Venture K9

06/04/2024

Looking forward to our first demonstration of the summer!

20/02/2024

6 years ago today we brought home a terrified puppy, she had been raised poorly, she was genetically extremely nervous and was reactive to absolutely everything around her. She had bitten several people and her previous owners were due to put her to sleep after she was refused from several rescue centres.

Each day since then we have worked tirelessly to understand her behaviour, help her progress and to train ourselves to help more dogs like her. Is having a reactive dog easy? Absolutely not. Is she perfect? Absolutely not, genetically she’s extremely nervous so despite us being able to take her everywhere now she will always have an “edge”, so we’re extra careful.

Was she worth it? Absolutely yes.

When we say we know how it feels to have a reactive dog, the exhaustion and emotions that come with that, we really do know! But we can also promise that the hard work pays off.

16/02/2024

Spring time walks with my own pups this morning, ready to start sessions up again now that the weather is improving and those evenings are getting longer!

06/02/2024

12/12/2023

We switched up our walking boots and got into our glad rags this weekend to celebrate our wedding 💒

We’ll be getting back to enquiries in the next couple of days and organising sessions for 2024!

13/11/2023

Apologies for the radio silence the past few weeks - I’ve been quite poorly with pneumonia and so training has been out of the question sadly!

I’m taking a few more days to rest up and get myself back to normal and then I’ll be in touch to rearrange the appointments that I unfortunately had to cancel.

Thank you so much for your patience and the kind messages, it’s very much appreciated and I can’t wait to be back out and about with your dogs as soon as I’m able to!

19/10/2023

TEACH YOUR DOG BOUNDARIES!

It’s vitally important to teach your dog boundaries in your home. It keeps them safe as they don’t run out as soon as you open the front door, but also means you can have them close by when you open the door to make you feel safer as the dark wintery nights roll in!

We take the basics we teach as a puppy and we apply them with new distractions (this time it was somebody coming to the door that Mac has never met before). Try this with a slip lead first to ensure you have control, but here’s how you teach boundaries! 🦴

14/10/2023

It’s been a dream of a Saturday full of Shepherds 🐕

First a coffee date at a country park with Shadow, a GSD/Golden Retreiever with dog reactivity that managed to walk around a busy country park full of dogs off lead and then relax in busy the cafe afterwards.

Then Blue - a GSD puppy with nervous reactivity to people and dogs who is now walking nicely to heel past other dogs and isn’t as fearful of new people.

Then Max, Blue’s brother - another reactive GSD - this was Max’s first session so we’ve put in place a plan to tackle his dog reactivity and to work on his obedience going forward.

Then some ‘control’ work with our own dog, Mac, which was watched by amazed onlookers!

The kind of Saturday every dog lover dreams about when they consider becoming a trainer! ⭐️

04/10/2023

The same thing we say to every single person we train! Dogs talk to those that know how to listen 🐾

Can we please stop expecting that EVERY dog wants to go to dog parks, daycares, patio parties and have birthday parties with other dogs! Nobody loves dogs more than me, but I’m here to tell you that dogs aren’t human children. They don’t want to do everything a human child does. Breed can matter when deciding what is fun for your best friend. Your Husky may have the energy to run, your Retriever may want to retrieve and your terrier may want to chase and grab. So yes, raising them with kindness is paramount, but paying attention to their needs is too. I said it.

This mentality that every dog has to be “social” with other people and dogs is keeping my shelter full, my days long and my heart broken, because I see the best dogs passed over, because they wouldn’t do well at a dog park or daycare. Not every dog needs to like your friends. I keep my dog in his room when people come over, because he isn’t comfortable around everyone, and I don’t want to set him up for failure. Love your dog enough to respect her boundaries.

Your dog doesn’t want to meet every dog. The reality show you watched about dog training and dog adoption is fake, I’ve worked in television, it’s edited to create a good story, not necessarily a real story. Let’s stop these narratives on dog ownership that are SOLD to us and based on making money. Dogs aren’t a business they are our best friends. Remember that.

Your dog can be perfectly safe and happy without overstimulating daycare or doggy birthday parties. Those things are fun for some dogs, but not for all. I want to take my dog everywhere, I want to give my dog the things I would want, but for the love of dogs in shelters everywhere, let’s ask dogs what do they REALLY want?

Dogs want more sniffs, waterlogged sticks, a quiet place to decompress, a space to stretch their legs and you to respect their body language and boundaries. They are talking to you…listen.

27/09/2023

Pip the 8 month old Cockapoo making amazing progress 🌟

22/09/2023

B a l a n c e 💫

One of the most common questions we get asked is why we ask people to put a cap on the amount of emotion and excitement you show to your puppies. This is exactly why.

Mac is very much loved, and he loves a very occasional cuddle with his mum on the sofa, but he’s also obedient and trained. We can take him anywhere without him jumping up everybody for attention and love, but he can also be invited to relax with his mum.

It’s hard not to snuggle a puppy at any given time, but I promise it’s worth it for the relationship you get with your dog in the long run!

15/09/2023

Accurate 😂

14/09/2023

September availability! We have very few slots left but please get in touch if you’d like a session 🙂

11/09/2023

We’re back!

After taking a few weeks away for our summer holiday we’re back and refreshed and ready to get back into our walking boots.

I’ll be replying to all messages today and posting my availability for the rest of the month this evening ⭐️

Posting with a photograph of our eldest dog, Nahla, who turns 6 today. Nahla’s reactivity meant her last owners were going to put her to sleep before she was 6 months old, so every single year feels extra special with our girl 🥳❤️

15/08/2023

This is Loki, he’s an 11 month old Cane Corso weighing around 60kg already!

His family contacted us to teach Loki some manners and obedience so that he would grow into a well mannered dog that they could take everywhere with them. He had a brilliant start by learning some basics at puppy classes, and we’ve worked with the family to tighten up his obedience and iron out a few quirks in his behaviour - including jumping up in excitement and knocking people over!

He’s got a lovely temperament around people and dogs, and his obedience is brilliant. The next steps for him are group sessions with other dogs ⭐️

10/08/2023

We’ll never not be grateful to hear success stories like the one below of reactive dogs becoming calm and balanced ⭐️ we know how it feels to have a reactive dog and the feeling you get when your hard work finally pays off! This is why we love what we do!

Customer review: “I have a 3 years old reactive German shepherd x Husky. It’s been a rough 3 years trying to train her, I’ve had 3 different dog trainers and behaviourist (very expensive and well known ones) which didn’t really help fix her behaviour issues. I found every walk stressful, she’d react to every dog in an over playful stimulated way, pulled my mum over before after seeing a dog etc. I was told different things by different trainers and was doing these things but nothing was improving . Having seen venture K9 around our estate with a Shepard dog, I reached out and it was by far the best decision I’ve ever made. Within 5 mins of working with Bear, they FIXED (not masked) her reactivity with a balanced dog training style. They helped me strip everything back, I don’t need no extra tools just a lead a collar! We went from major dog reactivity to within the hour, engaged heeling, working in a group with 3 other dogs. Next morning I took her out alone and she heeled the whole way, we walked past 3 dogs and she didn’t react, engaged with me the whole way!! 😭 such a relief and so grateful for venture k9s work. Very honest, down to earth trainers who genuinely care about dogs and not money!! Look forward to more group sessions.