Unqualified Trainer with detrimental results
Picking James to help train our Labradoodle puppy was the biggest mistake we made, and I only hope sharing our experience prevents others from going through the same trauma.
We followed his increasingly extreme recommendations for far too long, and they only made our dog’s behaviour worse.
Some of the instructions we were given included:
• Removing all toys, even the two he initially allowed
• Eliminating all treats and animal chews
• Not walking our adolescent dog for weeks
• Keeping him isolated in a dark, quiet room
• Withholding food for longer and longer to force him to lick a frozen Kong, despite showing no interest
Eventually we sought help from a professionally qualified behaviour specialist, recommended by our vet—who was deeply concerned by what James had told us, including his claim that our dog needed medication similar to human Prozac. After checking his website and finding no qualifications, she urged us to see a certified behaviourist.
The difference was like night and day. In just one two hour session, the qualified specialist resolved issues James had made no progress on in months, including guarding behaviour. In the second session, she had our dog calmly meeting people and dogs in the park—behaviour James insisted required weeks of isolation.
James’s sessions were mostly filled with pseudo psychology, vague talk about “red and green buckets,” and very little practical training. He avoided interacting with our dog, and each session produced only one simplistic piece of advice, such as hand feeding all kibble or slowly moving a piece of food toward him repeatedly.
His website warns clients not to question his advice, and he justifies his lack of qualifications by claiming to practise a “new form of training” without UK accreditation. I think both of these statements just show the mans obsessive ego. After our experience, I fully understand why it has no accreditation—because the methods were harmful to our dog’s wellbeing.
If you are struggling with your dog’s behaviour, please seek a properly qualified behaviour professional. It made all the difference for us and helped undo the damage caused by James’s advice.