Activdogs is now Steven Symonds — Dog Behaviour & Training. A name that better reflects the work I do.
Activdogs is now Steven Symonds — Dog Behaviour & Training. A name that better reflects the work I do.
I work with dogs whose behaviour has become difficult, unpredictable or stressful to live with. That includes reactivity, fear, aggression, resource guarding, separation-related problems, over-arousal and other changes that are affecting everyday life.
The normal starting point is a Behaviour Consultation. Its purpose is to understand what is happening and decide what your dog actually needs next.
If the problem involves fear, anxiety, aggression, guarding, repeated reactivity, separation distress or behaviour that feels unpredictable or concerning, simply teaching more cues is unlikely to be the whole answer.
Behaviour support starts by looking at the wider picture: what the dog is feeling, what they have learned, what is happening around them, and what may be maintaining the problem.
Common reasons people start here include:
• Barking, lunging or reacting towards dogs, people, traffic or movement.
• Fear, anxiety, nervousness or avoidance.
• Growling, snapping, biting or other safety concerns.
• Resource guarding.
• Separation-related distress.
• Visitor problems or handling sensitivity.
• Sudden or significant changes in behaviour.
• Problems that have continued despite ordinary training.
If a dog is frightened, over-aroused, frustrated or confused, stopping the visible behaviour does not necessarily change what is driving it.
Some television and online training can make behaviour change look almost instant. A dog stops barking, lunging or growling and it can appear that the problem has been solved. Sometimes behaviour can be stopped very quickly, but that does not necessarily mean the dog feels differently or that the reason for the behaviour has changed.
Simply suppressing behaviour can also create other problems. A dog may learn to stop doing something because the consequence is unpleasant, without the underlying motivation for the behaviour having changed. In cases involving fear, anxiety or aggression, suppression can also reduce warning signals such as growling or barking, making the dog harder to read. Repeatedly using pain, fear or intimidation to control behaviour can also affect trust and the relationship between dog and owner.
I want to understand what is driving the behaviour first. From there, we can work out what needs to change so that your dog is able to respond differently. That might mean changing the environment, reducing pressure, improving predictability, teaching new skills, or changing how your dog feels about something they currently find difficult.
I come to you, take a detailed history, observe your dog without deliberately recreating difficult situations, and work through what may be contributing to the behaviour.
Afterwards, you receive a written report with clear management advice and my recommendation for what happens next. Where appropriate, I will also include a simple starter Training Plan so that you have a small number of useful exercises to begin practising straight away rather than simply being left with a report.
The starter plan is deliberately simple. It is not a complete behaviour-modification programme; it gives you practical foundations that support the wider recommendations and give us a useful starting point if we do go on to work together. The consultation does not commit you to a programme of sessions.
• A clearer understanding of the behaviour.
• Immediate management and safety guidance where needed.
• A detailed written report.
• A simple starter Training Plan, where appropriate, so you have useful work to begin straight away.
• A recommendation for the next stage — whether that means continuing yourself or working together practically.
What happens after the consultation depends on the dog, the problem, the environment and what would genuinely be useful.
For some cases, the consultation, management changes, written recommendations and starter Training Plan may give you enough to begin making useful progress yourself. You are not expected to book further sessions simply because you have had a Behaviour Consultation.
If behaviour modification needs hands-on coaching, I will usually recommend practical sessions. That lets us work through the exercises together and practise in the real situations where you need the skills.
The usual programme is three sessions, but the recommendation is based on the case rather than an assumption that everyone needs the same package.
Once the foundations are in place, some clients choose occasional Practice Sessions, regular coaching or carefully selected small-group work to transfer established skills into everyday life. This is optional, not the expected end point for every case.
Pain, discomfort, medication, sensory changes and other medical factors can affect how a dog behaves. If something in the history suggests that health may be contributing, I will recommend speaking to your vet rather than trying to train around it.
I do not recreate a bite risk or force a dog over threshold simply to observe what happens.
I do not use pain, fear or intimidation to suppress behaviour. Choice and voluntary participation matter.
Where hands-on work is needed, I can help you put the recommendations into practice rather than leaving you with a report and no support.
For a genuinely contained issue, a 30-minute Behaviour Advice Call may sometimes be appropriate. It is not intended as an alternative to assessment for aggression, significant anxiety, resource guarding, repeated reactivity, biting or several problems occurring together.
The Behaviour Consultation is the normal starting point when the problem is complex, ongoing or raises a safety concern.