Grafham Water Canines Avis 

Nicky is very knowledgeable and happy to answer any questions you may have regarding your puppy. Her emailed links and videos are excellent and help you get a handle on what you are trying to achieve with the training.

I found the home study flashcards course enormously useful. Professionally produced with quality content, step-to-step advice that works. Nicki is a real expert and I love her approach. Highly recommended.

The Puppy 1 training class was perfect for our 16 week old madcap Sprollie and taught him good manners and behaviours that are an absolute joy to see. We have seen him move on from being an uncontrollable energy bomb to a delightful , sociable and friendly dog that is a pleasure to be with and to work with on his training. We will certainly sign him up for future courses to develop his training further, and he seems to enjoy it too.

Nicky has been absolutely essential to the training of our Puppy Atlas! She gives you so much information and guidance on how to have a well mannered little member of the family! It’s also lovely for all of the puppies to get used to new people and dogs each week in a friendly and supportive environment. In the five sessions we can’t believe how much our dog has retained and the foundation it has created for him to continue to learn. I would recommend this course to anyone who gets a new puppy in future.

Great course - wide variety of exercises followed up with very helpful written information and you tube clips. Knowledgeable trainer aware of needs of differing breeds of dogs. Supportive atmosphere in class.

My Labrador puppy has now gone through puppy 1 and 2 courses with Nicki. Happy to say she has improved massively and Nicki has been great in the sessions, flexible and helpful with all questions. Would highly recommend!

Engaging classes and very thorough "homework" with video instructions. Nicki is helpful with answering general questions about puppy training and full of helpful suggestions for our particular dogs. Toby has benefitted hugely from the courses (and so have we!)

Having a new puppy and all the challenges that brings, attending the puppy training really helped to reinforce positive behaviour in our puppy and increased his obedience no end

So pleased I found the adolescents to 2-3 year training course for myself and my standard dachshund - Otis. Nicki presented real structured lessons, which repeat, revisit and build on skills taught. The accompanying training with videos to complete at home have also been so useful. Both Otis and I have enjoyed and benefitted so much. He is a calmer, happier dog and we have bonded much more. Thank you.

If you are looking for a good start to puppy training then Nicki is a great trainer. She is very friendly and knowledgeable.
The outdoor location is a definate bonus...this is my 2nd puppy and its much less stressful as an owner and to puppy being outdoors.
I am looking forward to our next steps

Great training all round, highly recommended!

We've really enjoyed the Puppy 1 course with Nicki. Our black lab has learnt such a lot through Nicki's guidance and we are definitely going to continue onto the next course of classes. Our dog is learning to be a polite and adorable pet with good manners, which is just lovely.

Such a wonderful class for young pups. Especially being able to socialise with similar aged pups. Every week I always come away better informed and eager to try and put what I've learned into practice. Lilly has come on in leaps and bounds since the first week. Long may it continue. Looking forward to the next step in puppy 2.

Wonderfully structured sessions. With plenty of variety and practice space as well as guidance and encouragement. Nicki is so knowledgeable on all things canine related but so softly spoken you never feel apprehensive about approaching her. If you have a puppy you will not regret signing up for training sessions here.

We have just completed an amazing foundation course with Nicki, and the difference in our 14 month old puppy is incredible.

Nicki explains everything so that dog novices like us can think dog, and therefore understand and master the exercises. Be prepared to put in the work in between classes, there’s plenty of homework which Nicki sends on email with helpful videos. But it’s absolutely worth it to get the most out of the course. We will definitely be enrolling in the follow on course, and we thoroughly recommend Nicki to any one who wants a well trained pooch. Thank you Nicki!

fantastic thoughtful kind and effective training. just 5 classes made a huge positive difference to our relationship with our lovely rescue dog and his behaviour. Looking forward to more courses in the future!

Excellent Training Classes

Nikki clearly has plenty of experience and has lots of enthusiasm for the training classes. She also provides lots of tips and tricks aimed at each individual dog.

AND you get to play on the obstacle course too!

Thoroughly enjoyed the course as did my golden retriever, Stanley. Nicki made the experience fun and was very informative. She was patient, calm and always ready to answer questions from the group. The course developed well through the various stages of training with very good back up material via email. The setting was beautiful and we are now looking forward to group dog walks. Thank you.

Very well organised, friendly and fun for the puppies, small groups. The emailed reminders really helped.

We attended the puppy class with Nicki at Grafham Water Canines earlier this year.

We are first time dog owners and have never attended any kind of dog training in the past.

I think the puppy class has been fantastic and has taught us so much as first time dog owners.

There is such a vast difference between our puppy and a friend's - the two are only a couple of months apart in age, but the discipline our dog has gained through training along with the understanding he has of how to play nicely with other dogs far surpasses that of dog who has not attended any training.

We have also learned so much about how to read our dog from the training exercises, classes and socialisation provided. When visiting our friends with the puppy - their dog is relentless and will not leave ours alone, even when ours clearly has had enough. Whilst our dog was not reactive in terms of vocalising his frustration, we could tell from his body language that he was finished playing and wanted to be left alone and we were able to remove him from the situation before it escalated. He returned to my feet when called and sat nicely - even with the excitement of other people and dogs around him.

I think the classes have been great, and are so informative - we were given recommendations for the best equipment to buy for training with direct links to Amazon.

At the venue, there is an obstacle course for warm up/cool down and it is a great bit of fun. The area itself feels so safe and is away from distractions. The time given to practice each exercise is spot on - long enough for the dog to learn and practice, but not so long that the dog gets bored.
Being able to see Nicki and Jim perform the exercises is great because you can see how the commands should be given and how the dog should be reacting.

Nicki is amazing, she is so friendly, calm and patient. The classes are incredibly well run and Nicki communicates everything you need to know for the classes well in advance.