Ted & Zack

We were recommended to go to Linnea and Gregor at Walk and Train Edinburgh by Kylie from KCK9 in Fife to save us the 90 mile round trip to get the social walk we were looking for.

Our rescue GSDs are very different characters, Zack the older who has been with us longer is generally laid back and friends with everyone. He does however get excited at the start of an outing or when he sees other dogs who look like they would be up for a play, at these times he can be a bit vocal. Ted, on the other hand is an anxious dog, who was not socialised in his first 3 years of life, and was reactive to just about everything when we got him. The journey with Ted has involved behavioural consultations and obedience classes. By the time we hooked up with Linnea and Gregor he had reached a good level of obedience, and is generally relaxed around people and the environment. Ted however remains anxious around strange dogs, and although able to just about cope when out on his own with me, was still very reactive when encountering them out in company with Zack.  

The group classes were a good way for Linnea and Gregor to verify that we had the basic building blocks of obedience in place, but the real benefit for us came from the social walk element of being amongst a pack of dogs but also encountering numerous different situations and on and off leash dogs while on a walk in the ‘real’ world. We gained so much from the advice that Linnea and Gregor could give us and their tips that arose from observing Ted in this way. After 3 months of weekly sessions Ted was coping well with new dogs being introduced to our group, and showing no reactions to them. He was also vastly improved on his encounters with strange dogs. By employing the techniques learned we were able to help him to not react in the vast majority of cases, and also to calm down quickly on the odd occasion where, for example, a boisterous off lead dog had just got too much for him. As a by-product, Zack’s lead walking is much improved too.

Linnea and Gregor have a sympathetic and supportive approach to both owners and dogs, they clearly draw on a great combination of personal experiences, and lessons learned from courses and other respected trainers. I like the fact that their solutions are tailored to individuals, and that they are both constantly listening and watching to find ways to help.

Please run some more of these social walks, we’ll be first in the queue, it is money well spent!

- Liz