Behave!
5 basic truths about behaviour and behaviour change. How to change behaviours in dogs (and humans)?
People often think that animal trainers can do magic! How else can they change animal's behaviour in a second? Well, actually we aren't magicians. However, good trainers sometimes can change some behaviours in a blink of an eye and many other behaviours in the long run. (Just the way you can interact with one person very lovingly and in the next second you can scold someone fiercely. And as you work for the trust to grow in your important relationship for years and years.)
But how animal trainers do that? How they know, when the dog is happy? How they know, when he's tired? etc. Good dog trainers know the behavioural science and how to apply it.
In the age of knowledge we have a hard time to sieve from the vast oceans of information the relevant pieces. I am here to help you to get started.
I have collected in this course 5 most important things you should remind yourself daily to nudge your dog's behaviour towards the right direction. I also give you some prompts, that you should definitely complete, if you would like to evoke change in your own attitudes and behaviour (= learning).
Your Instructor
I've loved dogs for as long as I can remember. My first dog was labrador Mürgel, who came to me when I was finishing my studies at the University of Tartu (BA in Theology and MA in Religious Education). She started the most engaging learning epoch of my entire life that continues to this day! Today my family shares our home with another labrador, sweet and sensitive Nina.
Mürgel started my animal-training journey. Nina has taught me humility, patience and nuances for applying learning theory in practice.
My 4000 clients with their dogs have pushed me to seek out solutions, that would help families with their dogs in their daily lives. I consider basic education about dogs and learning theory crucial for each dog person, who wants to be a good companion for a dog.
Occasionally I offer individual coaching face to face or online. Each coaching series are different since the wishes, knowledge and skills of the dog person and the dogs' needs and skills are different.
I have learned from the best teachers in the world.
I'm proud to be Trainer Accredited by Kay Laurence (UK). This is the result of 3 years full of hard hands-on- work about dogs, skills, behaviour, training strategies, ethics etc.
From Ken Ramirez (USA), I've learned the importance of trust between the animal (or learner in general) and teacher.Theresa McKeon has been my mentor in TAGteach. TAGteach uses effective practices from animal training and uses them for teaching humans practical skills. I'm a Level 2 TAGteacher (USA).
The most influential Teacher of Life has been for me dr. Pille Valk (Estonia). She was a pioneer in building up the framework and teacher training for non-confessional Religious Education in Post-Soviet Estonia. She had very high expectations for teachers in creating their content. She was always asking: "What do you answer when your student asks you: "Why should I care?!" How is your content important for the learner at this point of his/her life?"
I'm here to help you find the tools to build a trusting and joyful relationship with your dog. These tools include scientific principles about how animals learn, training skills and work with your mindset.
Looking forward to working with you!
Frequently Asked Questions
Let's get learning!