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.
Following a Behaviour Consultation, I will often recommend practical sessions so that we can work together on the skills and behaviour changes identified in your report.
The aim is not simply to demonstrate exercises. It is to help you use them effectively with your own dog, in the situations where they actually matter.
Already completed a Behaviour Consultation? Practical sessions are arranged directly with me afterwards.
Normal programme
Three one-to-one sessions · £225.
Individual sessions
£85 where a single session is more appropriate.
Built around your consultation
The work follows the priorities identified in your report.
Training Plan
A clear Training Plan supports the work between appointments.
A written report can explain what needs to change. Practical sessions are where we teach, practise and adapt the work so that it fits your dog, your handling and your everyday life.
We start at a level your dog can cope with, then build from there. The exercises are progressed according to what your dog is showing us rather than according to a fixed timetable.
There is no standard set of exercises that every dog receives. The practical work follows the priorities identified in your consultation and the way your dog responds as we begin working.
• Helping a dog notice a trigger without feeling they have to react.
• Desensitisation and counterconditioning.
• Attention, disengagement and orientation back to you.
• Confidence-building and voluntary participation.
• Place, settling and lowering arousal.
• Visitor set-ups and household management.
• Recall, long-line skills and safer freedom.
• Handling, cooperative care and preparation for grooming or veterinary procedures.
• Real-world practice around dogs, people, movement or other relevant triggers.
Each practical session is supported by a clear Training Plan so that you know what to practise between appointments.
Your Training Plan gives you the exercises, the progression and the important details we have worked through together. That means you are not relying on memory after the session and you have something practical to refer back to as you practise.
The three-session programme is the normal recommendation because it gives us enough room to start, review and then begin transferring the work into more realistic situations.
You do not need to use all three sessions close together. The timing can reflect the work we are doing and the progress your dog is making.
Some cases do not need a full three-session programme. An individual practical session is available where one focused appointment is the more appropriate next step.
The recommendation follows the case rather than assuming every client needs the same package.
Some clients are ready to continue independently once the programme ends. Others benefit from an occasional Practice Session, a regular fortnightly or monthly coaching appointment, or carefully selected small-group work.
There is no requirement to keep booking sessions simply because a package has ended.
If we identify practical behaviour work as the right next step during your consultation, I will send you the appropriate booking link for the programme or an individual session.
If you have not yet had a Behaviour Consultation, that is the place to start.