Pawtastic Dog Services- dog walking & training

Pawtastic Dog Services- dog walking & training Pawtastic Dog Services offers dog walking, canine training, addressing some behavioural issues

02/09/2026

Supreme paddle boarding and lakes in Parc Naturel Regional de Millevaches en Limousin.

01/09/2026

Best and worse aspects of paddle boarding with your dog.

01/09/2026

Walking in woodland means being prepared for the unexpected. Deer can suddenly appear and run across the path and for a dog with a strong chase drive, like my Border Collie Max, that can be incredibly difficult to ignore.

That’s why recall and whistle training need to be practised before the distraction happens.

I always have my whistle ready but I also carry Max’s strongest reinforcer, his ball. We regularly practise recalling away from movement and distractions, reinforcing the response so that when the real-life moment arrives, the behaviour is already well rehearsed.

When those deer suddenly ran past us, I could blow my whistle and trust Max to turn back to me rather than chase.

Training before the moment gives you confidence in the moment.

After a long break, it was so lovely to be back working with Gothel and her mum today. Our first goal was to revisit som...
25/08/2026

After a long break, it was so lovely to be back working with Gothel and her mum today.

Our first goal was to revisit some of the skills and routines we had previously built, helping Gotel reconnect with familiar patterns and cues. But we didn’t stop there, we began creating a new routine of our own.

Rather than expecting Gothel to understand a long sequence immediately, we broke the learning down into small, achievable pieces. We practised one short sequence, reinforced it, repeated it, and then gradually added the next piece.

This is where learning really becomes powerful.

By progressing in small steps, Gothel was able to predict what was coming next, experience repeated success, and build confidence in her own ability to complete the sequence. Once she understood one part, we could safely add another and then another.

We gradually extended the routine, reintroduced sequences we had practised previously, and beautifully connected them together.

Gothel, you are a little star!

Today’s session with Teddy and his wonderful parents focused on something that is at the heart of successful training, t...
24/08/2026

Today’s session with Teddy and his wonderful parents focused on something that is at the heart of successful training, teaching a dog not just to respond to us but to regulate himself when the environment becomes exciting.

We began by building engagement and sustained eye contact using the wait cue and a clear release. Rather than asking Teddy for long periods of focus immediately, we gradually increased the duration, allowing him to experience success and reinforcing his ability to stay connected with his parents.

Then we added the real challenge, distractions.

Objects were thrown, treats were introduced and the environment became increasingly interesting. Teddy was asked to wait, then redirected back towards his parents, with the desired behaviour reinforced.

This is an important distinction in training we're not trying to eliminate distractions but teaching Teddy that a distraction doesn't automatically require a reaction. He can notice something, pause, process it, and then choose to reconnect with his humans.

And Teddy was brilliant at it.

We also worked with different reward delivery strategies, helping Teddy learn that reinforcement doesn't always arrive in exactly the same way. Varying how rewards are delivered can help maintain engagement while keeping the dog thinking and responding to cues rather than simply anticipating a predictable pattern.

Then came a huge milestone.

Teddy successfully redirected away from passing dogs, even with multiple dogs moving around us and some approaching quite closely.

And for the first time, Teddy went off lead in this environment.

That wasn't simply about taking the lead off. It reflected the engagement, responsiveness and impulse control he had built throughout the session.

We finished with something Teddy had never practised before: a prolonged settle.

And he picked it up almost immediately.

Outdoors.
Around distractions.
With dogs approaching.
With people moving around.

Teddy simply stayed lying beside his parents.

He didn't repeatedly get up to investigate. He remained settled while the world continued happening around him.

While we were chatting and Teddy was waiting, he chose to settle himself.

Today’s session with Dolly and her devoted mum was all about building security around resources,not simply teaching Doll...
24/08/2026

Today’s session with Dolly and her devoted mum was all about building security around resources,not simply teaching Dolly to “give things up".

Resource guarding can involve much more than food or toys. For some dogs, valuable resources can include toys, spaces, objects, or even a favourite person’s attention and affection. When a dog feels that something valuable might be taken away, the emotional response can be one of insecurity, anxiety or conflict.

So rather than confronting the guarding behaviour, our goal was to change the underlying emotional picture: “When another dog is nearby, good things still happen, and I am safe.”

We began on neutral ground, allowing Dolly time to decompress and explore. There were plenty of new scents and environmental information, so she was initially a little distracted, completely understandable in a novel environment.

We then introduced my dog Max gradually and carefully.

The priority was never to push Dolly beyond her threshold. We watched her body language continuously, adjusted distance and intensity, and reinforced the behaviours we wanted to see, calmness, engagement with her mum, waiting, checking in and choosing self-control.

Dolly absolutely amazed us.
From the very beginning, she appeared genuinely comfortable around Max. Most importantly, throughout the session we saw no obvious resource-guarding responses, even during situations that would normally be challenging for her.

One particularly valuable exercise involved Mum giving Max close affection, kisses and cuddles while Dolly was nearby.

Instead of assuming that Dolly should tolerate this and simply putting her through it, we created carefully controlled opportunities for her to experience the situation while remaining under threshold.

Whenever Dolly remained calm, that calmness was reinforced. We aren't rewarding Dolly for suppressing a reaction. We are helping her repeatedly experience that another dog receiving attention does not mean she is losing something, being excluded or becoming unsafe.

Over repeated, carefully managed experiences, this can help build a different association.

Today’s session with Dylan and his parents focused on something that can be deceptively difficult for many dogs,learning...
24/08/2026

Today’s session with Dylan and his parents focused on something that can be deceptively difficult for many dogs,learning that the garden gate does not automatically mean “time to react”.

When I arrived, Dylan was already highly aroused. As soon as he was given access to the garden, he immediately rushed to the gate and began barking intensely, a well-rehearsed behaviour that had become his automatic response to what was happening around the boundary.

We began with counter-conditioning and redirection, introducing calm, rewarding activities away from the gate. We used a gentle mouse-style game with balls and treats, encouraging Dylan to engage with his environment in a more thoughtful way rather than immediately reacting to external triggers.

Gradually, we increased the duration of calm behaviour.

🔹 Searching for treats around the garden
🔹 Increasing time spent calmly engaged
🔹 Introducing longer periods of settling
🔹 Reinforcing voluntary disengagement from the gate
🔹 Allowing Dylan to discover that calm behaviour pays

This is important because we don't simply want to suppress barking. We want to help the dog develop a different behavioural response and greater emotional regulation around the trigger.

Towards the end of the session, Dylan entered the garden and instead of immediately running to the gate, he chose to settle by himself.

We continued talking with his parents for quite a while and Dylan simply stayed there, relaxed and chilled out.

Even more encouragingly, his parents noticed that when neighbours walked along the fence and near the gate, Dylan was beginning to disengage rather than immediately react and bark.

But this is where consistency matters.

Behaviour that has been rehearsed repeatedly doesn't disappear after one successful session. Dylan needs many opportunities to practise the new response, ideally while he is still below his threshold, so that calmness, disengagement and settling become stronger habits than rushing to the gate and barking.

The goal isn't a dog who never notices what's happening around him but a dog who notices, thinks and can choose what to do next.

Address

2 Princess Gardens
Bristol
BS161EY

Telephone

+447828919523

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