TTouch for Noise Sensitivity

Spring is here so before the fiesta season gets under way take this opportunity to find out how TTouch can help your dog cope better with the stress of loud bangs and noises - thunderstorms, fireworks, gunshot etc. A new half day workshop will be held at "In the Dog House", Almogía, (Málaga) on Sunday April 22nd. For further information and to book your place contact nando@inthedoghousedtc.com

Second Weekend of TTouch in Buenos Aires

The second weekend of TTouch workshops in Buenos Aires was equally successful as the first. This time the workshops were held in Buenos Aires city at the North Liniers Sporting Club premises. There was a square with grass justopposite the venue but in the end we decided to hold all the activities indoors. This was interesting as working indoors for the groundwork session is quite different from the outdoors experience. In some ways it was more revealing for the participants because without any more distant distractions they were able to observe both the dogs and the handlers more closely.

There was a wide range of dogs with varied jobs to do in the dog world. On Saturday we had a cane corso and a Malinois both from the Buenos Aires Police Dog Unit and on Sunday a black setter sniffer dog from the Customs Anti-narcotics Unit. Saturday's participant included a number of dogs just returned from the Latin America and Caribbean Agility Championships in Santiago de Chile. These were mostly border collies but the Australian shepherd that took first place in the non-border collie class was also present. An elderly beagle also attended for the bodywork and wraps session to be replaced for the groundwork by his house companion, a two month old Jack Russell puppy. Sunday's group included another cane corso that, despite his huge size, was only seven months old, a Bernese and more border collies. The number of border collies was disproportionate to their presence among the dog population as a whole due to the fact that Claudia who organised the workshops participates in agility and so many of her own dogs' companions came along.

The range of human interests was also wide. On Saturday we had a doctor from the agility fraternity, two police dog handlers, another agility fanatic who is an architect in his "spare time", as well as a cross-section of other professions. On Sunday the group included a holistic vet and a veterinary student, a dog trainer and handler from the Customs sniffer dog unit who also teaches at the Dog Training Department at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Buenos Aires. She was particularly impressed with the effect she could see on her black setter's hind legs when first a wrap and later scrunchies were put on. The remainder of the participants were people who simply love their dogs and wanted to improve their quality of life.

Many of the dogs, particularly the border collies, presented a high level of anxiety and others had a variety of physical elements which could benefit from TTouch.

The feedback on both days was universally positive and, once again people expressed an interest in continuing the work and learning more in future events.

Claudia, her husband, Marcelo, and all three sons, Matías, Marco & Julián, put in a huge amount of work to make the workshops a success. For them it was a big gamble because they did not know me, they had little knowledge of TTouch but were convinced that it would be of benefit to Claudia in her dog training classes. How people would respond was also an unknown quantity but in the end I think the experience proved to be positive and I am immensely grateful to them for all the work they put in. Special thanks go to Julián who at 12 years of age is a fantastic cook and provided a full day service all weekend. What more can one ask?!

TTouch - a First in Buenos Aires

The first two TTouch workshops held in Buenos Aires on Saturday and Sunday March 17th & 18th. were a resounding success. The venue was the impressive installations of the National Sports Centre in the Ezeiza district run by the government. The grounds are extensive with woodland and open parkland and we were able to choose where to work. The first day we held the morning session indoors, but on Sunday we decided to move outdoors for the whole day. The morning session was held in an open but roofed pavilion where we had an electricity supply which allowed us to set up a monitor and the computer for the presentation. For the groundwork session in the afternoon the Confidence Course was set up on the grass but participants and their dogs could shelter from the sun in the pavilion.

On Saturday most of the dogs were large - GSDs, golden retrievers, a black lab. and a beautiful boerboel called Emma. The exception was a wire-haired Jack Russell puppy that was a ball of energy. On Sunday most of the dogs were border collies that compete in agilty or discdog. We also had two puppies, a three month old golden retriever and a two month old border collie, as well as a mixed breed.

The participants were a great bunch on both days. On Saturday most of them were dog trainers or dog walkers and one girl had a rescue centre and boarding kennel. On Sunday the participants were mostly professionals in the field: the president of the Argentine Association of Utility & Sports Dogs, two lecturers from the Dog Training Department of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Buenos Aires University, dog trainers, and dog walkers and a criminal lawyer with her retriever puppy. Interestingly in Argentina dog training is now a recognised profession with a two year course being taught at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine.

The dogs present provided plenty of scope for teaching and the wraps were a great success particularly with those who compete, as they were able to see how the gait could change under the influence of the different wraps and they could see how using the wraps and scrunchies could make a great contribution to improving their dogs' performance. The puppies gave a great opportunity to demonstrate mouthwork and earwork and the mixed breed dog on Sunday allowed the participants to see very clearly how changes in coat texture and growth may indicate underlying tensions in the dog. By the end of the day with very gentle body work and wraps the dog was able to accept touch on his hindquarters whereas in the morning from the middle back onwards he displayed great sensitivity. Another tool which the participants found fascinating was the head wrap, and in two cases they were able to appreciate a distinct change in tension levels and greater relaxation.

The groundwork sessions were very popular although, as most of the participants were dog trainers or dog walkers used to a quite different form of leash work, they found it challenging at first to coordinate both side of their body and work the leads in a relaxed manner. Eventually, however, most had their "Eureka" moment when they discovered that they also had a right hand!

It was gratifying that at the end of the day all the participants felt that they had discovered some new tools which they were sure they could incorporate into their own particular disciplines, and without exception have asked for further workshops to be held to delve a little further into what TTouch has to offer. The President of the Argentine Association of Utility & Sports Dogs has offered to publish information regarding TTouch on the Association's website.