This question comes up frequently – you know you want the support of a canine professional, but how do you know which service you need? A behaviour package seems extensive … and expensive. Do you really need all that it entails – visiting the vet, the report, ongoing sessions – would a series of dog training sessions be a better option for you?
The answer lies in the underlying nature of the problem you’re trying to solve.
What Does a Dog Trainer Do?
Let’s take pulling on the lead as an example –your walks are becoming a literal pain in the neck! Do you need a dog trainer to help you teach your dog to walk nicely on the lead? Maybe. It depends why your dog is doing it.
Have you had the opportunity, consistency, or perseverance to teach your dog how you’d like them to walk with you? Maybe you went to puppy classes, got the hang of it, but then life got in the way, different habits crept in – you just wanted to get the walk done, started leaving the treat bag behind and letting them start to pull on the lead … and now you’ve tried a selection of harnesses, head collars, and other kit.
If this is you, then yes, a dog trainer can help you train (or re-train) your dog. They’ll help you with handling techniques, how (and when and where) to reward your dog, how to build the behaviour up in varying levels of duration and difficult, and how to maintain the skill once learnt.
What Does a Dog Behaviourist Do?
Now let’s consider another angle. Your dog walks on the lead pretty well, most of the time. They’ve learnt loose-lead walking, you know they know it! But they simply can’t do it when you come across other dogs. Your dog can’t listen to you, treats don’t distract them, nothing works. Your dog pulls on the lead towards other dogs, barking and lunging. As an owner, this isn’t just physically draining, it is frustrating and embarrassing.
But what’s going on with your dog here? They are having an emotional response. It could be frustration – your dog can’t handle not being able to get to what/where it wants so it ‘acts out’. Or it could be fear – coming across as a fierce and bold dog may be your dog’s pre-emptive strike – an attempt at preventing that dog causing it harm. Dig a little deeper into your dog’s life, are you aware of a reason for the emotional response – a nasty experience once, perhaps. Or you see similar reactions in different scenarios, barking when shut behind a barrier, for example.
A behaviourist can help identify the underlying emotion and prepare a programme that will work towards regulating that emotion. They will provide management strategies to help you get started safely, collaborate with your vet if pain relief of anti-anxiety medication will be helpful (my next blog will be on why vet referrals are essential), and specific behavioural modification plans (e.g., bespoke desensitisation and counter-conditioning programme), and training will likely be included too.
Summary
Training is learning actions, behaviour is managing emotional reactions
| Dog Trainer | Behaviourist | |
| Focus | Teaches dogs and their owners how to perform specific actions or follow cues (commands). | Addresses emotional or psychological issues in dogs. |
| Typical issues | Sit, stay, recall, loose-lead walking House training Basic manners and obedience | Separation anxiety Fear and phobias Compulsive behaviours Reactivity Aggression |
| Methods | Uses repetition, reinforcement (reward/treats), shape desired behaviours, and pair with cues. | Uses behaviour modification, often rooted in psychology, ethology and neuroscience. |
| Who they help | Puppies or dogs without behavioural issues. | Dogs with behaviour challenges that go beyond obedience. |
| Qualifications | May be certified by professional bodies (e.g., APDT), but no legally required standard. | A Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CAB) with formal education, e.g., Denise has an MSc in Clinical Animal Behaviour, a veterinary behaviourist, or member of APDT, CCAB or other regulated membership. |
If you’re still not sure which service you need, get in touch with Denise at denise@denisegraham.co.uk
See you next time in: “Do You Really Need a Vet Referral for a Dog Behaviourist? Here’s Why It Matters?”