Fear Changes Everything. So Does the Right Help.
Scout is our working cocker spaniel, aged 9. He has struggled with a serious phobia of noise (lots of different kinds) since birth. The best offer from very well meaning vets to date has been to offer us Xanax to null his senses. After his first visit to James we noticed a marked improvement in him, he’s happier, more confident and relaxed and we have the right learning and new skills to properly support him. We were given some very easy to implement advice and whilst it does require patience and commitment Scout is a different dog. Walks are now a joy, fun for us all for the first time. The aim is to enable Scout to manage his fears independently. It’s not a quick fix but progress was apparent immediately. We’ve just had our second visit, wonderful to receive confirmation from James that he can see good progress in Scout too. It’s a journey for sure but this is a real game changer for us all. We highly recommend and only wish we’d found the Dogs Way earlier. Scout is a trooper and deserves the very best. So glad we’ve found that now in James.
Brilliant!!! I can recommend James and The Dogs Way without hesitation. He is very knowable about the dogs psychology and body language. He explains everything in a way that is easy to understand and relatable and he is easy to talk to. He is helping me with a working dog that has a fear phobia relating to noise, and although we are not there yet we are much improved. If you think a lot about your dog it is well worth the investment to help them have a better life. 😊🐶
Spoke to James on the phone for a consultation and he gave me techniques to use for a young dog too scared to leave the driveway and go for a walk. He was kind, knowledgeable and understood immediately what may be causing this. His techniques worked and his advice has made a huge difference. Would thoroughly recommend!
James has made such a huge difference to our rescue hound Jack. His approach is structured, calm, professional and so re-assuring. His assessment of where Jack is at any time in his life with us has been so accurate and has helped explain just how our behaviour and interaction with our dog can make our life together so much better. We could not recommend him highly enough, a real game changer.
I am so glad we found James. We rehomed our springer spaniel and was about at our wits end. She was so fearful of the world but also incredibly hyper and defensive at the same time. the more traditional training technics were too stressful for her, even asking her to sit to calm her stressed her out. James had an incredible insight into dog behaviour and the difference in our dog having met with James is enormous. He not only provided training in the sessions but was a real support in between not just with advice but reassurance to us too. We still have ways to go but now we can enjoy take her for walks and she is able to be a functioning part of the family. And the most wonderful thing is that we see that she is now enjoying life. Thank you James ☺️
We'd been having issues with our new, rehomed dog and had a call and then a session with James. He immediately had a great read on the dog even on the call and a genuine interest in not just resolving the behavioural issues but giving us the agency to resolve, understand and address the root cause. We thought we had a few separate issues with our dog but James helped give a really cohesive view of how and why these issues derived from the same place. This nuance and guidance is something we would never have stumbled upon ourselves without his help. While we might have gotten to a point where our dog was behaving better, the journey to get there would definitely have been more arduous and difficult for our dog I can't fault James on a single point, you could throw a thesaurus worth of compliments at him and every one would be accurate. Reading the other reviews I can relate fully to each one and would recommend without hesitation
James helped us out last year with our cockapoo Charlie. He was extremely anxious around traffic and cars. James immediately understood Charlie and was so knowledgeable around why Charlie may be feeling the way he was and how we could support him. The difference in Charlie after the first session was massive. After two sessions with James and lots of continued practise, Charlie is like a completely different dog. He does still get anxious, but we now have the confidence to know the best way of supporting him. Thank you so much James!
James came to my aid last year when I took on my very nervous cocker spaniel Freya. She had been used for breeding, abused and kept in a crate in very unsanitary conditions. This poor girl was terrified of everything and did not trust people at all. She was petrified of the outside world, she wouldn't toilet outside. She didn't even know what treats were! She had a severe case of chronic fear and would not leave her crate. After weeks of trying to gain her trust I pleaded for help and James answered my prayers. I've never met someone so kind and generous. This was very much a life or death situation as Freya had no quality of life living in fear of everything and of everyone. From day one James put me at ease and I couldn't believe how quickly Freya reacted to him. He was so patient and gentle with her. It's taken a lot of time and patience but we are now a year on and I can't believe the change in her. She's a brand new dog and is enjoying her life. She's much more confident and is learning to trust people. I'll be forever grateful to James for all he did.
We recently had a session with James and Steve and we can’t speak highly enough of them. Our boy Otis, a 3yr old lab x golden retriever with a huge amount of energy, wasn’t easy to walk on the lead due to strong pulling and wanting to say hello to everyone. James and Steve didn’t just teach us techniques to manage this, but also spent time helping us understand Otis and his behaviours. We’ve now walked Otis in busy towns, stopped at cafes for lunch, walked on the beach and in the woods with friend’s dogs, and he has done fantastically. Before taking him to these places would have been hard work, but now our walks are an absolute pleasure. We really feel that what James and Steve have done for us is priceless! We honestly didn’t think we’d ever achieve this. We’re looking forward to many walks and trips away this year. Thank you!
A lifeline. We can’t thank James (&Ste!) enough for their help with our extremely nervous Swiss Shepherd Aspen, from being scared and freaking at a cardboard box, to the car, to a new person and everything in between, the sheer relief of knowing we have someone we can trust 100% and see Aspen really come into her own in just a few hours was everything we could have hoped for and more. Not only that, but as her owners we know exactly how to guide her now and the confidence it’s instilled in us is priceless. We can’t wait to continue our journey with James and the pack, thank you James from all of us. Truly been a lifeline.
Our journey started with our Border Collie that was terrified of low bass loud noises, ranging from a car boots slamming, to crow scarers and obliviously fireworks also and dustbin lids, after having 3 x one to one training sessions with James at TheDogsWay, the change in or dog is immense. Certainly not cured but massively changed in respect of his ability to cope when he is challenged. The tools that James has provided us with and generally the way that we now see thing from our dog point of view. I would definitely recommend booking in, if your furry friends are suffering with any issues. Thank you James your advice and tools that you provided have made a huge difference in our day to day lives.
Visited James once with my dog Ruby who refused to go on walks, he spent a couple of hours with us walking her on a figure of eight lead. We went home and bought one and now we walk multiple times a day without her refusing to go, she’s happy, stopped pulling, has a wiggle in her walk and her tail never stops wagging. I can’t praise and thank him enough but not just for getting Ruby enjoying walks but for all the other advice he gives if you message him and ask. Many thanks James, I would recommend you to anyone who was going through the same problems. Mel, Rick,Salina and Ruby (woof)
Shadow. Shadow is a 4 year old rescue collie /lab cross. Right from the off I sensed something wasn’t right, and anxious as a new dog parent called in reinforcements to prevent developing challenging behaviour, aware that I was not going to give up on her. (As she had been rejected before by 2 families). She deserved so much more and in recruiting James, Shadow and I have quickly moved beyond those initial wobbles and anxieties (mostly mine). I was guilty of projecting my anxieties around her being a rescue onto her, and fundamentally misreading the situation and thus mishandling the solution, creating deeper issues and problems. James’s professional, intuitive, pragmatic and clear guidance allowed me to fully appreciate, “see” and “hear” Shadow and in doing so allowed a quicker, more solid, less emotional and trusting relationship to blossom. His non- nonsense and gentle delivery supported and enhanced a purer and more joyful cultivation of my relationship with Shadow. He is dog-centric while being mindful of the “noise” that we as humans can bring and is clear in ensuring that the dog is not subjected to the smorgasbord of our daily thoughts and experiences, but rather forges and cultivates a “living in the now” experience with the dog. I have experienced this, and with his guidance Shadow and I are learning to trust, listen and are learning to enjoy wonderful experiences. I am now developing a relationship with Shadow, which my whole life I has looked for and hoped to have with a dog. This is in no small part to James. He responded quickly, thoroughly and thoughtfully and I would highly and fully recommended his natural ability and skill to anyone having issues with their dog. There are very few genuine people that you meet such as James and should your dog (and you), need any support, you would be well placed to receive excellent and authentic support were you to ask for his guidance.
No dog will test you more than a dog which is paralysed by fear.
When a dog is fearful, food and treats become irrelevant. When a dog is fearful, all the tricks they’ve learned might as well be forgotten. When a dog is fearful, love and affection just makes them panic, and that old ‘be the boss’ voice just makes everyone feel worse.
You’ve tried the village hall trainers - they just threw food at your dog, and when your dog wouldn’t take it, told you to just stay away from anything that makes your dog scared. You’ve been to the obedience school, who after 30 minutes with a heavy hand told you it was bad breeding, and your dog was beyond help. You’ve been to the vets, and all they offered was a sedative. You’ve been online, where everyone has an opinion but no one seems to have the answers. And all the time you’re wondering if you did something wrong that stopped you having a happy, confident dog like everyone else.
You and your dogs nightmare is our Normal.
Many of our clients feel completely alone in their struggles - particularly when working with fearful dogs. But the issues that feel completely unique to you are the sort of thing that we see and help with every single day. As specialists in working with fearful and anxious dogs - nightmare scenarios are a natural part of the day for us. So don’t worry, we’ve got your back. These are the sorts of dogs we work with every single day - the problems we solve every day:
Scared of other Dogs
Scared of loud noises
Puppy Mill Dogs and Abuse Cases
Scared of Strangers
Fear of passing traffic
Anxiety around Children
Scared of Fireworks & loud bangs
Refusing to walk
Fear of getting in the Car
Dog Psychology sits at the Core of everything we do. Which is why we have built a reputation in our region for being able to do more to help fearful dogs when no one else can.
We know how common it is to move from trainer to trainer looking for help, and getting more of the same information you’ve heard before. We’ve built a reputation for providing a much deeper level of diagnosis, and a wealth of knowledge specific to working with Fearful and Anxious Dogs.
We can help.
As a specialist in working with fearful and anxious dogs, there is no greater reward than guiding a dog through their fear.
Our job is not to judge, blame, or fixate on ‘how’ dogs become fearful - because the truth is, its rarely anyones fault, and it does absolutely no favours to focus on the past. Our job is to assess and evaluate, to help you understand, to build a practical plan and teach you and your dog how to move past those fears - one step at a time. That means helping you to really get to grips at a behavioural level with exactly what the issue is. So that we can focus on doing the work that needs to be done to make it better.
Stop Managing. Start Solving.
The Complete Support Programme is our best value programme for getting your relationship with your dog back on track and their behaviour under control.
3 Intensive Sessions. Unlimited Phone and WhatsApp Support. Access to our online content library. and 33% off any extra sessions you need.
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Single Behaviour Intensive | Up to 2 Hours | £149.00
Visit our secure paddocks to get a clear diagnosis of your dogs core issues, and work through essential skills with us practically, so you can leave confident about exactly whats going wrong and how to fix it.
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Single Real World Intensive | Up to 2 Hours | £219.00
Programme Participants also have the opportunity to book training in pre-selected real world environments for their second or third session, to practice training in public, with real people, dogs, and other environmental challenges.
Live Nationally? Speak to us about arranging your sessions intensively over the course of a week.
THE JOURNAL | Fear Season Articles
Scout is our working cocker spaniel, aged 9. He has struggled with a serious phobia of noise (lots of different kinds) since birth. The best offer from very well meaning vets to date has been to offer us Xanax to null his senses. After his first visit to James we noticed a marked improvement in him, he’s happier, more confident and relaxed and we have the right learning and new skills to properly support him. We were given some very easy to implement advice and whilst it does require patience and commitment Scout is a different dog. Walks are now a joy, fun for us all for the first time. The aim is to enable Scout to manage his fears independently. It’s not a quick fix but progress was apparent immediately. We’ve just had our second visit, wonderful to receive confirmation from James that he can see good progress in Scout too. It’s a journey for sure but this is a real game changer for us all. We highly recommend and only wish we’d found the Dogs Way earlier. Scout is a trooper and deserves the very best. So glad we’ve found that now in James.
Brilliant!!! I can recommend James and The Dogs Way without hesitation. He is very knowable about the dogs psychology and body language. He explains everything in a way that is easy to understand and relatable and he is easy to talk to. He is helping me with a working dog that has a fear phobia relating to noise, and although we are not there yet we are much improved. If you think a lot about your dog it is well worth the investment to help them have a better life. 😊🐶
Spoke to James on the phone for a consultation and he gave me techniques to use for a young dog too scared to leave the driveway and go for a walk. He was kind, knowledgeable and understood immediately what may be causing this. His techniques worked and his advice has made a huge difference. Would thoroughly recommend!
I am so glad we found James. We rehomed our springer spaniel and was about at our wits end. She was so fearful of the world but also incredibly hyper and defensive at the same time. the more traditional training technics were too stressful for her, even asking her to sit to calm her stressed her out. James had an incredible insight into dog behaviour and the difference in our dog having met with James is enormous. He not only provided training in the sessions but was a real support in between not just with advice but reassurance to us too. We still have ways to go but now we can enjoy take her for walks and she is able to be a functioning part of the family. And the most wonderful thing is that we see that she is now enjoying life. Thank you James ☺️
James helped us out last year with our cockapoo Charlie. He was extremely anxious around traffic and cars. James immediately understood Charlie and was so knowledgeable around why Charlie may be feeling the way he was and how we could support him. The difference in Charlie after the first session was massive. After two sessions with James and lots of continued practise, Charlie is like a completely different dog. He does still get anxious, but we now have the confidence to know the best way of supporting him. Thank you so much James!
James came to my aid last year when I took on my very nervous cocker spaniel Freya. She had been used for breeding, abused and kept in a crate in very unsanitary conditions. This poor girl was terrified of everything and did not trust people at all. She was petrified of the outside world, she wouldn't toilet outside. She didn't even know what treats were! She had a severe case of chronic fear and would not leave her crate. After weeks of trying to gain her trust I pleaded for help and James answered my prayers. I've never met someone so kind and generous. This was very much a life or death situation as Freya had no quality of life living in fear of everything and of everyone. From day one James put me at ease and I couldn't believe how quickly Freya reacted to him. He was so patient and gentle with her. It's taken a lot of time and patience but we are now a year on and I can't believe the change in her. She's a brand new dog and is enjoying her life. She's much more confident and is learning to trust people. I'll be forever grateful to James for all he did.
A lifeline. We can’t thank James (&Ste!) enough for their help with our extremely nervous Swiss Shepherd Aspen, from being scared and freaking at a cardboard box, to the car, to a new person and everything in between, the sheer relief of knowing we have someone we can trust 100% and see Aspen really come into her own in just a few hours was everything we could have hoped for and more. Not only that, but as her owners we know exactly how to guide her now and the confidence it’s instilled in us is priceless. We can’t wait to continue our journey with James and the pack, thank you James from all of us. Truly been a lifeline.
Our journey started with our Border Collie that was terrified of low bass loud noises, ranging from a car boots slamming, to crow scarers and obliviously fireworks also and dustbin lids, after having 3 x one to one training sessions with James at TheDogsWay, the change in or dog is immense. Certainly not cured but massively changed in respect of his ability to cope when he is challenged. The tools that James has provided us with and generally the way that we now see thing from our dog point of view. I would definitely recommend booking in, if your furry friends are suffering with any issues. Thank you James your advice and tools that you provided have made a huge difference in our day to day lives.
Shadow. Shadow is a 4 year old rescue collie /lab cross. Right from the off I sensed something wasn’t right, and anxious as a new dog parent called in reinforcements to prevent developing challenging behaviour, aware that I was not going to give up on her. (As she had been rejected before by 2 families). She deserved so much more and in recruiting James, Shadow and I have quickly moved beyond those initial wobbles and anxieties (mostly mine). I was guilty of projecting my anxieties around her being a rescue onto her, and fundamentally misreading the situation and thus mishandling the solution, creating deeper issues and problems. James’s professional, intuitive, pragmatic and clear guidance allowed me to fully appreciate, “see” and “hear” Shadow and in doing so allowed a quicker, more solid, less emotional and trusting relationship to blossom. His non- nonsense and gentle delivery supported and enhanced a purer and more joyful cultivation of my relationship with Shadow. He is dog-centric while being mindful of the “noise” that we as humans can bring and is clear in ensuring that the dog is not subjected to the smorgasbord of our daily thoughts and experiences, but rather forges and cultivates a “living in the now” experience with the dog. I have experienced this, and with his guidance Shadow and I are learning to trust, listen and are learning to enjoy wonderful experiences. I am now developing a relationship with Shadow, which my whole life I has looked for and hoped to have with a dog. This is in no small part to James. He responded quickly, thoroughly and thoughtfully and I would highly and fully recommended his natural ability and skill to anyone having issues with their dog. There are very few genuine people that you meet such as James and should your dog (and you), need any support, you would be well placed to receive excellent and authentic support were you to ask for his guidance.