Esme

I first met Linnea and Gregor at the start of 2015 after adopting a rescue Staffie, Esme. Although I had had dogs for over 16 years previously, I had little experience of the SBT breed and Esme presented behaviours I was not prepared for or able to handle initially. Esme is actually quite chilled and relaxed indoors and lives in harmony with cats. She is super sweet, sooky, affectionate and cuddly; an absolute diamond with my friends and visitors to the house. However, she is reactive when meeting new dogs which can be problematic, alarming and even physically challenging for me as her handler!

Linnea took us back to basics. Basic commands, basic obedience. Getting Ez to focus on me and not external distractions. We had a few sessions working on this, moving on to taking Esme outside to meet Gregor with a very calm, passive greyhound. As I was very nervous, I found this 'set-up' encounter great for building my confidence handling Esme and after a couple of sessions, we were able to pass Gregor and his dog quite closely! What I feel I gained from working with Walk and Train was (a) a better understanding of doggy behaviour/body language (b) more confidence, by using proven successful strategies in certain situations (c) useful after-session notes/homework that Linnea sends out. On that note, it is very important to do Linnea's homework and be consistent to make true progress. I would recommend Walk and Train to anyone needing any behavioural support at all with their furry friends!

- Sarah