Kit The Dog Trainer

Kit The Dog Trainer šŸ•Helping reactive dogs & their guardians live better
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18/06/2026

Did you knowā€¦

I will never willingly put my reactive dogs in an uncomfortable situation during training because it isnā€™t fair on them. But, whilst we were filming this, an off lead dog just happened to approach us. I have included snippets of this interaction so that you can see how this approach works in action.

Oh, and for my FREE protocol on how to reset your dog after a reaction, comment RESET and Iā€™ll send you everything you need straight to your inbox.

17/06/2026

Try this asap

1. Separate your management and your training into two clear categories.
Your reactive dog barks at every single sound? Play the radio all day and turn it off for 5 minutes of training every time you make yourself a drink. Your reactive dog loses their mind every time they see a stranger? Go for walks in remote places and then stop off in a shop car park on the way home for five minutes of training. Over time we increase exposure to triggers, but if they are dealing with them all day every day, all their doing is practicing (and getting better at) things we donā€™t like.

2. Train impulse control exercises.
This is so much more important than most people realise. Think of it like training for a marathon; you donā€™t just run loads. You also have to do strength and conditioning work. Impulse control games are your reactive dogā€™s foundation skills. Is it working directly on the issue? Nope. But itā€™s creating a solid base on which to build.

3. Teach your reactive do to think in a heightened state of arousal.
This doesnā€™t need to be complicated. Just wind your dog up a bit with food or play, then ask them to follow a cue before releasing them to eat the food or play with the toy. Reactive dogs need to be able to still engage their brain when they are having big feelings, and we can rehearse this skill away from their triggers so it becomes easier in the moment.

I promise you, just those three changes will have a massive impact. Youā€™ve got this!

Drop your questions below and Iā€™ll get to as many as I can.

Percy was born with an incredible talent that I have done absolutely nothing withā€¦ He is honestly a forensic-grade scent...
17/06/2026

Percy was born with an incredible talent that I have done absolutely nothing withā€¦

He is honestly a forensic-grade scent machine living in the body of a dog who mostly sniffs the same lamposts at least twice a week.

The moment I realised he had an incredible nose was when we were out on a walk in a secure field. Ezra had a sneaky mouthful of some long-dead something, and an entire field later Percy sniffed his brotherā€™s lip and tracked the scent back across an entire field to the original carcass.

I have never trained a scrap of this scent work, he just arrived pre-installed with a nose the police would fight over.

The one genuinely useful thing I have taught him is a banging recall, so the second I call, he abandons the treasure and happily trots back to me.

Your turn. Whatā€™s the thing your reactive dog is genuinely brilliant at that is completely and utterly useless? Tell me in the comments.

16/06/2026

This is what Iā€™d tell anyone with a reactive dog who is always demand barking or being destructive šŸ‘‡šŸ»

It never surprises me when you tell me your reactive dog also demand barks and is destructive. Thatā€™s because the vast majority of reactive dogs I meet are impulsive and easily frustrated.

And letā€™s call a spade a spade, many of them are also working dogs trying to manage life in a pet dog home.

I promise, Iā€™m not having a go at you. But the truth for many modern dogs is that sadly they are living a much more sedentary life than their ancestors of 50 years ago were. And for reactive dogs who are hard and unpleasant to walk, thatā€™s often even more true.

But I canā€™t just say ā€˜quit your job and walk eight hours per dayā€™ can I? So instead, we need to build a life where they can thrive without adding lots of pressure to your already busy day. That means you need to be working smarter, not harder.

For example, add more variety to their walks. I literally changed a dogā€™s whole outlook last week by asking the owner to go to a new place four days per week. Remember how bored we all were doing the same thing every day in COVID? Your dog is the same.

We also need to do short but challenging training sessions where we ask your dog to problem solve. And Iā€™m not talking about doing the same sit and paw routine youā€™ve been doing for six months.

Also, think very carefully about what youā€™re rewarding. Itā€™s easy to get stuck in the loop of giving your dog attention every time they bark or break something. If you gave me Ā£5 every time I poked you in the cheek, Iā€™d never stop doing it.

But if you are complaining that your dog is being a sh*tbag when what they actually are is bored, that is on you. Sorry, but itā€™s true. The days where my dogs get less and they are annoying, I accept thatā€™s my bad.

So, what are you going to do differently tomorrow to stop your reactive dog from feeling so frustrated? Let me know in the comments. And donā€™t forget to save this post so you can come back to it next time your reactive dog is driving you mad.

If my three wrote an autobiography, this is what their titles would beā€¦Ezra: I Couldnā€™t Hear You Say No: A MemoirMargot:...
16/06/2026

If my three wrote an autobiography, this is what their titles would beā€¦

Ezra: I Couldnā€™t Hear You Say No: A Memoir

Margot: Disgruntled: The Official Complaint

Percy: Iā€™d Love to Sit Near You, From Over Here

Marty was our beautiful old boy that we lost last year. The title of his autobiography would be: If It Was on the Counter, It Was Already Mine: A Life in Biscuits.

I canā€™t wait to read yoursā€¦

15/06/2026

My client just got UNREAL results by making these simple changes with her reactive dog. They were suddenly caught in a tight space (every reactive dog guardianā€™s worst nightmare, right?) with another dog kicking off at them.

But she took a breath and followed my tight spaces plan and it went so differently that they sent me this message: ā€œMy dog got calm immediately! So then it was just her standing there watching the other dog bark at her. It was amazing!ā€

And now Iā€™m giving that exact same plan away for FREE. Just comment OOPS and Iā€™ll send it to you.

I canā€™t wait to read all your messages telling me how itā€™s transformed your walks!

Down here for a quick map of the zones šŸ”½To make this work, you need to have a good understanding of the different zones ...
15/06/2026

Down here for a quick map of the zones šŸ”½

To make this work, you need to have a good understanding of the different zones and how they relate to one another.

šŸŸ¢ The Green Zone is a low distraction and familiar environment like your kitchen, hallway or garden.
šŸŸ  The Amber Zone is a notch up with some distractions like a quiet walk, a car park, a secure field.
šŸ”“ The Red Zone is the environment with the most distractions such as the park and the town centre.

The important part here is knowing how the zones look for your unique dog. For one dog, an amber zone might be outside the front door, where for others it could be the kitchen as opposed to the living room.

Drop a comment to let me know how training looks for your multi-dog household right now and lets see if we can troubleshoot it together šŸ‘‡šŸ»

This is probably my most asked for freebie everā€¦I want to completely change how you handle those ā€˜ohā€™ sh*itā€™ moments wit...
14/06/2026

This is probably my most asked for freebie everā€¦

I want to completely change how you handle those ā€˜ohā€™ sh*itā€™ moments with your dog so you donā€™t end up feeling like a run in with the ā€˜my dog is friendlyā€™ brigade ends up undoing all your hard work.

Just comment ā€˜OOPSā€™ and the magic of the internet will send you the guide!

14/06/2026

You donā€™t want to miss this bonus tipā€¦

When youā€™re muzzle training, patterns are your friend. Patterns are just chaining together a few different behaviours so your dog learns that one follows the other. Thereā€™s a pattern you can use that teaches your reactive dog that they will put their muzzle on, walk a bit, and then get paid, and then take their muzzle off.

1.ā  ā Muzzle on - train the act of your dog putting their face into the muzzle and you doing up and undoing the straps
2.ā  ā ā Walking - do the activity I show you in the video (with the muzzle undone still at this stage)
3.ā  ā ā Scatter - scatter a few treats on the floor for your dog to eat and hold the straps of their muzzle so they are eating through the muzzle. If this stage sounds impossible, you need to watch my last video on muzzle training, where we train your dog how to eat from the floor wearing their muzzle.
4.ā  ā ā Return to step 1 and keep cycling through these behaviours for a few minutes.

Once they are loving this game, we just start playing without undoing the muzzle strap. Voila. Your dog is happily putting their muzzle on, walking around in it, and eating treats from the floor. Now all thatā€™s left is doing it outside.

Worried about the transition to outside? Hit follow because youā€™re going to want to see the rest of my posts for the full picture. Weā€™ve got this.

Fair warning: this one is emotionalā€¦Ezra has brought me a life I could have never imagined, and taught me more about mys...
13/06/2026

Fair warning: this one is emotionalā€¦

Ezra has brought me a life I could have never imagined, and taught me more about myself than I can express. I honestly believe we were built to be together; maybe we were atoms sitting side by side as the Big Bang happened.

My boy taught me that itā€™s ok to use my voice and to take up space.

He taught me that it is ok to be authentically yourself, even if the world doesnā€™t understand or accept you.

Heā€™s taught me that I want to live, and to keep on living.

Heā€™s taught me that time in nature restores my soul, and that there isnā€™t much a long walk in the woods with your best mate canā€™t fix.

Heā€™s taught me what it means to feel truly safe and at home in my home. Heā€™s my anchor in a world that used to confuse and overwhelm me.

Most importantly, heā€™s taught me that itā€™s not wrong to be intense and passionate and full on, and to feel things deeply. He mirrors all of those things in me and loves me intensely for it.

Both Ez and I learnt that being this way might make the start of your life trickier, but youā€™ll find your place in the world. His place was me, and mine was him.

Once you find your place, your home, your anchor, you can grow a life that feels beautiful together.

So tell me, what has your reactive dog taught you about yourself that no human ever managed to? Iā€™d love to read it in the comments.

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