Free Will Teaching Is Fundamentally Different.

Is it time for you to try something different?

Are you ready for a different way to help your dog? Are you sick of repeating the same things over and over and never truly changing anything? Do you feel up for a new challenge, one that doesn't involve countless hours of training, stressful walks, or an unpractical solution that isn't working? If you would like to make a real change to your dog's way of thinking then this course is for you! We know that you want to just go out for a walk with your dog and not have to be hyper vigilant about your dog's triggers. That one day you just hope that you can walk past other triggers peacefully and stress-free. It's a simple ask, yet one that hasn't been easy to achieve for you or your dog. With the right method, and the right ethics, this is all achievable. 



Having a reactive dog is exhausting, stressful and ultimately heart-breaking! I know that your dog is the sweetest most lovable individual, but if only the world could see that part of your dog? Society doesn't appear to have been accommodating to reactive dogs, which makes it harder and more difficult when your dog reacts in public. The problem here is that there are many myths and misconceptions surrounding reactivity that hasn't helped this problem. 


But your dog isn't a reactive dog, they are a dog who is struggling to cope around their triggers. Everybody reacts to things, but reactivity becomes a problem when your dog reacts in a dysfunctional way that doesn't benefit their state of mind. You will likely have already tried to help your dog, and most the solutions given to you don't work. The most common ‘solution’‘ is to distract and train your dog using treats, but this doesn't change how your dog feels around their triggers, it doesn't change their state of mind. 


You will most likely witness your dog ignoring the triggers for a time whilst they can focus on the treat or toy, and this will begin to look like progress. What will usually happen is that you and your dog will quickly get stuck in a loop. Your dog does well, until they can't cope anymore, you then have to restart everything you were doing after taking a break. You will feel like you are taking one step forwards and 10 steps backwards! This is because distracting your dog doesn't treat the cause of how they are feeling, it only temporarily treats the symptoms. So many people sadly get stuck in this loop for years, without making much progress at all. 


Another common way of attempting to resolve this issue is through corrective actions, this can be through prong collars, tugging the lead, a sharp delivery of communication such as "no!" Or just flooding dogs with their triggers. This results in the dog shutting down and opting out, it may temporarily stop the symptoms but the cause of your dog's reactivity remains unsolved and often is worsened through corrections and punishments. 


Free Will Teaching doesn't rely on training, treats, punishment or distractions. It is entirely force free, ethical and based on scientific evidence and established psychological facts. We use language, understanding, strong communication, parenting techniques, choices, and strategies to help dogs to make their own decisions, to make better more effective choices. We work with the dogs mind, not a set of rules to follow. Instead what we do is teach you how to teach your dog to regulate their emotions and how to use their brain in a different way to help them overcome their anxiety or dysfunctional behaviour. 


Our method isn't a secret! We also have a free group which explains what we do and more information on our website! We are so confident that you will enjoy this course and feel blown away by this different approach that we are offering a 30 day money back guarantee! 


This course is only suited to those who are willing to challenge their current beliefs, who will actively participate and apply what you have learnt. The great news is that it doesn't take any extra time to apply Free Will Teaching. If you are looking to take this course to find a quick fix or find a set of training plans, this course isn't for you. This course is designed for those who are truly ready to try something different, to apply critical thinking and to learn something new and fresh.

Reviews

What our customers think.

5 star rating

Fantastic Course! So different to any other force free method I've tried.

Katie Barnes

This course is just brilliant. Bethany is informative, supportive and offers great delivery in her content! I'm already seeing positive changes to my dogs behaviour and wellbeing. A very ethical approach full of practical advice and easy to absorb...

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This course is just brilliant. Bethany is informative, supportive and offers great delivery in her content! I'm already seeing positive changes to my dogs behaviour and wellbeing. A very ethical approach full of practical advice and easy to absorb the information given.

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5 star rating

An enjoyable investment.

Rebecca Swanage

This was not time consuming, yet it was worth every minute! Fantastic course really helpful to those of us who have felt failed so many times before. The members group is really nice and I felt fully supported throughout my journey. All my questio...

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This was not time consuming, yet it was worth every minute! Fantastic course really helpful to those of us who have felt failed so many times before. The members group is really nice and I felt fully supported throughout my journey. All my questions have been answered and I now have a dog who can comprehend, think for himself and make informed choices. I highly recommend this course.

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5 star rating

Blown away!

Gemma Armstrong

It really is a course like no other! I wish I did this course much sooner. My little terrier nugget has struggled with reactive for years. It's been a constant battle of behaviourists and trainers never being able to actually help. Free Will Teach...

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It really is a course like no other! I wish I did this course much sooner. My little terrier nugget has struggled with reactive for years. It's been a constant battle of behaviourists and trainers never being able to actually help. Free Will Teaching has actually made such a huge difference. My dog is now learning how to socialise and it's so heartwarming to see.

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5 star rating

A course of brilliance

Josie Wheelmen

I am so happy that I brought this course. It's been so enjoyable for me and my dog. We have both found it fun to apply these teaching strategies. A very enjoyable experience. My dog is already coping so much better. This is the best thing I've eve...

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I am so happy that I brought this course. It's been so enjoyable for me and my dog. We have both found it fun to apply these teaching strategies. A very enjoyable experience. My dog is already coping so much better. This is the best thing I've ever tried with my reactive dog.

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Course curriculum

    1. Introduction

    2. Getting Started

    3. Be Coachable And Apply Critical Thinking

    4. Beyond Traditional Training:* How Free Will Teaching diverges from conventional training methods.

    5. What Is Free Will Teaching?

    6. Why Conventional Methods Haven’t Worked

    7. How To Stop Relying On Training

    8. Your Dog’s Personality

    9. What The Free Will Teaching Journey Looks Like

    10. Empathy First

    11. Emotion Before Obedience: Navigating the Emotional Labyrinth of a Reactive Dog

    12. The Philosophy of Choice

    13. **The Power of Choice**

    14. The Power of Communication

    15. Teaching language

    16. Word Association

    17. Teaching Word Association

    18. Conversational Language

    19. Pairing language To Your Dog's movements

    20. Your Dog's Responses

    21. Language summary

    22. How To Communicate With Your Dog

    23. BONUS. Teaching Conversational Language Webinar

    24. Getting The Best Out Of This Course

    25. **The Essence of Dog Reactivity**

    1. What Is Reactivity?

    2. Are There Different Types Of Reactivity?

    3. The Science Behind Reactivity

    4. Brain Structures

    5. How The Mind Works

    6. Hormonal Responses

    7. Sensory Perception

    8. The Interplay of Biology and Psychology

    9. Changing Your Dog’s Perspective

    10. Encountering Triggers

    11. Seeing From Your Dog's Perspective

    12. Anxiety, Fear and Phobias

    13. **Hyper-arousal: Understanding, Impact, Causes, and Influences**

    14. Their Environment

    15. Incorporating More Choices

    16. Allowing More Freedom and Choices

    17. Teaching Choices

    18. Our Own Reactivity

    19. Changing Our Own Perspective

    20. Reactivity Towards Visitors

    21. Food Luring Compromises Your Dog

    22. Encountering Triggers On Walks.

    23. Socialisation Guide

    24. Building Confidence

    25. Seeing Triggers: Overview

    1. Diet and nutrition

    2. Nutrition 🥩🥦

    3. Diet Guide

    4. Diet and Nutrition: Overview

    5. 58 Dog Friendly Nutritional Recipes

    6. Are Food Enrichment Toys/Games Actually Beneficial To Your Dog?

    7. Natural Enrichment

    8. Feeling Safe

    1. Male Hormones

    2. When Your Dog Isn’t Listening!

    3. Set Backs

    4. Mistakes Happen

    5. Breed Traits and Genetics

    6. Over-arousal and Impulse Control

    1. Why does my dog react worse to nervous dogs?

    2. Why don’t you combine training with Free Will Teaching?

    3. What should play and socialisation look like?

    4. Should I continue to take my dog to training classes?

    5. Socialising and interchangeable behaviour within individuals.

    6. How to I respond to my dog when he is demand barking?

    7. What do I do when my dog goes over the top when interacting with others?

    8. My dogs are fighting - how do I stop this?

    9. Live Recorded Q&A September 2023

About this course

  • £97.00
  • 73 lessons
  • 6.5 hours of video content

Discover your dog’s potential, starting today

Embrace A New Future and Make A Difference

Bonus material

We have Included some valuable extra resources for you!

  • Bonus Members Group

    £50 value

    Our Private Members Group where you will receive additional support from Bethany Bell . Ask questions, share your thoughts and engage with other members! You will also get the opportunity to attend Facebook lives!

  • Bonus Webinar

    £25 value

    Teaching your dog conversational language webinar. This 1 hour long webinar conducted by the Free Will Teaching team goes into detail about how to teach conversational language to your dog.

  • Bonus Nutrition Guide

    Diet and nutrition guide. Diet plays a major role in behaviour so it is essential to make sure your dog is receiving the best nutritional care possible. Learn what ingredients to avoid and what ingredients best support your dog’s overall health and wellbeing.

What Are The Benefits?

The benefits of using Free Will Living as a way of teaching and living with your dogs are huge! They will find it so enriching and fun as well as developing a whole new understanding of the world and their own life. Our approach focuses on compassionate dog parenting through force free and ethical approaches. Based on established psychology and scientific facts we use refreshingly different and effective strategies to teach dogs. We use language in a more comprehensive way to teach dogs to use their brain to its full potential. Dogs who have been taught through Free Will Teaching;

  • Are happier, more content and enriched

  • Have more freedom and choices

  • Have more self awareness and self control

  • Have better impulse control and emotional regulation

  • Have increased self-confidence and self-esteem

  • Have better communication skills and enhanced intelligence

FAQ

  • What does Free Will Teaching mean?

    It means teaching each individual dog as they express their free will, their choices, and their intellectual mind. It involves no training methods, which means there are no cues, hand signals, conditioning, or desensitisation. We do not use rewards to lure, encourage, or manipulate any response. We do not use corrections, punishers, or any training tools. All our methods are ethical, with the dog's mental and physical well-being at the forefront of everything we do.

  • Does Free Will mean that dogs should be left to do whatever they want whenever they want?

    No, certainly not. Dogs need structure and boundaries just like children do, if we did not have boundaries, then life would be chaotic, as would their minds! This would not benefit anyone, especially your dog. Free Will just means that within necessary boundaries each dog can choose to express themselves freely and can be who they are without unnecessary rules. We teach dogs the needed boundaries that are necessary for safety and harmony but this is done in an educational and natural way through gentle communication.

  • Why do we use Free Will Teaching?

    Because we know that dog's brains are more advanced and capable of learning much more than what is currently believed. We know that dogs understand far more receptive language than a 2–3-year-old child, and that the most realistic equivalent is around a 6-year-old child when we compare learning milestones. With this in mind, we know that dogs flourish expediently when we switch instructional basic language to educational language. We wouldn't teach a child of 6 years old in the same way we teach a toddler, so it does not make sense to remain at this basic level when teaching dogs. This is not beneficial to them.

  • I thought dogs can only learn through training?

    Training is just one polarised way of teaching dogs. It involves using repetition and conditioning alongside desensitisation. This doesn't benefit every single dog, and although it does have its place in the dog world, we offer an alternative way of teaching dogs. Dogs are perfectly capable of learning and developing through educational teaching in a more natural way. Whilst retaining the ethos of force-free methods, and just removing the training element, we teach dogs how to live their life to the fullest whilst remaining safe and self-controlled. Lead walking, recall, social skills, confidence building, and polite and appropriate behaviour are still taught with Free Will Teaching, but we do remove unnecessary strict rules.

  • Aren't training and teaching the same things?

    Dog training isn't the same as how we teach, and although the word 'training' does overlap when we refer to how we teach children and people that isn't the same training that we apply to dogs. When we apply  training to people, we are training them for a specific skill. This is done by repeating the same technique over and over until it is perfected, but we aren't using that same approach to teach them how to do everything in their life. When people are training for something, they don't have someone luring them with treats or someone punishing them if they get it wrong. They are simply learning through experience and repetition. So, dog training and people training for specific skills are entirely different.

  • What if the course isn't what I thought and I end up unhappy with it?

    Although we have been really transparent to show everyone what our course does and does not involve, we understand that it still might not be everyone's cup of tea. We offer a 30 day money back guarantee if you feel this course isn't for you. We are confident that you will enjoy the course though :)

  • Is this course interactive?

    Yes, we have added a bonus members group where you can ask questions and share your thoughts and your journey. This is a place you can receive support throughout your FWT journey.

  • Has this course been created by a qualified behaviourist?

    Yes, Bethany Bell is degree qualified in animal behaviour and welfare and has been working with dogs since 2010.

  • Where can I find more information about Free Will Teaching?

    We have a free group you can join where you can go through the content within the guides. Join here https://www.facebook.com/groups/542949656806635/?ref=share_group_link We also have our own website here https://www.bethanybellcanineconsulting.co.uk/ and The Academy of Free Will Teaching website here. https://academyoffreewillteaching.com/ Our own Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091924292441 And The Academy Of Free Will Living Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091474446464