I heard an interesting conversation on the radio recently (listen from 46 minutes) about training guide dogs. Apparently, the wait for a guide dog is now over a year. At the same time, the pass rate for a trained dog is down to 61%. This would appear to be in large part due to a new positive reinforcement training system first introduced in 2017. This new system completely removes any ‘punishment’ in the dog training. The term punishment sound severe but it does not mean hitting or abusing the dog in anyway, it’s a simple as a negative experience of being chastised for pulling on the lead. Ins ..read more

More and more I’m receiving enquires from prospective dog training clients whom seem to think its acceptable to walk their dogs just once a day. If you yourself was only allowed to leave the house once a day for 30 minutes then you too would go stir crazy. So to expect your dog to be well behaved is very unlikely. No matter the weather you should walk your dogs at least twice a day for a minimum of 30 mins each time. Together with waking your dogs you need to mentally stimulate your dog through training. When I insist that people need to walk their dogs more if they wish to correct bad behavio ..read more

With just over 5 months until the 2023 shooting season commences with the Glorious Twelve it’s time to start planning your training for your shooting companion. Despite how well you may shoot it’s so important to have a good working dog under control on a shoot. You can miss an easy bird and fellow shooters will laugh and make fun, but this will be forgotten quickly. If you dog is unruly and messes up a drive on the shoot day you and your dog will always be remembered. You may even never be invited back. After the shooting season finishes I t’s important to allow your dogs to relax over the m ..read more

It was interesting to watch this week’s episode of Countryfile on the BBC. A programme that I would say normally steers clear of controversial topics has chosen to deal head on with a subject that polarises views of the countryside. I was pleasantly surprised by the coverage. The main focus seemed to be on the economic benefits to the countryside. The shooting industry is worth £2 billion to the UK economy. It supports many thousands of jobs, not just those working directly on estates but also industries such as hospitality. The gamekeepers interviewed on the programme, young and old, explaine ..read more

Is crate training for you? I regularly receive enquiries from clients with serious behavioural problems with their dogs and puppies. Many of the times owners have allowed behaviour to get out of control. If puppy foundations are instilled into your routine from the day you collect your puppy, many dog behavioural problems can be avoided. I use a crate for all my dogs throughout their lives. Not only does it allow me to toilet train my puppies within 24 hours, it ensures my dogs are safe from the hazards around my home. Most importantly, crate training ensures routine, structure and boundaries ..read more

I see so many people arrive for lessons with their dogs loose in their cars. Sometimes it’s in the front seat, or maybe walking around on the back seats. Even loose in the boot isn’t the best way to travel with your dogs. Rule 57 of the Highway Code states – When in a vehicle make sure dogs or other animals are suitably restrained so they cannot distract you while you are driving or injure you, or themselves, if you stop quickly. A seat belt harness, pet carrier, dog cage or dog guard are ways of restraining animals in cars. If caught with a dog loose in the car you could face charg ..read more

I’d like to wish all my family, friends and clients a Merry Christmas. This year has certainly seen many challenges for all of us. The financial crisis has affected many families, which in turn has affected how luxuries like dog training can be afforded. Training lessons have become less so I’d like to thank all the clients that have invested into their training. I look forward to seeing what 2023 has to offer in all levels of the training I offer. The post Merry Christmas from Tessleymoor appeared first on Tessleymoor Gundogs ..read more

If you follow me on social media you’ll have seen that I’ve recently helped a client re-home one of their Border Collie. When they went to buy Django they felt sorry for the last bitch left and decided to take two. If they’d have spoken with me prior I’d have strongly advised against it. When you buy siblings it makes training harder, they tend to bond together, so you need to walk separately and most importantly build a bond that they have with you and not each other. That instantly doubles your training. Unfortunately Treacle the bitch was clearly a sheepdog driven to work. Instantly when I ..read more

It was great to have Maggie the German Shepherd in for training today. I’ve been training Maggie from the age of 12 weeks, whilst advising and training her owners before they even collected her. Maggie has featured in previous blog posts so it’s great to give an update to show what can be achieved with consistency. Maggie was a joy to train with today. Whilst with me we worked on livestock desensitisation around my goats and sheep. Being a strong breed and a dog that is strong willed it’s important that she’s well behaved around livestock. With winter nearly upon us, todays snow, frost and ic ..read more

Whilst I appreciate we are experiencing dark and cold days/nights we still need to ensure are dogs are walked and trained. I get so many enquiries at this time of year from prospective clients with recall and behavioural issues. Pulling on the lead is also a problem, with owners concerned as we expect icy conditions. So we need to work hard with the time we have, even with the dark nights we need to put in time. I use head torch’s with my dogs, so I know it’s achievable. I think Christmas week is a great time for all the family to ensure we get that training in, we all have the time. Many fam ..read more