We would like to wish all of our clients a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

We look forward to seeing new clients in the New Year and meeting your fabulous four-legged pals.

It has been a very hectic couple of months for one-to-one sessions and behaviour consultations. Demand is still high, which means we cannot take on any more behaviour or one-to-one clients until mid-January 2024.

We do offer online consults but still require a veterinary referral for these. We have some availability in December for online consults.  

I’m so proud to be a full member of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors member. Membership is renewed annually, and we must submit our CPD for the preceding year.

Currently, there is no legislation or regulations covering dog training and behaviour services, so anyone (even someone with no knowledge of dogs) can call themselves a dog trainer, instructor or behaviourist. This can do more harm than good, and there are plenty of individuals happy to jump on the “master trainer” or “skilled behaviourist” bandwagon. To ensure that our clients get the best and most appropriate advice, we advise that you look on the ABTC register to find a suitable Clinical Animal Behaviourist. This means that you can be confident you are receiving the most accurate, and relevant advice from an industry professional to help you have a rewarding and successful relationship with your dog.

Learning doesn’t stop, and continued professional development for clinical animal behaviourists is essential.

So for her latest CPD, Vicky wanted to focus on a subject that seemed to factor in a significant number of her behaviour cases, and something she has had first-hand experience with her own dogs.

In 2022, 39% of her dog behaviour cases were diagnosed with a musculoskeletal condition (and likely chronic pain) by a vet. The diagnosis was made just before the referral or during the behaviour treatment programme.

Read More →

We would like to wish all of our client’s past and present a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

It has been a while since we ran one of our popular activity workshops, but we are delighted to announce that we have another one scehduled for this November. These worskhops are suitable for friendly and sociable dogs who already have a good

level of basic training under their canine belts! Places are strictly limited to six dogs and handlers 🙂

The weather next week is predicted to be very warm, so it’s important to keep your dogs cool to prevent heatstroke. Here at Have a Good Dog, we avoid walking our dogs during the day when temperatures are at their highest. Elderly dogs, pups, and brachycephalic dogs, or flat-faced dogs, are more susceptible to heatstroke. Keep them safe and cool!

We have a vacancy for a part-time trainer (8 hours over Saturdays and Sundays)

A position has arisen for a dog trainer to deliver and assist in weekend dog training classes in County Durham.

As a trainer for Have a Good Dog, we seek someone who can lead classes, support the head trainer, and help clients and their dogs in a course.

The link will take you to the job specification:

Job Specification

We would like to wish everyone a very Merry (and healthy) Christmas and New Year.

We aim to respond to all e-mails and phone queries throughout the holiday within forty-eight hours, so please do not hesitate to leave a message 🙂