1066 Pets and People - Behaviour & Training

13/10/2026

This lovely display is in a home rather than a shop, lucky doggo. 🐾
The pate works really well for individual training treats and the natural chews are great for a settle down, lasting a longer time frame depending on your dog’s enthusiasm.
Discount code in the comments. Nula’s natural treats

09/10/2026

An interesting read about dogs hiding their valuable items:

CACHING BEHAVIOUR
Have you heard of caching behaviour and does your dog do it? You’ve probably seen it- dogs may hide food or other items by burying them in the garden, or down the side of the sofa or sometimes they bury them in air, using their nose to cover the item in imaginary soil. Some people describe it as ‘tucking the baby in’ as that’s what it can look like. It’s an instinctive behaviour dogs have retained to hide food in times of plenty, ready for leaner times ahead.

We tend to see it in our pet dogs if they have something they can’t eat in one go or they don’t want to eat right now. You might see it if you give them a big chew that they don’t fancy eating straight away.

We do tend to see it dogs who can show resource guarding traits too and you can see dogs walk around crying and holding something and some dogs get quite upset about it and may cry etc

Sometimes if you see them caching and they’ve never done it before, it can be a sign that your dog isn’t feeling quite right- if they don’t eat something they would normally wolf down and they instead hide it, maybe they aren’t feeling very well. Could their teeth be hurting or are they generally unwell- it’s always a good idea to mention it to your vet if it’s a new behaviour.

Sometimes it can be a sign that a dog feels anxious and is worried something or someone is going to take their stuff. It can help with some dogs to give them a quieter or calmer place to eat or to think about whether something nearby (noisy washing machine etc) is worrying them and preventing them from eating. If you have multiple dogs, are they worried that another dog may take their precious thing?

My yorkie Twig caches socks, this was her record breaking attempt of hiding 3 socks in one go. Funny as she looks to see her with a mouth full of socks, she does get quite stressed and walks around crying trying to find the perfect place to hide them so we always help her to hide them. We hold a blanket up and no one is allowed to look and then she hides it under the blanket.

The worst thing I could do is take the socks off of her when she is like this as then she would be even more anxious that someone would take her treasure! I’ve no idea why she worries so much that someone will take her socks as no one ever has but we’ve found a way to help her feel safe about her socks so that she can relax when the are hidden. We also try and prevent this behaviour by making sure no one leaves socks around (but I have two teenagers so there are constant single socks left abandoned in strange places 🙄😂)

Caching can have a hormonal component too and female dogs may carry and hide toys, socks etc if they have a pseudo (phantom) pregnancy. We may see behavioural signs of a pseudo pregnancy (including increased anxiety, aggression and caching) even without physical signs, we don’t always see dogs producing milk or showing mammary enlargement, sometimes we just see persistent behavioural signs. If you think your dog may be having a pseudo pregnancy, chat to your vet as it can be treated with medication to bring hormone levels back to normal. Spayed dogs can also have pseudo pregnancies too.

Laura McAuliffe Dog Communication

05/10/2026

Setting up some activities in a client’s front garden and a neighbour’s cat thought they would trial the obstacles first. 😺

29/09/2026

Looking after your dogs limbs, muscles and soft tissue. 🐾

Please don't underestimate the effects of jumping onto the sofa & into cars, or running up & down stairs. Your dog is not designed for these repetative movements. Look at the size of his legs in relation to the size of the stair. There are so many steps or ramps available, starting from as little at £30.00. Whatever you use must be stable, sturdy, nonslip & suit your dog's size. They may need training or encouragement to use it & this may not happen over night. But this will be a HUGE investment in your dog's future health & mobility. If you would like advice please don't hesitate to contact me.
~Galen Myotherapy

26/09/2026

HUMAN DIRECTED AGGRESSION AND THE USE OF AVERSIVES

I’ve had several dogs come to me in the last year who have aggression issues around people that either started or became much worse after they’d had aversive training. By aversives we mean the use of slip lead corrections, body jabs, rattle cans, prong and Ecollars etc. Some dogs went for general loose lead/recall/obedience training but became so scared after the use of aversives that they are now lunging at or even biting people who approach them or try to handle them. Some were already worried about people (growling or barking etc) and are now lunging or attempting to bite people. Some have bitten their owners since this training.

These dogs didn’t have these issues beforehand and they’ve become so scared of what people may do to them now that they are showing aggression. Some of them are now misinterpreting normal human interactions with them and see people as a threat to their safety and are using aggression to try and keep people away. By normal human interactions I mean people taking collars and leads off, reaching out to touch them, walking past then when they are resting etc. These dogs are traumatised by what’s happened to them, there is no other way of describing it.

I used to see dogs like this (who’ve shown aggression after aversive training) once or twice a year and now it’s something I see several times a month and it’s really concerning. There are some really unskilled trainers out there using aversives which is extremely worrying; if an unskilled trainer gets it wrong using reward the worse that happens is the dog gets fat, if you are an unskilled trainer using a shock collar there’s a huge risk of fallout.

Aversives are sold as a ‘quick fix’ they make dogs stop behaviours that people don’t like (running off/barking/stealing things) but there is always a huge risk of a fall out. It’s no surprise really that doing or using something that causes fear or pain may make an anxious dog worse.

None of this is the owners fault either, all have incredibly kind and loving families who weren’t aware these methods would be used or who didn’t realise the implications. They’ve done nothing wrong and are now left to try and repair the damage that’s been done. I feel so sad for the lovely families and their dogs as they’ve been really let down.

There’s no quick fixes to changing emotions, it takes time and patience and who often we are trying to rebuild confidence that’s been lost and help dogs recover from previous trauma (of all sorts). There’s a huge risk with quick fixes and it’s like playing roulette- you may have an incredibly robust dog and get ‘lucky’ and have no negative consequences from using aversives but it may break another dog and leave you with a terrible fall out. Just not worth the risk when we have alternatives

Laura McAuliffe, 2025, Dog Communication

22/09/2026

🐾 Is Your Dog Sound Sensitive?
🐾. Do sudden loud noises worry them for a long time after the noise has passed?
🐾. Are you dreading your dogs reaction to fireworks in November?
There are various approaches that can help your dog feel more resilient and able to cope better with these challenges.
Get in touch to prepare in advance and help your dog feel more comfortable: [email protected]

18/09/2026

The International Canine Behaviourists (ICB) strictly opposes the use of electrical stimulation devices (commonly known as shock collars, e-collars, or remote training collars), electronic containment systems, prong collars, choke chains, anti-bark spray collars, and any physical force, intimidation, or coercion in the training, care, and behavioral modification of dogs.

​In alignment with our founding principle, "Welfare Never Compromised," ICB advocates exclusively for evidence-based, reward-based, and force-free methodology. We require all ICB members, certified behaviorists, and affiliated practitioners to adhere strictly to these standards.

26/08/2026

It's not always obvious when your dog is feeling uncomfortable...

Can your dog: walk & trot comfortably, toilet comfortably without moving, jump on/off the sofa, travel in the car, navigate without bumping into things, tolerate other dogs, enjoy being touched or towel dried, stand still without having to move, sit properly, play, sleep & enjoy their life? If the answer to any of these is no, tell me more.

03/07/2026

Good socialisation requires supporting your puppy appropriately through different experiences to help them feel safe and build confidence in a variety of situations. Good socialisation is not allowing a free for all at the park and letting the dogs sort themselves out. Be selective about suitable friends or playmates as too much play can create rough players as they develop into adolescent dogs and lead frustration can become an issue as the dog's choice to either move closer to or away from an incoming dog is restricted. Understanding body language and lead handling skills is really important to set our pups up for success.

Socialisation does not mean...

❌Pushing your puppy into uncomfortable situations
❌Forcing them to be involved in activities that are overwhelming to them
❌Going for 'volume' of encounters without assessing your puppies needs or the quality of those encounters
❌ Making on-lead dogs approach each other when one of them is clearly backing off or showing signs of discomfort

(search our previous posts on canine body language to learn more about the subtle signs of unease)

The first three to four months of a puppy’s life are known as the socialisation or sensitive period — a critical developmental window where puppies learn what is safe, normal, and predictable in the world around them. What puppies experience during this time, whether positive or negative, can have profound effects on their behaviour later in life.

Research shows that dogs who are not properly socialised as puppies are at a higher risk of developing problematic behaviours in adulthood, including fear, anxiety, aggression, and separation-related issues.

For example, puppies given additional socialisation were later reported by owners to show:

✅ less fear towards humans
✅ improved emotional bonding
✅ greater confidence at one year of age

Puppy socialisation is not simply “meeting lots of people and dogs.” It is the process of building a foundation of safe, positive experiences, helping puppies develop into calm and resilient adult dogs.

During this period, puppies are naturally more curious. Once this window closes, it becomes much harder to reverse negative associations.

Unfortunately, due to the high prevalence of low welfare dogs (and other animals), time and time again people are buying puppies whose parents are bred in poor welfare, stressful conditions, and do not receive the essential life experiences that a good breeder should provide from the day they are born. Importantly, research highlights that the socialisation period begins while puppies are still in the breeding environment. Because puppies are typically homed from 8 weeks onwards, responsibility for early exposure starts with the breeder, not just the new owner. This is increasingly important as more puppies are being bred in large commercial (or illegally imported from) breeding establishments. Dogs sourced from such facilities are reported to show increased risk of behavioural disorders later in life, including:

➡heightened fear
➡aggression
➡anxiety
➡separation-related behaviours
➡attention-seeking behaviours
➡sensitivity to touch

Furthermore, despite the importance of this stage, socialisation is often misunderstood or done incorrectly. Here are some of the most common mistakes:

1. Overwhelming Experiences
Introducing too many new people, environments, or noises at once can flood a puppy emotionally. Instead of learning confidence, puppies may learn fear. Socialisation should always be gradual, calm, and controlled.

2. Allowing Negative or Frightening Encounters

A single frightening event — such as being attacked by another dog or forced into an uncomfortable situation — can leave long-term emotional consequences. Negative early experiences are strongly linked to anxiety-related behaviours later in life.

3. Inconsistent Exposure

Socialisation is not a one-off event. You have not 'done traffic' after one outing on a road. Sporadic exposure can result in puppies failing to build confidence, leaving them uncertain in unfamiliar situations as adults. Consistency can help here: short, positive, repeated experiences may work best.

4. Ignoring Individual Differences

Not all puppies respond the same way. Some are bold and curious, while others are naturally more cautious and need more time to adjust.

5. Waiting Until Vaccinations Are Fully Complete

Many owners delay socialisation until after vaccinations, but this risks missing the most sensitive learning period. Safe socialisation starts from the moment these puppies are born and while they grow up with the breeder - and can continue in the household and some safe areas/interactions before the vaccination courses is fully done - as this can be 12-14+weeks of age and you have 'missed the boat' so to speak.

6. Focusing on Quantity Over Quality

Socialisation is not about how many dogs or people a puppy meets. It is not about forcing you puppy to cuddle children and accept people petting them when they are clearly uncomfortable. A few calm, rewarding encounters are far more valuable than many chaotic ones.

The goal is not to overwhelm — but to teach puppies that the world is safe. You can start that by picking high welfare puppies, but after that is is not about forcing or overwhelming your puppies.

McEvoy V, Espinosa UB, Crump A, Arnott G. Canine Socialisation: A Narrative Systematic Review. Animals (Basel). 2022 Oct 22;12(21):2895. doi: 10.3390/ani12212895. Erratum in: Animals (Basel). 2022 Dec 26;13(1):81. doi: 10.3390/ani13010081. PMID: 36359020; PMCID: PMC9655304.

23/06/2026

We are hiring! 🎉

We're looking for a new Patient Care Assistant to join our team at GoPet Services Vets.

Over the last few years, we've grown from a mobile veterinary service into a busy independent practice, and with our recent expansion and increasing caseload, we're now looking to add another PCA to our team.

We're a genuinely independent practice, which means our focus is on providing the best possible care for our patients and clients. We have a supportive team, modern facilities, and a culture where everyone's contribution matters.

*Please note that we are only looking for applicants with previous experience working in a veterinary practice.*

We're looking for someone who enjoys working as part of a team, takes pride in providing excellent patient care, and is happy to get involved in all aspects of practice life.

For the right person, this role can also offer genuine career progression. If your ambition is to develop your skills and pursue a career in veterinary nursing, we'll be happy to support and encourage that journey.

If you're looking for a role where you'll be valued, supported, and able to make a real difference to our patients, we'd love to hear from you.

You can find the full job description on indeed. (Link in comments)

Please feel free to share this post with anyone who may be interested.

Mike & the GoPet Services Team