Warning to Oxfordshire Dog Owners

Posted by Muriel on 3 October 2011

Please note that a large number of unqualified dog 'trainers' and 'behaviourists' are operating in the Oxford area and in Oxfordshire.

At OABC, we are seeing an alarming number of clients who have had the misfortune of passing through their hands first, wasting their money on unsound, unscientific and in some cases dangerous advice. Some of the owners that end up seeking help from us are literally traumatised, and some of the dogs are emotional wrecks by the time they get to us.

Some of the 'trainers' that have come to our attention use outdated, inappropriate, aversive (rough) and in some cases abusive methods, while many of the so-called 'behaviourists' give out wrong and deleterious advice, and do not have required knowledge nor the skills to deal with complex issues.

Please see the Welfare in Dog Training website for more information on harmful versus safe methods in dog training.

Please do not engage the services of trainers/behaviourists who:

• Tell you that you have 'to be the pack leader', 'dominate' your dog and who promote scientifically unsound Dog Whisperer style methods.
• Berate you and/or your dog.
• Blame you for all your dog's problems.
• Shout at you and/or your dog.
• Appear to have no patience.
• Use choke collars/chains.
• Use any kind of coercion and/or inflict pain on your dog (for example, tie leads and ropes around your dog to refrain it from pulling while teaching you to shout at it; or tying ropes around its back legs and lifting it off the ground when it shows aggression towards other dogs). These methods are not dog training nor behaviour rehabilitation, they are ABUSE and have no place in the 21st Century.

I implore Oxfordshire dog owners, particularly those in the Oxford area, to please check individual credentials and which methods are used thoroughly, before engaging the services of a dog trainer or behaviourist.

Oxfordshire Animal Behaviour Centre recommends the following training Schools:

K9 Playtime Academy (Minster Lovell, Nr Witney)

Teach My Dog (Grove and Wantage)

Orchards Dog Training Centre (Banbury)

 

 

 

Tags: Dogs, dog training, dog behaviour, Oxford, Oxfordshire