Training Ethos
“Teaching is the highest form of understanding.” – Aristotle
By taking a holistic approach to each dog and handler combination, relevant training exercises are designed using a positive, force-free approach resulting in personalised physical and mental routines to suit your training goals.
I consider the following factors to be essential ingredients of my dog training ethos:
- Establish a strong bond with your dog who looks to you for safety, guidance and fun
- A thorough understanding of rewards and reinforcements and their effects on learning. Using well-placed, well-timed reinforcements helps to create and control motivation, stimulation, self-control and choice.
- Manage the environment to assist in teaching required/desired behaviours
- Imagination and creativity! Think outside the box – create your own games and tricks for learning, problem solving and bonding.
- Understand that dogs will be dogs – they bite, chew, dig, jump up, bark, roll in nasty things, eat nasty things, chase, growl, etc. How we manage, re-direct or overcome these behaviours (if we find them undesirable) says more about us than our dogs.
- A good sense of humour and fun – you and your dog need to enjoy training to get the most out of it.