I'm in the hotel in Poland right now, getting ready for the training camp called Pełnia Potencjału which translates to Full Potential. Actually this is a series of events under that name that I was running here for over a year now. Funny enough, I didn't come up with that name. Years ago, when a friend first invited me to teach in Poland, we were trying to come up with a name for the workshop. I was like maybe play, maybe reactivity... He suggested Pełnia Potencjału (Full Potential) My first reaction? "Nobody will come! What does that even mean?" 😂 But the more I thought about it, the more I realised how perfectly that name describes my approach to dog training. Because building motivation, confidence, relationship, impulse control and emotional regulation is essential to unlock our dogs' full potential. Regardles if we train for everyday life or competition ring. Let me tell you a little story. Meet Fatty, my first Rottweiler. On our first day at the training club, I was told: "Get rid of that dog." She wasn't considered suitable for sport. In fact, they didn't think she would even make a particularly good companion dog. She had very little motivation or drive, was easily distracted, extremely sensitive to environmental pressure, and reactive towards dogs and people. Not exactly the promising competition prospect I was hoping for! I spent months going from seminar to seminar, looking for that one magic training tip that would finally make everything work. But all I was getting were technical solutions. How to teach heelwork. How to teach the sendaway. How to improve this or that exercise. And I kept asking myself: "But how the hell do I teach any of this if my dog doesn't even want to work with me?" That's when I completely changed my approach. Instead of focusing on exercises, I started focusing on the dog. I worked on her motivation through food, toys and play. As her motivation grew, so did her focus and engagement. I worked on her confidence separately from any obedience exercises. She became less sensitive to pressure and the environment, and it also helped enormously with her reactivity.

Hey guys I'm booking a venue for new training date - 18th of October. Reading area near M4. Anyone interested let me know! Priority and discounts for Premium, ViP and leaderboard. Thanks

And I mean that in a good way 😂 I’ve been thinking a lot about what I actually want this community to become. I don’t want it to be another group where people join, download a course, disappear and never speak again. I want to build a place where we actually train, learn, experiment and get better together. So… a few big changes are coming 👇 1. NEW MEMBERSHIP — $25/MONTH The main membership is dropping from $46 to $25/month. And this is probably as low as it will ever be. If you ever considered subscribing that probably the best moment. I’m also going to close free access for now. I want to focus on building a smaller but much more active learning community around people who actually want to use what is inside. If you’re already a Premium member paying $46 and you want to move to the lower tier, Skool will not change your subscription automatically. I already dm’d you with options! So check your dms! 2. VIP — $46/MONTH (from $86) For people who want more direct access to me. Again that’s not going to be cheaper. This will include additional content, feedback and a 1-to-1 call with me. If you’re already on this level, just message me whenever you want to schedule your call. 3. CHALLENGES ARE COMING Some of you have done my challenges before. Historically, they were sold separately for around $100. Going forward, I want to run part of challenges inside the membership. Actual training. Homework. Progress. Something that gives you a reason to open Skool and train your dog rather than just collect another video course 😂 4. MONTHLY LIVE WEBINARS I’m planning roughly one live webinar every month, with the topic chosen by you. Play. Reactivity. Confidence. Heelwork. Motivation. Behaviour. Whatever you guys actually want me to cover. 5. REACTIVITY MENTORSHIP FOR DOG TRAINERS This one is still being built, but I’ll plant the seed now. I already have two trainers interested and I’m looking for another one or two people for the first version of my Reactivity Mentorship.

So in previous post I broke down different kinds of winning/fighting behaviours - Pull - Head shake - Drop weight - Push I also created a poll asking you to vote on how your dog is winning the game. Head shake is winning — no pun intended. 😄 I have to admit, head shaking is probably my favourite way of fighting for the toy. Maybe I even unconsciously encourage dogs to use it. Why? Because, unlike some of the other winning strategies, a strong head shake usually gives me a very clear picture of the dog’s emotional state. The dog looks confident, feels good in the game, and is actively fighting to win the toy. Hard to get it wrong. But what about the other strategies? This is where it gets interesting, because the same behaviour can come from very different emotions. Let’s start with pulling. A dog may pull simply because this is their natural fighting style — something strongly influenced by genetics. But pulling does not always mean confidence. Some dogs pull because they are unsure or sensitive to pressure of handler/decoy. They do not want to give up the toy, but they also do not feel completely comfortable in the interaction. They are almost trying to take their “piece of meat” and create distance. Sometimes you can clearly see that the dog is pulling from insecurity rather than confidence. Look at the whole picture: body language, eyes and, especially, the grip. If the dog is pulling away while maintaining a shallow grip on the toy or sleeve, it can suggest that they do not feel comfortable close to the handler or decoy. With these dogs, the goal is to develop confident pulling rather than simply rewarding the pulling itself. That is where the Play with Purpose framework comes in. Then we have dropping weight. Dropping weight is a more passive way of fighting. Some dogs use it with huge confidence. They simply plant themselves, stop the handler/helper and make it very difficult to move them. But other dogs drop their weight because they are not yet confident enough to fight for the object in a more active way.

Im aware that Freddie does much better in the garden & at classes than out on walks/new areas. This area in videos we rarely go but is good for reactivity training - joggers, cyclists, pushchairs etc. @Alex Lato should I change my heeling criteria as in go back a step when in a different environment? ( not in garden) should I only be doing heeling in garden first until really reliable or at a certain step & then take outside? Would you keep training different things to training areas & keep off lead walks separate?