Calibre K9

10/10/2026

Teaching Ernie to hold a dumbbell was a challenge, it went against every impulse he had.

Teaching your dog to do things that challenge them is not only a great way to strengthen your bond, but also a great way of understanding how they learn, alongside giving them a robust outlet for their work ethic (in working line dogs).

Ernie lives to work, so although this was a challenge, the enrichment he received from learning this was priceless to him.

10/10/2026

This is Arnie, he is a Mammut Bulldog with reactivity toward people and other dogs. After his initial assessment, he has been given a robust training plan to ensure his needs are met and he has clear understanding of expectations and structure.

As with all working breeds, it is really important that they are given a consistent genetic outlet. This has to be the foundation of any training program - without it the dog will look to its environment to meet its needs. Arnie’s owners have done a brilliant job with the early parts of his training and have made good progress so far - they should be proud of what they have achieved. I’m looking forward to seeing Arnie’s future progress.

30/09/2026

08/08/2026

Luna had a brilliant first session today and made great progress. We started with some drive building to give some robust prey outlets, then some very successful loose lead walking, before introducing the foundations for impulse control in the video. Both Luna and her handlers did an amazing job!

19/05/2026

Impulse control is one of the most important skills to teach your dog. It is one way of training your dog to engage with you when in a state of high arousal. For dogs that are genetically reactive, this is a critical skill to maximise wellbeing and quality of life.

18/05/2026

Shawn doing an excellent job with Hugo on a long sit and stay with distractions! Great job!

18/05/2026

It’s so nice to see Hugo the Cockapoo and Shawn doing a brilliant job keeping engaged and focused in the presence of a very close high level distraction. This would not have been possible a few weeks ago, so credit has to be given to the time and effort put in by them! Steve is also doing a great job keeping Hugo the Working Spaniel engaged in being calm and attentive close by which is a great effort from Hugo!

06/05/2026

Steve and Hugo the working Spaniel should be proud of the progress they have made. Before if Hugo was not 100% lured past a dog, he would lunge and incessantly bark until he was moved away. He would also incessantly bark when performing any type of obedience. With the introduction of the clicker, Hugo is now considerably calmer and has progressed to practically zero barking within close proximity to other dogs.

Clicker training is a good method for some dogs. Hugo had to do strong foundation work before introducing this tool, or it would have had the opposite effect. At Calibre K9, we don’t expect your dog to fit in with the needs of our training syllabus - we create a syllabus of training that fits the needs of your dog.

06/05/2026

Shawn and Hugo doing a great job with distance engagement and obedience. Hugo is now so much calmer around other dogs, it’s so nice to see this progress.