(Header image created with microsoft co-pilot)
I’m sitting on a chair that’s been set especially for me at the side of a floodlit football field. Wrapped warmly in a thick coat, woolly hat and gloves, my attention is focused on the game play in front of me. I scrutinise the trainer on the field, listening carefully to what he says and how he interacts with the other people there.
And with their dogs.
Field Action
I asked the trainer a few days ago if I could watch him in action. I’ve learned that next to the medical and crap-cleaning sides of animal care, there’s also animal behaviour. Having never owned a dog, or even been around one for any decent length of time, I was more than curious! He agreed to let me watch one of his training sessions.
He told me on the phone beforehand that he trains dog owners how to train their dogs. It makes for a sustainable flow of his knowledge to the dog; including the owner like this means a closer relationship with the dog, and ultimately, it’s this relationship between man and animal that’s nurtured.
Admittedly I missed a lot of the Dutch content, but in my defense I sat a good thirty or forty meters away from where the action took place. But it was easy to see the trainer commanded well-deserved respect from both species on the field.
When the lesson was over he had a chat with me about how he got into the business – a fascinating tale and one of inspiration.
Afterthoughts
As I pedalled home I gave myself a pat on the back for contacting this guy. It seems like a weird thing to do, but the advice to contact, meet and chat to people in the area you want to be in seems to be consistent across most job coaches I’ve met. I’ve avoided doing it in the past (because it’s weird) but this time it seemed natural, and indeed I landed on my feet because this guy was friendly and open! 🙂
Is working with dogs like this something for me? I’d certainly have no complaints, and from what I heard, the build up of knowledge and experience is something to attain in a fun and flexible way!
