I’ve shared my life with dogs for nearly forty years and have learned from each and every one of them. With twenty years of secondary school teaching, I’ve also become very experienced in dealing with people! When I set up Homefield, I gave a lot of thought to what I would want in a dog training professional, and that’s what I aim to offer anyone who chooses to work with me.
What do I think you want? – someone who is empathetic, non-judgmental and understands the problems you are experiencing with your dog; someone who has had real experience but who has also taken the time to learn and gain professional accreditation with a respected provider; someone who is friendly and approachable, and flexible enough to consider a range of solutions and adapt to what you need.
I live on the south coast of Dorset with my Field Spaniel, Sonnet, my Gordon Setter puppy Ember and my cat Loki. As you might imagine, I spend a lot of time walking and training dogs, reading (not just about dogs!) studying training methods and exploring new canine activities!
Dogs have been a major part of my life for years, beginning with Great Danes and Gordon Setters and exhibiting to Championship show level, so whatever you’re struggling with, I’ve probably struggled with it too!
As a member of the IMDT, all training with me will use kind, effective techniques in accordance with the ethics of force-free training.
Having begun training my own dogs in the days when choke chains were considered an acceptable tool, I’ve seen some huge changes in attitudes; you can be sure that things have moved on a lot since then and I am fully committed to positive, modern methods.
Although training has always interested me, like many trainers, my interest increased dramatically about five years ago, as I tried to work out how I could help one of my own dogs. I read, I joined Facebook groups, I left Facebook groups, I talked to people, I saw behaviourists, I read some more, I signed up for courses…..and during all this, as I learned techniques to gradually make our lives easier, I realised that actually this is what I’d wanted to do all my life.
I suspect that if the emphasis in training was still on correction and punishment, I might never have made that connection. However, the current science-based emphasis on positive, non-aversive training makes so much more sense to me.
I am an accredited member of the Institute of Modern Dog Trainers and, as such, I regularly complete CPD – currently, this includes:
*Level 3 Diploma in Learning, Motivation and Reinforcement – IMDT
*Separation-Related Behaviours
* OFQUAL Level 3 Canine First Aid.
*Canine Psychology
*Canine Body Language
*Canine Adolescence – IMDT
*2nd Chance Heroes – IMDT (working with dogs in rescue)
*Resource Guarding: Prevention, Management & Treatment – The Mutty Professor
*Abnormal Repetitive Behaviours – IMDT
Homefield K9 Training 