Dog trainer's joy at selection

Helen Hitchings said she was proud to have been chosen to join Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training – a network of professional positive reinforcement dog trainers.

Helen, who had to undertake rigorous training to get the accreditation, said: ‘I moved from Chichester to Portsmouth with my family in February 2016 and have been bowled over by what a pet-friendly city it is – who knew there would be so many great places to walk dogs in a city?

‘I use only science-based, positive methods to help my clients achieve a happy relationship with their pet.

‘I am honoured to become part of Victoria’s team and look forward to working with the dog owners of Portsmouth to enable them to greater understand their furry family members.’

Helen qualified as a veterinary nurse in 1994 and worked for PDSA and Companion Care in Portsmouth and London. In 2000 she embarked on further training and qualified as a companion animal behaviour therapist in 2001. She taught animal behaviour at South Downs College in 2004 and qualified as a teacher in 2008.

After working in the veterinary field for 25 years, either nursing, teaching or seeing behaviour cases, she decided to set up her company Positive Pets last year.

She now sees dog and cat behaviour cases, runs puppy classes and gives talks about pet care, all in Portsmouth.

Helen said: ‘I now combine my love of teaching and animal behaviour.’

Victoria is one of the world’s best-known dog trainers due to her hit TV show It’s Me or the Dog. In it, she educates the public about the power of reward-based positive reinforcement training methods. It is shown in more than 100 countries.

She set up Victoria Stilwell Positively Dog Training with the aim of assembling a global team of dog trainers dedicated to promoting humane, force-free dog training methods.