Welcome to the website of Acorn Dog Training

To navigate around this site, please click on the paw marks on the left hand side of the screen.

The ethos of Acorn Dog Training is based upon training methods which do no harm to any dog. We will not promote or trade links with any company, organisation, training groups or individuals who promote harsh training, or associated products which include choke/check chains, pinch collars or electronic training devices.

A nationwide hunt is on to help the owners of Jacob find their much loved missing pet. Please click here for full details. Please circulate these details to every dog lover you know in all parts of the country. Thanks.

Acorn Dog Training was set up as a small training club in 1991 and has developed from there. We are located in Milton Keynes, which is a new town in the South Midlands region of the United Kingdom. The head trainer is Fran Griffin who is now retired (on health grounds) from the UK Registry Of Canine Behaviourists, a professional body which recognises very high standards of practice. Although she no longer takes on behaviour cases, Fran continues researching dog training methods, and canine behaviour issues, but due to her health problems, now limits herself to running puppy classes, continuation classes, and some agility. Despite her academic qualifications in Behaviour Sciences and Cognitive Psychology, her greatest teachers have been the puppies and dogs she has lived with, the many dogs she has encountered over the years, and you the owners. Fran is still able to give advice on behavioural matters to people, and other trainers via the phone. To contact Fran, please call 01908 397236 E-mail for details of puppy classes with Fran, please click here.

Glynis Gammie has owned and lived with dogs for over 35 years. Five years ago she joined the Anglian Wolf Society as a volunteer trainee handler and still spends time working with the wolves every week.

During her training Glynis found herself fascinated with canine behaviour and body language and began to study this in more depth. Subsequently, she has completed several courses in Canine Psychology, recently gaining a certificate in Advanced Canine Psychology, and is currently nearing the end of her Advanced Diploma in Canine Behaviour Management.

In order to gain insight and practical experience with dogs Glynis began working with Fran in November 2004 as a trainee instructor and now takes her own classes. To contact Glynis, please call 01908 562001 or email for details of puppy classes please click here, and adult dog courses click here

Claire-Louise Nixon, joined us as an assistant instructor in 2006 and then went from strength to strength, having become team captain and trainer for our Crufts Display team, and then appearing on CBBC's The Underdog as trainer to Callum and Cosmos who came 2nd in the overall series(see picture below). Claire-Louise has been around animals, and in particular dogs all her life, as her mother ran a veterinary surgery until her retirement. Claire-Louise also runs childrens dance classes "Busking Bunnies". Claire-Louise now combines her gift of working with animals and children, by running classes to teach children how to train their own dogs in obedience, heelwork to music and agility. She also teaches some of our puppy classes too for adult handlers. For full details of child handling classes please see Claire-Louise's page by clicking here. For puppy training availability please click here. Claire-Louise can be contacted on 01908 312478 or via E-mail

Our class assistants are: Lorna Hide, Natalie Bunn, Julie Thomas VN, Tracey P and Tracy G.

The whole ethos of Acorn Dog Training School is to inform and show owners how to teach their dogs using positive, kind, fair and effective training methods, and how to create a balanced relationship through trust and respect, rather than fear, and domination. There is no such thing as a "one size glove fits all" method to training dogs, therefore our class sizes are deliberately kept small, so that we are able to tailor our classes to meet your requirements, and your dogs own individual learning needs. We also try to make the classes as relaxed, fun and informative as we possibly can, to enable both people and dogs to learn in a calm and friendly environment.

For full details of classes and current availability, please click on the paw marks on the side menu bar, which will take you through to the appropriate pages.

THINKING OF BUYING A PUPPY?- WHERE NOT TO BUY YOUR PUPPY FROM! PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK AND READ THE ARTICLE PUBLISHED BY THE KENNEL CLUB.

Please call us for some FREE advice BEFORE deciding to buy a puppy. Different breeds have different needs, so you need to research the breed first. There are also a great many pitfalls involved in selecting the right puppy. Are you in contact with reputable breeders? Would you know the signs of a puppy farm dealership if you went to one? There are also many genetic problems, which many perspective owners are unaware of. Please don't be caught out, and end up one of the many who end up broken hearted.

If you don't know where dealerships obtain their puppies from then take a look at these websites for some of the hard facts:

Puppywatch

Hope-UK

Call to end illegal puppy farms and dealerships

If you are looking to buy a puppy, then EPUPZ can point you towards a reputable breeder, where one or both parents may be seen. EPUPZ do NOT advertise puppies which are being sold by dealers.

Adopting a rescue dog can also result in major problems and heartache. For the cost of a telephone call, we are here to help you in all aspects of selection. Be a happy dog owner. Be fully aware. Know that you are doing the right thing. Please call us today.