bombproof when it comes to fireworks. But he's currently recovering from a broken wrist, and over the past week I've noticed he's become worried by some of the louder bangs. Pain reduces their resilience.

So my job is simple. Help him feel safe, reassure him when he needs it and keep him happily occupied with chews and lick mats.

Because even with all the preparation in the world, some dogs really struggle with fireworks. And my heart goes out to the owners dealing with this, not just tonight, but for the next few weeks and months. ❤️

Most of you will already have your firework survival plans in place, but if this is your first Bonfire Night with a new dog or puppy, here are a few tips:

🐾 Create a safe space – somewhere cosy they can retreat to if they want.
🐾 Shut the curtains and pop the TV or music on – help muffle the bangs and flashes.
🐾 Bring out the good stuff! Chews, lick mats, stuffed Kongs and anything else they enjoy. If they're not interested, they are too worried to eat - don't try and force them.
🐾 Be there for them; if they want comfort, give it! You won't reinforce their fear by reassuring them.
🐾 Keep them safe, toilet trips on lead, secure doors and gardens, and avoid going out when fireworks are likely.

And most importantly, let your dog tell you what they need. Some want cuddles, some want to hide, and some would rather just be left alone.
❤️🐶

05/11/2026

🐾 As if I need an excuse to spend MORE time with dogs.. I've now started teaching puppy classes for

So, as well as working with dogs who have big feelings about the world, I now get to hang out with the little ones who are just starting to figure it all out.

Waggy tails, puppy kisses, tiny sharp teeth, occasional chaos and a lot of laughing! What's not to love?! 😂

I'm really looking forward to meeting lots more puppies and their humans, and helping them get off to a great start. 🐾🐶

29/10/2026

Surprisingly little of what I do is actually dog training. 🐾 Yes, I teach dogs things. But a huge part of my job is understanding WHY they're doing the things they're doing in the first place.

Why does one dog bark and lunge at every dog they see? Why does another freeze when a dog appears in the distance? Why can a dog walk past ten dogs without a problem, then completely lose the plot at number eleven?

And why can they do absolutely everything you ask in your living room, but seemingly forget you exist the moment you step outside? It's about behaviour. How dogs think, how they feel, what they're experiencing and how all of that influences what they do.

This is already a huge part of what I do, particularly with dogs who struggle with the world around them. Because understanding WHY a dog is reacting is far more useful than simply trying to stop the reaction. The more I work with these dogs, the more fascinated I become by what's going on underneath the behaviour we can see.

So, because apparently I don't have enough to do, I've decided to take my learning a step further and study for a Level 6 Diploma in Clinical Canine Behaviour with the Canine Behaviour College.

It's an opportunity to build on the knowledge and experience I already have, explore the science in greater depth and work towards a qualification that reflects the behavioural side of my work. Because however much you know about dogs, there's always more to learn. And that's one of the things I love!

16/10/2026

🎆 Firework season is coming… is your dog ready? 🐾
Love them or loathe them, fireworks are part of autumn and winter. And while some dogs barely notice them, for others it's a really scary time of year.

Things you can do to help:
🐾 Get those walks in early.
🐾 Create a safe space. A cosy den, a quiet corner, or wherever your dog feels most comfortable. Let them choose.
🐾 Shut out the bangs. Close the curtains, pop the TV or music on and have some tasty chews ready.
🐾 Comfort your dog. Please don't ignore them if they're frightened. You can't reinforce fear by offering reassurance. If they want a cuddle, give them one.

🐾 Make fireworks predict something good. Keep some really tasty treats handy. If there's a bang and your dog is comfortable enough to eat, scatter a few treats. We want them thinking "Ooh, where's the food?" rather than worrying about the noise.

One important thing: If your dog is too frightened to eat, don't push it. They're telling you they're struggling. Focus on helping them feel safe instead.

💚 And a little extra help…
Pet Remedy's calming products may help some dogs feel more relaxed. They're not a magic wand, but they can be a useful addition to your firework survival toolkit.
You can get 25% off Pet Remedy using my link:
👉 https://petremedy.co.uk?ref-link=CCWS

More advice in my blog, including how to prepare puppies for their first firework season and where to find free sound therapy recordings. Read my Firework Season Top Tips: https://caninecoachingwithsam.co.uk/2025/08/28/firework-season-top-tips/

07/10/2026

Interesting reading...

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18/09/2026

Sometimes, the best thing you can do for your dog is… not walk them. 🐾

Rocket hasn’t been for a proper walk for over three weeks.

He broke his wrist, and while we waited for surgery, he was on pain medication and getting around on three legs. He actually coped brilliantly, and I know he would have absolutely loved to go out on an adventure.

But he couldn’t. And do you know what? He was okay.
Why?
Because having a day at home isn’t something new to Rocket.

He has always had rest days. Days without walks. Days where we stay home, potter about, sniff in the garden, do a bit of enrichment… or simply do nothing.

Of course he LOVES going out and exploring. But he also knows how to relax when that isn’t happening.

And this is one of the reasons I encourage people to give their dogs rest days.

Not because walks aren't important, they are, but because life happens.

Your dog might be ill.
You might be ill.
The weather might be really awful.
Something might happen that means your normal routine suddenly isn't possible.

And sometimes, just like us, our dogs need a duvet day away from the noise, excitement and hustle of the outside world.

If staying home is already something they're comfortable with, those unexpected days can be so much easier.

Sometimes, the skill we really need to teach our dogs is how to do less. 💛

05/09/2026

One of the things I love about doing what I do is that no two dogs, or sessions, are ever quite the same. Over the last month or so I’ve worked with a brilliant mix of dogs, all with very different personalities, different challenges and VERY different opinions about how the world should work 😂 Here's just a few:

🐾 Spud the German Spitz, whose inner watchdog is very much alive and well. We’re helping him realise he doesn’t actually need to be responsible for everything that happens around him, while building confidence, connection and calmer choices.

🐾 Maui, a French Bulldog/Dachshund mix, who can find dogs, people and unexpected things on walks a bit much. We’ve been working on catching those moments before he reacts, creating space and giving him better options. We’ve also had the slightly unusual task of convincing him that his new sofa steps are incredibly boring and absolutely do not need attacking.

🐾 Rodney, a Dachshund, a young rescued dog still figuring out whether the world is safe. His work has been all about confidence and optimism, giving him simple skills that help when something falls into the “hmmm… really not sure about that” category.

🐾 Benny, a Staffy/Spaniel/Bulldog mix, an 8-month-old pup who is actually a really lovely, balanced little chap. With him it’s been much more about putting good skills in place now , recall, engagement, confidence around unfamiliar things and helping him make good choices when dogs, birds and the rest of the exciting world appear. (Handsome Benny is in the photo)

🐾 Mia the Miniature Dachshund, who has quite a lot on her to-do list 😂 Dogs on walks need barking at, interesting things on the floor need eating, open doors need investigating and recall is apparently optional. We worked on management, disengagement, recall, boundaries and helping her learn that choosing her humans can be far more rewarding.

🐾 Daisy, a Romanian Rescue, who is settling into a new home and can find visitors difficult to deal with. For her, it’s about reducing the pressure, creating distance, changing how she feels about those things and giving her humans some practical ways to help her when situations start to feel too much.

🐾 And then there’s Leo, another Romanian rescue dog who has only just arrived with his new human and is right at the beginning of his new life. For now, his job is simply to settle in, get acquainted, learn about his new world and discover that actually… this new life is pretty awesome. ❤️

And alongside all of those have been plenty of reactivity sessions, dogs learning to work around other dogs, settle in their presence, move through more challenging environments, disengage and regulate all those BIG feelings.

Different breeds. Different backgrounds. Different personalities. But very often, underneath the behaviour their humans originally contact me about, there’s a dog essentially saying:

“I don’t really know what I’m supposed to do here.”
And a huge part of my job is helping them learn. ❤️🐾

Usually with the assistance of a frankly ridiculous quantity of tiny treats.

19/08/2026

REACTIVE. REACTIVITY. REACTIVE DOG.

We hear these words a lot, but what do they actually mean?
For some people, reactive sounds like another word for aggressive. But it really isn’t that simple.

My dog can be reactive to other dogs. What does that look like?
Some days it’s a hard stare.
Sometimes he freezes.
Sometimes he barks.
A long time ago, it could look like a barky, snarly, spinning, lunging disaster on the end of the lead.

But reactivity doesn’t always look dramatic.
At its simplest, reactivity is a dog having a bigger response to something than they can comfortably manage in that moment.

And those big feelings can come from lots of places.
Fear.
Worry.
Excitement.
Frustration.
Over-arousal.

The dog barking and lunging because they desperately want another dog to go away can be reactive.

The dog barking and lunging because they desperately want to get over there and say hello can be reactive too.

Different emotion. Similar problem.

In that moment, the dog doesn’t have the skills to cope with what they’re feeling and make a better choice. And that’s a much more useful way to think about reactivity than simply labelling a dog as “aggressive”.

If any of this sounds familiar, your dog might be reactive, even if you’ve never thought of them that way. And understanding why they’re reacting is the first step to helping them cope better. Let me know if I can help.

16/08/2026

One of the simplest ways to help improve walks with your reactive dog is to think about where you’re walking them.

We can get very attached to the walks we like. The beach, the park, the woods...

But if your dog struggles with off-lead dogs, unpredictable approaches or lots going on around them, then that might just be too difficult for them right now.

If your dog doesn’t yet have the skills to cope in that situation, putting them in it over and over again isn’t going to help them make progress.

They need opportunities to practise those skills somewhere they can cope first. That might mean quieter walks, more space, different times of day or, for a while, avoiding certain places altogether.

And even when your dog is doing better around other dogs, if they don’t want dogs coming into their space you still have to think about how much control you actually have over the environment.

You can’t rely on every owner noticing that your dog needs space, or being able to call their dog away. There’s another slightly annoying thing to think about too...

If you’re scattering food, playing games or using toys to help your dog around other dogs, you can inadvertently make yourself really interesting to the very dogs you’re trying to avoid. 😂

So sometimes improving your walks isn’t about teaching another new skill. It’s about choosing an environment where your dog can actually use the skills they already have and gradually build the ones they don’t.

11/08/2026

7 years ago, Rocket couldn’t be in a field with another dog — even if that dog was on the opposite side.

Look at him now. ❤️

This is Rocket with his “friend” Kenny, and honestly, seeing how far he has come makes me incredibly proud.

But there’s an important bit to this story…

Just because Rocket can do this with Kenny, doesn’t mean he can do it with every dog.

This isn’t about “fixing” reactivity or teaching Rocket that he should be fine around dogs.

This is the result of two years of building trust, confidence and understanding.

🐾 Kenny has learned to respect Rocket’s space and, importantly, not attempt to interact with him.

🐾 Rocket has learned that Kenny is not a threat.

🐾 Rocket has learned that being around Kenny can be a safe and predictable experience.

🐾 And, over time, Rocket has developed the skills and confidence to make good choices for himself.

So how did we get here?

By not putting Rocket in situations where he was overwhelmed and unable to make good choices.

Instead, we worked on confidence building, giving him practical skills, listening to his communication and carefully managing his environment so that he could succeed.

And that’s the bit I really want people to take away from this video:

Progress doesn’t mean your dog can suddenly cope with everything.

It means they have learned that they can cope with certain things — and that’s something we can build on.

Rocket doesn’t need to be friends with every dog.

He doesn’t even need to interact with Kenny.

He just needs to feel safe enough to exist alongside him.

And after years of finding that incredibly difficult…

Look at him now. 🥹❤️