It's Careers Week 2021! To celebrate, we've been chatting to women working different jobs in the animal sector and doing short interviews with them. There are so many exciting and diverse animal careers to discover! Yesterday, we heard from the ever-inspiring George. Today, we have someone else inspiring - Lollie. Last but definitely not least!
AnimalEd: Hi Lollie! Thanks so much for speaking with us! First question: what do you do? What's your job?
Lollie: My name is Lollie, and I am the owner and head trainer at The Wantage Pet Company. I am an experienced force-free dog trainer that specialises in working with puppies and canine reactivity. My methods focus on building relationships with your dog and working together as a team to form a strong bond and to give your dog the confidence and optimism they need to be a happy, well-rounded dog.
AnimalEd: Incredible! In your opinion, what's the most important part of your job?
Lollie: The most important part of my job is giving my human clients the tools and knowledge they need to best understand their dogs and become effective communicators. A large amount of my time is spent educating humans about the behaviours, quirks and reasons behind why their dog is acting a certain way and giving them the best techniques to manage their behaviour. By spreading the knowledge about things like body language and understanding how dogs learn, it allows them to decode how their dog feels in certain situations and how to act appropriately to this. Knowledge is power!
AnimalEd: Totally! Knowledge is so important, especially when it comes to keeping animals, domestic or otherwise. What do you like most about your job?
Lollie: Definitely being able to watch a dog and their owners grow in confidence! There is nothing more rewarding than seeing the relationship between dog and human grow into one built on trust, respect and understanding.
AnimalEd: That does sound truly rewarding! Final question: what would you say to somebody looking to get into this line of work?
Lollie: I would say try and get as much experience as possible! There is no ‘right’ way to get into dog training and behaviour work, but the more experience you have, the easier it will be. Try and shadow local ethical dog trainers in your area so you can get a better understanding of what the job consists of and what you will be doing on an average day. Don’t be scared to ask industry professionals for help - we all had to start somewhere!
As dog training is an unregulated industry you will need to undertake continual professional development, keeping up to date with your training and keeping your knowledge at a high standard. For me, this is essential and something I spend a great deal of time on. I want to ensure I am always providing my clients with the best possible information and experience, making a solid education paramount.
Finally, while it is incredible working with dogs, you will spend significantly more time working with the owners than the dogs! It is just as necessary to train and educate the owners and guide them to achieve long term success - dog training isn’t just playing with dogs!
We have so much respect for the company and its ethics. A big thanks to Lollie Stanely at The Wantage Pet Company for taking the time to talk to us for Careers Week! You can find her @thewantagepetcompany on Instagram and Facebook and at thewantagepetcompany.com.
And that just about does it for our Careers Week posts! We hope you've found it interesting and maybe learned a thing or two about some different animal jobs. Thanks to everyone who participated, thanks for reading, and remember to always keep learning!
-- Charlie and Tiana
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