Victoria Cooper - Certified Canine Behaviourist & Mentor

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Victoria Cooper - Certified Canine Behaviourist & Mentor 🐕Specialist in reactivity, aggression, trauma, and rescues.
🐶Expertise with Cockapoos & Doodles.
✅CAB-ICB, Certified Accredited Experienced.

Helping pet parents since 1994
💜Building Trust, Connection, Relationship & Understanding with your dog Victoria is dedicated to supporting and coaching dog owners. She is an experienced, qualified and Certified Canine Behaviourist and Dog Trainer with over 30 years experience in teaching people how to train their dogs. In 1994, Victoria founded People & Dogs, a successful dog training school in Sh

effield, UK. She has worked as a freelance Behaviour Consultant with the Sheffield (RSPCA) Animal Shelter, has been consulted as behaviour expert by Sheffield Dog Rescue and is the Behaviour advisor for Rain Rescue. She has also worked with various solicitors to act as Expert Witness in several Dangerous Dogs court cases.

I wonder 🤔 when this will start being offered in the  UK - or even better, stop the mass pre pubescent neutering. Defini...
14/07/2025

I wonder 🤔 when this will start being offered in the UK - or even better, stop the mass pre pubescent neutering. Definitely needs more research

I’M ON TESTOSTERONE REPLACEMENT!
🥜New Study Shows Testosterone Therapy May Help Neutered Dogs Feel Better🥜
A new veterinary study found that giving testosterone, Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), to neutered male dogs may help correct health and behavior issues caused by hormone loss (not so shocking to doctors that practice functional wellbeing: lifelong hormones matter!).
NO ONE IS AGAINST STERILIZATION (please read that again, before you comment); it’s the updated surgical techniques that vets need to learn to sterilize AND preserve crucial hormones.
When males have their go**ds 🥜 cut off as puppies (vs. a sterilizing vasectomy) they lose their supply of lifelong testosterone, and then what happens?
“Spayed and neutered dogs have been reported to have a higher incidence of obesity, urinary incontinence, urinary calculi, atopic dermatitis, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, hypoadrenocorticism, diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism, immune- mediated thrombocytopenia, inflammatory bowel disease, hip dysplasia, cranial cruciate ligament rupture, aggressive and fearful behavior, cognitive dysfunction syndrome, prostate adenocarcinoma and transitional cell adenocarcinoma. Musculoskeletal issues may be especially significant for large breed dogs gonadectomized before they have finished growing, as bone physeal closure is delayed,” says reproductive expert Dr. Michelle Kutzler, DVM, PhD, DACT, Professor of Theriogenology (all of her statments are backed by studies, of course, link to Dowoadable PDF of research also in comments).
This group of symptoms is sometimes called “spay-neuter syndrome,” and in this most recent study, researchers gave weekly testosterone injections to neutered male dogs for 90 days. They tested different doses and monitored the dogs closely.
What they found:
* The treatment was safe, even at high doses.
* Testosterone levels returned to normal, without side effects.
* Hormone imbalances improved, especially the levels of a hormone called LH, which rises after neutering and may be linked to certain cancers.
* The dogs’ general health, behavior, and lab values stayed stable or improved (like Homer’s!).
This is the first published safety study using HRT testosterone injections in neutered dogs. It gives veterinarians a starting point for helping dogs who may be struggling with life after desexing 🥳!
Why it matters: This research offers hope for dogs who suffer from hormone-related issues after being neutered. Hormone replacement—when done safely and under veterinary guidance—can improve quality of life in a way we haven’t been able to offer before— I know because I’m doing it for my neutered rescue dog, Homer (who, at 17, needed this therapy to bring him back to vigor 💥).
I advocate vets learn different sterilization surgical techniques for this very reason: vascetomy and hysterectomy remove reproductive potential without compromising endocrine balance, but until these newer techniques are taught in vet schools (hopefully y’all have signed my petition begging vet schools worldwide to teach these simpler alternatives, link in comments), we’re left with learning more about HRT for pets. I’m so grateful to the Parsemus Foundation for investing in this critical research (link to the study in comments); when we know more we can do better 🙏🏼. Read my comments about females, cats and vets that offer alternatives in the comments ⬇️.

11/07/2025

One of my absolute favourite things?

Creating content that helps people really understand their dogs and how to make their lives better.

Whether it’s something practical, mindset shifting, or just a fresh way of looking at behaviour…
If someone learns something and walks (puts down their phone 🤷🏻‍♀️) away feeling more confident or connected with their dog? That’s my dopamine hit right there. 😅

Because education leads to empathy and empathy changes lives. Especially dog shaped ones.

What’s something you’ve learned recently that’s helped you and your dog?

To the people STILL sharing myths and misinformation on your professional pages ‼️Listen‼️Learn‼️Read‼️Update yourself ‼...
09/07/2025

To the people STILL sharing myths and misinformation on your professional pages

‼️Listen
‼️Learn
‼️Read
‼️Update yourself ‼️
🆘 it is irresponsible and unprofessional to not be up to date on dog welfare if you have a platform of followers.
💥Dogs lives are at risk due to some ignorant people STILL spreading misinformation
🔥💦❄️💧💧💧Rapid cooling saves lives ❤️‍🔥

Please sign and share to help protect dogs from punishment based tools used on them
07/07/2025

Please sign and share to help protect dogs from punishment based tools used on them

I would like the Government to ban the use of aversive tools such as electric shock collars, prong collars and invisible fencing due to the possible physical and mental harm caused to animals. I believe trauma and cruelty is unacceptable. Legislation on this topic has still not been enacted.

This is Bella Isn’t she cute? Looks like “butter wouldn’t melt” as the saying goes. But she may be tiny but she is might...
06/07/2025

This is Bella
Isn’t she cute? Looks like “butter wouldn’t melt” as the saying goes.
But she may be tiny but she is mighty !
Bella is determined and fierce when strangers step onto her property. She guards her territory like a mighty miniature lion and has been successfully repelling all intruders for several years!
It hasn’t helped that Bella’s garden is at the front of her house where a footpath passes the fence and she feels she has to diligently defend this space from any potential or perceived threat
Also she has been given free access to this front garden to practice being a guard dog so she’s become very accomplished at security work!

Additionally her owners have been given some really old fashioned and unhelpful advice by a previous “professional” (?!) who advised them to threaten her and sq**rt her with water every time she barked as some one passed the gate 🙄🤦🏼‍♀️
It’s not rocket 🚀 science what happened over a period of time - the result was she has become increasingly worried about people passing her garden and her reactivity and defensive behaviour increased .

Dogs learn by forming associations - if we use threat and punishment when they bark at someone passing the house - or bark at another dog, their learned association will be that people or dogs passing the house is a bad experience and associated with something unpleasant such as being sq**rted with water, yelled at or worse.

These old fashioned methods don’t address WHY the dog feels the need to defend her space
So as per my usual mode of operation - I stripped everything back to basics.
Observing and analysing if she feels worried about people in general or just on the front garden
And I found that she is anxious around some strangers in public areas.
So we are addressing that first - working on her confidence in public places
Giving her space and teaching her cues to help her feel safe such as going under a bench out of the way of footfall. Improved recall in from the garden. Emotional and cognitive games to build confidence and develop emotional resilience
And creating positive associations around strangers. And as a result Bella’s confidence is slowly building.

A certified, accredited dog trainer or behaviourist will always ask WHY the dog is displaying problematic behaviour and dig into the root cause of it. Most problems are rooted in strong emotions - fear, frustration, anger, jealousy or even pain. The use of punishment and suppression does not address the underlying causes of behaviour problems it just addresses the symptoms. For long lasting humane and effective behaviour change you need to work on the dogs emotions - when you change the emotions, change the owners interactions, manage the environment = positive changes in the behaviour

A correctly fitted and comfortable harness is an essential piece of equipment for your dog. It should protect your dogs ...
03/07/2025

A correctly fitted and comfortable harness is an essential piece of equipment for your dog. It should protect your dogs throat from choking, whiplash and bruising and should protect their shoulders - so it should always be be a Y shaped harness not a T shaped harness
Julius K9 are T shaped harnesses that go across the front of the dogs shoulders
They are not appropriate to the dogs physiology. There’s also some cheap ‘no pull’ type harnesses that either dig behind the arm pits and elbows or cut across the chest
I always ensure a dog is physically comfortable before I start teaching new behaviours . No choking prong spikes or garrotting here either

For local stockists and fitting of excellent ergonomic harnesses please contact Bradway Pet Shop

This is a repost(ish) but well worth repeating. Many of you have heard me harp on harness fit time and again. Having spent decades evaluating harness fit in working dogs of all types with thermal imaging (as well as having years of working and active dog experience combined with a strong biomechanics knowledge base) using front-clipping or "Gentle Leader" type harnesses only guarantee more structural stress in active dogs that makes for more work for me and other chiro/sports med colleagues. PLEASE only use harnesses that fit with proper ergonomics! [NOTE: I've tweaked the English & syntax in the added-on description below so it might read a little differently.]

"All dog owners should know this fact! A harness like this is a terrible injustice to your pet!! AVOID USING THIS TYPE OF HARNESS !

In a dog's forward movement, a harness with a tape that crosses its chest from side to side hinders it in the same way humans would bother going hiking with an elastic band holding their arms. Physiological movement of the front extremity is prohibited. Just like rubber would inhibit the pendular movement of our ARMS.

Thanks to the "Study of Canine Movement at the University of Jena", we now know that in the dog, the center of rotation of the front limb is at the top of the scapula, but in the human the center of rotation in the arm is in the shoulder. Jena's study demonstrates, among other things, the importance of scapular movement for dog locomotion. Now we understand the importance of taking into account the free movement of the dog's shoulder when choosing a chest harness.
That means there SHOULDN'T be bands across the scapular (orange) area, and they shouldn't cross the chest side to side either.

From the point of view of biomechanics and physiotherapy, it is recommended not to choose getting harnesses that have a strap that goes through the chest laterally, or that have straps that touch or press the scapula.

Always lean towards harness models with ERGONOMIC design, to allow maximum freedom of movement for your dog, improve his well-being and safety during his walk.
Source : REAL CEPPA"

Looking for local classes for your puppy or just for fun? As well as improving essentialSkills such as lead walking? Loo...
02/07/2025

Looking for local classes for your puppy or just for fun? As well as improving essential
Skills such as lead walking?
Look no further than People and Dogs. Dog Training and Behaviour

📣 Now Booking for July & August! 🐾

Whether you’ve just welcomed a new puppy or you're ready to build on your dog’s existing skills, we’ve got a class for you this summer. All training is kind, modern and force-free – just the way it should be.

💫 LIFE SKILLS PUPPY (Under 20 weeks at start) – Unstone
🗓 Tuesday 29 July, 6.00pm
🗓 Thursday 14 August, 6.00pm
👉 Book now
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/life-skills-puppy

🐶 EASY PEASY PUPPY – Training Field - Dronfield
(Simple & budget friendly for pups under 20 wks!)
🗓 Sunday 24 August, 10.00am
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/easy-peasy-puppy

🧠 LIFE SKILLS JUNIOR (Over 20 weeks with little/no training) – Unstone
🗓 Tuesday 29 July, 7.00pm
👉 Book now
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/life-skills-junior

📘 LIFE SKILLS INTERMEDIATE – Unstone
🗓 Thursday 14 August, 7.00pm
👉 Book now
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/life-skills-intermediate

🎓 LIFE SKILLS GRADUATE – Unstone
🗓 Tuesday 29 July, 8.00pm
👉 Book now
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/life-skills-graduate

🚶‍♀️ LOOSE LEAD WALKING WORKSHOP – Training Field - Dronfield
🗓 Sunday 17 August, 10.00am
👉 Book now
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/loose-leadwalking-workshop

🏃‍♂️ RECALL WORKSHOP – Training Field - Dronfield
🗓 Sunday 17 August, 12.00pm
👉 Book now
https://www.peopleanddogs.co.uk/recall-workshop

👋 Spaces are limited to keep things calm, focused and personal. If you’ve got any questions about which class is right for your dog, just drop me a message.

Train me, don’t blame me – because great behaviour starts with understanding.

👉Photo credit to Erin’s Paws and Pics

01/07/2025
💯 this ! I’m sick to death of seeing dogs walked in this heat . The selfishness is mind boggling . All myLessons this we...
30/06/2025

💯 this ! I’m sick to death of seeing dogs walked in this heat . The selfishness is mind boggling . All my
Lessons this week will be postponed unless temps drop considerably . It’s just not fair on dogs to be out in the daytime in this heat .

It saddens me when owners report that strangers insist on touching and greeting their anxious dog. These well meaning bu...
28/06/2025

It saddens me when owners report that strangers insist on touching and greeting their anxious dog. These well meaning but mis guided and often self centred people insist they “are good with dogs” and then promptly invade the dogs space . I lost track of the amount of time people would try to touch Daisy without my consent . It was really annoying!
This inevitably leads to a fearful or even defensive response . I’m currently working with 2 clients whose dogs have become wary of strangers because they’ve been excessively touched as puppies .
Advocate for your dog
Don’t let strangers touch them no matter how much that person likes dogs
Dogs are not public property! HANDS OFF !

When working with fearful dogs, it's important to remember that they may not find physical touch comforting.

Instead, give them space to feel safe and approach you on their own terms.

By reducing pressure to interact, you'll help them build trust at their own pace, leading to quicker relaxation and deeper connection.

28/06/2025

Schedule your appointment online People & Dogs Training and Behaviour

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30 YEARS A DOG PROFESSIONAL

Victoria is dedicated to supporting and coaching dog owners. She is an experienced, qualified and Certified Canine Behaviourist and Dog Trainer with over 30 years experience in teaching people how to train their dogs.

In 1995, Victoria founded People & Dogs, a successful dog training school in Sheffield, UK. She has worked as a freelance Behaviour Consultant with the Sheffield (RSPCA) Animal Shelter, has been consulted as behaviour expert by Sheffield Dog Rescue and is the Behaviour advisor for Rain Rescue. She has also worked with various solicitors to act as Expert Witness in several Dangerous Dogs court cases.

Her mission is to guide you in building a trusting harmonious relationship with your dog. Victoria has acquired specialist skills and knowledge over almost 30 years of study and experience to help you overcome your dog’s behaviour and training problems.

Victoria is a full member of the International Canine Behaviourists, ICB and a Certified Canine Behaviourist with the International Companion Animal Network ICAN as well as a member of the Pet Professional Guild.