The Daisy Dog Academy

05/09/2026

YOUR LEAD IS PART OF THE CONVERSATION 🐾

We often think of the lead as something that keeps our dog safe and connected to us.

But it’s also communicating all the time.

Every change in tension, every movement of our hand and every change in our body position sends information down that lead to our dog.

And communication travels both ways.

When we add pressure to the lead, our dog feels it. If we suddenly tighten it, change direction or pull them towards us, we can alter their balance, restrict their movement and potentially change how they feel about whatever is happening around them.

And here’s the slightly ironic bit…

Sometimes, when we’re trying to stop our dog pulling, we’re actually helping to create the pull. 🙈

Pressure from one end can create resistance at the other.

A softer, looser lead gives our dogs greater opportunity to move naturally, make choices and adjust their body without constantly having to compensate for pressure coming through the lead.

That doesn’t mean simply letting the lead get longer. Good lead handling is a skill, needed for both ends!

It’s about noticing:

🐾 Where your body is positioned
🐾 How much tension you’re creating
🐾 What your hands are doing
🐾 When you move
🐾 Whether your dog can move freely and stay balanced

Next time you're out walking, instead of only watching what your dog is doing, have a little check-in with yourself:

What am I communicating down this lead?

Because sometimes changing what happens at our end of the lead can completely change what happens at theirs.

If you'd like to learn how to support your dog with calmer, more comfortable and pressure-free lead walking, book a free call with me and find out how we can help you help your dog. ❤️🐕

05/09/2026

I am very pleased to support Samantha Greenlee from My Aunt Jane Grooming Salon who is offering a Dog Care Workshop on Saturday 3rd October. Please share 🙏

All proceeds are in aid of Animal Connexions Rescue & Rehoming.

This Workshop is for the pet guardian who would like to learn how to properly care for their dog's coat, nails, and ears etc, at home, between professional grooms.

I will be covering brushing techniques, the correct brushes for your dog, bathing, and how to safely handle your dogs, and much, much more.
It will be 2 hours of hands on and interactive learning.... and as many questions as you'd like to ask. I will be using my own dogs for the demos so yours can have a day off.

Please get in contact with the rescue directly or myself if you'd like more information or to book in.

Plus there will be traybakes.....😋😋

03/09/2026

🐾 Sometimes behaviour makes much more sense when we understand the story behind it.

Buddy had been a street dog. He hadn’t grown up living in a house, so when he suddenly found himself expected to navigate life as a family pet, there was an awful lot he simply didn’t understand.

Things we consider completely normal can be anything but normal to a dog who has never experienced them before.

So rather than focusing simply on “How do we stop this behaviour?”, we started with a different question:

“Why might Buddy be finding this difficult?”

❤️ We helped his guardians understand where he was coming from.
🐾 We adjusted expectations.
🏡 We looked at his environment and what he needed to feel safe.
🧠 We gave him opportunities to learn at a pace he could cope with.
🤝 And, most importantly, we helped Buddy and his humans learn to understand one another.

And the results have been wonderful.

Receiving a review like this means such a lot to me because successful dog training isn't about creating the “perfect” dog.

It's about helping people understand the dog standing in front of them and giving both ends of the lead the tools they need to succeed.

Buddy didn't need someone to give him a copy of the house rules and tell him to crack on. 😉
He needed patience, support and humans who could help him make sense of his new world. And his guardians have done exactly that. ❤️

If you're struggling with your dog and you're not quite sure where to start, you don't have to figure everything out on your own.

📞 Book a FREE call with me today.

We can chat about what's happening, look at what your dog might be communicating and start putting together a plan to help you and your dog live your best lives together. 🐾❤️

03/09/2026

02/09/2026

🐾 13 years and one day ago, this little dog changed everything. ❤️

Daisy came into our lives… and promptly turned our world completely upside down.

In the very best possible way.

I could never have imagined then where this little dog would take me. She has been my companion, my teacher, my inspiration and, quite frankly, the reason I became a dog trainer.

Because of Daisy, I wanted to know more.

I wanted to understand more.

I wanted to learn how to really see the dog in front of me — physically, emotionally and as the wonderfully complex individual they are.

And 13 years later, she is still teaching me.

For the next four days, I’m very much in my happy place, learning at Tilley Farm and continuing to add more pieces to that enormous canine jigsaw puzzle. 🧩🐕

Our only regret is that the wonderful Sarah Fisher won’t be there with us in person. Her presence will undoubtedly be felt, though, and I know she will be there in spirit as we continue learning, observing, questioning and looking at ways we can better support our dogs.

For me, learning isn’t something that ever gets finished.

As Daisy’s guardian, I feel I owe it to her to keep learning as much as I possibly can — about her body, her movement, her emotions, her choices and what she is communicating.

And as a trainer, I owe exactly the same commitment to every person who trusts me with their canine companion.

So I also want to say a HUGE thank you to every single one of my clients. ❤️

Thank you for trusting me with your dogs.

Thank you for allowing me to be part of their journeys.

And thank you for giving me the privilege of doing something every day that started because one rather special little dog wandered into our lives 13 years ago.

Daisy has taken me places I never imagined I’d go, helped me build a business I love and introduced me to some truly incredible people and dogs along the way.

Thirteen years later, we couldn’t be prouder of everything she does and everything she has achieved.

Sometimes the dog you think you’re rescuing turns out to be the one who completely rewrites your life. ❤️🐾

And Daisy?

You’ve certainly rewritten mine.

Here’s to the next chapter, little dog. ❤️

02/09/2026

🐾 GROOMING ISN’T JUST FOR TODAY — IT’S FOR A LIFETIME ✂️🐶

When you bring home a puppy, choosing a groomer might not feel quite as important as choosing a vet, a trainer or the right food.

But for many dogs, grooming will be something they experience every 4–8 weeks for the rest of their lives.

That makes those first experiences incredibly important.

A good groomer shouldn’t just be interested in giving your puppy a fabulous haircut. They should be interested in helping your puppy feel safe, comfortable and confident about the whole process.

Look for a groomer who offers puppy introduction or socialisation sessions before a full groom.

These early visits can give your puppy time to experience things gradually:

🐾 Going into the grooming environment
🐾 Meeting and building trust with the groomer
🐾 Standing on the grooming table
🐾 Being gently handled
🐾 Hearing clippers, dryers and other unfamiliar noises
🐾 Having paws, ears, face and body touched
🐾 Learning that grooming predicts good things

Because we don't want their first grooming appointment to be:

"Hello little puppy… welcome to this strange place. Now stand still while we do 47 weird things to you." 😳😂

Taking things slowly at the beginning can pay dividends for years to come.

A puppy who learns that grooming is safe and predictable is much more likely to become an adult dog who can cope comfortably with regular grooming.

And that matters for the dog, the groomer and you as a guardian.

So don't simply choose the nearest groomer or the first available appointment.

Ask questions.
Visit them.
Find out how they introduce puppies to grooming.
Ask what happens if your puppy becomes worried.
And choose someone who is prepared to work at your puppy's pace.

✨ You aren't preparing your puppy for one groom. You're preparing them for a lifetime of grooming.

Those first experiences matter.

Set them up for success from the very beginning. ❤️🐾

01/09/2026

🐾 BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY… THE DOGS WERE STILL WORKING! 🐾

While everyone else was squeezing the last drops out of the Bank Holiday, we had four fabulous mantrailing teams out for an afternoon of sniffing, problem-solving and adding a few more pieces to the puzzle. 🧩🐶

And what I loved about this session was that every dog was working on exactly what they needed.

🐾 Fitz had already been trailing on Sunday, so we built on that experience and introduced his first scent article start.

Did he overthink it? Nope.
Did he absolutely nail it? Of course he did! 😂👏

🐾 Buan was also back for his second day of trailing, so we added another layer to his learning with additional junctions and a scent article start. He’s more than capable, and it was lovely watching him work through the extra information and make his decisions.

🐾 Ozzy returned for some more fun, working on junctions in a busy urban environment, his indication is also coming along nicely.

And finally…

🐾 Callie was back! ❤️

After a little break because of a sore back, it was wonderful to have her trailing again. For Callie, yesterday wasn’t about piling on difficulty. We went back to those lovely foundations, allowed her to reconnect with the game and reminded that fabulous mantrailing brain exactly how much fun this is.

And she was firing on all cylinders! 🚗💨🐶

That’s the beauty of mantrailing.

Progress doesn’t always mean making something harder.

Sometimes we introduce something new.
Sometimes we add another layer.
Sometimes we strengthen a skill.
And sometimes the best thing we can do is return to the foundations and let the dog say, “Oh yes… I remember this!”

Four dogs. Four different training plans. Four brilliant brains doing what dogs do exceptionally well — using their noses, thinking and learning. 🧠👃

Well done, gang. Another cracking afternoon of trailing! ❤️🐾

01/09/2026

🐾 THIS is what a dog using their brain looks like…🧠👃

Watching Tiggy work here is absolutely fascinating.

She isn’t simply following a scent from A to B. She’s gathering information, remembering, comparing, making decisions and problem solving as she methodically works through the different scent locations to find the person she’s been sent to find.

And all of that is happening through that extraordinary nose. 👃

Scent-based activities such as mantrailing and scent work give our dogs something incredibly valuable — the opportunity to use abilities they are naturally rather brilliant at.

They’re using:

🐾 Memory
🐾 Concentration
🐾 Decision making
🐾 Problem solving
🐾 Independent thinking
🐾 Scent discrimination

It’s a serious cognitive workout… without a worksheet or maths test in sight. 😂

And this is one of the reasons I love scent work so much.

We’re not just trying to tire our dogs out physically. We’re giving their brains meaningful work to do.

When dogs get opportunities to think, investigate, make choices and successfully solve problems, we can help build more confident and capable learners.

Then, when the work is finished, they can switch off, rest and relax having had an opportunity to fulfil one of their most incredible natural abilities.

Just look at Tiggy working it all out. ❤️ Your dog's nose is extraordinary. Give them opportunities to use it.

If you’d like to discover how mantrailing or scent work could benefit your dog, WhatsApp me today or book a FREE call through our website.

Let’s see what your dog's nose can do. 👃🐕❤️

30/08/2026

🐾 Why do I LOVE watching dogs get it wrong?

Because getting it wrong is often where some of the best learning happens.

When our dogs make a choice that doesn’t quite work, they gain information.

❌ That didn’t lead me to the answer…
🤔 What else could I try?
👃 Maybe I need to gather a little more information…
💡 Ahhh… THAT worked!

That process matters.

If we constantly jump in, correct every mistake or immediately show our dogs the answer, we can accidentally take away something incredibly valuable — the opportunity to think independently and solve the problem themselves.

Working through a little uncertainty can help build resilience, confidence and problem-solving skills.

And this is one of the many reasons I LOVE using the dog's nose. 👃❤️

Whether we're doing scent work, mantrailing or everyday training, there doesn't always need to be a perfectly straight line from question to answer.

Sometimes they need to investigate.
Sometimes they need to discount an option.
Sometimes they need to go, “Nope… definitely not that!” 😂

And then try something else.

The mistake hasn't ruined the exercise. The mistake has become part of the learning!

So next time your dog gets something “wrong”, resist the urge to immediately fix it.

Give them a moment.

They might just be busy piecing together the puzzle. 🧩🐕

Follow us for more practical dog training that helps you understand how your dog learns, thinks and solves problems — because sometimes getting it wrong is exactly how we learn to get it right. ❤️

30/08/2026

🎒🐾 BACK TO SCHOOL… BUT FOR THE DOGS!

September means one thing at The Daisy Dog Academy… a brand-new term of classes is about to begin!❤️

If you’ve been thinking, “I really must get booked in…” this is your friendly nudge to do it now, because our classes have a habit of filling up rather quickly!

🐶 Puppy Classes – start as you mean to go on, building confidence, connection and those all-important everyday skills.

🐾 Adolescent Classes – helping you navigate the teenage months when your previously delightful puppy occasionally appears to have misplaced their listening ears! 😂

👃 Scent Work Classes – put that incredible nose to work with an activity that builds confidence, encourages problem-solving and gives you something brilliant to enjoy together.

All our classes are positive reinforcement based, supportive and designed around helping you understand and work with the dog in front of you.

Whether you’re starting your training journey, need a little help through adolescence or simply want to discover something new together, come and join us this September.

🍂 New term starting soon
🐾 Spaces are limited and they fill FAST!

Book now at www.thedaisydogacademy.com – don’t wait until your class is full and then give me the puppy-dog eyes! 👀🐶

Let’s get you and your dog back to school and off on the right paw. ❤️🐾