LEARN, INTERACT, DISCUSS, DO
Nancy offers a line-up of presentations and workshops aimed at helping both dog owners and professional trainers expand their knowledge and exchange ideas in an engaging environment.
Below is a list of topics currently available for live presentations and workshops.
If you’d like to know more about hosting Nancy or having her speak at your event, contact her directly to find out about availability and all the other important stuff.
The Good Enough Dog
For professional dog trainers.
You’ve been hired by a client to solve a behaviour problem. You’re a good trainer, and you’re confident you have the knowledge and skills to work with your client and their dog to resolve the issue. Piece of cake!
But soon you realize that despite your best intentions and efforts, your client is unable, disinterested, or unlikely to follow through with your recommendations. You and your client aren’t on the same page, and frustration builds as you focus on figuring out how to get them on board with your plan and expectations.
If your training plan isn’t implemented and you’re unable to achieve that much talked-about “client compliance”, where do you go from here?
Part of being an outstanding trainer is knowing how to work within limitations and still achieve results that make for a happy client. This presentation illustrates how we can better help our clients and their dogs by becoming more creative problem-solvers and shifting the focus from “perfect” to “good enough”.
Attendees will learn how to apply a simple flowchart involving fundamental steps to achieve success in every consultation, without necessarily achieving textbook perfection. Get tips and ideas that you can incorporate immediately into your practice.
Happy clients + happy dogs = Thriving business!
How Should I Say This?
Handle sticky situations with clients in writing – with confidence!
For professional dog trainers, or any small business owner.
Available as a presentation, or presentation + workshop
Communicating in writing can be tricky, and things can quickly snowball into sticky situations that are stressful and not always good for business.
The words you use are important. They reflect your business, and they should leave the reader feeling good about doing business with you.
This presentation will provide you with skills, templates, and scripts that will allow you to communicate effectively, concisely, and with confidence. When things get heated and the stress is on, you’ll know exactly how to respond – and help your business in the process.
Easily handle uncomfortable issues with a professional tone:
- How do I get an evasive client to settle his bill?
- How do I establish boundaries with a client who calls or texts me several times a day?
- How do I handle an irrationally dissatisfied client who’s demanding a refund they’re not entitled to?
- How can I make my cancellation policy sound firm, but kind?
Business writing is a skill, and communicating in writing in an emotionally-laced industry like ours is a specialized skill.
No more:
- Stressing over having to deal with confrontation with a client in writing
- Feeling guilty about the policies you want to establish for your business.
All of this, delivered with large doses of humour!
Home Alone: Treating Separation Anxiety
For dog owners and professional trainers.
Does your dog bark, whine, or howl when you leave the house? Does he scratch at the door or windows when he is left alone? Do you come home to find your dog has destroyed parts of your home or some of your belongings? Has he soiled the house or his crate? Does he wait until you get home before he touches his food?
Your dog may be suffering from separation anxiety (or another form of isolation distress). Living with a dog with separation anxiety can be frustrating and exhausting, leading many families to feel they have no choice but to surrender the dog. Separation anxiety never goes away by itself, and will usually get worse if left untreated.
This seminar will provide attendees with a deeper, clearer understanding of the problem and the science behind the solution (how and why it works).
Nancy will show you how to manage and treat separation anxiety in dogs — in detail — from start to finish. You will learn what you need to start doing right now to help turn things around.
(Note that this seminar addresses the problem of dogs being left alone at home, specifically. While some of the principles and approaches can apply to other similar issues — like dogs who are stressed when left alone in a car or in a location other than their home — the content of the seminar does not address these issues directly.)