By Kellie Spooner, MSc
Expert Dog Behaviour & Training advice
We had Kellie support us with Bonnie as soon as we brought her home. Bonnie is a Rottweiler, so we wanted to make sure she was both happy and well trained. I can’t recommend Kellie enough, she gave us the confidence to help shape Bonnie into the loving and well trained dog she is now. Kellie has also been great at helping us through challenges, such as Bonnie wanting to chase bikes and buses. At only a year old we have lots of people tell us how well trained and friendly she is, and a lot of that is down to all the sessions and info Kellie has shared with us, we can’t thank her enough!
Could not recommend Kellie more highly. She really helped us with our first puppy, Toby the Sproodle. Fantastic knowledge of dogs and dog behaviour. Our constant questions were never too much for her. We met in a variety of places from parks, beaches, woods to urban. Toby was always excited to meet Kellie and would run straight to her. We have also recommended Kellie to several friends and would have no hesitation in seeking support from her if we needed to in the future.
Kellie was recommended to us by a friend and we’re absolutely delighted with the results we’ve experienced with our Australian Labradoodle puppy. From the minute we met Kellie she impressed us with her extensive knowledge, great communication style and gentle approach to dog training. She helped us to understand our dog’s temperament, how she experiences the world and how to set her up for long term success as part of our family. In every area, from food choices to mental stimulation and training, she has helped us to invest in our family dog and we’ve already experienced a huge return. We would recommend Kellie to every dog owner and she’ll be our first phone call if we experience any issues in the future.
Kellie understands exactly what motivates good dog behaviour – and also provides skills to help you be a better dog owner. Great results and hugely enjoyable sessions. Would not hesitate to recommend.
Kellie has been amazing in providing practical advice and strategies to help my dog gain more confidence with her triggers. It’s also been very reassuring for me as the owner! We both highly recommend working with Kellie 🐾
Kellie is absolutely the best, would recommend her services to anyone who feels like they want a bit of help to make the best life together with their dog. Our dog Indy loooooves her. Kellie’s been very helpful with Indy’s teenage dog behaviour niggles, reactivity, and other bits and bobs including nutritional and general advice, and day to day tips. She’s been a very positive and encouraging presence in our lives since we first met her.
We contacted The Dog Coach when we got our beagle puppy as we had never had any dogs before and needed help with initial training and understanding behaviour. Kellie was wonderful. You can tell she really cares for dogs and she was thorough and kind with all her training. A few years later we were having a few behavioural problems and contacted her again for a little refresher and I was so impressed by how knowledgeable she was and my little dog absolutely adores her. Her training is dog focused and all about understanding the reasons behind difficult behaviour rather than disciplining what you don’t like. I couldn’t recommend her enough, she has been so helpful. Beagles are known to be difficult to train and we often get comments about how good our little Moose is and it’s all thanks to Kellie.
I highly recommend Kellie’s services. We enlisted her support for our 4 y/o cockapoo to address resource guarding, window barking and reluctance to being handled. Kellie took a no nonsense approach which we liked, coming to our home and immediately settling our usually hyper and energetic dog before keenly observing his behaviour. She is extremely knowledgeable and have (after only a couple of sessions) we have seen some immediate improvements and have a fair few more strategies that we can implement at home to continue to manage and support our dog’s challenging behaviour. She provides thorough notes written up after sessions and is set on helping you solve a problem so you don’t waste time with more sessions unnecessarily – we appreciated this. Thanks Kelly!
We got in touch with Kellie after getting a second dog and experiencing some issues. With Kellie’s expertise we have focussed on activities which help our dogs decompress and fulfil the natural instincts of their respective breeds. Since working with Kellie our dogs have bonded so much, and we understand so much more of their body language! We can’t recommend Kellie enough and would definitely work with her again in the future!
I’m so grateful to Kellie for the work she’s done with myself and my 3 year old rescue dog Thea. After an initial in person consultation followed by a very detailed report and then 4 x 1 hour lessons, Thea is like a dog transformed! I felt the 2 main issues I was trying to cope with were excessive pulling on the lead, and although a very friendly dog, extreme over excitement interacting with other people and other dogs. Both issues are now resolved and walking Thea has become a pleasure rather than a challenge!
In addition to helping me with some other issues, Kellie also gave great advice including finding a more suitable lead for Thea, a harness that much better fitted her long back and an orthopaedic dog bed to give her long back better support. Kellie also gave advice on feeding and very useful insights into what had been causing Thea’s more challenging behaviour.
Kellie came highly recommended by a friend of my daughter and in turn I would have no hesitation recommending her to anyone looking for outstanding training and dog behaviour advice!
In addition to helping me with some other issues, Kellie also gave great advice including finding a more suitable lead for Thea, a harness that much better fitted her long back and an orthopaedic dog bed to give her long back better support. Kellie also gave advice on feeding and very useful insights into what had been causing Thea’s more challenging behaviour.
Kellie came highly recommended by a friend of my daughter and in turn I would have no hesitation recommending her to anyone looking for outstanding training and dog behaviour advice!
We booked in a behavioural assessment with Kellie after our Greyhound began reacting to things with wheels (scooters, prams, wheeled bags) and being 7months pregnant it was a fear he would react to the pram with a baby inside. I felt lost and unable to understand my dog. Kellie helped all of this! From the moment she met Zero (our greyhound) she was able translate his behaviours. Showing us how we can reduce stimulations before the walk, why he is reacting, what he isn’t enjoying and how to help him calm down. After our session I feel closer and more connected to Zero and with each walk his behaviour and reactivity is becoming more manageable, meaning all involved have a safer and more enjoyable walk. I can not recommend Kellie enough! If you want to get a full breakdown on how to best communicate with your four legged friend book an appointment, you will not be disappointed.
We can’t thank Kellie enough for the amazing support and confidence she has given us with our 8 month old, strong-willed Cavapoo pup, Louis! Kellie initially came to the house to help us with his growling/biting, which she sorted immediately. We then had 4 further sessions with her.
She has helped with lead walking, his diet, how to cope with illness and, most importantly, how to settle Louis when he comes to the pub for long boozy lunches! Kellie is SO knowledgeable, friendly, experienced and we will definitely be back with help with his recall.
Thank you so much Kellie – you are a star!! Gaynor, Euan and Louis x
She has helped with lead walking, his diet, how to cope with illness and, most importantly, how to settle Louis when he comes to the pub for long boozy lunches! Kellie is SO knowledgeable, friendly, experienced and we will definitely be back with help with his recall.
Thank you so much Kellie – you are a star!! Gaynor, Euan and Louis x
Kellie is the best! We’ve had experience with a few different dog trainers, and none of them have dialled in to our pup’s needs the way she did. We’ve seen amazing progress working with her!
I’m so thankful to have come across Kellie and her wealth of knowledge. Within a few weeks I feel like I’ve got a different dog, one that is far more relax, can navigate social interactions, and comes away from walks feeling fulfilled and not over-stimulated. I feel like a far more informed owner and can support my spaniel to navigate the world, as I have a better understanding of him and his needs. His reactivity has gone way down and our walks are far more enjoyable thanks to Kellie. I really can’t recommend her enough, it’s truly been life changing.
Absolutely fantastic coach. We booked 4 sessions for our 11 month old retriever Arnold, and couldn’t be happier with the experience. Kellie’s expertise didn’t just cover training, obedience and psychology but also health and nutrition – which we needed guidance with too. Really down to earth, friendly, amazing with Arnold and followed up each session with emailed info. Arnold’s behaviour and health are def in a great place and it’s thanks to Kellie.
Kellie’s practical breed-specific knowledge and no nonsense approach is just what we needed for help with our dog. Her expert advice and genuine love of dogs and their well-being is invaluable. Kellie also helped with our confidence as owners. We especially loved her ‘Mary Poppins’ bag of tricks & toys!
Our little Aria was struggling with chasing cars, bikes and anything that moves to close to her. Thankfully we found Kellie! She showed us what to do, she gave us exercises, great nutrition tips and answered all our questions. Aria is getting much better and we’ll definitely keep using all the exercises Kellie showed us. We never thought we could take her on a road trip with us but here we are! Day 5 and she is doing great.We’ll keep working on it and thank you so much Kellie!
Booking sessions with Kellie to help our anxious Croatian rescue was the best decision! She was patient with all the questions I had and helped me understand his behaviour / struggles so much better. She never made me feel silly for asking questions which was a great comfort. Kellie followed up our sessions with detailed emails going over what we discussed and adding helpful links where needed. She clearly cares so much and is so knowledgeable, I would recommend Kellie to anyone having issues or in need of some confidence with their handling. Thank you, Kellie!
Honestly, where to even start! Kellie has not only transformed our pups life, but in turn our lives too. Our rescue went from being scared stiff of the outside world and stuck on the stoop for 30 minutes to being a happy bouncy little boy bounding around the park tail wagging – living the life he deserves! He’s unrecognisable now and I really never imagined it could be possible.
We’ve had three sessions over the space of 2 years, and every one is full of just utterly invaluable information, almost always accompanied by genuinely jaw dropping moments and emotional ones too. Kellie has such an incredible way of sharing her endless knowledge that it’s never overwhelming, and all feels within reach.
From anxiety to uncontrollable pulling (or so we thought) to growling at other pups, she’s helped us through each phase when at times it felt like there was nothing we could do.
If you have a rescue (or any dog whatsoever for that matter), Kellie is the answer!
We’ve had three sessions over the space of 2 years, and every one is full of just utterly invaluable information, almost always accompanied by genuinely jaw dropping moments and emotional ones too. Kellie has such an incredible way of sharing her endless knowledge that it’s never overwhelming, and all feels within reach.
From anxiety to uncontrollable pulling (or so we thought) to growling at other pups, she’s helped us through each phase when at times it felt like there was nothing we could do.
If you have a rescue (or any dog whatsoever for that matter), Kellie is the answer!
Services
Behavioural Support
Working with you to change your dog’s behaviour.
Puppy Training
Give your puppy the best support with expert behavioural advice and training guidance. Suitable for dogs under 5 months of age.
For veterinarians who would like to refer clients directly for behavioural support.
Why work with me?
I want to help dogs thrive in the city. I focus on understanding the reasons behind why your dog is exhibiting behaviours that might be problematic. I will work with you to modify your dog’s unwanted behaviours while helping the dog to feel safe, secure and more confident.
I use ethical and scientifically validated therapeutic methods. I do not use intentionally aversive or punishment based techniques.
If Dogs could talk…
Thanks SO much for everything! I’m so so pleased with how Oscar is doing, and we feel much better equipped to help him now.
Thanks so much for all your help the last few weeks. Lola is a different dog from when we started!
Just wanted to say a huge thank you for your visit and help with Cody. We can’t believe we have the same dog!
Drop me a Line…
Let’s start making changes to your relationship with your dog today!