Homefield K9 Training

28/09/2026

Only three in puppy group this weekend, but just look at their progress!🤩 Merlin was just brilliant at his ‘settle on a mat’ and all three are doing so well with loose lead walking! They picked up the auto stop game really quickly and we saw some beautiful engagement with the puppies’ handlers. Well done Bertie, Merlin and Milo!🤩🐾🥰
If you’re thinking about the next puppy course, there are only two spaces left!😊

26/09/2026

Autumn Improvers!
These pups are absolute stars!🌟 Not only did they all smash their recall challenge this week, they made big steps towards an emergency stop ✋🏾 AND Daisy found my earring, lost a fortnight ago in a field!!😱 Scentwork is going to be a doddle for her!!😁🐾🌟

What makes me especially happy is the amount of hard work being put in by the humans here - watching the handling skills progress for every dog in the class is amazing.🤩 Well done to Teams Otis, Scooby, Pebbles and Daisy!🙌🏻

24/09/2026

Belly Scratches!
Is it an invitation or is it something else entirely?
A lot of people (me included until a few years ago) assume that if a dog rolls on his back, he wants you to scratch his belly.
The trouble with this assumption is that it’s not always true. Some dogs are confident and comfortable with contact and more than happy with this; but others are much more worried - yet may still roll over. Confusing, huh?🤔
Luckily for demo purposes, I have one of each! Ember often presents her underside for scratching and enjoys lots of contact. Sonnet, on the other hand, is more cautious. If a person she doesn’t know well looms over her, she may well roll onto her back - but this is an appeasement behaviour, not an invitation. She is communicating that she is not a threat by exposing the most vulnerable part of her body.
It’s hard to get a picture of this as, of course, I’m not going to put her in that position for a photo opportunity! But I did manage to catch this when someone that she likes but isn’t completely sure of was standing near her. Note the whale eye, lifted front paw and tucked tail.
Ember, although not actually rolling over for belly rubs in the picture, is happy to remain in position when approached - she is just watching to see what happens. Incidentally, as she wasn’t specifically asking for contact here, I didn’t touch her.
If you’re not sure how your dog is feeling when they roll over, look at the whole picture. What is the rest of the body telling you?

21/09/2026

Portland Puppies and Beginners in the sunshine!🌞
Both groups worked hard on their lead walking and recall skills this weekend, managed some impressive stays and then Middle for the pups, Paws Up for the Beginners. I’m really enjoying watching all these pups make progress - well done to all: Luna, Bertie, Milo, Merlin and Colin; Ralphie, Jake, Twix and Sonny. River and Albie, we missed you!🐾🥰
The late Autumn courses are now available to book on the website if you’d like to join the fun!🤩

20/09/2026

Windy weather can really affect our dogs. Some find it very overwhelming - and if you consider their sense of smell, it’s easy to understand why.
Walking into the wind brings a massive sensory overload, as all the scent in the area is rushing towards them.
It’s no wonder they can find it hard to focus on walks in these conditions.
❄️💨 🐕

19/09/2026

More than one dog? They probably have different personalities and needs! One out in front, one way back behind, finding something interesting to sniff.

My two remind me of my mum’s stories about taking my sister and I to museums as children - me rushing through every exhibit because I’d ‘seen it’, my sister taking ages to examine each item. You can guess which one of us became a scientist!

Ember is me, and Sonnet my sister! It can be tricky keeping an eye on both, but worth it for each to get what they enjoy out of a walk.

17/09/2026

As the text to my last post vanished for some reason, here goes again!!

I know I keep going on about loose lead walking, but bear with me!
Last time I posted anything on this topic, someone commented ‘what happened to good, old-fashioned heel’ or something to that effect.

Well, nothing, to be honest! My two can walk to heel when asked, on and off lead - but I don’t see the necessity of trying to maintain that for the whole walk - it’s boring for them and hard work for all of us.

Loose lead doesn’t mean heel - it means not being dragged towards the next interesting scent at top speed or dislocating your shoulder. I’m happy for my dogs to spend the majority of their on-lead time sniffing, ‘reading their peemails’ and enjoying the surroundings.

The other point to make here is that there are many different reasons why dogs pull. It’s taken me a long time (and a lot of frustration that, as a trainer, I hadn’t managed to sort my own dog by this age) to fully realise that Ember has been hard to teach this skill because she’s been in pain. Now, with effective pain meds and the background of all that training, she mostly walks very nicely - but it’s hard for her to slow herself enough to keep pace with me and recognising that has been a real breakthrough for me.

If your dog pulls on the lead, two things to consider: getting some help (I cover lead walking in classes and 121 sessions) but also, think about why they’re pulling. It’s not always pain, but there will be a reason.

17/09/2026

15/09/2026

Thank you Hounds and Hooves! A lovely trip in the mist yesterday, but sad to lose this amazing place.🥺 We’ve not had as many sessions at The Gallops as some, as it’s quite a way, but we’ve loved every visit. Thanks for the memories!💖