About Us

The driving force behind Cornerstone Canine Training is to work with 
owners who love to consciously focus on their dog's emotional wellbeing.

Hello – we are so looking forward to helping you and your dog on your journey to the life you both deserve. 

If you find yourself looking at your dog, desperately wanting to help them and wondering what direction to go in, you are in the right place.

We have lived through these struggles with our own dogs and dogs we have spent time with in the past. For Natalie, when Bobby came to live with her at age 14 in 2021, he suffered with severe separation fear alongside limited hearing and eyesight. Myrna has had several rescue dogs that others were turning away from due to their many struggles. And Lucie has been through the early days, weeks and months with a new puppy in a busy family home with all the ups and downs.  

When you are in the middle of life with a dog that needs help it can be so challenging at times – for us humans as well as our dogs can’t it? So looking   after YOU is just as important to us – we get how frustrating it can be when your dog is struggling with the world around them.

Time is our greatest gift to ourselves – so let’s make sure that your time with your dog is spent with you both loving life. 

You are in the right place.  

Our Team

Natalie

Having taught riding, Natalie realised that her love for helping rider and horse feel connected was something she wanted to bring to owners and their dog's.

When researching for the best training establishment to study under, Natalie was introduced to Absolute Dogs and Games Based Concept Training by Myrna. Both Natalie and Myrna were instantly drawn to the incredible benefits with their fun, gentle and aversive free approach.

Loving the ethos behind Absolute Dogs, Natalie studied and passed both their in-depth training and behaviour courses.

Combining her ProDog Trainer certifications alongside being a fully accredited Neuro Linguistic Programming (ABNLP) Coach, Natalie started Cornerstone Canine Training in 2022.

Myrna

Myrna is happily retired after a career as a musician and teacher. Her lifelong love of dogs has meant that her retirement is being spent doing something that has always been a true calling for Myrna - to help dogs and their owner's.

Like Natalie, Myrna is a certified ProDog Trainer with Absolute Dogs, having studied and passed both the dog training and behaviour courses. Myrna has achieved incredible results transforming the lives of many rescue dogs. You will meet Myrna in our group classes.

Lucie

When Lucie's family brought home a beautiful little puppy, Natalie first started working with them as their trainer. Lucie and her puppy took to Games Based Concept Training like ducks to water.

Lucie is now studying for her ProDog Trainer certification and as part of her Duke of Edinburgh, Lucie is a very welcome volunteer in our group classes.

Our Values

It is a privilege to work with owners and their dog’s, encouraging them to have a curiosity for the exciting new journey they are both on.

With integrity and compassion, we pride ourselves in offering our clients an individually tailored transformation plan that enables them to focus their time on having fun with their dog.   

Our approach will always be to ensure owners can move forward comfortably from where they are, knowing they are heard, with the confidence that we are working with a 95% solution and 5% problem mindset.  

 As trainers we prioritise our own emotional wellbeing as well as our ongoing training. To keep ourselves energised, we regularly take part in additional training and learning with our own mentors.  

 

“I did then what I knew how to do,
now that I know better, I do better”

- Maya Angelou

The Benefits of A Pro Dog Trainer and an NLP Coach

This journey started with my very first dog training client, an adorable Staffordshire Bull Terrier called Ollie and his lovely mum.  

When chatting with Ollie’s mum, it transpired that she was worried about Ollie having a negative reaction when seeing other dogs.  

As our session progressed, the more I listened to stories of life with Ollie, the more I became curious as to whether Ollie was unhappy with other dogs or if his mum had a deeply rooted expectation that he would be

Before Ollie came to live with them, they had lived through twelve years of life with a dog who had a lot of struggles with other dogs. Every walk was a mission, with strategies in place for every eventuality for when they would see or hear other dogs.  

NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) had been an interest of mine for about twenty years and having read many books, I realised that Ollie’s mum was the one who needed some support. Simply telling her to ‘take a deep breath’ and ‘think positively’, when taking Ollie for a walk, was only touching the surface of where her mind was going. She had spent twelve years in a state of constant vigilance – no wonder she was instinctively expecting Ollie to bark and lunge at other dogs. 

I knew the benefits of NLP and how they could transform the thought patterns and reactions of Ollie’s mum and enable her to truly enjoy their walks together – for the first time. 

This set me on the path of exploring how I could formally study NLP and combine it with my dog training and behaviour studies. After searching for the best training company to study under, I am proud to be a fully accredited ABNLP Coach.  

Alongside the science of neuroplasticity, the science of human and dog behaviour have always fascinated me – being able to transform the way we perceive the world around us is life changing. 

Working with clients now enables me to help the humans just as much as their dog’s. So many dog owners, like Ollie’s mum have emotional blocks hidden deep in their unconscious mind – this is where NLP alongside dog training is truly magical.  

Ollie and his mum are massive fans of the games and are now able to enjoy their walks, content in each others company and the world around them – to the point where Ollie has recently won a class in a fun dog show – with over 30 other dogs.    

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