In this episode of The Yappy Hour, host Nathan Dunleavy chats with Vicki Main from Love Your Paws about training dogs for connection, not compliance.

Vicky shares how understanding a dog's unique perspective leads to better training outcomes, the importance of breed-appropriate enrichment, and how thoughtful training strengthens bonds. Whether you have a sensitive dog or simply want to deepen your relationship with your dog, this episode is packed with invaluable and thoughtful insights.

Welcome to The Yappy Hour powered by

Yappily, the podcast for dog lovers

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who want to build better relationships

with their furry companions.

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I'm your host Nathan Dunleavy,

and in today's episode I'm joined

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by the wonderful, beautiful,

Vicki Maine from Love Your Paws.

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Vicki is a kind and caring and

compassionate dog trainer who's all about

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training for connection, not compliance.

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We talk about shifting the

narrative from fixing behaviours

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to building relationships.

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The importance of breed appropriate

enrichment and how understanding

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a dog's perspective leads

to better training outcomes.

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Whether you have a sensitive dog

or you just want to strengthen

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your bond, this episode is

packed with invaluable insights.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Welcome back to the Yappy

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Hour, powered by Yappily.

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I'm your host, Nathan Dunleavy,

and I'm so excited to bring

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you another episode today.

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We have the very amazing

Vicki Main with us today.

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I have said Main, right, haven't I?

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Because I was, I was, I've known you

all these years and I have, I've, I've

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always been getting your surname wrong.

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So we have the very lovely

Vicki Main from Love Your Paws.

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I'm down in the beautiful

place of Cornwall.

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Vicki's a dog trainer and we're going to

have a chat about all things dog training

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And in particular about how her sensitive

dog Sam kind of shapes Vicki's approach

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and got her into dog training so i'm

so excited to have Vicki with us today.

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She's a colleague and a

personal friend of mine.

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So Vicki Welcome to the yappy hour.

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How are you doing today?

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Vicki: I'm doing good, thank you.

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Yeah, thank you for asking me to be here.

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It's been a tricky couple of days because

Sam, who you've already mentioned,

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actually had a vestibular episode,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yes

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Vicki: the other day, which For

those people who've never heard of

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one, because I hadn't really heard

of one, I thought it had a stroke

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and the symptoms are quite similar.

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So he's been a little bit wobbly and

feeling a little bit sick and off colour.

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So I'm a bit of a busy with that really.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: I

didn't know what it was until you said the

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other day about it I had never heard of

it before so bless you bless bless him.

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Oh, okay so Vicki for those who might

who might not know Can you share a

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little bit about you your business love

your paws, which I love the business

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name And what inspired you to start it?

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Vicki: so she was my little American dog.

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then, you know, life changed

and we moved back to the UK.

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And Ness obviously came with us,

made that big old journey on her own.

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And.

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Then we settled in Cornwall and not

really knowing what to do having

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you know, abroad for so many years

and done so many different things.

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I knew I wanted to work with people,

but I didn't know in what way.

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So I went back to uni to do a

social work degree when I was 40.

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And the whole, and just before I

started my degree, we had well,

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from Sam into the family as well.

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So came to us as, around about

eight months old, bought a collie,

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he, I think he ended our lives

like an absolute whirlwind.

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We just had no idea what to

do, how to cope with him,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

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Vicki: and talking about choice and all of

these things that relate to social work.

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I wasn't doing what I was supposed to

do, which was relating it to humans.

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I was relating everything that I

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

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Silence.

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Vicki: jobs.

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I actually went to work for a local

dog rescue, our local National

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Animal Welfare Trust branch,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Vicki: a dog walking business.

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To learn more about dogs

and to be with dogs.

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And whilst doing that, I put

myself through lots of courses.

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So, you know, I did lots of IMDT

courses and then to work for local

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behaviourist who is fantastic and

you know, helped run her puppy

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classes and learnt so much from her.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Vicki: Group training classes.

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And I kind of take things that I've

learned from the people I've worked

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with, the courses I've been on you

know, the amazing people I've worked

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with at the rescue centre and mostly

from Sam and Ness, and kind of

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put all of that together, I think.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

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Silence.

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Silence.

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Yeah.

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Vicki: around dogs and dog training and

somehow through no plan, like specific

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aim, I've somehow managed to do that.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Wow.

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Vicki: I always use the hashtag

thoughtful dog training because it's

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the best way I could describe it.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

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Vicki: in a not so succinct

nutshell, that's what I do.

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I

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Brilliant.

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Yeah.

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We're going to be talking about

your classes and obviously

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how Sam inspired you as well.

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So, I mean, yeah, what a journey you

know, from traveling abroad and doing

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the ski seasons and doing your, I love

it that you like, you've done your

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degree and then like, you've not gone

into that field, but you've, You've

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used that to then shape your, you

know, your career as a dog trainer.

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So Vicki, we meant,

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Vicki: I don't actually think I would

understand as much as I understand

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about dogs and people and how the

two relate had I not done my degree.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: yeah,

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Vicki: have never gone into social

work, like, it's taught me so much and

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it's been invaluable for what I do.

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Absolutely.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: And

obviously dealing with like you know dog

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parents as well, and members of the public

and stuff that can all come in handy.

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Vicki: Also I'm a qualified life coach as

well, which also, you know, really comes

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in helpful for like working with people.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, definitely.

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So you mentioned that one of

your dogs, Sam is sensitive

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and he struggles with life.

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How has living with and training

a sensitive dog shaped your

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approach and philosophy?

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Vicki: Take on rescue dogs, who, or any

dog, who ends up finding life difficult.

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We don't know where to start

and we don't know what to do.

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I mean, Sam came to us from a rescue and

he Literally, from the day he came into

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our home, he put himself into a corner

to protect himself and he wouldn't let

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us approach him, and I just did not

know how, had no idea how to help him.

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We felt really hopeless,

helpless and hopeless.

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But every dog deals with that

situation differently, right?

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And Sam's way of reacting to

it, I didn't even understand

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existed before I was there.

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So for example, if you wanted to pop Sam's

lead on, he would put himself in a corner

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and protect himself, and he would snarl

and growl, and you, you know, tried to go

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close to him with his lead, he would bite.

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And he just had lots of really

behaviours now that I understand that

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he just was overwhelmed and not coping,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Okay.

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very much.

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Vicki: Didn't want to be touched,

and so we went to work with

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yes,

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Vicki: she probably was.

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She'd been around for a long time,

and she helped, helped understand

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Sam a lot in the beginning.

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You know, he just said to me, stop walking

him, just let him settle, and all of these

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things, I was just a regular normal dog

person, felt counterintuitive the time.

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I mean, so I was 13 now, so

this was sort of like, 13 and

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a half, this was 13 years ago.

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And he just said, stop walking

him, you know, let him have time.

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All of these things.

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and then I met a couple of

behaviourists who worked the local

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rescue and they helped me massively

with Sam to understand him.

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I started to understand body language.

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He didn't give you lots of warning when

he was going to He would just bite.

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I'm sure there were signs,

but at that point, you

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

we missed him

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Vicki: yeah, there was no sort

of growl and then warning.

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It was just,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

just, yeah.

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Vicki: struggled with touch, with

noise, with leaves, with, And

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I think it was all fear based.

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You know, we got to a place after

about 18 months where it felt

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like he started to trust us.

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little more, he was more settled.

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I felt a little bit more comfortable

walking him, although walking

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him was quite scary at times

because he would be sort of quite

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explosive if people looked at him.

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taking him to the vets was always good.

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But yeah, over the years

we learned how to help Sam.

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feel safe with us and know when to

leave him alone and learn about him.

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And I think the biggest turning point

actually was finding scent work, tracking

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and scent work, which really just helps

build his confidence and my understanding

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of his body language as well, I think.

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So yeah, now he's 13 and a half, he's

older, he still tells you when he

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doesn't want something, he's very clear.

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But yeah,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: You

understand him a lot better now and

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he landed on his paws with you guys.

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Vicki: We've had, you know, a

brilliant vet who supported us all

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the way through, and Carolyn who was

kind of my mentor as a behaviourist,

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she's always been really supportive.

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And a few years ago, we did end up seeking

the support of a vet behaviourist as well.

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Just because our vet wasn't sure what to

do next to help him and felt like we'd

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reached a sort of a bit of a plateau.

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working with a vet behaviourist was

super helpful just to know that we'd

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been doing a lot of the right things,

but then also to have that extra

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support and that's the difference.

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Yeah.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: good.

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Brilliant.

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So your philosophy,

that's such a big word.

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I was thinking, God, am I going

to be able to pronounce this word?

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Your philosophy is all about training

for connection, not compliance.

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Can you explain what that means

and why it's so important?

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I

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Vicki: I think,

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I think there's, I always talk

to my customers about like the

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dog trainer manual in the sky.

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So there's this dog trainer manual

that lives up in the sky and you know,

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we go get a rescue dog or a puppy or,

you know, a dog joins our family and

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this book in the sky opens up and it

just spews all its knowledge into us.

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into us.

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And the dog trainer manual is made up

of, you know, all of our experiences

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that we've ever had with dogs, you know,

our family dogs or our neighbor's dogs,

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things that we learned, you know, maybe

going to dog training as kids or whatever.

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And things now that we see on social

media and all the different dog training

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programs that we've all watched over

the years, all of that fits in that

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dog trainer manual and it opens up,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

don't understand.

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Vicki: And, you know, there's

nothing wrong particularly with

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teaching our dogs how to sit.

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You know, it's not a bad thing

to teach our dogs how to sit.

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But don't think any of us take the time to

think about why we teach our dogs to sit.

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You know, what's the purpose

of teaching our dogs to sit?

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And everybody, you know, whenever I

ask this question, they'll say things

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like, well, It stops them jumping up.

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It means they won't walk into the road.

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of these things.

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but I don't need to sit to not jump

up and I don't need to sit to not run

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out into the road in front of a car.

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I don't need to, you know, we, we

just use sit because we've always

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used sit and there's actually no need.

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So I think it's that thinking about.

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Why we teach our dogs things and what

does that behaviour serve our dogs?

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm.

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Vicki: It's about, you know, if we

understand our dogs and we've got a

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good connection with our dogs then

we have built that really lovely

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rapport and a relationship with them.

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We don't need to ask them to sit.

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We can just ask them to a moment or

they just know that when we pause, they

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pause before stepping out into the road.

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for example.

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So, yeah, I think that, yeah, just

thinking about our dogs, you know,

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often I can't, you see people asking

their dog to sit and they don't, so they

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sit again, and their dog doesn't sit,

they sit again, and you're like, oh,

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Sit, sit, sit, and it's

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Vicki: why your

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

productive,

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Vicki: sitting, you know, there's so

many reasons, maybe they're in pain,

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maybe they're a little bit overwhelmed

by the situation that they're in, maybe

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sitting at the edge of a road with a bus

flying past them is actually, utterly

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terrifying and they just don't want to

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

yeah, scary, yeah, I know, mmm.

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Vicki: to sit.

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And why should they?

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And if we're making them sit,

that's for human ego, not the

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sake of our dog in that moment.

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And I kind of sometimes feel like I'm

really contradictory, because I'm a dog

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trainer and I teach dog training classes,

and we do teach puppies how to sit.

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And, you know, I don't spend a

lot of time doing that, but we do

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kind of think about teaching SIT.

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But then at the same time, I'm

never going to force my dog to SIT.

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If I ask them to SIT and they don't,

I'm like, well, that's alright.

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So for me, I think it's about

the thought process of what we're

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doing, rather than just doing it for

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: And you

know, sometimes you see him like they've

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sort of pushed down on their back and,

you know, I think we're just conditioned

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to think, Oh, I must teach my dog to sit.

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And then, you know, I'll

push him down the back.

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They don't realize we push down

the back that that's not good.

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And I personally wouldn't want to

sit my bum on a cold floor either.

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So, so how about you do it?

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And I think that leads nicely

where you said like into your

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sort of like your mantra, you've

coined the phrase of thoughtful.

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Dog training, and I love that.

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I really love that.

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Vicki: Yeah, think it's just

about, just having that thought

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process about why we're asking our

dog what we're asking them to do.

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And I do kind of catch myself.

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You know, thinking, it's good to do that.

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But I mean, obviously like the safety

thing, so I, you know, I think there's

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some people who live with their dogs

and don't ever particularly teach them a

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skill because they just live so fluently

and fluently together and I think

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that's utterly wonderful and amazing.

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but I think that in the hubbub of busy

family life and everything else, you know,

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that's not possible for a lot of people.

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So I think, you know, teaching

our dogs the skills that they need

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to be successful you know, within

a family is really important.

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We don't want to open the front door and

our dogs run out and things like that.

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So yeah, I think, you know, there

are things that are beneficial for

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our dogs for us to teach them, but

it's just about having that bit of

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thought behind why we're doing it.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, definitely.

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Thank you.

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So we're going to be moving on to our

next section now, which is shifting

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the narrative from fixing to building.

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You're a strong advocate for group classes

when they're thoughtfully designed.

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How do these classes support

the connection between

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dogs and their caregivers?

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Vicki: In, in, in the

environment that they're in.

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So I'm really lucky.

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I, you know, I've got a field attached

to my garden, so I do have, you

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know, our own space that's private.

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And so all of my classes run in there.

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And, you know, it's a maximum of six dogs.

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really well spread out.

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and we spend a lot of our class often just

talking about, oh, what's in the dogs and

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thinking about what the dogs are doing.

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So last week, for example, we had a

class where most of the dogs were sort

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of between five and 18 months old.

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So a timer, typically they can be

a little bit challenging for their

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families because they're struggling

with life because of adolescence and you

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know that's quite tricky to deal with.

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And we were kind of working on

lead walking and just being able

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to walk past other dogs on lead

and you know it being no big deal.

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We're just working on, you know, just

being calm and connected to their owners

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despite what's going on around them.

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And we kind of gradually build

up the behaviours, and each dog

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was working at each dog's level.

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So some dogs get super excited

when they get close to another dog,

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and then they can't cope and other

dogs can get a little closer, so

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we tailor everything for each dog.

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the end of the class, everybody's talking

about how they thought their dogs had

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done, or in what areas they thought

their dogs had done better than others.

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And I asked them, you know, what

have we taught the dogs today?

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You know, like, specifically

what skills have we taught them?

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And they all sat there and had a think.

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And realised that we hadn't, we

hadn't actually done anything.

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We hadn't used any keywords, we

hadn't lured, we hadn't done anything.

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I had just spent the class

kind of getting, telling the

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people to do different things.

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And then the dogs do that with them.

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So

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Get more and more, you know,

behaviours towards that end, you know,

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desired goal that we're looking for.

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And so we can just create an environment

where dogs are able to learn, despite

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what's going on around them, because

basically that's what they've got

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to do in the real world, right?

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And it's difficult then, absolutely,

to move from the class to the real

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world, but you have to start somewhere.

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I think that's a really nice

place to start, and I particularly

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like it because then we always

give the people a chance to chat.

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All of them are always feeling the same,

you know, often people have, you know,

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we all know that the puppy owners are

going to say the seven o'clock witching

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hour, how do we stop it, you know,

and it's really helpful to know that

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it's not just you that's experiencing

that that's why I love the community

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side of it is so that people can chat

through at the end of a group class

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and not feel alone and talk about what

helps them or a walk that they found

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nice and calming for their adolescent

dog and all of that type of stuff.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, it's lovely.

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Nice to create a a great sense

of community and it is, you know,

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it's quite a scary thing, you

know, with a puppy and stuff.

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So it's nice that you've got the

support like function there with others.

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Yeah.

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Thank you.

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So traditional training often focuses on.

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Fixing problem behaviours.

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Why do you think this

mindset needs to shift?

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Vicki: Well,

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when we talk about a behaviour that

needs to be fixed, we're saying that

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that behaviour is wrong somehow.

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And I don't think we should

be thinking of behaviour as

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right or wrong or good or bad.

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behaviour is behaviour.

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And it's information, isn't it?

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It's just understanding.

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I choose, like, I've made a really

sort of, purposeful decision to

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not work with behaviour per se.

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I'm not a behaviourist even

though I study it all the time.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

You hear me Beth?

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Vicki: thank you.

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Because I think With training and group

training classes, for example, if people

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learn more about their dogs and how to

work with their dogs and think about

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their dog's body language and have

this more thoughtful approach we can

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Stop behavioural

challenges from happening.

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Now, not always, of course not always,

because, you know, we can't ever

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predict what's going to happen and we

can't change the life experiences that

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dogs have, dogs have that might create

some of these behavioural challenges

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that people face with their dogs.

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But if we understand more about our

dogs in the first place, I really think

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that a lot of those challenges could

be minimized or, or not happen at all.

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I

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm.

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Vicki: I know that I could have prevented

of Sam's behaviour from escalating.

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Like if I had Sam now and not 13 years

ago, I think our relationship would

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have been different and he might have

had a different experience of life.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm.

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Vicki: And so I think if we understand

our dog and where our dog's coming from,

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and if we understand that it's easier

to advocate for them, I think there's

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so much worry of judgment, isn't there?

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

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Vicki: of judgment when

you've got a dog who's

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm.

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Vicki: or barking or lunging or

doing, you know, whatever that dog

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does when they're feeling whatever

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm.

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Vicki: That we often don't behave in the

way that's the most supportive of our dog.

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so yes, of course, we can do all sorts

of things to try and shut down that

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reaction or that behaviour in the

moment, but it's not fixing the problem.

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I've actually had a really lovely

example yesterday, and hopefully

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you won't mind me talking about it.

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I've got we call it the Training Hub.

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It's a Facebook group for any

customer that I've ever had.

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And we've got sort of

about 400 people in there.

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Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Oh wow.

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Vicki: the end of last year,

we ran a muzzle training month.

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Just, I think it was September, October,

you know, weather rubbish, let's do

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something, you know, better with a dog.

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so everybody just who wants to

joins in with muzzle training.

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And one of the has a rescue

dog and they just had a really

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horrible experience at the vet.

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Charlie had really struggled at the

vet and had had to be, I think she

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had to be muzzled because, you know,

everything was really stressful.

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So her mum decided to, there's

me using the word mum, I don't

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even know what to call us, dog

owners, caregivers, I never know.

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She thought, right, well, perfect timing.

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I'm going to do this

muzzle training challenge.

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And she just really went for it,

you know, took it slowly, took it

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at Charlie's pace, built it up.

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And she left a really lovely

little post in our training hub

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yesterday saying how, Charlie has

had an amazing visit at the vet.

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Hadn't reacted.

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had been And it had all been because

he had practiced the muzzle training.

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Charlie's now more than

comfortable wearing a muzzle for

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sort of 20 30 minutes at a time.

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She didn't stress about having the

muzzle on, so the muzzle wasn't

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an added stress in that situation.

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Because she was muzzled, everybody

handling her was able to feel calmer,

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which would also help her feel calm.

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And so it's just that kind of You know,

that could have been another massive

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behavioural challenge for that dog,

because the owner had taken the time

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to work through something that she knew

could help her, it turned out that the,

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you know, she ended up being able to have

her vaccinations and everything else in

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there, you know, no stress for anybody.

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I think, yeah, I just like that as

an example for, rather than trying

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to fix the behaviour, let's work

underneath it and build the confidence

427

and the skills of the owners and

the confidence of the dog instead.

428

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, definitely.

429

Yeah.

430

I love muzzle training.

431

We might be having an episode soon

about muzzle training, not just

432

muzzle training, but watch your space.

433

But I was saying how muzzle

training is important.

434

I, I used to teach it when I did in

person stuff for my puppy classes.

435

I used to teach muzzle training to my

puppies and their owners, because it's.

436

You know, it's not to be a, it's not to be

looked upon as a bad thing, a dog wearing

437

a muzzle because you instantly kind of

get put off, you know, you think it's

438

aggressive, but there's tons of reasons

why a dog could be wearing a muzzle.

439

Vicki: And you know, the actual process

of muzzle training is actually a really

440

lovely bonding experience, because to

build the confidence in wearing a muzzle

441

is that can be for most dogs a really

slow process and you start to really

442

learn and understand your dog by doing it.

443

So Lady Caroline has obviously

got to a stage with Charlie

444

where Charlie can wear a muzzle.

445

At the vets now.

446

I did the challenge at the same time

as Lockie, who's my Spaniel pup.

447

She's 18, well over 18 months

old now, and we're, she's now,

448

we're still, we're still going.

449

She's happy now to put her nose

into the muzzle, but she won't, she

450

won't tolerate me doing the flaps.

451

So now I'm starting to think

about different ways to

452

make her feel comfortable.

453

Rather than me just putting the straps

off, I'm just starting to gently touch

454

her ear whilst her noses in the muzzle.

455

So, it really gets you started

thinking about how can you

456

make that dog feel comfortable.

457

And when we're listening to them,

they're more trusting of us.

458

And so, yeah, the end result is

you have a dog who's comfortable

459

to wear muzzle should they ever

need to for whatever situation.

460

But also, the process is really

bonding and you really get the

461

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm hmm.

462

Vicki: a lovely bit of

training if you do it right.

463

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, I love it.

464

And I think it comes back to like

you said, where you said about

465

listening to your dog, it's, it's

also about reading and understanding

466

their body language, isn't it?

467

Cause that's how they communicate to us.

468

So,

469

Vicki: Yeah, and it's so much about that.

470

And I think it's another reason

why group classes can work so well,

471

because we know that adolescent

dogs, particularly, and puppies, when

472

they're overwhelmed or when they're

stressed or when they're not coping

473

with the environment, that behaviour

can look very much like excitement.

474

And if children, for example, are excited

and it's inappropriate in that moment,

475

they might just be told to calm down.

476

And we do that with our dogs, but we're

missing the point because your dog

477

isn't excited, your dog is struggling.

478

And so understanding the subtleties, so

in classes, I often will be narrating

479

through what I'm seeing with the dogs

as well, so that everybody starts to

480

understand why we're doing what we're

doing and what it is that I'm seeing.

481

So they can see it not only in

their dogs, but other dogs that

482

their dogs interact with as well.

483

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, yeah, brilliant.

484

How does focusing on connection instead

of compliance change the dynamic

485

between a dog and their caregiver?

486

Vicki: They're, they're just the

relationship changes because it's not

487

just about shouting sit at your dog.

488

You know, it's about understanding

your dog and building that relationship

489

with the individual in front of you.

490

Because, you know, no two

dogs are the same, are they?

491

I always, We often talk about the no

challenge, but I think we there's certain

492

things that people know that they want

their dogs to be able to do, you know,

493

I don't know, walk nice on a leash,

come back when called, not run out of

494

the back door when they open it, but

then we all know that each individual

495

dog is going to come up with behaviours

that we never even thought, thought

496

about, it didn't even ever cross our

minds, and we think, oh, we're going

497

to have to train for that, oh, and we

have to train for that, And so I get

498

puppy owners often to make up a no list.

499

time they think about saying no

to their dog, they have to just

500

think, okay, what's my dog doing?

501

Why don't I like it?

502

Why am I about to say no?

503

And then write that down on their training

list so that they can think of a way of

504

teaching their dog to do what they would

like in that situation as opposed to

505

just going, ah, or no, or whatever it is.

506

What was the question again?

507

Bye.

508

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: How

does focusing on connection instead of

509

compliance change the dynamic between,

510

Vicki: when we're doing that, we're

thinking about why we need to teach our

511

dog things rather than just teaching them.

512

Everything changes because we're thinking

about that dog and the individual in

513

front of us and it becomes much more,

I don't know, I think it becomes just

514

much more fluid and fluent, isn't it?

515

About being with somebody

who you understand rather

516

than being in a dictatorship.

517

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

yeah, just strengthens that, that

518

bond, you know, builds on that

relationship, strengthens that bond.

519

Okay, moving on to our next

section, it's all about

520

understanding a dog's perspective.

521

So you work with some working breed.

522

of dogs and you're responsible

for activities like scent

523

work trailing tracking.

524

How can these types of activities

deepen the connection between

525

a dog and their caregiver?

526

Vicki: So, I think We don't always,

you know, humans who live with

527

dogs, we don't always think about

how our dogs perceive the world.

528

and I think lead walking

spaniels is really good.

529

Way of looking at this.

530

So,

531

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

532

Vicki: bred Spaniels to zigzag.

533

Like, literally,

534

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

535

Vicki: to zigzag to go and

find you know, to put up birds.

536

And they zigzagged, you

537

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: That

538

Vicki: quarter to

539

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

is down, isn't it, and off they go.

540

Vicki: put them on a lead.

541

And as a human, we're going to walk

in a straight line, we're going to

542

come out of, you know, the front gate,

we're going to turn left, we know where

543

we're going for our walk, and we're

going to walk on the footpath, and

544

we're going to stop to cross the road,

we're going to do all of those things

545

that are governed by human convention.

546

And we're going to use our eyes,

mostly, and our ears a little bit,

547

but mostly our eyes to do all of that.

548

And our dogs see the world

so completely differently.

549

They come out of the gates and it's

like, neighbor's cat has been in there.

550

Oh, nobody's making bread

551

rat.

552

And you know, and they're,

553

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

They smell.

554

Vicki: and then we just expect them

to walk in a straight line along a

555

footpath because that's what we do.

556

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mmm.

557

Vicki: And you know, the dogs

just don't move through the

558

environment the way humans do.

559

And.

560

Yeah, older dogs start to

because we condition them to do

561

that because that's what we do.

562

It's not how dogs naturally move.

563

And so when we just, from the start,

think about how dogs perceive the

564

environment, then training becomes

easier because we stop getting frustrated

565

with our spinal for zigzagging.

566

We don't totally stop getting frustrated.

567

Like, it's still frustrating

when it's trying to walk a

568

Cocker Spaniel who's zigzagging.

569

it helps to be when you start

to understand why they're doing

570

that and then you work together.

571

to learn how to walk on a loose leaf.

572

so activities like tracking and trailing

and scent work really help you to

573

understand that body language because

574

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mmm.

575

Vicki: dogs smell is their primary scent.

576

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

That's it.

577

Vicki: so whether it's a working breed or

not a working breed, If you start doing

578

scent work with them, any form of nose

work at all, you just start to really

579

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Huh.

580

Yes.

581

Vicki: You know, that we

ask different questions.

582

And at the end of tracking and trailing,

the answer is often the thing that

583

they've, I've got the most out of is a

584

Also these activities, not only do they

help us understand our dogs who are

585

watching them, but these activities

get into the bones of who our dogs are.

586

we're letting them show us

how incredible they are, and

587

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Hello.

588

Hello.

589

Hey.

590

Vicki: I don't know that they love

us, but you know what I mean, we've

591

created an opportunity for them.

592

Like, I mean, I do Sent working tracking

and trailing with my dog, like in my

593

free time, as well as teaching it.

594

there's nothing better after, you

know, doing a trail with Lachie.

595

She gets so excited and she just wants

to go, oh, look how amazing that was.

596

With Sam, you know, watching him work,

you know, even as a young dog, he

597

was, he's just phenomenally talented.

598

And he's a border collie.

599

He used to do everything to a gazillion

miles an hour, except tracking.

600

was so thoughtful and steady

and, this is what we're doing.

601

And it's just amazing to

602

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah,

603

Vicki: been a working dog

because he's terrified of sheep.

604

It's

605

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: world

through their nose and obviously all that

606

nose work and sniffing is really good for

brain and mental stimulation helps tire

607

them out bring their arousal levels down.

608

Like 20 minutes nose work is just the same

as a 60 minute outdoor walk in terms of

609

the brain and mental stimulation they get.

610

So you end up just with a more calmer dog.

611

Vicki: true, if we if we tap into it

properly, that is definitely true, yeah.

612

It's really stimulating

and empowering for them.

613

But I think it's so much more than that.

614

You know, we, we talk a lot about how

it's, you know, mentally stimulating

615

and tiring, but I think it's more it

gets into the heart of who they are.

616

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm

617

Vicki: when dogs have achieved their

find, whether that's, you know, tracking

618

or trailing or whatever, barn hunt,

not something I've ever done, but,

619

you know, I've watched videos and, you

know, little terriers doing barn hunt.

620

I mean, that's absolutely getting into,

like, their heart and soul, isn't it?

621

And when we can do that.

622

So all of these dogs were bred for a

623

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: hmm.

624

Vicki: to, you know, help on farms

or to go till rats or to do whatever

625

it was they were bred to do, and then

they come and live in our pet homes

626

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

627

Vicki: without those jobs.

628

Don't know, I think it would be like

having a passion to sing and living in

629

a family who won't ever let you sing

or, you know, something like that.

630

And if any individual is given an

opportunity to do whatever it is that

631

makes their heart sing, then they are

just a happier being, aren't they?

632

They're

633

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah,

634

Vicki: and joyful and have best

relationships with the people

635

around them because they're

able to express themselves.

636

And I

637

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

just not,

638

Vicki: our dogs.

639

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: it's

nice to see that sense of satisfaction

640

and achievement that they get from it.

641

So

642

Vicki: get so excited, like Sam, you

know, he's riddled with arthritis

643

and he's, you know, really stiff.

644

He refuses to go for walks these

days, he just isn't interested.

645

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

All right, that's okay.

646

Vicki: it's absolutely okay.

647

But I have to put him on

lead now to do any scent work

648

because he will try and run.

649

If I say to him, I've

hidden some stuff, go find.

650

He goes off at 100 miles an hour,

forgetting that his legs don't do

651

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: And

then his joints are aching afterwards.

652

Vicki: Yeah

653

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Vicki, what would you say are the

654

common miscommunications that you see

between dogs and their caregivers?

655

Yeah.

656

Vicki: actually they're kind of

overwhelmed and, and worried.

657

And, and then the other, like

we've talked about, you know, just

658

trying to get dogs think to do

things because we think they could.

659

is that whole, I don't know,

660

sit before I give you a.

661

Yeah, I think

662

it's just, when we just have a moment

to think about the dog, isn't it?

663

I there's a lot, I don't know how to

word it, there's a lot of human ego at

664

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

665

No, you're right.

666

You're right.

667

Vicki: think that

668

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

669

Vicki: A lot of it, you know.

670

wanting to have the dog who,

671

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

The perfect dog.

672

Vicki: yeah, the perfect dog or

who sits on his own to sit off.

673

And there's lots of things we do,

you know, need for their safety.

674

And I think for our dogs to be

able to live as dogs, they need to

675

have a good people and all of those

good things that we can allow them

676

to have this freedom to be dogs.

677

But I think the communication and

breakdown comes from human ego.

678

You know, it's our right to have a

pet dog and the pet dog comes into our

679

home and they should respect and obey

and yeah, whereas if we see them as a

680

valued family member and we take the

time to understand them and learn their

681

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm.

682

Mm.

683

Vicki: Know, I think the majority of

pet dog owners are not that savvy on

684

body language and unfortunately are

probably not as savvy as body language

685

as they think they are because there's

so many misconceptions with that.

686

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

There is.

687

Vicki: Human ego doesn't allow us to just

step back and, and, and learn it because

688

if we did step back and learn it you know,

our dog would have a happier with them.

689

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

690

We

691

Vicki: I mean, we met when we did our

separation anxiety course together.

692

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: did.

693

We did.

694

Vicki: always say to me, oh

yeah, they bark when we're out,

695

but that's just what they do.

696

You know, that type of miscommunication,

that's the type of thing that I, you know,

697

would love for us to be able to get over

to people that, know, when our dogs are

698

talking that we should really listen.

699

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah,

we should listen and observe as well.

700

Vicki: Part of communication, isn't it?

701

With humans as well, it's about,

you know, listening and watching

702

and all of that as much as talking.

703

And I think, I mean, I'm the worst for

talking, but I think we just talk to

704

the dogs too much rather than, yeah.

705

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: I,

I think everyone's just everyone's

706

just in too much of a rush nowadays

and they just don't take a moment

707

to sort of pause and stop and, and

just be a bit more mindful and you

708

know, everyone's just on the go and I

709

Vicki: to fit in with that lifestyle.

710

You know, I like, I remember like

we had spaniels as kids and those

711

spaniels would never have been

expected to go and sit in a cafe.

712

They probably want to go on a school run.

713

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Know we're putting them into

714

all these situations and

just expecting them to cope.

715

Vicki: I think the most my dogs.

716

Parents dogs did was, I think they

used to go to the pub with my dad.

717

It was there.

718

The night time we happened to

be five minutes from the pub.

719

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Really?

720

Oh, that's cool.

721

I love that.

722

So if pet parents could make one small

change to better understand their dog's

723

world, I think we've sort of covered

it, but what would you recommend?

724

Vicki: I think just finding

that one thing that really

725

gets into their dogs feel good.

726

You know, whatever that is.

727

So, you know, whether that's some

kind of scent work or agility or

728

hoopers or tracking, trailing.

729

I don't think it matters.

730

what it is, but find something that your

dog loves, or all of them, you know.

731

I've got so many customers who do little

bits of lots of things with their dogs.

732

And because all of them helps

your training in general.

733

You know, if you do hoopers, that's

so great for recall and focus and

734

connection and scent work, I think your

dogs feel good and, you know, finding

735

something that your, that your dog loves.

736

Because if your dog loves it, I'm

pretty damn much guaranteed that, you

737

know, the human would love it too.

738

And when

739

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

740

Vicki: yeah, it's just magic, isn't it?

741

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Fun.

742

Have some fun.

743

Brilliant.

744

Thank you for that.

745

So we're going to move on to

our next discussion point now,

746

and that is all around practical

tips for training for connection.

747

Would you what role does enrichment like

scent work or trailing or tracking play

748

in creating meaningful lives for dogs?

749

Vicki: So, I think

750

this is often more,

751

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

752

Big believer in less is more.

753

Vicki: you know, I think so in all

sorts of ways, so like, you know, little

754

short training sessions that are fun not

expecting too much too soon of our dogs,

755

letting them build strong foundations

before we ask any more of them.

756

building things and slowly.

757

And,

758

well, remind me of the question again.

759

Sorry, I go off on so

many tangents that my

760

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Well, no, it's absolutely fine.

761

So what role does enrichment,

so like scent work, tracking,

762

trailing, what does that play in

creating meaningful lives for dogs?

763

Vicki: We're just giving them

the ability to feel satiated and

764

that they have a meaningful life.

765

I actually did a post on my Facebook about

enrichment yesterday, the day before.

766

I think it was an enrichment day.

767

day for everything now, isn't it?

768

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Oh, right, okay.

769

That's

770

Vicki: Now people use the word

enrichment and stick a lickymat

771

down in front of their dog.

772

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

not what it's about, is it really?

773

Vicki: no, like, there's

nothing wrong with lickymats.

774

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: No,

775

Vicki: know, white dogs

have lickymats and,

776

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, mine, mine, mine have

777

their dinner on Lickymats, yeah.

778

Vicki: But it's not

779

enrichment.

780

So I think when we do things like

scent work, like I said, we're getting

781

into what really makes that dog a dog.

782

And so, You know, of mine who do agility

and scent work will say that their dogs

783

will be calmer and sort of more satiated

and restful tired after scent work than

784

after agility because obviously, you

know, the sports where you're working

785

together like agility and stuff can

be fantastic, you know, for dogs and

786

handlers, but they had raised, you know,

adrenaline and they're all fast and

787

it's it's a very much a man made sport.

788

Whereas the nose work type sports

is where, yeah, we're sort of

789

putting human parameters around.

790

An inherent skill of our dog, so

it just creates a calmer, more

791

satiated attire, if that makes sense.

792

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, definitely.

793

And I think it just gives

them purpose as well.

794

More purpose.

795

Vicki: Absolutely gives some purpose.

796

So you know, You see dogs who have

for example, there's one of the dogs

797

who does loads of trailing with us.

798

The only time she ever wears

a harness is for trailing.

799

Her, you know, owner chooses just to

have her on a collar all of the time.

800

as soon as that harness goes on

her, she knows what she's about

801

to do and she gets excited.

802

So you can see that they enjoy those

activities because the piece of equipment

803

that kind of goes along with it.

804

Oh.

805

You know, well, we all know that

when you put your walking boots on

806

and dogs are so safe that when they

go out for a walk they get excited.

807

So like, you know, we

know what our dogs enjoy.

808

and yeah, so creating a purpose

and having activities that we

809

do together that our dogs enjoy.

810

And, you know, I just see people who

have Labradors or German Shepherds or,

811

you know, whatever breed, and that dog

goes, you know, to the park for a walk

812

in the morning and round the block

in the evening and that's their life,

813

well, the dog's well loved and, you know.

814

Has a family who cares for

it and is exercised but

815

I don't know I feel for dogs like that

who don't have that extra, you know,

816

opportunity to really be a dog, you know.

817

I

818

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

819

Okay.

820

Vicki: And that's, I don't know,

I think, I think they deserve more

821

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, definitely.

822

Brilliant.

823

Vicki: about giving

824

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

for someone that's just starting

825

out with a connection based training

approach, what's one small but

826

impactful thing that they can do today?

827

Vicki: dogs more time to think.

828

I'm not talking at them.

829

So there's this little exercise

I do, and I don't know where

830

I got it from originally.

831

I'm sure it's not an original of mine

because I don't know that any of us

832

have anything original, but you know, we

all find different exercises that work,

833

but this is my like all time favorite.

834

I just call it the focus game.

835

And I've seen it done in a

number of different ways.

836

But the way that I like to do it is you

just let your dog know that you have an

837

old piece of food, and you just really

gently drop it to the floor, to one

838

side, and you let your dog look for it.

839

But we don't say under,

and we don't say under.

840

point at it and we don't encourage

them, we just let them look for it.

841

Once they've found it, nine times out

of ten, even though it's the first

842

time they've ever played the game,

your dog is going to just look up at

843

you and go, whoops, did you see that?

844

And if we just capture that little

moment that they look up at us, with

845

just a little marker word like this,

And then drop a piece of food to our

846

other side, not throw it, just super

gentle, drop a piece of food to our

847

other side, let them look for it, sniff,

snuffle, it doesn't matter how long it

848

takes, they look up at us and repeat.

849

If we do that for a few minutes, every

day, in lots of different places.

850

It just helps your connection.

851

doing so many things,

it's the simplest thing.

852

And we do it in almost, well, you know,

people who come to classes will do that

853

every other week or so because we do do it

854

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

855

Silence.

856

Silence.

857

Vicki: They find a little piece of

food and that's just kind of like

858

the cherry on top of the cake.

859

So sniffing for most dogs

is the important part.

860

They look up at you,

they're a trusted person.

861

All you do is acknowledge

them with the word good.

862

We don't need any head ruffles

or good gills or just good.

863

Add another piece of food and we're

just saying, we're acknowledging

864

that they've done something lovely.

865

we're recreating that experience,

which is really lovely and safe

866

and grounding and it's an exercise

that helps build into lead walking,

867

recall, mean, literally anything and

everything that you do with your dog,

868

because you're encouraging eye contact

without asking them to look at you,

869

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Okay.

870

very much.

871

Yeah.

872

Yeah.

873

Vicki: turn

874

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

875

Silence.

876

Silence.

877

Vicki: find it, find it,

find it, good dog, woo!

878

They just slow down everything that

they do and just a marker word.

879

They're giving their dog time, and

880

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Mm,

881

Vicki: thing, because we just,

we do things too quickly.

882

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: we do.

883

Vicki: favourite exercise for building

calm and connection and focus in

884

different situations and something I

885

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

886

Vicki: dog pretty much every day.

887

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

888

I think we take it for granted, don't we?

889

Time.

890

So . Brilliant.

891

So setbacks are, are inevitable

in any training journey.

892

How can pet parents handle these moments

without losing trust or connection?

893

Vicki: I think when we have setbacks

it depends on what it is you're trying

894

to achieve in that moment it's usually

down to us and not our dog and if we can

895

just take a pause and think about that

stops us putting everything on our dog.

896

So I think we've kind of

897

I was going to say we blame them, that's

maybe the wrong word, but yeah, we often

898

blame them for not getting it right.

899

We blame them for being silly or

we blame them for challenging us in

900

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

901

Silence.

902

Silence.

903

Vicki: we're trying to teach our

dog, who's the learner in that

904

situation, have we made it clear to

them, do they understand and are,

905

are, are we being motivating enough?

906

One of the things that I say, think

it's that dog trainer manual in the

907

sky again, as soon as people start

teaching their dog a specific skill, we

908

all turn into bloody Barbara Woodhouse.

909

Who knows it?

910

Who's in a quite even diaper?

911

Who's in a quite even diaper?

912

Like, the gentlest and kindest of people,

and I don't mean like that old school,

913

you know, proper Barbara Woodhouse, but

we all get really serious and if they

914

don't get right, you know, you see people

get really frustrated and their voice

915

is starting to get a little bit firmer

and, you know, if we say sit and now

916

the dog doesn't say sit, like we say sit

a little bit harsher and I'm like, oh.

917

So I would say, you know, our

dogs are not choosing to learn.

918

want them.

919

They're not university students.

920

They've gone, yeah, I

921

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

922

Vicki: you know,

923

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Silence.

924

Silence.

925

Silence.

926

Okay.

927

very much.

928

Vicki: as much fun for them as us.

929

Like, and if it's not

fun, why are we doing it?

930

So, yeah.

931

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah,

I always used to just say in my puppy

932

class is like, you know, short and sweet,

little little sessions, but to have fun.

933

The moment you stop having fun, then you

need to just forget and come back to it.

934

Vicki: Yeah, as soon as you start to hear

that, like, tone in your voice come in.

935

think primary school teacher,

not the university lecturer.

936

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Definitely.

937

Vicki, thank you.

938

We're gonna start

wrapping up this episode.

939

It's literally flown by the last

hour so we're going to spend the

940

next sort of five or so minutes

just for some final questions.

941

And yeah, so many pet parents

feel guilty or frustrated when

942

they face setbacks in training.

943

What would you just say to

someone who's feeling stuck but

944

wants to do right by their dog?

945

Vicki: I would say talk

it through with somebody.

946

And, you know, I find this myself as well.

947

You know, you're trying to teach your

dog something or you know there's

948

something they're doing with your dog.

949

And when it's just you and your

dog, you can get really stuck in it.

950

So you know, if you going through

a dog trainer, just sit and have a

951

chat with them or have a chat with

a, a friend who might be a dog owner.

952

or trainer or whoever and walk it

through because, you know, two brains

953

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

954

Vicki: need to, you know, have

a fresh perspective on it.

955

I know that there was when Lockie

was little I was starting to feel

956

like that, you know, I felt a lot of

pressure from people like, oh, she's

957

going to be the best trade dog ever.

958

And I thought, oh, she probably isn't.

959

But now I feel like maybe she has to be.

960

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Oh, no, it's never the way.

961

Okay.

962

Okay.

963

Vicki: bit yeah, like, hard on myself

and, know, a friend of ours actually,

964

Charlotte says to me, she's a puppy,

just stop, just have fun, just have fun.

965

And I say, oh yeah, that's right.

966

Oh, I forgot that bit.

967

So sometimes you just need somebody,

you know, that fresh perspective.

968

That would be my advice.

969

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Definitely what would be the one

970

piece of advice you'd give to

someone feeling overwhelmed by their

971

dog's behaviour, but they're eager

to build a stronger connection?

972

Vicki: I would say do the focus game.

973

I can't think

974

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

focus games sounds fun.

975

Vicki: own behaviour that, you

know, just pausing and doing

976

the focus game doesn't help.

977

And if you're feeling overwhelmed in

that, in the minute because your dog is

978

doing something that you're like worried

about in that moment, like if they're

979

barking or lunging or if they're like

bouncing up at you, like, you know, we

980

know a lot of adolescent dogs can do.

981

often that what you need to do is

change the environment and change

982

environment in that moment quite quickly.

983

So it's not necessarily about training

sometimes in that moment, if you just

984

need to change what's happening so that

you can calm down to help your dog,

985

you just have to change the picture.

986

So changing the picture in that

moment might just be to sprinkle

987

some cheese on the ground.

988

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

989

Vicki: be just you turn and get your dog

out of the situation that they're in.

990

It might be just call the walk

off that day and just go home.

991

And yeah, change whatever is happening in

that moment to help your dog feel calmer.

992

But the only way you can help your

dog feel calmer is if you just take

993

a moment to calm down yourself.

994

and often.

995

So the focus game can be

great for that otherwise

996

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Take,

997

Vicki: the same answer as before,

you know, chat it through with

998

somebody else and see if you can get

999

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: yeah,

take a breath and play the focus game.

00:59:03,111 --> 00:59:07,011

If Vicki, if there's one message you

would like dog parents to take away from

00:59:07,011 --> 00:59:09,371

this conversation, what would it be?

00:59:10,148 --> 00:59:16,128

Vicki: think it would be to learn

who your dog is and make sure

00:59:16,268 --> 00:59:20,698

they have opportunities to do the

thing that makes their heart sing.

00:59:21,281 --> 00:59:21,821

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Hmm.

00:59:21,988 --> 00:59:24,768

Vicki: Nothing better than

seeing your dog's heart sing.

00:59:24,878 --> 00:59:26,398

Honestly, that's the best.

00:59:27,448 --> 00:59:31,758

Feeling in the world, and

through doing so, you just

00:59:31,768 --> 00:59:33,508

start to learn about your dog.

00:59:34,348 --> 00:59:39,458

And also just in general being a

little more thoughtful every day about

00:59:39,908 --> 00:59:45,358

how your dog experiences the world

and how we can support that and make

00:59:45,411 --> 00:59:45,881

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

00:59:46,178 --> 00:59:47,628

Vicki: world the best place for them.

00:59:48,501 --> 00:59:48,921

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

00:59:49,251 --> 00:59:52,091

Comes back to thoughtful

dog training again.

00:59:53,431 --> 00:59:54,091

I love that.

00:59:54,818 --> 00:59:58,268

Vicki: Our dogs haven't

chosen they live, have they?

00:59:58,268 --> 00:59:59,258

They're captive animals.

00:59:59,938 --> 01:00:03,118

don't choose who to live

with, where they live.

01:00:03,973 --> 01:00:06,663

Where they go for their walks,

where they sleep, what they eat.

01:00:07,353 --> 01:00:12,973

You know, it's our responsibility to

them the best possible life we can.

01:00:13,743 --> 01:00:17,373

to do that, it's about being

thoughtful about who they are and how

01:00:17,373 --> 01:00:19,063

we can meet their needs as a breed.

01:00:19,313 --> 01:00:21,223

You know, they're not

humans, they're dogs.

01:00:21,223 --> 01:00:26,413

And we need to, know, meet that

species specific needs that they have.

01:00:27,021 --> 01:00:28,191

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Yeah, brilliant.

01:00:28,821 --> 01:00:32,481

Wow, God, we've, we've

covered lots of this evening.

01:00:32,861 --> 01:00:37,891

So Vicki, putting you on the

spot, we've got lots of guests

01:00:37,891 --> 01:00:39,421

lined up for the Yappy Hour.

01:00:39,421 --> 01:00:41,101

I've booked lots of different people in.

01:00:41,101 --> 01:00:45,291

We've got vets, groomers,

behaviours, trainers.

01:00:45,291 --> 01:00:50,361

We've got people that do hoopers

and Lots of different people.

01:00:50,461 --> 01:00:54,611

But if there was one person you'd

think we should invite onto the Yappy

01:00:54,671 --> 01:00:56,511

Hour, who would that be and why?

01:00:57,743 --> 01:00:59,693

Vicki: Oh my God, that's a question.

01:01:03,411 --> 01:01:04,731

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

A lot of people get stuck and then

01:01:04,731 --> 01:01:06,071

they give me like about five people.

01:01:06,071 --> 01:01:08,961

Yeah, but just one person

you think we should invite?

01:01:09,091 --> 01:01:12,321

Yeah, we should invite onto,

oh, however many you want.

01:01:16,463 --> 01:01:20,803

Vicki: There's so many incredible people

out there working with dogs, aren't there?

01:01:20,853 --> 01:01:24,963

As you know, is really terrible

because I've forgotten the lady's name.

01:01:26,413 --> 01:01:30,833

I so last year or the year before,

I did a tent work course with Sally

01:01:30,833 --> 01:01:34,643

Gutteridge, who, Sally Smith, who,

if you haven't got lined up, I'd be

01:01:34,643 --> 01:01:37,693

very surprised if you haven't, but

she could absolutely go on here.

01:01:37,926 --> 01:01:38,476

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

Oh, who knows?

01:01:38,476 --> 01:01:41,236

Who knows?

01:01:41,948 --> 01:01:44,758

Vicki: And I'll tell you quickly

why I think Sally should be on here.

01:01:44,818 --> 01:01:50,628

It's because Sally's way of

about dogs is just incredible.

01:01:50,728 --> 01:01:54,508

And it's just taken her on such a

different journey, especially from

01:01:54,518 --> 01:01:56,158

starting as a military dog handler.

01:01:56,168 --> 01:01:59,318

So, you know, the way she

lives and works with dogs now.

01:02:00,248 --> 01:02:04,788

when I was on her course, her Cheap

Consent Workforce, she organized

01:02:04,788 --> 01:02:07,438

lots of different webinars us.

01:02:08,296 --> 01:02:08,776

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Hmm

01:02:10,068 --> 01:02:12,978

Vicki: I'm sure she's called

Louise canine consultancy.

01:02:13,668 --> 01:02:14,148

I think her

01:02:14,508 --> 01:02:17,588

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: I think,

yeah, I think I could, rings a bell.

01:02:17,935 --> 01:02:22,825

Vicki: she did two different

webinars for us and she works with.

01:02:24,385 --> 01:02:29,125

In Scent Work for, for

Environment, environmental Project.

01:02:29,863 --> 01:02:30,263

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: Yeah.

01:02:30,505 --> 01:02:33,925

Vicki: dunno that I've ever heard anybody

more inspiring than her in my life.

01:02:34,165 --> 01:02:38,565

She, the way, her passion for what

she does and the way she imparts

01:02:38,565 --> 01:02:41,985

her knowledge and everything, scent

work for years utterly amazing.

01:02:42,583 --> 01:02:44,053

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour: I

know who you're thinking of, I can't

01:02:44,053 --> 01:02:46,833

think of her name, it's something

like canine conservation or something,

01:02:46,863 --> 01:02:51,823

but you can drop me a message with

it anyway, but yeah, Sally Gutterid

01:02:53,123 --> 01:02:56,683

yeah, we may have Sally on, who

knows, you have to watch this space.

01:02:57,213 --> 01:03:02,343

Vicki, thank you so much for

joining me on the Yappy Hour.

01:03:02,833 --> 01:03:06,573

If people want to get in touch with

you, how's best to, to find you?

01:03:06,623 --> 01:03:10,483

Yeah, give us your

contact details and stuff.

01:03:10,615 --> 01:03:17,255

Vicki: Facebook as Love Your, and

my website is www love yours uk.

01:03:17,565 --> 01:03:21,395

But I'm actually currently in between

websites, so it doesn't look absolute

01:03:21,395 --> 01:03:26,795

best at the moment, but predominantly I

just run local in person group classes.

01:03:27,265 --> 01:03:31,555

In, you know, like you said, scent

work, tracking, trailing, hoopers, life

01:03:31,555 --> 01:03:33,525

skills because that's what I love to do.

01:03:33,945 --> 01:03:35,155

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

And you're down in Cornwall?

01:03:35,345 --> 01:03:36,485

Where in Cornwall are you?

01:03:37,177 --> 01:03:39,317

Vicki: Well, I am in

between St Ives and Helston.

01:03:40,207 --> 01:03:42,577

So yeah, it's a fabulous place.

01:03:44,055 --> 01:03:45,875

Nathan Dunleavy - The Yappy Hour:

It is, I remember many holidays down

01:03:45,875 --> 01:03:50,095

in Halston and Falmouth and that,

down that way when I was growing up.

01:03:50,105 --> 01:03:53,255

So Vicki, thank you so

much for joining me.

01:03:53,295 --> 01:03:57,675

And in Installing all your

knowledge thoughtful dog training,

01:03:58,165 --> 01:03:59,635

definitely the way forward.

01:03:59,985 --> 01:04:03,715

Thank you for joining me on

the Yappy Hour today powered by

01:04:03,725 --> 01:04:05,815

Yapperly and we'll see you soon.

01:04:06,687 --> 01:04:07,207

Vicki: Thank you.

01:04:07,347 --> 01:04:08,193

Will do.

01:04:12,474 --> 01:04:16,104

What a fantastic

conversation with Vicki Main.

01:04:16,604 --> 01:04:22,064

Her compassionate approach to training

is truly inspiring and I hope you found

01:04:22,144 --> 01:04:25,174

her insights as valuable as I did.

01:04:25,694 --> 01:04:29,554

Here are a few key

takeaways from today's chat.

01:04:30,159 --> 01:04:30,949

Number one.

01:04:31,449 --> 01:04:35,279

Training for connection, not

compliance, shifts the focus from

01:04:35,279 --> 01:04:38,179

controlling a dog to understanding them.

01:04:38,649 --> 01:04:43,599

This mindset creates stronger bonds

and better long term outcomes.

01:04:44,089 --> 01:04:44,899

Number two.

01:04:45,329 --> 01:04:50,179

Tailoring training and enrichment to

a dog's breed and personality, like

01:04:50,269 --> 01:04:55,399

scent work, tracking or trailing,

can transform their emotional well

01:04:55,429 --> 01:04:57,839

being and deepen your connection.

01:04:58,529 --> 01:04:59,329

Number three.

01:04:59,734 --> 01:05:04,754

Setbacks are all part of the journey

and it's okay to feel frustrated.

01:05:05,244 --> 01:05:09,724

Vicki reminded us that progress

happens through patience, empathy

01:05:09,944 --> 01:05:12,174

and celebrating the small wins.

01:05:12,754 --> 01:05:18,464

Vicki, thank you so much for sharing your

wisdom and for reminding us that training

01:05:18,684 --> 01:05:21,564

is about relationships, not just results.

01:05:22,538 --> 01:05:26,129

And to all our listeners, if you're

looking to deepen your connection with

01:05:26,129 --> 01:05:32,709

your dog, I encourage you to check out

Love Your Paws and follow Vicki on social

01:05:32,719 --> 01:05:35,979

media for more tips and inspiration.

01:05:36,719 --> 01:05:41,359

If you enjoyed this episode,

please consider leaving a review or

01:05:41,359 --> 01:05:43,788

sharing it with a fellow dog parent.

01:05:43,788 --> 01:05:48,949

And don't forget to subscribe

so you never miss an episode.

01:05:49,574 --> 01:05:51,034

Of the yappy hour.

01:05:51,624 --> 01:05:54,854

Thanks for listening and

I'll see you next time.