Penicuik · Midlothian · approx. 35 min from base

Penicuik Dog Trainer: In-Person Sessions at Your Home

Clan Dog provides 1-2-1 dog training in Penicuik, at your home and on the estate, glen and hill routes nearby. Allan Ritchie MGoDT (MPDTI) covers recall in woodland, livestock neutrality on Pentland access land and river safety. Sessions from £190.

Arrange a 1-2-1 Consultation See how in-person sessions work

Allan Ritchie MGoDT (MPDTI): four decades of professional dog experience
Sessions at your home and on your own Penicuik routes — approx. 35 min away
Force-free: no e-collars, no methods that hurt your dog
Rated 4.9/5 based on 39 reviews

Ask about a session in Penicuik

Tell us about your dog and you will get an honest answer on whether a 1-2-1 is the right next step.

Your name*

Email*

Phone

Your dog's main issue

Tell us a little about your dog

We reply by email. Your details are used to answer your enquiry and nothing else.

Why does dog training in Penicuik need a local approach?

Penicuik gives a dog three quite different landscapes within a short drive, and each one exposes a different weakness. Penicuik Estate has managed woodland, ponds and long avenues. Roslin Glen drops into a steep, wooded river gorge. The southern Pentlands rise straight into open access land with sheep on it. A dog that copes with one is not automatically safe in the others.

The southern approach into the Pentlands is the part that needs stating plainly. This is grazing land, and livestock worrying carries serious legal consequences in Scotland as well as obvious welfare ones. Local owners walking up from Penicuik are often on stock ground within twenty minutes of leaving the house, sometimes without registering the transition.

Where can you walk and train a dog in Penicuik?

Not every problem travels between routes. This is what the main Penicuik walks each ask for, and where the work is aimed.

Penicuik: estate, glen and open hill, each testing something different
Walking spot	What it throws at your dog	What we work on there
Penicuik Estate & Low Pond	Managed woodland, water, long avenues	Recall in cover and coming away from the pond
Roslin Glen Country Park	Steep gorge, river noise, narrow paths	Recall you can trust where your voice does not carry
Southern Pentlands access	Open access land with sheep grazing	Livestock neutrality and knowing when a lead is mandatory
Whim Road farmland	Field margins, machinery, seasonal stock	Lead discipline at boundaries and calm around machinery

What problems does Allan see most often in Penicuik?

Penicuik enquiries typically arrive after a near miss on the hill or a dog lost briefly in the glen.

A dog that showed interest in sheep and gave the owner a real fright
Recall failing in Roslin Glen where the river drowns out a voice call
Going into the Low Pond and refusing to come out
Pulling on the climb out of town towards the hills
A young dog whose confidence collapsed after an encounter with cattle

Where a dog has already had a frightening experience with livestock, the work is rebuilding confidence carefully rather than pushing it back into the same situation.

Where a problem needs more than a single session, these pages go further: recall training in Edinburgh and reactive dog training in Edinburgh. Allan has also written about long lines, the most underused tool in dog training and the silent connection between owner and dog.

How does an in-person session in Penicuik work?

Penicuik is around 35 min from base and carries no travel surcharge. In-person sessions are £190, or £150 on the member rate.

A Penicuik session covers the three landscapes separately, because a dog that is safe in the estate is not automatically safe on the hill. Where there has already been an incident with stock, that comes first and everything else waits. The output is a plan you can follow without Allan there, which is the whole point.

If getting a visit in the diary is the obstacle, say so - you can set up a 1-2-1 consultation and start remotely instead.

Penicuik pricing: standard rates alongside the Clan Dog member rate
Session type	Standard	Member rate
Two-hour visit to your home	£190	£150
Two hours online over Zoom	£120	£90
One hour online over Zoom	£60	£45

Nearby areas Allan also covers

Coverage does not stop at the Penicuik boundary. These neighbouring areas are all served, and the full map is on the areas we cover page.

Dog training in Bonnyrigg & Lasswade Dog training in Colinton & Bonaly Dog training in Dalkeith

Who will actually train your dog?

You work with Allan Ritchie MGoDT (MPDTI) himself. Four decades with dogs, beginning as an RAF handler and continuing through Police rapid-response and hostage-rescue duties.

Rebuilding a dog's confidence after a frightening encounter is slow, careful work. Allan's background with dogs under pressure means he is unlikely to rush it or to push your dog too hard too soon. The relationship is the mechanism. An Penicuik session is about building communication your dog actually understands. You can read more about Allan and how Clan Dog works.

“If I could give Allan 10 stars, 100 stars whatever the max is I would!”

Paul D — published Google review. Clan Dog is rated 4.9/5 based on 39 reviews.

Sources and further reading

Guidance referenced on this page about responsible dog ownership around Penicuik:

Outdoor access — Pentland Hills Regional Park — Pentland Hills Regional Park
Being a responsible dog owner — Scottish Outdoor Access Code — NatureScot / Scottish Outdoor Access Code

Written by Allan Ritchie MGoDT (MPDTI), Master Professional Dog Training Instructor, Clan Dog. More than 40 years working with dogs, including service as an RAF dog handler and in the Police.

Reviewed by the Clan Dog Training Team — last reviewed 25 August 2026.

Dog training and behaviour guidance is educational and training-focused. Behaviour can have multiple causes, and where a medical or health issue may be involved, appropriate veterinary advice should be sought. Training results vary between dogs and depend on factors including the individual dog's behaviour, circumstances and the consistency of training.

Dog training in Penicuik: your questions answered

My dog ran at sheep once. What should I do now?

Put a lead on near stock from now on, without exception, while the recall is rebuilt properly. Livestock worrying is a serious offence in Scotland and a dog that has chased once is far more likely to chase again. This is one situation where management comes before training.

Why does recall fail in Roslin Glen specifically?

River noise plus steep, sound-absorbing gorge sides. Your dog may simply not be receiving a usable signal. A whistle carries where a voice does not, and building one in is a straightforward piece of work.

Is Penicuik covered for home visits?

Yes, approximately 35 minutes from base with no travel surcharge. Sessions run for around two hours and start at your home before moving onto your normal route.

Can you help a dog that is now frightened of cattle?

Yes, and it needs to be handled gently. Pushing a frightened dog back towards what scared it usually deepens the problem. The approach is distance, control and rebuilding confidence at a pace the dog sets.