PDTE Conference & AGM

We can’t wait to welcome you to Dublin in September! We’re lining up some amazing talks and workshops, and we think it’s about time we all got together in real life to catch up again.

We'll be adding more informaiton on the speakers and workshop leaders soon, but as a start, we'd like to announce that our keynote speaker will be Dr Franklin McMillan, speaking about:

• Social pain
• Post-traumatic stress disorder in dogs
• ...and more!

Dr Lisa Dickel will bring some exciting new science along, which supports the practice and ethics of the pdte, including the focus on natural behavior and benefits of intrinsic motivation.

Andrew Hale of Dog Centred Care will present a talk entiteld 'Whose Behaviour is it Anyway?', taking us on a pscyhological reappraisal of how we view behaviour, encouraging us to consider why its important to change our relationship with judgment, training, consequences and indeed, behaviour itself.

Lyubov Elupova will offer a workshop on how we can use simple stragetgies to improve our online social media content, and spread the good word!

Lyubov Mischenko will take a look at the use of treats in dog training, and when we could do more harm than good using them.

Finally, Christina Sondermann of Spass mit Hund will deliver a talk on the importance of encouraging games and how we can provide enrichment and empowerment to our dogs though the medium of games.

As well as talks, we'll be running a number of practical workshops, including a truffle hunting workshop with Federica Iacozzilli, and a scent games workshop with Anne-Lill Kvam. Linda Rugaas will run a workshop on creating Enriched Environments for our dogs, and showing us how we can use them to learn more about our dogs and to encourage curiosity!

We’ve chosen a venue in Sutton, North Dublin which has lots to offer. The hotel itself boasts comfortable conference facilities, leisure facilities, and a beach beyond the hotel gardens. In the immediate vicinity of the hotel you’ll find shops, coffee shops and (most importantly!) a really nice pet shop so you can pick up souvenirs for the special dog in your life!

On the edge of the peninsula of Howth, there are some amazing walks nearby should you wish to stretch your legs after the day’s learning. Starting from the hotel, you can walk up Red Rock, look out across Dublin Bay, find beautiful rocky coves and if you’re lucky, see some native mountain goats, who’ve been introduced to naturally manage the gorse bushes. The fishing village of Howth is just one stop away on the train. Better still, if the tide is out, you can walk all the way from Sutton to Howth on a beautiful, sandy beach, which on an autumn day, you could almost have to yourself!

In Howth, you’ll find beautiful restaurants, ice cream parlours, and of course, fish and chips! Walk along the pier and look out to sea, and you’ll probably see some seals.

It’s a half hour train ride to Dublin City Centre, where you can shop, eat and drink to your heart’s content! Dublin City is a nice compact city to get around. Stay a few extra days and enjoy everything Dublin has to offer- historical sites, museums and galleries and of course, pints of the best Guinness in the world.

All welcome, whether or not you're a member of the PDTE!