Testimonials
Blanche Helmn
I came to agility late in life and now in my seventies, thoroughly enjoy it. It helps to keep the brain and body agile for both myself and 7 year old Shep.
Around three years ago things weren’t going too well for us and I was very close to giving up agility altogether. A lack of confidence was a large part of the problem but that all changed when I found Nicola and Wild Paws Agility.
Nicola’s brilliant training and encouragement is done with much patience and humour, the emphasis always being on the positives.
My confidence has been restored and we are achieving things I never thought possible. Shep and I both love our training sessions with Nicola.
Amy McIntosh
My name is Amy and this is my dog Ben. I have been attending wild paws classes for around 2 years. Ben is a border collie and he is nearly 3.
Ben is my very first agility dog and It’s safe to say I’ve caught the bug. At wildpaws there is a huge emphasis on doing things safely and at the right speed for the dog. Nicola and her team are constantly changing an improving there training methods to get things right and move with the times. If you are thinking of trying agility classes start here you will not be disappointed.
We started out in Hannah and Becky’s foundation classes on a Friday. They were both massively supportive and gave me loads of additional help as Ben found concentrating off lead in a class full of distractions very very difficult! They even put up an additional fence line for me and let me work with a long line until he was able to work not fenced in.
We have now graduated into Nicolas classes and can work with other dogs running! We love Becky and Hannah’s classes so much I’m also still a regular on a Friday and attend multiple classes a week.
Amy McIntosh
My name is Amy and this is my dog Ben. I have been attending wild paws classes for around 2 years. Ben is a border collie and he is nearly 3.
Ben is my very first agility dog and It’s safe to say I’ve caught the bug. At wildpaws there is a huge emphasis on doing things safely and at the right speed for the dog. Nicola and her team are constantly changing an improving there training methods to get things right and move with the times. If you are thinking of trying agility classes start here you will not be disappointed.
We started out in Hannah and Becky’s foundation classes on a Friday. They were both massively supportive and gave me loads of additional help as Ben found concentrating off lead in a class full of distractions very very difficult! They even put up an additional fence line for me and let me work with a long line until he was able to work not fenced in.
We have now graduated into Nicolas classes and can work with other dogs running! We love Becky and Hannah’s classes so much I’m also still a regular on a Friday and attend multiple classes a week.
Graham Turner
I am 73 and started agility 13 years ago, with no particular ambitions, other than to enjoy a new retirement activity with my dog. In 2018, I was selected to be in the GB Agility Development Squad and, last year (2019), I was selected to be on the Wild Card Team at the World Agility Open (WAO) Championships, in Ermelo – Netherlands, where 38 countries were represented.
I owe much of my and Krysta’s (my latest miniature schnauzer) development and achievements to Nicola’s training. She has been our agility mentor for the last 5 years – she has instructed, encouraged and orchestrated us from puppy training all the way through to Grade 7.
Nicola’s training sessions are always structured, fun and tailored to the specific development needs of individual dog and handler partnerships. She constantly focuses on handlers’ accuracy, consistency, timeliness and positive reinforcement in order to encourage our dogs to give their best performances. After every training session, I feel that I have learnt or improved some aspect to enhance my agility journey. Nicola targets her training to the individual aspirations of each partnership, whether it be to have a fun pastime or to achieve the highest possible competition level. Moreover, as she develops new skills and techniques herself, she incorporates these into the training for her students. Thus, we all move forward together.
My only complaint about Nicola, is the position of her eyes; I am sure that they are set in the back of her head because whether she appears to be looking at me or not, she spots every mistake and shortcut that I make.
