The Pawkeeper - Dog Training & Behavior Services

14/08/2026

WHY HAVING A SERVICE DOG ISN’T FOR EVERYONE - a Service Dog can give a disabled person incredible independence, but having one can also add another layer of responsibility to a life that may already be overwhelming.

They attract attention. A lot of it. People stare, approach you, ask personal questions, try to pet your dog or challenge your access. On days when simply navigating the world may already take a lot of energy.

Travel requires even more planning. Airline approvals, paperwork, different rules, airport procedures and sometimes weeks of preparation for something another passenger can simply book and do.

And then there’s the dog.

Training takes hundreds of hours and doesn’t stop once they qualify. You need to maintain their skills, advocate for them, recognize when they’re stressed, keep them safe and meet their needs... even on the days when your own disability makes doing those things difficult.

A Service Dog can make parts of life significantly easier.

But they can also make other parts more complicated, more visible and sometimes more overwhelming.

Because while you depend on your Service Dog, they depend on you, too.

And that’s an important part of deciding whether a Service Dog is the right choice for you.

Featuring 📸 : Ziggy on his way from Lisbon to London

10/08/2026

THIS IS NOT ONLY FOR FUTURE ASSISTANCE DOGS BY THE WAY...
If you are training a future assistance dog, here is why surgery on their toys is actually a crucial training step!
Squeakers can easily become an unhealthy obsession. That high-pitched sound triggers an intense rush of dopamine and high prey drive. This overstimulation can quickly turn into a massive distraction later in training, making it incredibly difficult for a dog to maintain focus or stay under threshold in public environments if a squeaky sound appears.
Instead, I desensitize a prospect puppy to squeaker sounds (same as I do with baby talk and kissy noises that people make to get a dog’s attention).
Have you ever heard about this? Do you remove your dog’s squeakers? Is your dog obsessed with squeaky sounds? Comment below!

08/08/2026

THINK VA**NG IS HARMLESS AROUND YOUR DOG? THINK AGAIN.

Whether it's ci******es, to***co, or e-ci******es, your dog is exposed too.

Cigarette smoke has been linked to an increased risk of respiratory disease, eye irritation, chronic coughing, and certain cancers in dogs. Long-nosed breeds are more prone to nasal cancer, while short-nosed breeds have a higher risk of lung cancer.

E-ci******es aren't just "water v***r." The aerosol can contain ni****ne, heavy metals, volatile chemicals, and ultrafine particles that your dog inhales alongside you. While research is still evolving, current evidence suggests there is no reason to consider va**ng around pets risk-free.

Ni****ne itself is highly toxic to dogs. A single cigarette butt, ni****ne pouch, chewing to***co, v**e liquid, or disposable v**e can become a life-threatening emergency if chewed or swallowed.

Signs of ni****ne poisoning include:
• Drooling
• Vomiting
• Restlessness
• Tremors
• Rapid heart rate
• Difficulty breathing
• Seizures

These signs can develop within 15–60 minutes and require immediate veterinary attention.

To reduce your dog's risk: quit smoking 😎💪🏻

Your dog doesn't get to choose the air they breathe. You do.

Have you ever thought about how smoking or va**ng could affect your dog?

07/08/2026

TRUE OR FALSE - but make it at

What's one thing you've always wanted to know about traveling with your pet? Ask us below in the comments.

06/08/2026

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD ABOUT THIS RULE?

The “5 minutes per month of age” rule isn’t completely wrong... it’s just incredibly oversimplified.

It was originally intended to discourage repetitive, forced exercise while puppies’ joints are still developing - not to suggest puppies should stop moving after a set number of minutes.

What puppies actually need is:
🐾 Self-paced exploration
🐾 Sniffing
🐾 Playing
🐾 Social learning
🐾 Training
🐾 Plenty of rest (18–20 hours a day)

The activities we do want to limit are things like:
❌ Long pavement walks
❌ Running alongside a person or bicycle
❌ Endless games of fetch
❌ Forced endurance hikes

Your puppy isn’t a stopwatch. They’ll naturally alternate between bursts of activity, sniffing, resting, and exploring.

Movement isn’t the enemy. Forced exercise is.

What’s your puppy’s daily exercise?

04/08/2026

28/07/2026

TRUST ISN'T BUILT IN ONE SESSION

It's BUILT, or quietly chipped away at, in the small moments your dog experiences every day.

Sometimes, despite our best intentions, we unknowingly put our dogs in situations where they learn that their feelings, boundaries, or communication aren't heard. Over time, that can affect the way they look to us for safety and guidance.

One example is veterinary care.

Some procedures are painful, stressful, or simply unavoidable. Our dogs will need blood draws, surgery, imaging, or emergency treatment at some point in their lives. This post is not about avoiding veterinary care: it's about asking ourselves how we can make those experiences as emotionally safe as possible.

I absolutely love clinic concepts such as Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG) VEG ER for Pets, where families can often stay with their pets for much of the treatment process, and many fear-free veterinary teams that prioritize minimizing stress wherever possible. Not every clinic can offer this due to the nature of the procedure or hospital protocols, but it's a wonderful example of how veterinary medicine is evolving to support both the patient's emotional wellbeing and the human-animal bond.

The same applies outside the veterinary clinic.

Your dog doesn't have to greet every person.
They don't have to "work it out" with every dog they meet. And they shouldn't have to wonder whether a treat means something scary is about to happen.

Our role isn't just to train our dogs.

It's to advocate for them.

Because every time your dog looks at you, they're asking one silent question:

"Are you someone I can rely on?"

23/07/2026

VERY FEW KNOW THAT DRINKING TOO MUCH WATER CAN BECOME LIFE-THREATENING

Water intoxication (also called water poisoning) happens when a dog swallows excessive amounts of water over a short period of time. This dilutes the sodium in their bloodstream, causing cells, including those in the brain, to swell.

This can happen in fresh water OR salt water. It’s not the type of water that causes the problem: it’s the amount your dog ingests.

🐾 Dogs at higher risk include those who:
• Constantly fetch toys from the water
• Bite at waves
• Chase hoses or sprinklers
• Spend long periods swimming without breaks

🚨 Signs to watch for:
• Lethargy
• Vomiting
• Excessive drooling
• Bloating
• Loss of coordination
• Glassy eyes
• Tremors
• Seizures
• Collapse

💡 Prevention is simple:
✔️ Take regular breaks from swimming.
✔️ Encourage rest between retrieves.
✔️ Avoid endless fetch sessions in the water.
✔️ Offer fresh drinking water so your dog is less likely to gulp water while playing.
✔️ Stop immediately if your dog starts swallowing large amounts of water.

If water intoxication happens, it can become a medical emergency very quickly. Knowing the signs could save your dog’s life.

Have you ever heard of water intoxication before? Let me know in the comments.

19/07/2026

Having worked in more than 6 countries as a Dog Trainer and Behavior Consultant, this is exactly my answer to the question: where’s your favorite place 🥹

Guess the countries below 🌎

15/07/2026

THERE ARE STILL MOMENTS I WISH I COULD GO BACK IN TIME AND CHANGE - this is one of them.

Eleven years ago, I genuinely thought I was doing the right thing. I didn't know about cooperative care. I didn't know about nail dremels. I thought struggling during nail trims was simply part of owning a dog.

It isn't.

Today, I teach dogs, and their families, that nail care can be calm, voluntary, and even relaxing. Sophie is living proof. The same dog who once had to be sedated for nail trims now lies down, relaxes, and often falls asleep while I dremel her nails.

This is why I encourage dog parents to learn this skill themselves whenever possible. Not because professionals aren't valuable - they absolutely are - but because your dog deserves someone who can take the time to go at their pace, build trust, and stop if they're uncomfortable.

Cooperative care isn't about getting the job done.

It's about protecting your dog's trust for a lifetime.

🤍 Has your dog ever had a difficult nail trim experience? I'd love to hear your story below.