Basil and Luna Last week, I was invited to dinner by a longstanding client, Sam. This was partly a social occasion, but mostly an opportunity to observe a rather puzzling change in the behaviour of her Labrador, Basil. Sam and I have known each other for many years. Basil is the third Labrador she has trained with me and Caroline, so we have come to know one another pretty well. Both Basil and Luna are now beautifully trained dogs. They behave very nicely when they are out and are doing...

We talk a lot about dogs being "attention seeking." Jumping up, barking, pawing at you, pestering you while you're trying to get something done. Or there's the classic one — they grab something they know they shouldn't have and legs it, fully aware you're about to chase them. Betty "He's just doing it for attention," we say. But I wonder if we've got that slightly backwards. What if the dog actually thinks we're the ones who need the attention? Stick with me here. Say you're on the sofa,...

This morning, at the gym, I caught my own reflection and asked myself something I hadn't thought about in years: when was the first time I actually liked the person looking back at me? Not because of how I looked. Because I respected who I'd become. My mind went straight back to 1988. I was thirty-four, away on my first formal dog training instructors' course. I'd brought my young Border Collie puppy, Truly Perfect, and my Dobermann, Lisa. Five days residential, a young son at home, my...