# Keith Mathews, County Armagh



## Mumtomaddog (Sep 17, 2013)

Hi,
I was looking for doggy training classes in my area and have come across someone called Keith Mathews who is close by. I dont suppose there is anyone from this area who has heard of him or any other training classes in County Armagh area.
Max is unable to travel long distances by car as yet, due to extreme nervousness and travel sickness. 

Thanks. :001_smile:


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## Sarah89 (May 5, 2013)

Hello from Belfast! 

Personally, I don't follow the belief that dogs are wolves and therefore we must be alpha pack member. This is the sort of theory Keith Matthews works on. But each to their own.

I take my dog to the Kennel Club good Citizen classes run in Holywood, which is probably a bit too far out for you to travel. I had a look on the KC website but Armagh seems to be a bit limited when it comes to these classes

Dog training clubs in Northern Ireland

Would any of these suit you at all? Obviously I can only speak for the class I go to which is very well run, I have no idea about any of the others!


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## Mumtomaddog (Sep 17, 2013)

Sarah89 said:


> Hello from Belfast!
> 
> Personally, I don't follow the belief that dogs are wolves and therefore we must be alpha pack member. This is the sort of theory Keith Matthews works on. But each to their own.
> 
> ...


Hi Sarah89! :w00t: a local! Many thanks for the reply.

I have had a thorough read through his site and actually wasnt that impressed but thought id ask just in case anyone knew of him and had anything positive to say.
I had already looked at that link that you gave, thank you, but the closest to me is Lisburn and really at this moment in time its just too far. I am right between Armagh city and Portadown.
I'm still working on little 2 min journeys, he is incredibly petrified of vehicles, so much so that he becomes incontinent in both ways and hes incredibly sick.  Im trying to make the very short journeys to a long run off the lead in a totally enclosed field so that he becomes accustomed to the car as being a fantastic experience for him. its still early days tho LOL bless him, you can see him visibly shaking like a leaf when the car door even opens. He seems like he's been traumatized by vehicles in some way. Im trying to have him sit in the car with me and his fav toy and not go anywhere but he shows no interest as he just cant relax, and sometimes i feel bad putting him thru it and not actually going anywhere, so the 2 min ones are the way to go for now i think.

I will definitely keep in mind what you said for if ever we get that we can go on a decent length journey cos i really do think he would benefit from the socialization with other dogs and really enjoy it too. He is a bit nervous but hes incredibly good natured and friendly.

Many thanks for taking the time to reply


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## Dogless (Feb 26, 2010)

I have no idea about classes in Co Armagh but don't like "The Dog Guru's" philosophy based upon his website. I did go to classes in Lisburn for a long while with my adult dog and then my puppy but left after a lesson where some things happened that were unacceptable to me (you can PM for details if you like!!). I haven't found any more so can't advise for when longer car travel is possible unfortunately.


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## Mumtomaddog (Sep 17, 2013)

Dogless said:


> I have no idea about classes in Co Armagh but don't like "The Dog Guru's" philosophy based upon his website. I did go to classes in Lisburn for a long while with my adult dog and then my puppy but left after a lesson where some things happened that were unacceptable to me (you can PM for details if you like!!). I haven't found any more so can't advise for when longer car travel is possible unfortunately.


Thanks Dogless for the reply. 
I really didnt get any warm feelings from his site either, but i was kinda just checking on here, just as a long shot really that maybe i was being paranoid LOL

I'm not sure that i have the ability to PM anyone, im sure ive not been here long enough, pretty sure i got a message from admin saying that the privilege of pm comes after a certain number of posts. I dont even know how to get back to that message now to check it 

I'll just have to persevere for the time being and keep on with the car training in the hope that he can tolerate it, tho i really suspect, seeing his reaction to vehicles in general, never mind our car, that it wont be for a very long time yet. We've had him for 2 weeks now so hes still learning to trust us generally, before he can learn to trust that we wont put him into a situation thats really bad for him.

Thanks again, appreciate the reply


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## Dogless (Feb 26, 2010)

Mumtomaddog said:


> Thanks Dogless for the reply.
> I really didnt get any warm feelings from his site either, but i was kinda just checking on here, just as a long shot really that maybe i was being paranoid LOL
> 
> I'm not sure that i have the ability to PM anyone, im sure ive not been here long enough, pretty sure i got a message from admin saying that the privilege of pm comes after a certain number of posts. I dont even know how to get back to that message now to check it
> ...


I think it's 25 posts which you're now on; but no need to PM really as you're not going anywhere right now by the sounds of it . I am sure he'll be OK in the car eventually - my MIL has a dog who is fine in the car now but it took her in the region of 8-9 months I think to get him going in it without fear; baby steps got her there in the end!!


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## Mumtomaddog (Sep 17, 2013)

Yeah i can see that is gonna be baby steps... Poor Max, i do feel for him, we could get to so many fun places with him if he could cope but never mind. We'll take it at his pace. 

Thanks again


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## Sarah89 (May 5, 2013)

Poor mite, wonder what happened to him to make him hate cars so much! 

Sounds like you are doing the right things though. Just make sure you aren't reinforcing his fear by trying to reassure him in the car. Best to try and distract him rather than cuddling or talking softly to him. So bringing his fav foods and toys and ignoring his anxiety completely should help him.


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## Mumtomaddog (Sep 17, 2013)

Sarah89 said:


> Poor mite, wonder what happened to him to make him hate cars so much!
> 
> Sounds like you are doing the right things though. Just make sure you aren't reinforcing his fear by trying to reassure him in the car. Best to try and distract him rather than cuddling or talking softly to him. So bringing his fav foods and toys and ignoring his anxiety completely should help him.


I can really only guess at what it might be. Thing is, Max isnt greatly food or toy motivated... we play with tuggy toys but after about 5 mins he's had enough. Kong toys dont hold his interest for long either. The only toys that he really loves are squeakies so i think im gonna try just keep them for in the car. 
Good point about not adding to his anxieties... i was in all honesty trying to talk gently to him, to reassure him that i was still there and that nothing bad was going to happen to him. Think i'll just try engage him with his squeaky and leave him to it. 
We've had him for almost 3 weeks now and as time goes on, im seeing more and more displays of anxiety with him. He wont eat or drink unless i stay with him and constantly reassure him that its ok to go ahead. He is by my side constantly so never gets any real rest during the day, he follows me from room to room, sitting behind me at the sink, the cooker, wherever. He just will not leave my side. He seems to be easy to settle at night and can be left, but im noticing that when we go out, we come home and he doesnt seem to have had a drink or eaten any treats that i leave for him. I thought he was just content with being left but im wondering now if he just isnt so stressed and thats why. Although im pretty certain he isnt howling or crying. I might look into trying to record his behaviour when we do go out.

Many thanks for your reply.  Appreciate it.


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