Chris Taylor-Rea - Dog Training

Chris Taylor-Rea - Dog Training 🐕 Dog Behaviourist | Trainer | Human Coach
🐾 Behaviour transformation expert
✅ 10+ years’ experience
💻 Online and in person
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(3)

22/06/2026

STOP trying to calm your gundog down with more walks... add these games instead.

Many gundog owners fall into the trap of thinking that if their dog is full of energy, they simply need more exercise. But for most gundogs, endless walks can actually build fitness without meeting the needs they were originally bred for.

What often leaves a gundog feeling truly satisfied is the opportunity to use their brain, work with their handler, and engage in activities that tap into their natural instincts.

In this video, I'm sharing 3 simple games that help channel those natural hunting, retrieving and searching instincts in a productive way. These games can improve focus, build engagement, strengthen your relationship, and help create a calmer dog at home.

Remember: a tired dog isn't always a fulfilled dog. The goal isn't just physical exercise—it's providing the right kind of mental and instinctive outlets that your dog was bred to enjoy.

I'd love to know: what does a typical day look like for your gundog? Do you focus mainly on walks, training, retrieves, scent work, or a mixture of everything?

Drop a comment below 👇

19/06/2026

The One Dog Game I Recommend to Almost Every Client

The flirt pole game has far more benefits than most people realise.

But it shouldn’t just be mindless chasing of a toy on a stick.

Share this post to someone experiencing one of these issues!

When used properly, it becomes a structured training game that builds:

• impulse control
• learning in high arousal
• breed fulfilment
• engagement with you
• a stronger relationship with your dog

It can even help with several common behaviour problems.

1️⃣ Recall Problems
If your dog struggles to come away from wildlife or other dogs, food often can’t compete with the thrill of the chase.

The flirt pole gives you something powerful — a chase game you control.
Recall can now lead to another chase, not just food.

2️⃣ Dogs That Chase Cars
Many dogs chase moving objects due to lack of appropriate outlets.

The flirt pole allows them to stalk, focus and chase in a safe and controlled way. This is especially helpful for herding breeds.

3️⃣ Over-Excited Social Dogs
Got a dog that barks and loses control around other dogs?

They often struggle with impulse control in high-arousal situations.
Using the flirt pole and adding “leave it” between reps helps them practise managing excitement and frustration.

4️⃣ Stealing & Resource Guarding
Flirt pole games can teach dogs that letting go makes the game continue.

You can even attach items like tea towels, oven gloves or slippers to practise play-based trades for things they normally steal.

5️⃣ Puppy Mouthing
Puppies need appropriate outlets for grabbing and tugging.

The flirt pole lets them grab the right thing, practise drop and leave it, and learn while excited — instead of practising on you.

Of course this won’t be the only thing you need to work on behaviour issues.

But when used correctly, it’s one of the most powerful training games you can play with your dog — and one I recommend to clients all the time.

18/06/2026

I said what I said. 👀 If you disagree, tell me why in the comments—I genuinely enjoy hearing different perspectives. 👇

16/06/2026

Your gundog wasn't bred simply to walk from one destination to another.

These dogs were developed to think, work in partnership with their handler, hunt, retrieve, search, and use their natural abilities. When those instincts aren't being channelled appropriately, it can be difficult for them to feel truly satisfied.

Many owners assume that increasing the length of a walk will result in a calmer dog, but for some gundogs, constantly moving through stimulating environments and processing new sights, sounds, and smells can actually maintain a heightened level of arousal.

That's why I often focus on purposeful training and enrichment within a smaller area. In this video, you'll see exercises designed to build steadiness, self-control, and engagement. One of these is a game called "Circuits," where we repeatedly work back and forth through a small space. This gives the dog the chance to fully investigate the environment until it becomes less rewarding, making it more likely they'll choose to focus on and engage with their handler.

I've also included work on an emergency stop cue, an important skill for safety, reliability, and responsiveness.

Retrieval games, scent work, engagement exercises, and steadiness training aren't simply added extras for many gundogs—they're a vital part of meeting their breed-specific needs.

Of course, dogs still benefit from opportunities to explore, sniff, and decompress on walks. But if you're dealing with over-arousal, poor focus, reactivity, or other behavioural challenges, it's worth asking whether you're fulfilling the jobs these dogs were originally bred to do.

Follow for more gundog training advice, behaviour insights, and practical training games you can start using today 🐾

10/06/2026

Here’s the simple recipe I use with clients to help dogs overcome separation anxiety — in just 30 minutes a day 👇

1. Rule out medical issues
Book a vet check first to make sure nothing physical is contributing to the anxiety.

2. Meet your dog’s daily needs
Mental stimulation, physical exercise, and social fulfilment matter. A high-energy dog with only a short walk will struggle much more.

3. Stop leaving them over threshold
This is non-negotiable. Use sitters, friends, family, daycare, or adjust your schedule so your dog isn’t practicing panic.

4. Find their baseline
Watch remotely and note the moment they shift from “unhappy you left” to “distressed” (barking, howling, pacing, salivating, toileting, etc.). If your dog starts howling at 10 minutes, their safe threshold is likely around 9½ minutes.

5. Train with gradual absences
For 30 minutes, practice tiny departures with 2-minute breaks between reps. This might be seconds, not minutes, and return before your dog becomes stressed. Ignore pre-departure cue's until much later into the learning.

Consistency is what changes the emotion behind being alone.
If this feels overwhelming, you don’t have to figure it out alone. I help owners create step-by-step separation anxiety plans remotely, no matter where you live. Book a consultation > link in bio.

Follow for more tips.

08/06/2026

Loose lead walking isn't just about what happens on the lead.

It takes consistency, clear communication, and making sure your dog's needs are being met. Otherwise, you'll spend every walk managing a frustrated, over-aroused pocket rocket. 🚀

That's why when I work on loose lead walking, I also include a mix of:

✔️ Breed fulfilment
✔️ Scent games
✔️ Long-line work (for dogs building recall)
✔️ Retrieval games
✔️ Flirt pole sessions
✔️ Trick training

A dog who has appropriate outlets for their physical and mental energy is often much more capable of making good choices on walks.

What would you add to the list?

📌 Save this for your next walk.
🐾 Share it with a dog owner who's struggling with lead pulling.

04/06/2026

You might be making your dog's reactivity worse without even realising it.

In this video, Sybil had just reacted to another dog, but instead of correcting or punishing her, we gave her the opportunity to make a better choice.

Notice how she chooses to disengage on her own. Even her owner's reaction says it all: "Wow."

A few things made this successful:

✔️ We kept the lead loose, so she felt no pressure or tension.
✔️ We rewarded with a food find rather than feeding directly from our hand.
✔️ We allowed her to sniff and search, which helps lower arousal and promotes calmer behaviour.
✔️ We didn't call her name or interrupt her decision-making.

One of my favourite reactive dog training tips is using food finds after a reaction. It gives your dog something natural and calming to focus on, while creating distance from the trigger and helping them reset before looking back.

When they re-engage with the environment in a calmer state, they're much more likely to make good choices.

Follow for more practical reactive dog training tips.

02/06/2026

You might accidentally be making your dog *more* reactive. 👀

You’ve probably been told:
“Don’t let your dog stare.”
“Use the 3-second rule.”
“If they’re still looking, call them away.”

But constantly interrupting your dog can actually stop them from learning how to regulate their own emotions.

Instead, when you’re at a safe, practiced distance where your dog can stay under threshold, allow them to look. Let them observe. Let them process how they feel about the trigger.

This helps teach emotional regulation — instead of your dog relying on constant cues from the person holding the lead.

Over time, this builds the life skill of managing their emotions *without* us stepping in every second.

⚠️ The important part:
Watch your dog’s body language carefully.

Signs of escalation can include:
• leaning forward
• ears changing position
• mouth closing
• tail stiffening

These signs suggest arousal is increasing and your dog may be losing control. *That’s* the moment to interrupt, call them away, and create more distance.

Otherwise, give them space to have that internal conversation — and you may start to see real progress in their reactivity journey.

Follow for more reactive dog training tips!

29/05/2026

More training isn’t ALWAYS the answer to recall issues.

Yes, training matters — but one of the biggest things owners skip is building genuine connection with their dog outside of the home.

So many dogs are constantly being walked, trained, corrected, or distracted with treats and toys… but rarely given the chance to just slow down and be WITH their owner.

Sometimes, sitting still together and spending quality 1-1 time is one of the most valuable things you can do.

It helps regulate your dog’s nervous system, lowers arousal levels, and starts building value in being close to you outside.

Because in those moments, your dog is choosing to engage with you.
Not because you’ve asked.
Not because you’ve got food.
But because they’re learning there’s someone on the other end of the lead worth paying attention to.

You just have to create the space for that connection to happen.

26/05/2026

If every walk feels stressful… the walk itself might be the problem.

One of the biggest challenges with a reactive dog is trying to avoid situations that push them over threshold. So your walks start looking like this:

walking at quiet times
avoiding parks
constantly scanning the environment
hoping you don’t suddenly bump into another dog

And when you do… your dog explodes, the stress levels rise, and both of you come home frustrated.

But here’s the thing:
If every walk feels like survival mode, your dog probably isn’t ready for that environment yet.

Instead of trying to force “normal” walks, separate your dog’s WALKS from their TRAINING.

Your dog still needs daily enrichment, movement, and opportunities to just be a dog — but ideally in a calm, low-pressure environment where they can:

sniff freely
decompress
engage with you
explore without constantly being triggered

Then separately, find ONE suitable training location where you can work at a distance your dog can actually cope with. Somewhere with space, escape routes, and enough predictability that you can manage the environment properly.

That becomes training — not your daily walk.

When you stop trying to multitask walks and reactivity training at the same time, everything gets clearer.
You make better decisions.
Your dog feels safer.
And progress usually starts happening much faster.

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