Read comments from some of the families we have helped.
We could not have made this change without your help
It’s been a little while since you visited to help us with our chocolate lab, Bodhi and his fear of the vet. Just wanted to give you an update. We have been challenging him regularly at home with fake procedures and have even been clipping his nails which he hated at first but learned to accept very quickly. We also took him to the new vets and socialised him there a few times. Last week we finally took him to get his vaccinations and he sat there and let them do it perfectly calmly and with no more fuss than any other dog. We will keep up with the training but just wanted to say thank you. We could not have made this change without your help. It is a huge relief for us. Thank you!
Adam and Bodhi
Helen’s training sessions are underpinned by academic research
We attended Helen’s puppy classes with our miniature schnauzer, Ralf, and found them fascinating and fun, and very useful too. One of the most important aspects for us was the confidence that Helen gave us to encourage Ralf to socialise and to learn the meaning of the body language displayed by the puppies. Helen’s training sessions are underpinned by academic research, so she is aware of the most up to date theories about animal behaviour; this combined with intuition and experience make for a winning combination.
Louise, Paul and Elise with Ralf
A wonderful way for our puppy to meet others.
“Helen’s puppy socialisation classes are invaluable. A wonderful way for our puppy to meet others. Helen is a fount of knowledge with regards to dog behaviour and training. I highly recommend her classes.”
Tess and Tilly
Helen’s puppy and older dog classes are fun and informative
“Helen’s puppy and older dog classes are fun and informative. My spirited GSD puppy loves attending and I’m thrilled with her progress. She’s turning into a polite and obedient dog both at home and out in the wider world.”
Julie and Callie
I couldn’t recommend Helen Jarratt more highly as she truly understands dogs
“I have a very mischievous Jack Russell puppy called Minnie and “did the right thing” and went to puppy classes!!! Well after many weeks and being taught to pin her to the floor to make her stay down I started to think there must be a better way!! All I succeeded in doing was making her aggressive. Then I heard about Helen!!!!!
After an amazing one to one with her I started to truly understand my puppy!! She is transformed!! I then had a problem with a friend’s dog who used to come and visit and would snap at Minnie!! (The dogs had to be kept in separate rooms to avoid fights) Within 48 hours here is the picture of them together!! They’ve gone on to play and chase each other round the garden. I am looking forward to the next step on our journey by joining the follow on puppy classes!! It is so nice to get your dog to behave the right way because they know they get rewarded for good behaviour rather than being scared of you for getting it wrong!!!!! I couldn’t recommend Helen Jarratt more highly as she truly understands dogs!!! (Apparently the same technique works on children and husbands too!!!!!!)”
Jo and Minnie
We’re already seeing an immediate improvement
“I just wanted to say a huge thanks for today. You’ve helped us with practical tips and we’re already seeing an immediate improvement. We’ve still got lots of work to put in but we are feeling super confident.”
Zoe and Lollie
Simple but extremely valuable advice
“This is Chess landing on Keiller’s head this evening. They have had a wonderful game and both survived in one piece!
Thank you so much for your help today, you gave us simple but extremely valuable advice which I can see is going to help immeasurably.
We both really appreciated the time you gave us.”
Lesley and David with Keiller and Chess
Helen is changing all of us for the best
“I didn’t say a thing and look at my dogs! This was my first session with Helen and she has turned around the way I interact with my dogs… Rudy, a needy 5 year old Labrador and Stanley, my 8 month old “full of beans” Jack Russell.
What you can’t see from this photo is that there are other dogs near me…look at that concentration from my boys. Helen is changing all of us for the best. I have asked her if she will live with us as she is so great but sadly she turned us down; it seems she has her own brood to look after.
I am incredibly optimistic that I will have 2 well behaved and happy dogs because of Helen. I cannot recommend her highly enough. She makes sense of my owner and doggy chaos. Thank you. Really enjoying the boys and their potential now.”
Becky and Rudy and Stanley
(Becky was unable to get her dogs to lie down previously. Using “training without training” techniques within minutes had brilliant lie downs)
I now feel even closer to my beloved dog
“Zola (9 month old Parsons Russell Terrier) and I had an amazing hour (plus!) with Helen this morning, which far exceeded my expectation: I didn’t use a treat, a whistle or even call Zola’s name! Helen taught me what to do and (as importantly) what not to do, in order to get Zola to put the effort into being attentive, with minimal effort on my part. Helen explained her approach, making it both easy to understand and implement, and I could literally see the results in minutes, which was fascinating as well as rewarding. Helen “speaks dog”, she was able to translate what Zola was thinking, giving me invaluable insight as well as joyful outcomes. I now feel even closer to my beloved dog. Thank you Helen.”
Millie and Zola
One of the most important and precious things you have given to us is permission to love and enjoy Fred
“Eight months ago we paid for the services of a dog ‘Listener’, and spent the next four months in a frenzy of behaviour modification routines that made Fred worse and caused chaos. We eventually, but not soon enough, stopped following the poor and damaging advice and felt exhausted and complete failures. We lost our confidence with Fred and still had all the problems we had before. We knew Fred was a sweetie pie, we knew he was a good dog but we could not leave him in the house loose, he broke out of numerous crates and was clearly highly anxious and distraught when left. I stopped leaving the house for fear of what I would return home to. It went beyond the problem of destruction, it was always more about how distressed Fred was to cause damage to himself as well as to ‘things’.
An unhappy incident of Fred becoming ill in September led us to the emergency vet on duty. Luckily, and after dedicated care, Fred pulled through. The vet saw that the hyper anxiety and distress Fred felt whilst ill was extreme, and we discussed how this could be addressed.
We were so relieved that at last we had a professional who took the issues we faced daily seriously, and through her knowledge of you, the vet suggested that you may be able to assist.
Well, assist you have!
Here we are two consults in, and we have Fred at 14 months old more relaxed in his own skin, safely in a bulletproof crate which you sourced, happily not taking any tranquilizers and although still hyper alert he loves his training and chances to shine. The howling has stopped and now he just intermittently whines a bit of protest in a halfhearted fashion.
One of the most important and precious things you have given to us is permission to love and enjoy Fred. There are no half-baked routines and counterproductive instructions from you, just careful and considered observations and clear concise guidance to us which has fantastic results. It is also extraordinary how you ask for the small detail of a dog’s ongoing behaviour, and how these seemingly insignificant details (to us) are translated into meaningful instructions by you.
Please accept our thanks and gratitude. Although we are not yet finished with our work together, the progress already achieved has been so helpful and we look forward to the future working with you.”
Faith and Freddie
One of the most fun things we have learned is to play games with our puppy
“Helen Jarratt is a friendly and inspiring Dog Behaviourist. I got my darling Labrador retriever puppy, Cinder in March 2012. He attended Helen’s Puppy classes in our local village hall and we have never looked back.
One of the most important things Helen impressed upon me was the need to thoroughly socialize your dog. We made sure we met lots of other dogs very early on. We worked on basic commands like Sit, Come, Heel, Leave, Fetch and Down. Helen provided very good notes to back up her classes and my children and I have looked at them repeatedly.
One of the most fun things we have learned is to play games with our puppy. He loves them and they are a wonderful dimension to his life and ours. Having a happy puppy who is well on the way to being well trained makes you feel confident about going almost anywhere with your dog and this is important to me with a busy family.
The ‘Off Lead Socializing’ has been fantastic and Cinder had learned to be respectful and submissive to older dogs and yet to have lots of fun and play time with others. I recommend Helen and her methods unreservedly.”
Julia and Cinder
I no longer feel that we need to worry about his anxiety issues
“Thank you so much for all of your help with Alfie dog. We cannot tell you how pleased we were to make it through week one of the course, getting to the end was frankly beyond our dreams. I no longer feel that we need to worry about his anxiety issues, in fact I know that is the one thing that we must not do. I can’t say that we are enjoying our trips to Hook when we live in the middle of the fields of our village, but if it helps Alfie then it is all worthwhile. Hopefully it won’t be for too long!
It was very kind and understanding of you to take him on and both he and we are happier as a result of your efforts.
Alfie has sent you two photos – one of him asleep after his class and the other one is just typical of his breed. He also sends a bit wet kiss with liver treat breath mmmm… Thank you.”
Philip and Alfie
Helen was able address and resolve the issue within 10 minutes
“Having asked advice on the problem of walking my 13 week old puppy on the road. Helen was able address and resolve the issue within 10 minutes and my puppy has continued to improve and walks are now a pleasure for both of us.”
Caroline and Darcy
Really happy to have the tools to get the behaviour I want
“Morning! Just to let you know I’ve been out with the dogs already. Woke at 5.30am and couldn’t wait to get started! (And it was dry?!) Really good session with lots of change of direction, just as well I know the area or would have lost myself! Dogs had plenty of exercise physically and mental and I feel empowered. Really happy to have the tools to get the behaviour I want. Ozzie good last night about not getting lap time, thank you thank you thank you!”
Harriet and Saber and Ozzie
