In Jackie's own words...

I found Helena on Instagram and followed her page for advice as I was struggling with my recently adopted rescue dog, a small mixed breed who was 2. Helena was running a completely free 5-day dog walk reset, so I signed up.  

Teddy was struggling with barking, lunging and twisting on the lead and didn’t seem to know how to manage his emotions when approaching other dogs, he was under socialised and in his 2 years of living aboard & did not have much training at all. He could not approach/pass dogs without barking and sometimes got in the other dogs faces. He is not aggressive but simply didn’t know how to react.

 I felt isolated, frustrated and didn’t see a way to help Teddy – after having lots of different trainers and some bad advice, I couldn’t seem to help him.

Working with Helena, I found that I needed to actually listen, watch and understand Teddy, find out what his treat preference was and what would calm his arousal levels during/after an episode. I learnt to watch his body language and learnt to stay calm.  Also, one piece of information was invaluable – you don’t need to go for walks every day – it’s okay to not walk and give you and your dog some down time to recover from triggering walks. Have fun at home and recovery time is so important for the dog. Also, the importance of complete rest & sleep – Teddy wouldn’t completely rest and would wake every time I moved or he heard a noise – this was a direct result of his heightened emotions.

Utilising secure fields to give your dog and you a great chance to have fun with no triggers – this was so helpful as it was a great chance for a stress free and fun walk and play.

I think some of the biggest hurdles were seeing no change immediately and learning to stay calm and understand my dog has big emotions and to learn how best to help him. Patience, understanding, calm and routine have really helped both of us.

Helena’s mentorship continued after completing the 5 day reset.  Listening to other people struggling and going through similar issues really made me feel supported and not alone, it really made me feel part of a community and the support is so helpful, even just to vent!

I have had Teddy 9 months, dealing with a reactive/frustrated dog is not a quick fix, it takes dedication, empathy and love and that is what Helena has in bucket loads.  I had some personal issues along the way and Teddy suffered a horrendous attack, which set us back but with Helena’s support – today Teddy is on his first pack walk with a dog walker – a momentous day for both of us!  We still have issue that we need to work on but I feel like a different person after working with Helena & I have seen Teddy change into a calmer, more focused dog who will now disengage and his recovery time if he does still bark at other dogs is almost instant.

I learnt that Teddy is a gift and we were made for each other, once I let go of the frustration, upset and isolation and embraced him for all that he is and learnt to understand him, I broke through a wall and am so much calmer on walks, I don’t worry what anyone else thinks or the eye rolls, my job is to advocate for Teddy and have learnt so much about what he is telling me through his body language and his reactions and how to help him.

If you have tried many trainers along the way ( as I had) I can highly recommend Helena, a behaviourist who is so knowledgeable and empathic, she is so calm, approachable and has so much advice, easily incorporated into daily life, advice that other trainers hadn’t given. I was always of the opinion that I had to have face to face coaching but the online mentorship is amazing – sometimes working face to face with a trainer Teddy would behave as it wasn’t me doing the training – working with Helena online she really gets to know you and your dog, she really goes in depth into your own personal circumstances and it is not one size fits all – the mentorship and regular online meetings (once a week) bring everyone together to discuss the week and go through any individual issues – having a community is so comforting and seriously educational.

You really won’t regret working with Helena, Teddy and I have progressed so much from the mentorship, and the proof is in the video I was just sent of him on his dog walk enjoying the company of other dogs – what more proof does anyone need – this was an impossible dream 8 months ago.