6 - 2024 - Calm Kind Happy

Q: What do I do when my puppy is biting (mouthing)? It’s painful!

A: Firstly, we need to teach our dogs that mouthing is unacceptable. It’s really important because they don’t understand (Yet?

Barking Mad: How to Quiet Your Canine

In my online courses I refer to a dog’s behaviour as a jigsaw puzzle where all pieces (different behaviours) relate

In Memory of Tony Knight the Dog Listener: The Positive Difference He Made

This picture here is from 2013 when I invited Tony Knight to run one of his 3-day classes in Chiswick,

Unlocking Your Dog’s Language: How Dog Listening Differs from Traditional Training

(AKA Why do I love Dog Listening so much?) Training a dog to do something you want them to do

Toileting Guidance for Nervous Rescue Dogs!

Did you know it’s not only puppies who need teaching about toileting? A new rescue dog will also need time to learn the toileting habits that you would like because squatting motionless, even in the garden, can make any dog feel too vulnerable. This is often the reason why the new rescue dog poops on the floor the moment he comes back into the house!

The desperately sad XL Bully situation

Shout out to the fosterers out there. You are doing an AMAZINGLY valuable job and I love you all. Taking

7 Steps to Having Visitors

If your dog’s behaviour is not what you want when you have visitors round to your home, it might be worth

5 Tips to help your dog with Firework Season 🧨

🧨 Firework season is upon us and depending on where you live and the dog that you share your home

“You’ve got Ludo really well trained!”

“You’ve got Ludo really well trained!” It was a very sweet thing to say to me by another person with

How the “Off Switch” relates to newly rescued dogs

When a new rescue dog comes into our home, they are very likely to look like this: This list is

The “Off Switch”

There is a trend going on in the world of rescue dogs at the moment and it’s a worrying one:

Question: “My elderly female dog passed away and now my younger dog is grieving so much he won’t eat and won’t play”

I’m so sorry you lost a beloved dog. You must also be feeling the loss. However, our dogs are like

How To Holiday With Your Dog

Last week, our little family of three spent some days in Cornwall: me, my husband and our dog! We had a

The Importance of Food part 2: How we can use the symbolism of food to help our dogs be calm and happy

Following on from the previous blog, we now know we can provide our dogs with 3 pieces of clear and

The Importance of Food part 1: Understanding the Significance of Food for Dogs

In my online course modules I begin by talking about free-living canines, as group living animals, being organised and using

How to introduce a rescue dog into a home with an existing dog

The first thing I want to express on this matter is that it is not natural for predator animals to

Question: “Ali, I know you have a holistic viewpoint when it comes to the health of your dogs, what do you do about yearly boosters, flea/tick treatment, and wormers?”

I’m happy to tell you my personal opinion and personal experience only, as I’m not a vet, of course. However,

Question: “When do I use treats on a walk, and how do I give my dog a command that it’s ok to just have a sniff?”

Ali answers: Firstly, I highly recommend you swap the word “treat” and use “food reward” instead. This really helps you

My dog wakes me up by barking during the night!

I’ve just put the phone down to one of my best friends with whom I did a Dog Listening session

Is your dog a Coiled Spring when on a walk?

I wanted to show how calm Ludo is before we head outside for anything, but particularly for a walk. See

What to do when your dog hates having his paws dried!

I spoke with a client earlier this week who asked if I had any advice about cleaning dirty paws because

Why does my dog grab and shake the lead?

Sometimes referred to as “ragging” the lead, grabbing and shaking the lead has been a prominent theme in my conversations

Reiki helps veterinarian with fatigue AND the animals she treats!

It’s no big surprise that compassion fatigue in the veterinary industry is rife. Our vets and vet nurses see and have

Did Ludo just Gesture Eat at me?

We’ve had a bit of a funny year so far with some major life changes within our little family. Our

The Calmer Canine Cooperative

Sadly, Dog Listening is not the most well known method in the world of dogs out there… Happily, there are

Meet My Teachers!

The Animals Kenny, Pebble, Bertie, Louie, Brandy II, Ozzie, Chili, George and Brian star in this mini collage of just

Reiki for Dogs

I practice and teach Reiki for humans and for animals, and no surprises – dogs are my specialism. It was

Meditating With Horses Fundraising Event!

I would love you to join me at this fundraising event & meet the herd! Click here to book

Question: How am I about Chili?

The simple answer is I’m ok. Sad, of course, missing her, of course. But I am safe, living in a

When your family comes to stay and brings their own dog!

Do you have a dog who isn’t keen on visitors? And yet in recent months we are starting again to

Our dogs show us the way when the worst news comes

Just before Christmas we received some bad news about Chili. The diagnosis is bone cancer, with only one option of

God Rest Ye Merry Gentle Dog: How to help your dog get through Christmas!

Did you know that one of the busiest times of the year in dog behaviour world is between Christmas and

Thinking of getting a rescue dog? Beware!

And I’m not talking about beware of the dog, but the people behind the “rescue” organisation. I have recently been

How to keep anxiety levels down when visiting the Vet

Oooph we’ve had a tough week… Poor old Ludo’s breathing has become steadily worse over the last few months and

Some super simple strategies to help puppy settle in!

I was interviewed this week by a collaboration called Pet Club whose mission is to build an online community for

“Help! My puppy is growling at my children!”

It’s one of those weeks when the same question has been asked by several different people. This time it has

“Our family dog’s behaviour has changed in the last few weeks”

CHANGE is a big deal for many of us, causing anxiety and tension. Imagine, now, how our dogs might feel…

Lockdown – the best thing that’s happened to puppies in years!

Martin Clunes, I love you, but you’re wrong about the mythical time period by when if your puppy hasn’t romped

How to Avoid Separation Anxiety Post-Lockdown

The current situation of pandemic-induced-Lockdown is creating interesting times in the world of dog behaviour. On one hand, due to

Stop Start Change Direction with Ali & Ludo

Sometimes we walk as a pack, sometimes we walk in a pair, and as you know, sometimes we don’t even

A story about food aggression

2019 is my 7th year as a Dog Listener It remains my greatest joy to help a dog in need

Using wolves as a template to bring happiness to domestic dogs and their families (without ANY physical dominance)

Off the back of a discussion I read in a forum yesterday I would love to clarify wolf theory/alpha theory/leader

How to teach your dog to walk nicely on the lead (clue: it starts way before you start walking)

I have been talking a lot about ‘the walk’ recently. And as much as it should always be the last

Keep Changing Direction to Arrive at Success!

I’ve spoken to a few people recently about using long training lines to assist recall success by showing your dog

Wolf listening

Well, what a marvelous week we had in Yellowstone! I survived the low temperatures (although I hear that -10 in

How to greet your dog after you’ve been away

As I get ready for a real adventure watching wolves in Yellowstone Park, USA, much of my preparation is obviously

5 tips for introducing a new dog into the household

It is always lovely to hear of a dog being rehomed. It can often be the start of a beautiful

Beware the ‘Stealth Dog’!

Have you ever called your dog to you and he has: • Not responded but then a few moments later

3 tips to help your dog cope with thunderstorms (and fireworks!)

Wow what an incredible storm last night! Admittedly, I heard it rather than watched it and happily both dogs were

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