Walk & Train Edinburgh

We enrolled our Working Cocker Spaniel for four weeks of residential training with Gregor and Linnea back in October. We always struggled with lead walking as Brodie would constantly pull and his recall was unreliable. We were getting quite desperate as nothing we were trying on our own seemed to work, so we decided to give residential training a go and it has been a game changer! We were updated often about his progress with plenty of pictures and videos, and the handover session really helped us catching up with all his training. Our relationship with our dog has improved so much, we can enjoy walking him and look forward to it instead of dreading every minute. We trust his recall and he is able to run about off lead often, he is enjoying his new found trust and we love to see him happy and fulfilled. The other week during one of our evening walks we lost his lead and we were able to just walk back home with our dog happily walking on heel without issues. Not only the residential training helped Brodie's skills, but we were given the instruments and support to maintain those skills after he got back home. We trust him more, we are able to fully enjoy our walks and he can now be the Spaniel he was always meant to be ✨️

Linnea and Gregor have massively changed our relationship with our Hungarian Vizsla, Skye. After she became reactive towards other dogs at a year old, our walks became very stressful. Skye would react to nearly every dog we passed. It had reached the point that I tried to avoid taking her on walks alone, my husband felt very low after every walk, and with a baby on the way we were reluctantly considering rehoming her as we didn’t know how we would cope. We had already done some 1:1 and group sessions with Linnea and Gregor, and although there was definitely some improvement, we felt that Skye was more reactive when she was outside of these sessions and worried it would take too long to make the progress we wanted. As a last resort, we decided to sign up to the 6 week residential training. This was the best decision we made! Whilst Skye will always be wary of other dogs, Gregor has taught her how to control her emotions and taught us how to help her with this. Skye’s general obedience and lead walking have also massively improved. She also no longer has a complete meltdown when she sees a cat which is a bonus! We can now walk Skye off lead with much more confidence and enjoy our walks again, something we didn’t think would be possible. Thank you Linnea and Gregor!

After attending and loving a GRC competition trial run by Linnea, I signed up for Walk and Train’s shadow programme — and I’m so glad I did! Between both Linnea and Gregor, they were full of knowledge and genuine love for the work they do. Throughout the programme, I got to discuss my future and how to get into the dog training world as well as observe a wide range of training sessions, from puppy development and obedience work to behaviour modification and GRC training. Each session offered something new to learn, and both Linnea and Gregor took the time to explain methods, reasoning, and the “why” behind every technique! What I loved was how calm, patient, consistent and fun they were with every dog and client. The ability to tailor their approach to each individual dog was brilliant and made me reflect on how I can apply the same adaptability in my own work. The experience was educational, motivating and so much fun — I came away with a deeper understanding of canine behaviour, training structure and the importance of clear communication between handler and their dog. I’d highly recommend this shadow programme to anyone looking to grow their knowledge, gain hands-on experience, or simply spend time learning from passionate, and skilled trainers! I can’t wait to continue developing my training journey with everything I took away from this experience ❤️

🩷Life Changing Residential Training🩷 Before Tina attended residential training with Walk & Train, every walk was an anxiety riddled endurance test. Tina was reactive and we were hypervigilant - scanning for anything that might set her off. The few times Tina was off lead she was a liability, chasing everything moving faster than walking pace and pestering other dogs which usually didn't end well. I felt guilty every single day for not being able to meet her needs with walks around the local streets - going to the park or beach didn't feel like a safe option. Thanks to Gregor, Tina's life and ours has completely changed for the better😁. Tina is off lead on every walk, running around playing with her ball, using up lots of energy. Her recall (which was previously non-existent) is great and she now has suitable doggy friends she plays with in the park. Going to the beach is one of our favorite things to do - watching Tina run along the water at full speed is a sight to see🩷. With Gregor's skills and support, Tina has become the dog she was always meant to be. And she is still very much the funny - at times dramatic - sighthound she was before. Thank you, Tina, Lynne and Andrew

Having a highly dog reactive GSD, I got in touch with Linnea seeking help and I'm extremely glad I did. While we're not at that stage where he doesn't react at all, Linnea has helped me tremendously with management and things I can work on to counter condition my best friend when there are other dogs around. You're not alone when you take Linnea on as your trainer as she is very accessible and communicates her thoughts and ideas clearly and in language anyone can understand. You and your dog couldn't ask for a better trainer and friend. Thank you Linnea, Gregor and Ida.