Happy Handling - Our Exclusive New Course
Long-standing Puppy School Tutor for Surrey and South London, Regional Manager for London (within M25) and Originator and Teacher of Happy Handling, Louise Otter, tells us about this new and revolutionary course
Late last year, 22 Puppy School tutors attended the first 'Happy Handling' tutor training courses to learn how to teach their own consent-based handling courses for dogs. By providing tutors with the knowledge to coach owners through a structured, yet fun and educational 6-week course, we hope to improve communication between owners and their pets and promote a more positive and stress-free handling experience for the dogs involved.
This brand new course is the first of its kind to be launched across the UK with the aim of improving dogs’ confidence and trust in all aspects of handling whilst giving them choice and control. By improving communication between dogs and their owners, we can teach dogs to offer consent for all aspects of handling, from grooming to injections, making life happier and vet visits less stressful.
I developed and wrote this course after noticing my own dog Ripley moved away from the vet as he approached to do a vaccination. I knew I could train behaviours to help Ripley cope better for the next time she needed an injection so I set about training her to give a chin rest on my hand and lap, adding in handling, and working towards having a second person handling. Following on from my success with Ripley, and with other similar training successes, I began offering this as an online course for other owners who needed help with handling.
The tutors attending the course are experienced animal trainers already. Even so, they are required to work with their own dog(s) to learn the techniques and practise the exercises before they begin teaching the Happy Handling course to others. They also have to train a second unknown person to handle their dog and coach someone else to work with their dog. Once videos of their training have been assessed and passed, they are ready to begin running courses.
Full training notes, together with additional tips and videos, are available exclusively to dog owners taking these courses through our week-by-week pages in The Puppy Club.
To find out if your local tutor runs these classes or where your nearest one might be, click below.
If there are no tutors local to you running the courses, there is an online course run by Louise Otter - please see here
Testimonials
What Clients say
about Puppy School
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“I really enjoyed these classes. Frankie was knowledgeable and explained the reasoning for why you need to do things the way you go in such an interesting and straightforward manner. It has definitely helped with Cooper.”— Joe
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“It’s a fantastic course. The small sizes also really allow for personal tailoring if the exercise to suit my puppy. Neal made me so at ease when I struggled with something and there was never a I time I felt embarrassed to ask him to reexplain something I was struggling with.”— Daniel
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“I can’t imagine a tutor better than Kelly. She was so reassuring and helpful, and skilled in getting us through the exercises. Her fondness for the dogs and enthusiasm was obvious.”— Emma
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“Pen's guidance helped us feel more confident with our first puppy, and he's learned so much more than we thought he'd have at this stage. I couldn't recommend it enough.”— Louise
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“We absolutely loved attending puppy school with Elsa. The classes were so interesting and engaging, and we could really see how much Elsa learnt each week. Her confidence has grown so much, and the training tips have made a big difference at home too. Sandie was fantastic — so friendly, patient, and knowledgeable. She made every class fun and interesting, which created such a relaxed and positive environment for both puppies and owners. It never felt overwhelming, just enjoyable and really rewarding. I would highly recommend these puppy classes to anyone with a new puppy. It’s been such a valuable experience for both of us!”— Stanley