Although I’m fairly active in relation to articles in both the shooting press and on social media, I wanted somewhere that I could write about any topic at any time…
And so welcome to my blog page.
A combination of thoughts, articles, musings, videos, and more formal writing and research, I hope you enjoy working your way through the various topics.
If you’d like weekly writings, please subscribe to my short weekly newsletter, Monday Musing’s, whose topic’s wander far and wide…
The Harness
first published 8 March 2025
With an increasing number of scientific studies on harnesses, we now have more data to support the concerns I’ve had over this piece of equipment. As the harness is exponentially increasing in popularity and has started to be marketed as a 'must have' fashion accessory for your dog, it is more important than ever that we realise that there is a negative impact on our dogs' well-being. more...
Operant Conditioning
first published 1 March 2024
There are so many posts on operant conditioning but the one’s that I’ve seen the most of are looking at it from a human perspective rather than from the dogs which, in my mind, can really muddy the waters and lead to confusion and it always seems to document using food, harsh handling and various bits of equipment, however this isn’t always the case. more...
Should I Stay Or Should I Go
first published 14 February 2024
I was reading a post in a Facebook group yesterday where a woman shared that she was going to euthanise her dog as it was being aggressive. It had bitten her and her husband a few times, both needing hospital treatment, and she had a five month baby in the house. She’d contacted rescue centres but, more...
Taste, tongue and teeth
first published 7 February 2024
Like us, the dog can taste sweet, salty, sour, and bitter and, like other carnivores (humans excepted), dogs have special receptors for tasting water, which I find particularly interesting as when dogs drink, they use the underside of their tongue, curling it under into a flattish ladle, and then scooping the water into their mouth… one of the reasons why a narrow deep water bowl is better than a wide shallow one – that and it helps prevent the amount of water that ends up on the floor. more...
Posturing and Scent Marking
first published 31 January 2024
I tend to get out and about with the boys a couple of times a day; walking them individually or as a pack, or doing some training with them. When Emrys got to around two and a half I became aware that, while still sharp on the whistle, was starting to range further than I like when he has some free time off lead. more...
Let's Talk Copying and Copyrighting...
first published 30 September 2023
I know I’m not the only person that this is happening to, I’ve seen it over and over again with colleagues getting whole chunks of their website copy lifted and used, as well as videos of trainers dogs being passed off as someone else’s more...
APGI training workshop 2019
first published 23 September 2019
Another fabulous day on the APGI training workshop and as well as finishing the presentations for the week, we got to talk about one of Lez's favourite theories - the Dunning-Kruger effect; it's in every profession and in every walk of life and once you're aware of it, you're really aware of it. more...
S-t-e-a-d-y
first published 31 August 2019
Steadiness is so important for so many reasons; you want to be able to take your eyes off your young dog when he’s in a stay without worrying about him getting up and chasing something, or to take off after a rabbit, or a cat, when you’re walking him. more...
How Learning takes place
first published 10 August 2019
When we do something, nerve cells in the brain, known as neurons are fired up. They talk to each other in a way similar to passing a baton in a relay race, forming a pathway; a neural pathway. Just like passing the baton becomes quicker and more fluid with practice, so too the more an action is repeated the more established the pathway and the quicker and easier the action and reaction, until it eventually becomes an automatic learned response like driving a car or riding a bike for example. more...
