Gatsby is a sensitive dog. Working out how to support him, how to give him space when he needed it and confidence when he was ready for it, is what turned into this practice.
I know what it is to live with a dog who becomes scared or overwhelmed. The walks that stop being a pleasure. The off-lead dog running over while its owner calls out that he’s friendly. The strangers who tell you your dog shouldn’t be here if he can’t behave. The way your world quietly shrinks, and you stop inviting people round.
None of that is a failing in you or your dog. It is a dog who needs to feel safe, and an owner who needs someone in their corner. That is the job.
I have worked as a behaviourist in a number of local dog shelters. That meant observing a great many dogs with complex histories, including Romanian street dogs, at the point in their lives when they were most vulnerable and most in need of a sensitive approach. You learn a lot about fear, and about what actually helps, in a kennel block.
Before dogs, my background was in human psychology. That matters more than it sounds. A nervous dog lives inside a household, and the household is under strain too. This work is as much about you as it is about your dog, and both of you should feel listened to, safe and never judged.
I am also lucky to be supported by an experienced behaviourist who ran the Train Positive company for many years and speaks at dog behaviour conferences. Having someone to think a difficult case through with makes me better at this, and I would not want to work without it.
Every assessment looks at the whole dog: physical, behavioural and emotional. A significant proportion of the dogs I see have a physical component to their behaviour, so I will not start behaviour work on a dog who might be in pain. I work alongside your vet and refer to a canine physiotherapist where the picture calls for it.
Everything I do is force-free and science-based. No shock, prong or choke collars, ever. The full list of commitments I make to every dog and every owner is in my code of ethics, and the practical shape of a consultation is on how it works.
I am based in Bingham, Nottinghamshire, and support owners across Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire and Rutland.
I am committed to ongoing professional education, and I would rather show you the list than ask you to take it on trust.
If you want a compassionate and understanding ear from someone who lives with a nervous and sensitive dog, start with a free 30-minute discovery call. There is no pressure and no judgement in it.