Home Visit Training allows us to observe the dog in its normal environment and work directly with both the dog and owner.
This format can be especially important when the behaviour appears mainly in the owner’s hands or changes depending on who is handling the dog. A dog may respond differently to different people because of differences in timing, communication, routines, confidence or previous patterns.
By observing the dog-owner interaction in the real situation, we can identify what influences the behaviour, demonstrate an appropriate approach and coach the owner in communication that is clear and realistic to continue in everyday life.
Most of the actual training happens after we leave.
The owner is responsible for repeating the same methods, expectations, and reinforcement consistently in daily life. Behaviour changes through repetition, so what happens between the training sessions is extremely important.
This means Home Visit Training requires significant involvement from the owner. You need to be prepared to notice the relevant situations, respond in the way we have demonstrated, guide the dog consistently, and repeat the training day after day.
If different family members respond differently, the training is only followed occasionally, or the old behaviour continues to be unintentionally reinforced, progress can become much slower or inconsistent.