This has become an interesting comparison for me. I am a dog behaviourist by profession, but what is it that separates these titles, or is it possible to distinguish between the two?

This question was posed to me only a couple of months ago by a leading professional in the dog training industry here in the UK.

So let’s take a look!

Do you consider yourself as a dog trainer or dog behaviourist?

I guess this all down to prospective. The public perception of these two terms is what is important to my business. I am fortunate enough to have a business manager that works hard in the background with my website and the search engine optimisation (SEO).

He has done crazy amounts of research over the years and through his dedication my business has thrived.  With a website titled “Salisbury Dog Trainers” already we were on winning terms with being found in the search engines.

Pretty much all the information and keyword structure is set up around the term “Dog Trainer” There is reason to this logic, and this is due to the research of how the public view my profession and the common language used to refer to ‘people that work with dogs’. The research using the search engine analytics show “dog trainer” or a variation including “dog training near me” or “local dog trainers” are the most searched terms on the internet.

The data compiled shows around 30,000+ searches a month in the UK for dog trainers, with less than a thousand for “Dog Behaviourist” So obviously we are geared up to entice the largest amount of traffic. However once the potential clients land on my website, they are soon introduced to the term “dog behaviourist” It is right there on the website page header. For many this could be their first encounter with the term dog behaviourist, descriptively thinking though it makes sense, as around 90% of my clients have dogs with behavioural issues. The other 10% are usually looking for puppy training or some other form of training.

Personally speaking dog trainer and dog behaviourist are inextricably linked. It is through all my experiences from my childhood that led me to my current role. Although there are also many fundamental differences of which I will explain later.

I have observed and worked with dog trainers my whole life.

Dog Trainer Examples

Throughout my life, I have had much exposure to Dog Training – even from a young age. Some of them were formative experiences, others were educational. I’ll list a few instances that I would consider to be good examples of dog training in practice.

Dog handling

My father was a Finnish customs and excise dog handler when I was just a small child. Although the dog he worked with was already prepared for the duties of sniffing out drugs, he had to continue this training on regular basis as he was now the responsible handler. It was the relationship bond that I loved and how the dog was loyal and responsive to everything my father did with him.

Dog breeding

Back in the 1980’s my parents bred Wire Hair Fox Terriers, it was this breed that I spent most of my childhood around and this is where I first learned about show dog training. My parents trained one of the wire hairs to be a show dog, teaching her how to walk correctly with a spring her step. Teaching her how to sit and other basics that help you win a dog show.

It wasn’t until the early 1990’s that I met my first true love breed, the  BRT’s (Black Russian Terriers) A friend of the family owned a pair of these magnificent specimens, originally bred for the Russian army and coming from strong working lines. I was walking these dogs on a daily basis and it wasn’t long before I decided to buy my own bitch. Through our family friend I was able to meet a breeder and show dog trainer who later became quite famous in the Finnish dog training circles.

Dog Shows

This was the time I gained my first real experience as a dog trainer. I took my Tatjana (Black Russian) through all the requirements needed to qualify for the Finnish show dog championships. The training was over several years and not only included obedience training with walking, sitting and posture but also teaching her scent work and tracking as the syllabus for the competitions included these elements.

Just to touch on a word I used here obedience this is now an outdated use of terminology in my profession. I prefer to use the word engagement which is basically the same as obedience but is gained through a positive relationship and training methods. In the 90’s obedience was the only way we described this type of training.

I do still hear and read trainers/behaviourists using obedience as a part of their training skillset, for me it just sounds wrong “An obedient dog” I was very successful with my show and gained 1^st prize in the overall “Best Bitch” category.

Scent Tracking

It was this training that inspired me to further my dogs scent work training as I moved away from the show and continued with tracking.  Forest tracking is considered a competitive sport in Finland, and I adored taking my Tatjana to allow her to use her nose which basically is part of every dog’s genetics, after all they have millions of scent receptors. Working through many levels and eventually achieving the goal of becoming part of an on call search and rescue team, in the finding and retrieval of humans.

Conditioning and IPO

Some other experiences I had through the years was with army dog training and conditioning and also IPO training (Teaching dogs controlled attacks) These were more observation roles, but as always I studied them well and could have taught the dogs the requirements needed if I had more time and the desire to do so.

Dog Behaviourist Explained

Taming aggressive behaviour

I was 19 years old, when I helped a friend and her dog’s aggressive nature towards other dogs. Through my experiences I could already see what was going wrong and of course my friend’s story helped me to understand the situation further. She had lived in the countryside, in Finland when you live in the country you can literally not come across any other dogs maybe only at a vets. My friend had moved to a town recently where walking dogs was popular event. It was the lack of socialisation with other dogs that affected her dog.

After a reaction to another dog, that sounded aggressive, my friend became nervous and fearful.  In turn this travelled down the lead and her dog became reactive to nearly every dog they passed. Luckily I was able to use a few techniques to adjust the behaviour and instil a new found confidence in my friend, by just showing her that her dog wasn’t be aggressive as she once thought. I must say I didn’t pursue being a dog behaviourist as a job, it seemed to just happen to me gradually over the course of years.

Developing a true understanding

I relocated to the UK with my husband just over 10 years ago, he helped me to see that the call for good dog behaviourists was in high demand. I was sceptical and a little anxious as to whether I could bring these skills I obtained to another country. Looking back this all seems like a lifetime ago as I have worked with thousands of dogs and their owner. Helping to educate people and seeing the results is so rewarding.

One of the most important skills to being a good dog behaviourist is to be a people person.  As I have proved that understanding and training the dogs is natural for me, this is certainly the easier part of my profession. Working and understanding the differing personalities of the owners is a skill that takes most professional behaviourists longer to master.

In fact, some never truly get to grips with this, which can ultimately lead to failing to deliver training that sticks. My business attracts clients ranging from their teens to people in their 90’s. I must cater my training to suit each different personality and their lifestyle. Many of my clients have huge expectations for their dogs, as I understand the breeds, I can also help manage these expectations and sometimes just good management of certain things is perfect for their dogs.

In summary

To sum up, there is a difference between the two titles, dog trainer and dog behaviourist. Trainers have skills that can be helpful in changing certain behaviours but a true behaviourist will dig deep into the psychology of you and your dog’s relationship. Usually helping with problems that a good trainer can’t handle.