Behaviour

Behaviour programmes

A black Patterdale terrier looking at his handler who is just out of shot very happily, his tongue is hanging out and the sun is shining.
  • One-to-one programmes ideal for dogs displaying aggressive behaviour towards people and/or dogs (even if the underlying motivation might not be aggressive itself), issues being left home alone, panic in any environment, inappropriate/misplaced chasing or general nerves, anxiety or fear
  • Often behaviour problems become habitual for dogs, the longer the problem has gone on, the harder it is to change these habits. Because of this little can be done to resolve issues in a single session
  • Programmes offer a number of sessions to provide longer term support, allowing you to see long term success. We focus on helping you address the root cause of your dog’s behaviour rather than simply stopping the behaviour
  • Our coaches have lived with dogs with behavioural concerns so know what the ups and downs of living with these dogs involve and they are able to coach you through the trials and tribulations of daily life with your dog 
  • The goal of our programmes is to give you the skills to work with your dog for life so that you don’t need to rely on our support for extended periods of time

How we work

A roadmap depicting how our booking process works with a Blue Merle Tricolour Australian Shepherd stood at the top of a valley with trees and lush nature behind her. The roadmap starts at book free discovery call, moves to have discovery call, moves to purchase programmes, then veterinary referral and ends with programme starts.
*We hold back a certain number of emergency appointments. If there are people or dogs at risk of being bitten or you are considering rehoming or euthanising your dog please email [email protected] and we will manually book you in for one of our emergency appointments. **Your coach will apply for your veterinary referral if you have given consent for us to contact your veterinarian. There is more information on veterinary referrals below.

Veterinary Referral

Please note that we only work off veterinary referral. You can learn more about the veterinary referral process HERE. 

Programmes

There are discounts on one-to-one programmes that are booked with our Reactive Rovers classes. Email [email protected] to activate this if it applies to you. Discounts are available for anyone employed in the emergency services (police, any NHS employee, fire fighting). Please provide proof of employment when enquiring about a programme for this discount to be applied. Carers are entitled to discounts, please email us to activate this. Payment plans are available for these services and can be activated at any point in the booking process. 

Bronze
£ 1
  • 3 x one hour one-to-one sessions
  • 4 x fifteen minute support calls
  • Personalised tracking system to monitor how you and your dog are progressing
  • Report sent after each session
  • Reports to your veterinarian as requested upon veterinary referral
  • Lifetime support via email, text, or any of our social media platforms
  • A maximum of 3 months to use all sessions (minimum of 3 weeks)
  • Please note that home visits incur a 45p per mile (from your coach’s home) fuel charge in addition to the price above for each home visit
Silver
£ 1
  • 5 x one hour one-to-one sessions
  • 6 x fifteen minute support calls 
  • Personalised tracking system to monitor how you and your dog are progressing
  • Report sent after each session
  • Reports to your veterinarian as requested upon veterinary referral
  • Lifetime support via email, text, or any of our social media platforms
  • A maximum of 5 months to use all sessions (minimum of 5 weeks)
  • Please note that home visits incur a 45p per mile (from your coach’s home) fuel charge in addition to the price above for each home visit
Gold
£ 1
  • 8 x one hour one-to-one sessions
  • 9 x fifteen minute support calls
  • Personalised tracking system to monitor how you and your dog are progressing 
  • Report sent after each session
  • Reports to your veterinarian as requested upon veterinary referral
  • Lifetime support via email, text, or any of our social media platforms
  • A maximum of 8 months to use all sessions (minimum of 8 weeks) 
  • Please note that home visits incur a 45p per mile (from your coach’s home) fuel charge in addition to the price above for each home visit
Book Discovery Call

By clicking any of the ‘book now’ buttons you are agreeing to our Terms and Conditions

Testimonials

"Just a little message to say, both George and I have recently said how much more enjoyable Boris is being to own!! I know it's only a little step but the routine thing is deffo a huge factor in his behaviour! ... And I also am quite keen to book into or put my name down for reactive rovers when you next have a slot free! Especially now I'm finding a little bit more confidence with Boris!"
121 Client 2024
Terrier reactive to other dogs who has fought with dogs in the household & behaved aggressively towards humans in the home
"... I'm really happy with the way Dan's training is going. I am more relaxed on walks and I think Dan is enjoying them too. He responds really well to the 'Yip' marker command and we managed to avoid any reaction to two dogs coming from two different directions when crossing the lane from our house to the park this morning. Result!"
121 Client 2023
10 year old terrier reactive to other dogs
"... Just thought I'd give you a quick update on Nutmeg. We've kept up the training, got to the stage now where when she sees a cockapoo that might previously have triggered her she instead looks straight to me for a treat. Managed to win the Epsom Terrier Derby yesterday so still has a good turn of speed! But more satisfying was that she spent the whole day in a field full of dogs, many of whom were overexcited and/or badly behaved, and she stayed calm throughout which was amazing. ... Just wanted to say thanks for all the help and advice, from where we were at with her when I first reached out to you to where we are now is night and day. Genuinely thought at one point if we couldn't improve her behaviour that my wife wouldn't be able to cope with keeping her."
121 Client 2022
Patterdale terrier reactive to other dogs, having fought with other dogs in the family
"Just wanted to let you know that we had a great time at Poundbury field today, the scatter food trick worked brilliantly on both dogs and it was the perfect place to do it. Thanks so much for telling me about it. We have also just had a brilliant walk near home too and using the same technique we all managed to enjoy ourselves for a change! Both dogs are responding to it so well and we've even seen an improvement already in their calmness levels and loose lead walking..."
121 Client 2021
Chihuahua diagnosed by his veterinarian with generalised anxiety disorder as a result of our work together and terrier mix who were both reactive to other dogs and people and who would feed off each other's reactions when on walks

FAQ

Most frequently asked questions and answers

Before we book any sessions you’ll be sent a behaviour history form to fill in which helps us identify how much work you need and how long the undesirable behaviour(s) have been an issue. Once we’ve reviewed your form we’ll be in touch to offer a free no-obligation discovery call to discuss your options or to book you in. It’s at this point that we can discuss how many sessions to expect. 

Full payment of your chosen programme or the first payment in your payment plan is due as soon as your first session is confirmed as in the diary. 

Absolutely! We understand that we’re asking you to pay a lot of money to people you likely won’t have met in person at the time of payment. If you feel more comfortable booking a smaller programme and upgrading after you feel more comfortable with us then we want you to have that option!

Typically coaches try to keep between three to five exercises per session. However this does depend on the content covered and the issues being addressed, sometimes we deal with one or two small things in addition to the typical three to five exercises. 

Everyone in the family can attend if they wish to. For insurance purposes however we are unable to have minors (<18) attend without an adult. 

Sessions can take place at your home, on a walk local to you (booked as a home visit), you can come to the Great Field in Poundbury or sessions can be done online via technology if you prefer. Dependent on the restrictions in place to prevent the spread of coronavirus, home visits and in-person sessions may not be an option at the time of booking. Behaviours that need to be addressed in the home will be addressed via technology in the event that a home visit is not possible. 

Programmes can go on for no longer than one session per month. The bronze, silver and gold programmes can be used over three, five and eight months respectively. You are of course welcome to complete your programme sooner than this. We recommend a minimum of one week in between sessions, with most clients choosing to book in roughly every one to two weeks. 

Except in the case of extenuating circumstances these programmes are nonrefundable, either for the whole programme or as single sessions. The money is however transferrable to one of our other services.

Not a problem! Multi-dog households can come with a whole host of undesirable behaviours stemming from how your dogs interact with one another. The price per programme remains the same regardless of how many dogs are involved.