Angela Watson – K9 Sports Performance Coach

I am a Master Coach Trainer, High Performance Coach, and Championship Obedience Competitor. Coaching is a way of life, and it’s been my way of life for nearly 20 years. The core of how I work is to coach either on a one to one basis or on a group scale, both in-person and online, so it’s a natural step to now be able to offer one on one coaching and workshops to dog sport teams, as well as travelling the country to compete with my own dogs.

For me, whether I’m coaching a new competitive obedience team, or an established leadership team, coaching means supporting my clients to subtract the unhelpful thinking that’s been preoccupying them so they can release their innate capacity for intuition, creativity, and potential.

I’ve been competing in Obedience with my golden retrievers since 2011. Of all the dog training methods that I have learnt over the years (and they are many!) I have found nothing to compare with reward based, positive reinforcement (R+) and clicker training as the basis for K9 sports performance coaching. I love positive reinforcement because with R+ learning is clear, enjoyable and rewarding for the dog. With this approach the dogs shift from a passive responder to an active participant, which reduces pressure and increases reliable performance. And at the same time, my coaching approach relies on the handler engaging fully and personally with the process. The handler has to be learning as much and possibly more than the dog for the coaching process to make a difference. In other words, the handler and their dog are learning and working as one.

My experience with coaching spans many years and many disciplines. From this I developed my new Ring Clarity Model. A subtractive approach to boost your understanding of how to train, handle, and compete at an elite level – without the mental interference and unhelpful thinking that’s been preoccupying you.

So if you want some inspiration, to feel more confident in the ring, coaching to realise your dog sport dreams, a positive kick up the backside, someone to listen non-judgementally, or to get into competitive obedience but you don’t know where to start, just ask – the K9 Sports Performance Coach is here for you.