puppy school south west london
Puppy School tutors come from a wide variety of backgrounds. Many have thriving
careers in rescue shelters and some work as veterinary nurses, dog walkers, dog
groomers, dog training professionals or behaviourists. Others work as
accountants or teachers during the day but have many dog-related hobbies and
interests in their free time. Some have left full-time work with dogs to raise a
family. What they all have in common is a passion for training puppies and a
keen interest in animal welfare and behaviour. Wag Bone Show 2005All our Puppy
School tutors have been carefully selected for their experience and practical
skills with dogs. Our tutors are also chosen to have empathy, respect and
concern for people since it is essential that the same reward-based training
techniques be extended to the owners of the puppies in the classes as well as
the puppies themselves. Many of our tutors are full members of the Association
of Pet Behaviour Councillors (APBC) Puppy School is proud to be a Practitioner
Organisation of the Animal Behaviour Training Council (ABTC) and to uphold its
values. The ABTC is the regulatory body that represents animal trainers and
animal behaviour therapists to both the public and to legislative bodies. It is
the only animal welfare charity that is primarily concerned with protecting the
psychological welfare of animals undergoing training and behaviour activities.
Many of our tutors and associate tutors are recognised as Animal Training
Instructors with the ABTC and others are working towards the qualification. Some
of our tutors are also registered as Clinical Animal Behaviourists and
Accredited Behaviourists with the ABTC. Many of our tutors are registered with
the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT), a benchmark of excellence in
positive, reward-based dog training. Some of our tutors are registered with the
Pet Professional Guild of Force Free Trainers (PPG), some are also members of
the Institute of Modern Dog Trainers (IMDT), and others are Kennel Club
Accredited Instructors (KCAI). Our Puppy School tutors and associate tutors must
undergo extensive training before teaching Puppy School classes. This includes
an application and interview process, six days of comprehensive theory covering
a range of topics from animal learning to lesson plans (taught by founder and
director, Gwen Bailey and Puppy School tutor of 15 years, Catherine Tomlinson,
both of whom are APBC registered and registered with ABTC as clinical animal
behaviourists), 3 days of supervised practical work and a comprehensive
correspondence course. We monitor our Puppy School classes regularly to ensure
the highest standards are consistently being maintained. Tutors are carefully
overseen by Regional Managers to make sure they are using all the skills
necessary to become excellent, positive, reward-based puppy trainers. Our tutors
must uphold our Code of Conduct at all times and must complete a sufficient
amount of Continued Professional Development each year. You will find many of
our tutors at events such as the APBC Annual Conference, Woof Conference and at
many other seminars, workshops and lectures across the country that provide
insight into the science behind modern training techniques. Many of our tutors
have studied to degree level or higher and have a BSc or MSc in Animal Behaviour
and Psychology or Zoology. All our Puppy School tutors and associate tutors
strive to uphold standards and keep up to date with the latest behavioural
science. Founder and Director Gwen Bailey gwen bailey"I've lived and worked with
dogs all my life, starting with the family's assortment of cross-breeds and a
weekend/holiday job at the local kennel which taught me so much and gave me lots
of practical handling experience. Later, with a BSc degree in Zoology, I wanted
to do something to help dogs have a better life so I became Information Officer
and later Animal Behaviourist for one of the UK's largest animal welfare
charities. After working with rescue dogs as Head of Animal Behaviour for the
charity for 12 years, I realised that there would always be more dogs needing
new homes than there would be homes for them to go to. In addition, many of
these dogs had behaviour problems which made it more difficult to rehome them.
The task seemed never ending. It became clear that the way forward lay in
education of new owners, particularly during the early stages of puppy-hood when
owners are keen to learn and puppies are very impressionable. So in 2002, after
writing the successful Perfect Puppy book, I set up Puppy School, which has
grown into a fantastic UK network of well-trained professional trainers who
helps new owners give their puppies the best possible start in life.
Well-trained, well-behaved dogs is the goal so that owners want to keep them all
of their lives and even if the dog is unlucky enough to find itself in rescue
one day, it will be easier to rehome. Thousands of puppies have now passed
through Puppy Schools across the country and we hope that all of them have had
better lives as a result". Gwen has written 13 books on animal behaviour and
lectures in the UK and internationally. For further information, please visit my
Dog Problems Solved website. Please click to see a copy of Puppy School’s Terms
and Conditions : and (Code of Conduct)
