Dogs be Dogs

Dogs be Dogs Team of qualified Dog Trainers and Behaviourist using force free, positive, science based methods.

06/12/2025

Monty has always been relaxed about this because we worked on it from day one. No restraint. No wrestling. Just clear communication, choice and practice. Prevention is better than cure, especially with husbandry skills.

In puppy class today we focused on exactly this. The everyday skills that make vet checks, grooming and home care easier later on. These foundations matter just as much as sit and recall.

If you want to build this confidence early, you can book your puppy classes with us in Mapledurham or Sulhamstead.

Giving a treat will reward bad behaviour.Are we sure about that?Because it is not as simple as it sounds.Let’s clear som...
23/11/2025

Giving a treat will reward bad behaviour.

Are we sure about that?

Because it is not as simple as it sounds.

Let’s clear something up that comes up with almost every dog owner I meet.

A lot of people worry that if a dog barks and we give them a treat, we are rewarding the barking. It sounds logical on the surface, but dogs are not little machines choosing behaviours for points. They are emotional beings trying to cope with the world, just like us, just like toddlers, just like anyone who has ever sat in standstill traffic on the M4 wondering why they left the house in the first place.

Here is something from my own experience.

When Nero came to live with us, he was frightened of children. This was proper fear, not mild uncertainty. If a child appeared, Nero would bark. That barking was emotion. It was his way of saying that he did not feel safe.

So we fed him while he looked at children. A tiny treat for glancing in their direction. Bit by bit he learned that children made good things happen. There were many layers to his progress, but over time Nero went from nervous barking to happily trotting next to kids on family walks. Giving him treats did not reward the barking. It helped him feel safe enough that the barking disappeared.

Now let us compare that to something completely different.

You are eating a sandwich.
Your dog barks at you.
You give them a bit because you want to finish your lunch in peace.
That barking absolutely got reinforced. They learned that barking at humans makes snacks appear.

And here is where it gets interesting.

Many owners worry about giving treats in the wrong moments, yet they miss the everyday situations where behaviour actually gets reinforced.

Here are examples that genuinely reinforce the behaviour you do not want:

• Dog jumps up, human says “no” while physically pushing the dog away.
The push, the eye contact and the attention of any kind can be a reward.

• Dog pulls all the way to the park.
They reach the park and get to run free. That arrival is the reward.

• Dog drags you over to greet another dog.
You allow the greeting. The greeting is the reward.

• Dog steals tea towels or socks and you immediately chase them.
The chase becomes the reward.

These situations build behaviour far more consistently than offering a treat to a frightened dog ever will.

Now for a big one. Crate training and leaving a dog alone.

People often tell me they have been advised to ignore a puppy crying in a crate or to avoid returning to a dog barking when they leave the room. The idea is that going back will reward the noise.

This is complete nonsense.

A puppy crying in a crate is not doing a performance. They are lonely or frightened or confused. A dog barking when left alone is not being clever or manipulative. They are worried. Emotions drive those sounds.

And here is the real problem.
If you ignore them until they fall silent, they do not learn confidence. They learn that no one comes when they need reassurance. Their anxiety rises.

If you go back to them as soon as they need you, you are not rewarding noise. You are supporting emotion. You are helping them feel safe. You are preventing escalation. You are building trust, which is the foundation for all independence later on.

No one ever solved fear by ignoring it.
Not a toddler crying at nursery.
Not a young person overwhelmed on their first day of school.
Not a puppy panicking in a crate.

Emotions are not behaviours.
Fear is not a strategy.
Comfort does not create a spoiled dog.
Comfort helps a dog feel secure enough to learn.

So yes, if your dog barks at your sandwich and you hand it over, that behaviour will grow.
But if your dog barks because they feel scared or unsure and you offer a treat or go back to them, you are not rewarding the barking. You are helping them cope. You are reducing the need for barking altogether.

Different emotion.
Different context.
Different outcome.

If you are reading this on a quiet Sunday afternoon and thinking that this suddenly makes sense, you are not alone. These things are confusing until someone explains them properly. If it helps you, it will help someone else too, so feel free to share.

And just like that… he is 8.How has the time gone that quickly?Nero. Tarn. Kasrst. Niz Wiz Supa Cheese.Professional chao...
13/11/2025

And just like that… he is 8.
How has the time gone that quickly?

Nero. Tarn. Kasrst. Niz Wiz Supa Cheese.
Professional chaos merchant. Collector of nicknames. Absolute heart stealer.

When he came to us, he was reactive to everything. Dogs, people, children… children were basically the spawn of satan in his eyes. He taught us so much. Not just the protocols and the science behind helping reactive dogs, but the bit that often gets forgotten. Empathy for the humans who are trying their absolute best with a dog who is struggling.

The last six years with him have been a whirlwind.
We love you three thousand, you wonderful, complicated, brilliant boy.

Happy birthday, lad.

This is what consistent training looks like…Our Gundog Class teams absolutely smashed it during the latest field assessm...
02/11/2025

This is what consistent training looks like…

Our Gundog Class teams absolutely smashed it during the latest field assessments - huge congratulations to everyone who took part!

🌟 Results:

🐾Rupert & Robert - Distinction in Grade 1 & Grade 2 Retriever

🐾 Otis & George - Grade 1 Hunting Retriever Pass

🐾 Rhya & Dominic - Grade 1 HPR Distinction

🐾 Alfie & Sam - Grade 1 Hunting Retriever Merit
🐾Alfie & Hannah - Grade 2 Hunting Retriever Distinction (just needed a warm-up or mum’s magic handling 😉)

🐾 Flynn & Martin - Grade 1 Hunting Retriever - Distinction

🐾 Effie & Carien - Grade 2 Hunting Retriever Distinction

🐾 Duke & Abigail - Grade 3 Hunting Retriever Distinction

Every dog and handler pair has come so far - from wobbly recalls to polished retrieves and calm control. Watching those partnerships come together in the field is exactly what our Gundog Classes are all about.

📍 Our Gundog Classes run at Mapledurham. All gundog breeds and crosses welcome!

🐾 Want to start your training journey with your gundog?

👉 Booking link in comments.

Thank you so much Cedarlily Therapy for assessing these wonderful dogs!

And a massive thank you to Kirsty and Richard for your support as well as expert dummy throwing!

Has your dog been confused since the clocks changed?I was on BBC Radio Berkshire this morning talking about dog lag – wh...
29/10/2025

Has your dog been confused since the clocks changed?

I was on BBC Radio Berkshire this morning talking about dog lag – when our dogs’ internal clocks don’t match the one on the wall. Cue early wake-ups, noisy mornings and general chaos!

If you’d like expert help creating calmer routines or building better behaviour drop us a DM!

🐕 When did “being a dog” become a behaviour problem?Recently, I spoke with owners of a young, working-bred dog who lived...
23/10/2025

🐕 When did “being a dog” become a behaviour problem?

Recently, I spoke with owners of a young, working-bred dog who lived in a busy terraced area of central London.

He was walked twice a day for 30 minutes on lead, and for the rest of the time, they expected him to be quiet and lie down.

When he tried to initiate play or interact with them, they would shout “Quiet!” and “Lie down!” — it made me jump several times during the call.

They weren’t unkind people — just genuinely unaware of what that breed needed. They had imagined a calm companion who would be content with short walks and quiet evenings, but instead found themselves living with a young, energetic dog whose instincts simply didn’t fit their lifestyle.

In the end, they made the difficult decision to rehome him to an environment better suited to his needs.

And that, sadly, isn’t an isolated story.

⸻

People want dogs that don’t bark, don’t dig, don’t chase, don’t sniff, don’t guard, don’t chew, don’t pull, and definitely don’t get muddy.

They want Spaniels that don’t hunt, Shepherds that don’t bark, Retrievers that don’t pick things up, Collies that don’t herd, and Terriers that don’t go after small furries.

In short, they want dogs to stop being what we’ve bred them to be.

⸻

Take the busy working-bred Spaniel as an example.

For generations, we’ve carefully selected the ones that never stop moving — the dogs who will crash through brambles, hunt all day, and keep searching even when they’re exhausted.

And then we’re surprised when that same drive doesn’t magically switch off in a suburban living room.

⸻

From a behaviour perspective, this mismatch between a dog’s instincts and our lifestyle expectations is where so many “problems” begin.

It’s not that the dog is naughty, stubborn, or disobedient — it’s that we’ve set them up to fail by asking them to suppress everything they were designed to do.

⸻

So often, when I meet owners struggling with their dog’s behaviour, I hear:
“He just won’t calm down.”
“She never stops chasing things.”
“He keeps picking things up on walks.”
“She’s obsessed with squirrels.”

And I understand the frustration — truly, I do.

But the answer isn’t always “more exercise.”

Sometimes it’s about recognising that what we see as “annoying” or “problematic” behaviour is often the dog’s only outlet for instincts that have nowhere else to go.

When we shut those behaviours down — by punishing or constantly telling the dog to stop — we’re not solving the problem, we’re suppressing it.

⸻

For many dogs, the solution is giving those instincts somewhere appropriate to go.

🐾 Retrievers need chances to carry, fetch, and hold.
🐾 Spaniels need scent games and controlled hunting exercises.
🐾 Collies thrive on focus and movement — things like agility or controlled herding-style tasks.
🐾 Terriers love digging boxes, scentwork, or controlled searching for hidden toys.

⸻

If we love dogs as much as we say we do, we have to start respecting the purpose they were bred for — not punishing them for expressing it.

That doesn’t mean we all have to take up fieldwork or herding sheep, but it does mean finding ways to meet those natural needs through training, enrichment, and breed-appropriate activities that let them be who they are.

⸻

So next time your Spaniel flushes a pigeon, your Retriever proudly brings you a sock, or your Terrier unearths a mouse nest, take a breath and remember — that’s not misbehaviour.

That’s history written into their DNA.

⸻

👉 What’s one thing your dog does that reminds you of what they were bred for?

💬 If this resonates, share it to help more people understand that dogs are allowed to be dogs.

I love a good breed-mix mystery! Can you guess?Tara joined us recently and has already got everyone guessing.What do you...
20/10/2025

I love a good breed-mix mystery! Can you guess?

Tara joined us recently and has already got everyone guessing.

What do you think — any ideas what breeds might make up that adorable face?

Let’s see who gets closest 👇

09/10/2025

So your dog’s outgrown puppy and adolescent classes — what’s next?

If you’ve finished the early stages of training but still love working with your dog, Dog Training Club is where you’ll want to be.

It’s for humans who enjoy training and want to keep building useful, real-life skills — without the pressure.

We’ll be working on:
• calm, connected lead walking
• recall around distractions
• polite greetings (for both dogs and humans)
• focus when excitement levels rise
• and settling when life gets busy

We follow the APDT Good Companion Awards, so your progress actually means something — and yes, there are rosettes for every level.

If you’ve got the training bug, this is the perfect next step.
📍 Booking link in the first comment.

🐾 “Why won’t my dog take treats outside?”It can feel confusing when your dog, who happily gobbles food at home, suddenly...
05/10/2025

🐾 “Why won’t my dog take treats outside?”

It can feel confusing when your dog, who happily gobbles food at home, suddenly refuses treats the second you step outdoors. But a dog not eating isn’t being awkward – it’s valuable information about how they’re feeling in that moment.

🤔 Think of it like this: For us, the walk doesn’t really begin until we’re at the park. For our dogs, it starts much earlier – the second we glance at the lead cupboard or lace up our shoes. From that moment, adrenaline is building.

And sometimes we humans don’t help… we get caught up in the “walkies!” excitement, hyping things up because we want it to be fun. But all that build-up can mean the dog starts the walk sky-high. And here’s the science bit: when the sympathetic nervous system (adrenaline) is up, digestion is down. A body that’s ready to sprint isn’t ready to snack.

Here are some of the reasons dogs might not eat outside:

Arousal (excitement or stress): adrenaline reduces appetite.

Fear or anxiety: worried dogs often go off food; refusing a treat can be one of the first signs they’re over threshold.

Novelty & vigilance (safety first): eating is a vulnerable act. In unfamiliar places many dogs prioritise scanning and sniffing over stopping to chew until it feels safe.

Competing motivations: wildlife scent, fast movement, other dogs, traffic – the environment can outrank even good treats.

Underlying discomfort: sudden appetite changes can signal pain or nausea – worth a vet chat if it’s new or persistent.

💡 What helps? Slowing everything down.

De-hype the routine: pick up the lead and put it down again; put the harness on and sit down and scroll on your phone. You may need to do these things quite a few times, so they become less of a predictor of an exciting outing.

Aim to step outside with your dog calm, not pulling like a steam train.

Start small: garden → driveway → quiet lane → busier spaces. Step out of the front door and hang around there. Wait until your dog looks at you, praise them and offer them a food reward.
If you drive to your walking locations, get out of the car and stop. Wait for that glance in your direction and re are with food.

I have a saying that of the dog is not eating, she is not learning. So if my nog is not able to look at me and take a treat outside the front door or just outside the car, they are unlikely to be able to do it in the field full of scents.

🐶 For puppies especially 🐶

They don’t need big hikes to “wear them out.” What they need are little adventures – small, confidence-building trips where the world feels safe and enjoyable. That might mean walking to the end of the road, sitting on a bench to watch the world go by, or sniffing around the front garden. These mini-outings gradually build resilience and make the outside world feel less overwhelming.

👉 Takeaway: when your dog won’t eat outside, it’s not refusal. It’s feedback. Slow things down, make the world feel safe, and food will follow.

If someone tells me that their dog is not food motivated, I will always look at why.

Don’t get me wrong, for some dogs a tennis ball/toy may be higher value then food (it certainly is for Nero, who is in the picture), but if the dog not eating outside, I will want to dig deeper!

💬 Tell me — in your house, what’s the first clue that gets your dog buzzing for a walk? Do they take food on walks straight away or does it take them a while to settle down?

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Hi fellow dog lover,

I am Tash, I live in Caversham with my three dogs Nika the Labrador and Monty & Mabel the Irish Terriers, three chickens (Terri, Millie and Vinnie), oh and my husband also lives with us!

I can help you with most behavioural or training issues - from poor recall and pulling on the lead to aggression, reactivity and separation anxiety.