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Dog walking v EFL
by Joanne Webster, Italy 

Before I began to teach EFL, I was a professional dog walker and on the face of it there is not much similarity between the two professions, professional dog walkers work fewer hours and are better paid, dogs are dogs and students are … well,… people.  But I have found that my experience in the park,  has helped me in the classroom.

Like classes, walks last about an hour or so, during which time certain expectations should be met.  

THE WALKER

As the walker I soon learnt that the key to walking dogs is respect for the individual and understanding the group as a whole. It was not enough to simply like dogs they had to respond to me. Each dog was an individual and had his own peccadilloes to be accommodated. Although young and old dogs need different types of exercise they all need affirmation from the walker.

When dealing with the group I had to establish some ground rules and came up with the following, all of which are directly transferable to the classroom!

No stealing 
No begging
No fighting
No sex on the walk
No jumping on others
Responds to the WAIT command
Basic road sense
Responds to name

Maximum disciplinary measure: to be put on a lead

Communication between the group and I required that we each be aware of the others’ body language. Visual contact was very important too and I soon understood that I was more watched than watching.
As the walker, I had to be the leader of the group but also recognise the hierarchies which developed between the dogs. They are pack animals and often respond as such when they meet a stranger. (I have witnessed the same behaviour in the classroom more than once!)

I used my voice, reinforced by gesture to give instructions when I wanted to communicate with the group and I avoided giving too many or too complicated instructions when I wanted to communicate with them.

THE GROUP

For the walk to work well you have to know the basic requirements of your group, as individuals and as a whole. Ideally, each should be given the opportunity to express itself during the walk. This can be quite a challenge as dogs come in such a wide range of physiques, predisposed to certain behaviour patterns.
Terriers 	- usually quite small, can be yappy, tenacious, fast
Pointers 	- elegant, leggy, need to run
Setters 	- handsome, good movers, can be nervy
Retrievers	- big, amenable, cheerful, cooperative
Spaniels	- smallish, neat, tend to pull on the lead,
Shepherds	- like rounding up the others-and you
Hounds 	- very instinctive, good team players
Each responds differently to stimuli, each has his strengths and weaknesses.

THE WALK
Owners expected their dogs to come home well exercised and I needed a sense of job satisfaction so I aimed to provide an interesting, fun walk with some challenges to engage the dogs and give them something more than physical exercise. 

Activities need to be varied to keep the dogs stimulated and responsive having new challenges is essential as familiarity does tend to breed contempt. 
Some routine is good in the walk though the ability to be flexible allows for more opportunity. Routine can help provide momentum for changing activities.
Variety on the walk means that there is something for each dog and they each get to do their own thing.

From the dogs point of view the ideal walk constitutes trees, bushes, water, sticks, balls, squirrels and other dogs. 

ACTIVITIES:
Sticks (repetitive type, grammar practice and gap fills)

Some dogs like chasing sticks and don’t bat and furry eyelid at bicycles or horses. Others are the complete reverse. Some pick up the stick and dutifully return it, some pick it up but don’t come back with it; some are proactive stick chasers presenting sticks at your feet jumping, panting and yapping for it to be thrown. Some return with the stick but don’t let it go, some get the biggest stick they can find and wrestle with it oblivious to anything else, some gnaw and strip the stick with a mixture of glee and dedication, until there is only sawdust.

Hide’n’Seek (problem solving, info gap )

This is almost impossible with some dogs as they won’t take their eyes off you, others become anxious and begin to fret, some use your temporary absence to do their own thing and yet others love it and as long as you keep calling will find you out with a wildly wagging tail.

Water (attitude to language learning)

All dogs can swim but the reaction to water is varied, some make a bee line for it and plunge in, some just tip-toe around it, barely getting their pads wet, others are quite happy to have a paddle but no more.

At the end of a good walk the dogs are gratefully satiated but looking forward to seeing each other again the next day.