'Difficult' to prepare XL Bullys for new rules says Tidworth dog trainer
Thousands of owners have applied for exemption
There's less than two weeks until the Governments new rules on XL Bully breed dog ownership comes into force.
One clinical animal behaviourist based in Tidworth says not enough time has been given to get dogs comfortable.
From 31st December, all XL Bully dogs will need to be on a lead and wear a muzzle in public.
Heather Taylor, who owns Taylors Dogs, said its been difficult given the time constraints placed on owners by the Government:
"It's quite alien for them to have something hard plastic on their face, so getting them to be able to accept wearing that for sustained periods of time, we're not just shoving it on for a vet visit.
"It is a really long process, it's been quite difficult."
Despite that, Heather hasn't needed to change her training techniques much at all, sticking with her method of positive reinforcement.
"We use the same method for all dogs," she said, "but we have had sort of a big shift in focus on those particular breeds towards making sure that they are comfortable on a lead and comfortable wearing a muzzle, which obviously takes some time."
The relatively short time frame for preparing dogs is made more tricky as the introduction of a muzzle needs to be a 'slow, positive thing'.
"If they are just sort of plonked on a dog's face, we tend to find that they're, you know, pawing them off, rubbing on the floor.
"With some breeds, we know that arousal is quite high, it can actually worsen that."
But Heather's philosophy of associating the muzzle with positivity helps dogs become comfortable with it.
One simple way of doing this in the home is by using a yoghurt pot. By placing the dogs nose into a yoghurt pot, it gets them used to having something around their nose, and their reward for this could be some yoghurt inside the pot or some other form of positive reinforcement.
Muzzles come with a negative stigma
Dogs have muzzles for various different reasons, Heather told us, but there's a stigma attached to them.
Some dogs may scavenge things off the floor or have allergies, and so a muzzle protects them from eating things that could be dangerous to them.
However, the stigma suggests a dog with a muzzle is aggressive.
Heather reassured owners that, despite the stigma attached to muzzles, they're doing the right thing.
"People just need to be confident with it and (know) that your dog's muzzled, not for any other reason than you're being a responsible owner."
And for owners concerned that their four-legged friends may not get enough exercise just being walked on a lead, Heather said owners should focus on mental stimulation rather than physical exercise.
"It's a lot more tiring for a dog to provide lots of mental stimulation and things like that.
"If people find that they're struggling because they're having to walk their dog on lead, then we would suggest that they increase enrichment in the home with lots of sniffy stuff and things like that, and things to destroy and giving them other outlets for their energy."