About Jen Leslie, founder of Calvert Canines

Jen is a qualified and accredited Canine Behaviourist and Trainer who set up Calvert Canines in 2016. We are based in Calvert Green in North Buckinghamshire, next to the Oxfordshire border.  

After graduating with a Psychology BSc degree at university and starting a career in support work, I thoroughly enjoyed a long stint volunteering at a dog rescue centre with the long-term residents, improving their chances of finding forever homes. This led me to switch over to a career helping dogs and their owners with emotional and behavioural difficulties.

All my work is shaped heavily by my own experiences in life, not just in terms of my own dogs I’ve adopted, but my own history of fears, phobias and traumatic experiences.  Dogs are emotional beings, with brains that are moulded through their journeys through life, just as ours are.  But also similar to us humans, we can either build a dogs’ coping skills, resilience and stress tolerance window, or we can actively dismantle it all through our own actions.  How we support our dogs matters, greatly.  And I place huge value in the intrinsic experience of all of us as unique beings – dog AND human.  

Coming to truly understand our dogs’ experience is a surprisingly big part in it feeling easier to deal with from our perspective.  In actual fact, we may find we can relate to our dogs in many ways.  This can be a huge realization for many. I consider myself to be a HSP (highly sensitive person).  A fact that I used to see as a weakness, rather than the positive it is for me in my life and work! Society, especially social media, is quick to pathologise human and dog behaviour.  Labelling a behaviour as something can severely limit the level of mystery and inquisitiveness you need to hold as you try to understand how things are for them.  Difficulties that dogs may show aren’t a pathology, but a sensitivity that needs to be understood to be supported.  It’s the clever, sensitive dogs who struggle in todays society and that isn’t because they are built wrong – it’s because the environment isn’t built for them.  
The two-way attachment between us and our dogs is a powerful influencer on every day life and emotional health long term.  In my work so far I’ve noticed how it goes a lot further than what training methods you use, or how many times a day you practice.  It’s how you show up for your dog without undermining their own independence and abilities.  It’s the safe base effect and recognizing when your dog can and cannot cope, before they need to scream about it.  It’s the compassion you can hold for your dog to recognise their struggling over everybody elses judgments. 
I’ve always seen attachments as a dance: when you do this, I do this, when I do this, we do this.  It’s not necessarily choreographed to every tiny detail but the fundamentals stay the same and the details start to feel like common sense.   We are a social species, just as our dogs are, and a safe attachment can make the difference between general emotional illness and wellness. 
One of the main fundamental things we need to do is respect a dogs right to be a dog.  This might sound obvious yet it is very often completely overlooked.  Dogs sniff each others bums and they growl if they feel threatened.  Sometimes what we view as behaviour problems is either completely natural behaviour, or behaviour that is completely understandable if we look at the world from their perspective.  We never have the right to stop a dog expressing discomfort, if that is what they are feeling.  Suppressing these expressions of discomfort can lead to a dog simply learning to be more extreme in their behaviour presentations and that is when a growl can progress to a snap or even a bite.  

The stress escalation ladder (above) can also help us see how if a dog has reached a GROWL there have been many missed opportunities for communication before that too.  And learning to read your dog like an expert can save a lot of aggression from developing severely. 

 There are a lot of reactive dogs in society today and I think that’s because we’ve stopped dogs from being able to trust their own gut and make up their own minds according to how safe they feel.  We expect blanket friendliness and prosocial behaviour no matter what and it is unachievable for living beings.  There is no living being in society today who as a species is inherently friendly to all.  It simply doesn’t exist. We must allow ourselves to support a dogs ability to make their own decisions governed by their experience of the world on that particular day.  If we stopped forcing dogs to say hello to everyone regardless of the information they are processing about that someone, we would see far less reactivity developing. 
The truth of it is every single dog struggles with something and needs some compassionate management around what bothers them.  It’s easy to feel like you’re the only ones when you’re in the middle of a busy park with everyone else seemingly having a stress-free time and you and your dog are flooded with cortisol! But if you could go up to them and ask what their tricky bits are you will hear the full picture of who their wonderful family member on 4 legs is. They too have less than perfect parts!  A big part of my recovery began when I accepted that no parts of my history could be taken away, I simply had to learn to live alongside the resultant difficulties as best I can.  And that became enough. 
We live with our dogs in their entirety so we see all their good bits and all their less good bits every single day (and we have rose tinted glasses when it comes to viewing other peoples dogs).  It is ok to feel like the struggles become overwhelming and hard to see past sometimes, or maybe you feel stuck there altogether.  That is why I have created what I have created here.  A place to compassionately support YOU whilst you focus on supporting THEM, every single day. 
I go by a different book of expectations to what you might see everywhere online or even when talking to other people.  I do not provide my professional services in order to guarantee or even attempt to help you reach perfection in your dog.  Mainly because you WILL be disappointed.  That agility star down your street who hangs off every word their human says? They may be unable to walk around other dogs without displays of aggression.  That exceptionally well trained neighbours dog who never seems to put a foot wrong? They may have severe separation anxiety or still urinates indoors.  This is the reality of living with dogs.  It is NEVER perfect. 
So you see your highly reactive dog that barks at every single dog they pass at the moment? They might be an absolute angel indoors and impeccable with kids. 
It works both ways. Your dog will also have fantastic qualities that others are jealous of.  That I CAN guarantee!
In our desperation to keep up with our perceived judgement of others and obtain that well behaved dog we think everyone has, we can go down some paths that we might, deep down, not want to do.  The allure online of “this tool will fix your dogs barking!” can throw us into conflict.  We do want our dogs to stop barking but is it fair to punish them when they’re already scared and have fought so hard to trust you in the first place?
Equally the allure of programs that promise “from reactive to relaxed in JUST one week!” can give us whiplash from raising our hopes then throwing us back down to reality when the week is up and our dog is still struggling. 
I’m really saddened when I see people struggling with their dogs after spending thousands of pounds and many more hours on training advice and behaviour “solutions”.  I’m saddened because I see hopes dashed in their eyes.  Some of my previous clients were told they would get the super sociable dog they’d like if they’d just do X, Y, Z.  Before I was a professional, I was told that upon adopting a rescue with extreme reactive presentations.  “Just do X, Y, Z then you’ll be fine”.  Being given hope like that makes accepting reality a lot harder.  I spent my entire rescues life, almost, trying to change her.  Week after week after week of putting in all the training I was advised.  In the end our relationship suffered, hugely. She didn’t get to where I was told she could be and it felt like she and I were both to blame.  I wasn’t good enough, and she wasn’t either.  Honestly? We never fully recovered our relationship after that. 
I never want to leave anyone feeling that way in my journey through peoples lives. 

You may currently feel your dog is a burden, restricting your life, or not fulfilling the role you thought they might. 
These aren’t dirty feelings to be ashamed of. It’s a natural part of caregiver burnout. 
Caregiver burnout is MUCH more likely when you feel unsupported, alone, and like nobody around you understands. 
That is why I want to focus on YOU and YOUR NEEDS, just as much as the needs of your dog.  Because if YOUR needs are being met, it’s far more likely you will be able to meet your dogs’ needs.  If YOU feel supported, it’s far more likely you will  be able to continue to support your dog.  It all starts with you, not your dog.
It’s not your dog that needs to completely change, it’s your experience of them.  How we experience our dogs depends on the community around us. 
Let me offer you a community that will rescue your relationship with your dog AS WELL AS offering them an opportunity to feel better within themselves too.  

​My Psychology BSc degree has informed my studies significantly and since then I have completed:

Advanced Diploma in Canine Behaviour Management (Level 6) - Distinction

Diploma in Dog Care, Behaviour and Welfare - Distinction

Diploma in Canine Nutrition (Level 5) - Distinction

Diploma specifically in Canine Aggressive Responses (Level 5) - Distinction

​I keep my knowledge up-to-date through courses and webinars to ensure I can provide you with the latest techniques and understanding of your dog.  

​In 2023 I completed a CPD course specifically on rescues from abroad and their different needs and genetics to dogs born in the UK.  Rescues from abroad often need an adapted approach and if misunderstood they can really struggle to make progress or indeed get worse.  

"Jen is clearly very passionate about high quality training and socialisation with an emphasis on kindness and compassion towards the dogs and the results speak for themselves. She is able to read dog behaviour so well. Their services have been, and continue to be, so important in raising a happy, well adjusted dog. Many thanks!"  Tom with Ronnie

We are a passionate team who live and breathe dogs! Whatever your problem call us today!

For a no-obligation chat with Jen Leslie, please fill out the contact form below or email [email protected]. Due to the nature of my job this is my preferred method of contact as I am out and about with clients most days. If you do not receive a reply within 48 hours please check your junk mail/spam folder.

Calvert Canines works with dogs and their owners, from around Calvert, Steeple Claydon, Winslow, Bicester, Buckingham, Aylesbury, Milton Keynes, Brackley, Banbury and every village or town in between.