Dogs, once wild animals, have through the process of evolution become man’s best friend; a loyal companion and the world’s most popular pet.
Whilst dogs descended from a common ancestor of the wolf, the similarities between them now are few and far between. Artificial selection produced the modern domestic dogs of today and the breeding boom of the 19th century has played a huge part in the variety of breeds that currently exist (over 340 recognised breeds). With the new deliberately bred crossbreeds like the Cockapoo’s and Labradoodle’s, these variations are sure to continue, especially as our focus has moved from creating the perfect working dog to those we now wish to have as family companions.
With so many breeds and variations, it is important to recognise each dog as an individual and that’s just what we do at Happy Buddies! We know that dogs, much like us have feelings and emotions. They have senses and learning preferences. They can be happy, sad, stressed, frustrated. Much like us, the environment they are born into, their upbringing and factors that surround them in life will dictate their personalities, feelings, thresholds, and abilities to learn.
Dogs are social creatures, they love company and it is important that their human interaction whilst at Happy Buddies is as much a part of their time as it is with the other dogs around them.
At Happy Buddies, all animals in our care, whether that be during training sessions or on walks are looked after to the highest standards. Their individual personalities are catered for and their physical and emotional wellbeing is of the utmost importance to us. We do not believe in the ‘dominance theory’ nor do we assume an ‘alpha role’ with any dog – both these methods have now been proven as flawed, outdated and debunked! We want the dogs and other animals in our care to trust us, want to spend time with us and enjoy themselves while they are with us. We achieve all this through getting to know them, learning about them and watching their body language. We train, play and interact with them using only positive reinforcement and reward based methods, which is proven to have excellent results on both a puppy and dog’s behaviour and wellbeing. At Happy Buddies there is NO pain, NO force and NO fear just FUN, HAPPINESS and KINDNESS!
So whether Happy Buddies can help you with your training or dog walking you can be sure that your furry companion will be looked after and will want to come back for more!