Science Matters

"My Methods Have Science-Backed Research — What About Yours?"

Let’s say you walk into your doctor’s office with a sharp pain in your side.

You’re expecting a diagnosis based on years of medical training, clinical trials, and peer-reviewed research, right?

Now imagine your doctor stares at you blankly and says:
“Oh, I don’t really believe in all that science. I was raised around a lot of sick people, and I just kind of feel my way through it.”

You’d run.

Fast.

So here’s the question:  Why do we hold dog training to a lower standard than medicine, physiotherapy, teaching, or literally any job that involves living beings and outcomes that matter?

Meet Your "Dog Trainer"

Dog training in Ireland (and much of the world) is completely unregulated. That means anyone — yes, literally anyone — can call themselves a dog trainer. Your local butcher. Your cousin’s boyfriend who watched a few YouTube videos. A man who “just has a natural way with dogs” and also, weirdly, a large stash of shock collars.

And here’s the wild part:  People will trust them. With their dogs. Their families. Their children.

Why? Because we still fall for phrases like:

  • “I don’t need science, I use instinct.”

  • “I’m the alpha, I speak dog.”

  • “I was raised around dogs” (?? And I was raised around ovens, but I’m not a Michelin-starred chef.)

The Double Standard

Let’s try this in another context.

  • Would you hire a teacher who doesn't believe in child development research?

  • A vet who says, "I just go with my gut, not those fancy diagnostics"?

  • A therapist who claims anxiety can be cured with a firm voice and a rolled-up newspaper?

Absolutely not. And yet when it comes to dog training — despite the fact that we’re talking about emotional, sentient beings who live in our homes and interact with our children — we still entertain people who haven't read a single behavioural study but have watched all 12 seasons of a TV dog whisperer show.

Science Isn’t a Vibe. It’s a Tool.

Evidence-based training — also known as reward-based or positive reinforcement training — is backed by decades of research in animal behaviour, learning theory, and neuroscience.

Here’s what science tells us:

  • Dogs learn best when they feel safe.

  • Punishment increases stress, fear, and aggression.

  • Reward-based training leads to more reliable, longer-lasting results.

Studies like Ziv (2017) and Vieira de Castro et al. (2020) have shown that aversive methods (shock collars, yelling, leash jerks) increase the risk of:

  • Anxiety

  • Avoidance behaviour

  • Fear-based aggression

But sure, go ahead and ignore all that because someone with no qualifications “had dogs their whole life.” Brilliant.

Why It Matters

Ireland has a dog bite problem. A dog abandonment problem. A dog behavioural crisis.

And we’re never going to solve it if we keep treating dog training like some folksy hobby instead of what it actually is:


A profession with science behind it. A field that changes lives. One that deserves the same rigour and respect we give to any job involving health, education, or behaviour.

Because when we don't take it seriously:

  • Dogs get misunderstood.

  • Dogs get punished for things they don't understand.

  • Dogs get rehomed — or worse.

And it all could have been prevented with the right help from the right people.

So, Back to That Question…

My methods are backed by science. What about yours?

If your answer involves dominance, instinct, or a rolled-up newspaper — it’s time to raise the bar.

For our dogs. For the people who love them. And for a future where dog bites and rehoming are the exception, not the norm.

Suzi Walsh