Canine Handling Skills - Reflection
The canine handling sessions at Writtle have opened my eyes to the breadth of experience and knowledge that are required to handle most dogs safely. Despite having grown up with dogs, and carrying out work experience at a Canine Hydrotherapy Centre prior to enrolling here, I still feel like I have a lot to learn.
In the first canine practical, I practiced some basic physiotherapy exercises on a greyhound, including ground poles. The room was full of distractions, so she quickly lost her focus and tripped and knocked each ground pole multiple times. The same bitch was used by the physiotherapist leading the session as an example - and she had behaved impeccably despite showing signs of stress. This highlighted to me the fact that it was my handling skills, not her temperament, which were at fault, as I struggled to keep her focus and maintain authority.
This was partially due to my nerves – being the first to go intimidated me – combined with my relative lack of experience, I lacked authority and necessary skills. Throughout the session however, my confidence grew as I became more accustomed to the dog, which I think led to an improvement. The final exercise we carried out was slaloming around poles, which went much better. I felt more confident, and thus the bitch showed more confidence and focus. This was good as it allowed us to end the session on a positive note, while showing some improvement.
To improve further, I will try to be more confident from the start of the session as well as research further into canine behaviour and handling techniques. I hope this will equip me better for future situations. I will continue to use the Gibbs (1988) Reflective Cycle to highlight areas I need to work on, as this could enhance my learning as well as my effectiveness both personally and professionally (Rogers, 2001), which I believe is vital for any veterinary physiotherapist.
Reference List
Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by doing: a guide to teaching and learning methods. Oxford: Further Education Unit.
Rogers, R. (2001). Reflection in higher education: a concept analysis. Innovative Higher Education. 26 (1), 55.
