How well do we really know the people who help us to train our dogs and to manage any behavioural issues that they may have?
Do they use Positive Dog Training methods as advocated by the likes of Victoria Stilwell?
Or are they stuck in the past with the Dominance methods employed by Cesar Millan?
Do they drink tea or coffee?!
And where does their greatest challenge lie? I suspect that this probably sums it up:
I can train any dog in 5 minutes. It’s training the owner that takes longer.
Barbara Woodhouse
With that in mind, I thought that it may be interesting to find out a little more about some dog trainers and behaviourists.
Welcome to ‘The Richie’s Room dog trainer interview‘.
In this episode, we are going to meet the lady who first introduced me to dog training – Lisa Jackson. Thank you, Lisa!
Let’s get started …
Introducing – Lisa Jackson
As a child, Lisa always loved animals.
Ultimately, it was this love of animals that brought her to where she is now – the owner of Lisa Jackson’s Dog Training. Running the business means that she gets to spend lots (and lots!) of time with dogs every day of the week.
Even now, after many years in business, her love for animals, and for dogs in particular, drives her to continue studying the many aspects relating to their care.
Getting to Know Lisa
This series of questions is designed to tell us a little more about Lisa other than her role with dogs.
When I finished school my dad wanted me to go to university. I wanted to work with animals. As a compromise, I agreed to work for a bank.
The bank helped me to understand, from a bank’s perspective, how businesses worked. Doing something that you love is hugely rewarding in itself but a business needs to make money – running a business incurs expenses that have to be met.
My commercial experience was then broadened when I moved on from banking to managerial roles, first at a petrol station and then at a newsagent.
I then managed to combine my love for animals with continuing my commercial experience when I began to work for a veterinary practice.
I don’t usually eat takeaway food.
Actually, I have very little free time at the moment – it is mostly consumed by continued study.
Tea.
Nothing fancy, a cup of Tetley tea is fine!
I know that some of my clients have financial difficulties. I would make sure that they are financially secure and able to continue looking after their dogs.
I would also make sure that all of my staff are OK.
After that, I would donate the remaining money to charity.
I have two dogs; Nahla, a Flat-coated Retriever, and Rossi, a British Bulldog.
I really don’t know.
[Richie : Lisa doesn’t watch many films and struggled to think of an appropriate actress so … I’ve discussed it with her partner, Darren, and we’ve picked somebody that we think would be ideal : Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor in the Terminator film series)]I’m not normally a fan of Jeremy Clarkson (that’s the polite version!).
However, I’ve really enjoyed watching Clarkson’s Farm on Amazon Prime. There were times when I even felt quite sorry for him!
I really struggle with IT sometimes so I would have to pick that!
Lisa as a Dog Trainer
OK, this series of questions relates to Lisa’s role with dogs.
I used to train and compete with horses – until I fell and broke my neck!
Circumstances following the accident meant that I had to sell the horses but, when I was recovered, I knew that I wanted to train animals again.
While I was working at a veterinary practice I noticed that very little attention was given to behavioural issues. This was something that I was very interested in and so I began to study.
Once I had sufficient knowledge, I slowly began to do behavioural work outside of the vet practice (but with their consent). As my experience increased, I found that I preferred the behavioural aspect to the nursing aspect and this was what prompted me to begin my own business.
As positive and reward-based as possible.
It is important to realise that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to dog training. You have to look at each dog as an individual and do what works for that particular dog.
I have a COAPE (Centre Of Applied Pet Ethology) diploma in Training.
I also have diplomas in Canine Nutrition and Health, Hydrotherapy, Canine Exercise and Rehabilitation, and Canine Massage.
I am a Kennel Club Accredited Instructor in both Training and Behaviour.
Patience!
Dogs are very intelligent but it still takes time to learn new things (just as it takes us humans time to learn new things).
Patience!
Our patience will achieve more than our force.
Edmund Burke
Robin Walker. Sadly no longer with us, Robin was a vet by profession, but specialised in and lectured on behavioural problems in companion animals. He was co-founder of COAPE.
Angela Stockdale. Originally a veterinary nurse, Angela’s interest in canine behaviour developed after she noticed the number of dogs being brought in for euthanasia because of aggression issues. She began to work with these dogs and the majority were successfully returned home to their families.
No one thing.
No, I don’t.
Once again, patience is key.
Realising that all dogs, and their owners, are individuals. Some are easier to teach than others. Some just don’t listen.
You have to earn the trust of your clients and love their dogs as much as they do.
The interaction with such a wide range of dogs and people.
Spend more time with them. It doesn’t matter if it is exercising, training, playing, feeding, or simply snuggling on the sofa – just spend time with them.
You will never find time for anything. If you want time you must make it.
Charles Buxton
Millions of different things!
Just as dogs are individuals and need tailored training, so are owners and their needs.
I think that there will be an increased need for rehabilitation treatment for sick and injured dogs.
I’m continuing to study various forms of rehabilitation to supplement my knowledge in relation to training and behaviour.
This is a tough question as things have changed greatly from when I first started.
There is so much more choice available now to anybody looking to work with animals generally and dogs in particular.
With the same choices available when I began I would still do the same thing. But if it was a young me starting in the present time I may change my focus.
Contacting Lisa
So, if having read Lisa’s answers you’d like to contact her, or follow her on social media, the details you need are as follows:
- Website : https://www.lisajacksondogtraining.co.uk/
- Email : lisa@lisadogs.co.uk
- Telephone : 01905 828 398 (Mobile : 07817 887 319)
- Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/Lisa-Jacksons-Dog-Training-Service/
Acknowledgements
And …
The End
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I liked what she said about patience being the hardest thing to teach. I think she’s SO right there! I’m also glad she still got to follow her dream of working with animals after the accident. She sounds very happy!
Claire.X
http://www.clairemac.co.uk
Hi Claire. Thanks for your comment. Yep, patience is vital – but so difficult to teach!
This is such a lovely interview and I’ve learnt a lot about dog training! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Thanks for your feedback, Lucy. Yes, Lisa is great – I’ve learned so much from her over the years.
I loved this interview. Lisa seems like a fun person. I love that she said that what she enjoys most about being a dog trainer is getting to interact with a wide range of dogs and people. Fab interview
Thanks very much, Ruth. Yes, I’m very jealous of Lisa – getting to meet such a huge variety of dogs must be brilliant (although I don’t envy the amount of hard work that goes into it!)
Patience is as tough a thing to teach to someone else as it is to learn yourself, but practicing it daily is a big help in making it a consistent part of your life.
I love learning about Lisa’s journey, from where she started out to where she is now. It is so interesting to see how people compromise to incorporate the elements they need into their lives alongside other opportunities that help them unexpectedly along the way.
Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for your comment, Jaya. I agree, acquiring patience takes … patience 😉
I absolutely love this interview, it is so indepth as well! Lisa seems to really enjoy being a dog trainer!
Hi Amie. Thank you, that’s very kind. Yes, I think Lisa really enjoys what she does.
I loved reading this interview! Lisa seems to be a great trainer and completely agree that patience is the hardest to teach! So glad to see that her experience then brought her to work with animals as she wished x
Hi Cristina. I’m glad that you enjoyed the interview. Thanks for commenting.
Another great interview from you! Lisa sounds fabulous and you can really feel her passion for her job in all of her answers!
Rosie
Thanks, Rosie, your feedback is much appreciated. Yes, Lisa is fabulous 🙂
What a lovely interview with my namesake – I can sympathise regarding the horses, I’ve had many a bad fall, although thankfully nothing as serious as hers. And I’m in wholehearted agreement with her view on Jeremy Clarkson too!
Thanks, Lisa. I’m not a horse rider but I can imagine that you hit the ground with quite a thump if you fall from that sort of height! I think JC is winning over a lot of new fans (either that or they just like watching him suffer!)
I really enjoyed your last interview I read with Theo so it’s nice to get to know someone else in the field.
It’s lovely to learn more about Lisa, it really is important that we get to know those who are training our pets to make sure they are a good fit. It’s great Lisa got some background in how businesses work with her Bank background. I also love a good cup of Tetley tea! So sweet that she is thinking about other people if she were to win money, that shows a lovely part of her character I think.
Thank you for sharing more about Lisa and letting us get to know her.
Hi Jordanne. I’m glad that you are enjoying the interviews. Thank you for your lovely comment.
Such a great range of questions that really helped us readers get to know Lisa! She sounds amazing, I love that she’d help her clients who struggle financially if she won the lottery! Thanks for sharing!
Hey Molly. I’m glad that you liked the interview questions. Yes, Lisa is great and very generous.
How she started dog training seems interesting to start with horses. Great interview!
Hi there. Thanks very much for your comment.
This was a great post – I love knowing more about any jobs animal related! Would love to go into it one day!
Thanks for your comment, Lil. Much appreciated. No reason why you can’t be just like Lisa one day – follow your dreams!
What a great interview. Now I’m wondering what I would spend £100m on! If only!
Corinne x
Thanks Corinne. Go on, spend that fictional money! 🙂
Rossi is in an absolute mood right now haha! Great post and interview again, Richie. Love reading these dog trainer interviews!
Hi Jenny. Rossi is a superstar! Glad that you enjoyed the interview.
Oh this is so lovely – it must be so rewarding, especially getting to work closely with the dogs and their families, knowing you’re making a difference xx
Thanks very much for your comment, Alice. Yes, I think it is a hugely rewarding profession.
What kind of personality does a dog have to have to not respond to positive and reward based training?
Downloading IT skills matrix style would indeed be very useful, I’d certainly like to know everything about computer engineering without having to actually study
Thank you very much for your comment. In my experience, the only time positive training doesn’t work is when you haven’t found the reward that works for that particular dog – not all dogs are food-driven. The Matrix-style of learning would be nifty, wouldn’t it?
It has been very interesting to read about Lisa’s rich experience and path to training dogs. She talks on such an important thing as patience and reward-based training. A great interview. Thank you!
Hi and thank you very much for your feedback. I’m pleased that you found the interview interesting.
When I had a dog I totally needed a dog trainer. I would definitely invest in one next time. Great interview
Yes, a good dog trainer can be invaluable. Thanks for your feedback, Deborah.
This was really interesting to read!
Hi Katy. Thank you very much for your comment.
Another great interview, Richie! Lisa sounds like a powerhouse of a woman, we could all learn a thing or two from her training style! Also – I’m besotted with Rossi, and got completely distracted by him! Such a good boy ha!
Hi Simona. Yes, she is indeed a powerhouse of a woman – I like that description, I must remember to tell her the next time that I see her 🙂 And, yes, Rossi is awesome!
I love dogs so much! I can’t have one because of living in an apartment and travelling so much but when I go home, my sister’s dog is the one I’m most looking forward to seeing haha!
Your interview questions are great! I was trying to answer all the questions while reading Lisa’s answers (Anna Kendrick would play me in a movie).
I love how passionate Lisa is about her work and that she’s working towards learning more about rehabilitation for dogs.
Hi Vourneen. I’m glad that you enjoyed the interview and were able to play along! Yes, Lisa love’s dogs and so loves her work 🙂
This is such a great interview, I loved reading it! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Melissa. Thank you very much, I’m glad that you enjoyed it.
hello! what a great post, i’ve never had a dog so I really don’t know much about dog training or what is involved but this post is going to be so helpful to people who have dogs. Thanks for sharing! Alicia
Hi Alicia. Thank you very much for your kind words.