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Pandemic Pups

Have you brought home a puppy during the Covid restrictions and despite doing everything by the book found your dog has grown up with certain issues.   He panics when people come to the house, he's nervous or aggressive towards strangers, cowers away from or even lunges at other dogs, etc.

                                  YOU ARE NOT ON YOUR OWN!

Once we understand the brain chemistry of a dog and how the restrictions affected the dog's socialisation period (8-18 weeks), we can comprehend why these issues have arisen and more importantly how to deal with them.
Any qualified trainer or behaviourist will tell you that punishing these behaviours or using dated training 'tools' such as choke chains, half chokers squirt collars, etc. will worsen the behaviour or even supress the behaviour making the dog unpredictable.  So how do we recondition the dog so it no longer feels the need to behave in this manner.
Fortunately, you have the once in a lifetime opportunity to attend a talk by renowned Trainer and Behaviourist, Scott Allen.
Due to a spinal injury, Scott has had to temporary suspend all classes and one to ones.  However, due to the massive demand for his services with Pandemic Pups, he is helping out local dog owners and professionals with a talk on the subject, including practical advice and how to formulate a plan to resolve the dog's issues.
Scott has huge experience in working with behavioural issues and specialises in the resolution of aggression and anxiety issues.  He will talk you through the why's and how's and send you on the way to a well rounded, confident dog as well as a Q and A. session, giving you the opportunity to ask specific questions about your own dog.
Register your interest for the Lichfield dates in early January to guarantee your seat.

"Cannot rate Scott highly enough. He has given us back our little dog who was too scared to be around other dogs due to an injury. We can never ever thank you enough".

Emma Flower

Dog's Portrait

....and Imported Rescue Dogs

It was estimated that over 44,000 dogs were legally imported into the UK in 2019 (over half of them coming in from Romania) and that number has been totally eclipsed over the last two years as puppy prices have rocketed and the number of dogs in UK rescues reducing dramatically during lockdowns.   However, the number of Eastern European dogs is just a small percentage of the total number of dogs in the UK (an estimated 12,000,000).   Despite this, any trainer or behaviourist will tell you that at least 1 in 4 aggression cases referred to them will be a 'Rommie' or an import from some other part of Eastern Europe.  Does this mean that these imports are more aggressive than their English counterparts?   Actually, no! However, there are good reason why so many struggle to adapt to living in our environment.   The main one is 'Cortisol', the anxiety hormone that causes the fight/flight response.  The production, absorption of and the reaction to the release of cortisol can be affected by the environment it is brought into the world in, the genetic make up of the mother and, most of all, the experiences of the pup pre-18 weeks.   

This does not mean that all imports are not good dogs.  Far from it, as they can make great pets and some are as confident and comfortable as well-bred English dogs.  What it does mean is there are a lot of Rommies and the like that are not great with other dogs, visitors to the home or good around food.  As this is an anxiety based issue, any punitive action such as shouting at, yanking a lead, using dated tools such as chokers and half chokers will simply enforce the root cause of the anxiety and, as such, worsen the behaviours.

The answer is to understand the behaviour, what is going on in the dog's head, the brain chemistry and why the dog is behaving in that way.  Then, we can look at changing how the dog perceives all the triggers, whether that be other dogs or people.  Once the dog no longer sees the triggers as threats, we can teach the dog how to act in a manner that we want.

Unfortunately, aggression and anxiety specialist dog trainer and behaviourist, Scott Allen, is temporarily unable to offer 1 to 1's or training classes, due to an ongoing spinal injury, and so is offering this once in a lifetime opportunity to learn about your dog's issues and how to make your environment a better one your rescue.

February 27th at 3.00pm - 5.30pm. Boley Park Community Centre, Lichfield

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