Some more details about my background and 30 year history in training dogs
New clients who’ve not worked with me training their dogs before may be interested to know a bit more about me, and my business.
So, a little about me: I started my business, Janet Gray Dog Training, in 1988. Prior to that, I had been working with people and their dogs under the guidance of Dennis Izzard, starting back in 1976. Dennis, now sadly passed away, was a great ‘gun dog man’ and founder of the Ryshot line of working Labradors, Golden Retrievers and most famously, Flat-Coated Retrievers. Dennis also had a strong interest in Competitive Obedience work, and so I had a varied and thorough education in the dog training world.
From 1998 onwards I worked hard, building up my business in the WInchester, Basingstoke and Alton areas. I continued and built upon the classes that Dennis had run at Bishops Sutton Village Hall when he retired, and I have been doing so ever since.
I am registered at the Kennel Club as a Listed Status Trainer. This means that the classes are not run as a club, or by a charity, but that I am a private trainer and that the classes are part of my business. The classes therefore need to be commercially viable to continue as they are run professionally and legitimately, meaning that I have the same overheads of tax, public liability insurance, premises costs etc that any other commercial business would incur.
One source of great personal pride for me is the number of new clients who find their way to me by recommendation, and also the number of existing clients that, having successfully trained their first dog with me, return again to train their second, and in some cases third and fourth, dogs. For me, word of mouth and personal recommendation are my most successful form of advertising, and provides a great indication of the kind of service I provide. Whoever you chose to train your dog, do always ask for feedback and testimonial from previous and existing clients. This is very important- you’ll see I’m happy to provide testimonial information from clients within these pages.
About my dogs: I grew up in a family that had Border Collies. I have had various breeds since, including a Terrier, a Labrador, a Dalmation, various cross breeds, Collies and German Shepherds.
I usually have two or three dogs at a time and at the moment I have three German Shepherds. I have had Shepherds constantly since 1982 – either just Shepherds, or Shepherds together with other breeds.
People often say ‘You must be a great dog lover’ and to an extent that is true, but in my experience dog lovers are not always good dog leaders, and it is leadership that dogs are looking for, and need to keep in balance. As leader I am rewarded with the trust, respect and loyalty of my pack and I hope never to let them down.
If you and your dog work with me, I will try my best to help you enjoy the rewards of being a good Pack Leader.