Stepping Outside the Comfort Zone — Why Experiencing Other Trainers Can Benefit You and Your Dog
Sue Watkins 
Stepping out of your comfort zone and training with different people can challenge your thinking, inspire new ideas, and help both you and your dog
Stepping Outside the Comfort Zone — Why Experiencing Other Trainers Can Benefit You and Your Dog
As handlers, it’s easy to find comfort in what we know — the same training field, familiar faces, and methods that feel safe and reliable. But sometimes, stepping outside that comfort zone and working with a different trainer, on new ground, or with an unfamiliar approach can be one of the best things you do for both yourself and your dog.
Challenging Your Thinking
Experiencing different trainers and their methods can push you to think differently. It’s not about abandoning what you believe in — it’s about broadening your understanding. Seeing other ways of teaching or handling challenges can help you refine your own approach and confirm why you do things the way you do.
Even the smallest shift in perspective can spark fresh ideas or help unlock a problem you’ve been struggling with.
Fresh Eyes, Fresh Ideas
Every trainer brings their own style, language, and way of working with dogs. You might see something done differently and realise it makes perfect sense for your dog. Equally, you might see something that reinforces your confidence in your own methods.
Either way, it’s all learning — and that’s how we grow as handlers.
New Places, New Challenges
Training in new environments offers your dog valuable opportunities too. Different scents, sounds, and distractions help your dog learn that cues have meaning wherever they are. It also helps build confidence and adaptability — both vital skills for any working or companion gundog.
Being Your Dog’s Advocate
While exploring new trainers or methods, remember that you know your dog best. If something doesn’t feel right — perhaps the pace is too much, the environment too intense, or a method doesn’t align with your values — it’s absolutely fine to say, “We’ll leave that for today.”
Being your dog’s advocate isn’t about being difficult; it’s about making sure your dog feels safe, supported, and understood. A good trainer will always respect that.
Take What Works, Leave What Doesn’t
Just because someone trains differently doesn’t make them wrong or unkind — it simply means they have a different perspective. Take the ideas that resonate with you, adapt them to suit your dog, and let go of anything that doesn’t fit.
Training is most effective when it feels authentic and balanced for both of you.
In the End…
Stepping out of your comfort zone can challenge your thinking, expand your skills, and deepen your connection with your dog. Every experience — good or bad — teaches you something. Stay open-minded, stay kind, and always train the dog you have at that moment.