021 | Sara Rafai and Kiwi, this Dubai team teaches us the importance of communication

Ruff Around The Edges

What do most guardians of our podcast dogs have in common? They go down the dog training rabbit hole, learning all there is to learn about dogs and dog training. At some point most of them have the thought: “I might as well become a dog trainer now!”

Sara is no different.

We talk about that, but also about the importance of communication in her journey with Kiwi, a desert mix, as Dubai’s strays are often referred to.

What made her discontinue training with the balanced trainer that had been recommended to her? What was it about how PPG accredited Dubai trainer Aimee of @pawfectbehaviourme described her services that made it easy for Sara to switch over to force-free training?

Then there was COVID. The strict lockdown in Dubai was a blessing in disguise for Kiwi and for Sara and her husband too. The latter proved instrumental for the mental health of the whole human-dog family.
His understanding attitude when Sara explained how anxiety-inducing walking Kiwi had become for her and their open lines of communication helped in turning that anxiety around.

He showed up in the background during our recording and jokingly asked Sara whether she was only saying good things about him. If you listen to this episode I imagine you’ll agree with me that that’s a resounding YES.
Links:

Find Sara here (and consider booking her services as a trainer if you’re in Dubai): @kiwiskronicles

Aimee, Sara’s trainer and mentor, a PPG accredited force-free dog trainer in Dubai: @pawfectbehaviourme

Other Instagram accounts that get a shoutout in this episode:

@dax_theangrydog

@the_toby_project