About Us

Dogs have always been a huge part of my life. Beaucerons are my chosen breed and I currently share my life with three of them, but I have always had a special connection with all dogs.

My love for dogs started incredibly young. From the age of three, a neighbour’s dog, Shane — a German Shepherd x Great Dane — would jump the hedge just to scratch at our door so I would come outside and play with him in the garden. From that moment on, dogs were simply part of who I am.

At eight years old I had my first rescue dog, Honey, followed by several more rescue dogs over the years. I was even given a sickly little terrier puppy by my local pet shop. Charlie went on to live until the age of fifteen and taught me so much about commitment, patience and love.

Although I always planned to work with dogs, life took me in a different direction for a while as I raised my children and focused on work commitments. But dogs were never far from my heart.

Fifteen years ago, Ruby came into my life — a Beauceron x Shepherd with several other breeds mixed in for good measure. She came from our local rescue centre and, in many ways, she reignited everything for me. Ruby was incredibly challenging, an escape artist who had never even walked on a lead before. She made my hands bleed learning to walk nicely, but she absolutely loved training.

Then came Ula, a Shepherd who had suffered abuse and struggled badly with separation anxiety, followed by Robin from Dogs Trust, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier cross. Every dog was different and every dog taught me something new. I loved their individuality and I loved training with them so much that, when the opportunity arose, I started my own dog walking business.

Later came Russel, my Beauceron, who also arrived with his own challenges. Together we discovered tracking, which opened up an entirely new world for me. Through tracking I had the opportunity to work alongside highly experienced trainers and observe how they trained their dogs. I eventually joined one of the clubs I attended and spent years progressing from volunteer, to assistant, to sub-instructor, and finally lead trainer, completing an in-depth training programme along the way.

It was during this time that I discovered scentwork through Russel’s littermate owner. I immediately felt it was something that would suit him perfectly — and unlike tracking, we didn’t need access to large areas of land.

I booked a one-to-one session with Jo and was instantly hooked. From there I began competing in trials and enrolled on Jo’s trainers programme so I could teach scentwork myself. After every class I attended, I wrote down everything I had learned. I booked onto as many workshops as possible and immersed myself in learning wherever I could.

Russel is a very large reactive dog, so I always have to be mindful of his needs, but tracking had already shown me just how powerful using a dog’s nose can be. I truly believe scentwork can help change a dog’s mindset and build confidence, focus and resilience.

For me, scentwork really is for everyone. It is suitable for dogs of all ages, breeds and backgrounds, but it is also open to every person too. I have seen first-hand how it can help people emotionally and physically, giving them confidence, purpose and connection with their dogs.

I have always loved teaching and come from a teaching background myself, so starting my own scentwork classes felt like a natural progression. Wanting to develop my skills even further, I later went on to qualify as a City & Guilds Detection Dog Handler and Instructor.

More recently, I was incredibly fortunate to be given the opportunity to join the team at Canvey, where I am delighted to now be teaching alongside such a fantastic group of people.

Every dog that has come into my life has had a story to tell, and over time they have shared those stories with me. When you watch a dog searching, they are telling you their story too. It is a privilege to step back, listen, and watch that story unfold.