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YouTube Jon Garstang on Dog Training and Human Animal Connection | 1,608
Jon Garstang is an award winning dog and human trainer, educator, writer, and musician whose work focuses on strengthening the relationship between people and animals through compassion, understanding, and education.
Originally trained as an actor at Royal Holloway, University of London, Jon began his career in music before a side job in dog care unexpectedly changed the direction of his life. Fascinated by the connection between humans and dogs, he founded For Dogs’ Sake in Southwest London in 2008 and began developing his own approach to training and behavioral education.
His passion soon expanded beyond private training into international animal welfare work. In 2010, Jon traveled to Zambia to support shelter dogs and create community education programs focused on responsible dog care and training. Since then, he has worked with shelters across Eastern Europe and Greece, helping improve rehabilitation, rehoming, and public awareness efforts.
Jon is also the author of The Positive Pet Project Guide, which became part of the Greek national curriculum, and A Dog’s Life… With You. His contributions to education and animal welfare earned him a national award in Greece in 2022.
Alongside his advocacy work, Jon remains an active musician and co wrote Underdog, a song created to raise awareness for rescue dogs in Greece.
As an ambassador for intoRescue, Jon continues to champion education as the key to improving animal welfare worldwide, helping both people and dogs build healthier, more connected relationships.
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Key Takeaways
- Jon Garstang emphasizes that true dog training is deeply rooted in compassion, understanding, and education rather than strict obedience alone.
- Transitioning from a background in acting and music, Jon discovered his true calling in animal behavior and founded For Dogs' Sake in 2008.
- His international animal welfare work in Zambia, Eastern Europe, and Greece highlights the universal importance of community education for responsible pet care.
- Jon's book, The Positive Pet Project Guide, successfully became part of the Greek national curriculum, earning him a national award in 2022.
- As an ambassador for intoRescue, Jon continues to use his platform and music, including the song Underdog, to raise global awareness for rescue dogs.
Jon Garstang is an award winning dog and human trainer, educator, writer, and musician whose work focuses on strengthening the relationship between people and animals through compassion, understanding, and education.
Originally trained as an actor at Royal Holloway, University of London, Jon began his career in music before a side job in dog care unexpectedly changed the direction of his life. Fascinated by the connection between humans and dogs, he founded For Dogs’ Sake in Southwest London in 2008 and began developing his own approach to training and behavioral education.
His passion soon expanded beyond private training into international animal welfare work. In 2010, Jon traveled to Zambia to support shelter dogs and create community education programs focused on responsible dog care and training. Since then, he has worked with shelters across Eastern Europe and Greece, helping improve rehabilitation, rehoming, and public awareness efforts.
Jon is also the author of The Positive Pet Project Guide, which became part of the Greek national curriculum, and A Dog’s Life… With You. His contributions to education and animal welfare earned him a national award in Greece in 2022.
Alongside his advocacy work, Jon remains an active musician and co wrote Underdog, a song created to raise awareness for rescue dogs in Greece.
As an ambassador for intoRescue, Jon continues to champion education as the key to improving animal welfare worldwide, helping both people and dogs build healthier, more connected relationships.
Today’s guest: www.positivepetacademy.com
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jon Garstang?
Jon Garstang is an award-winning dog and human trainer, educator, writer, and musician dedicated to improving the relationship between people and animals through compassion.
What is For Dogs' Sake?
Founded by Jon Garstang in Southwest London in 2008, For Dogs' Sake is an organization focused on developing positive approaches to dog training and behavioral education.
How has Jon Garstang contributed to animal welfare internationally?
Jon has traveled to Zambia, Eastern Europe, and Greece to support shelter dogs, create community education programs, and help improve rehabilitation and rehoming efforts.
What books has Jon Garstang written?
Jon is the author of The Positive Pet Project Guide—which was integrated into the Greek national curriculum—and A Dog’s Life… With You.
Dog/human relationship coach
Jon is an award-winning dog/human trainer, educationalist, writer and musician.
After training as an actor at Royal Holloway, University of London Jon persued a career in music and took a job for a dog care service in Bristol as a side hustle.
Jon became fascinated in the human/dog dynamic and in 2008 set up his own dog care service, For Dogs' Sake, in Southwest London.
In 2010 Jon made his first shelter contribution. Travelling to Zambia to work with LAWS to try and create an environment to make the shelter dogs more rehomable as well as creating community education programmes to educate about dog care and training.
Jon has subsequently worked in shelters in Eastern Europe and Greece as a consultant and trainer and in 2020 wrote a booklet "The Positive Pet Project guide" which made it into the Greek national curriculum. This book was followed up by "A dog's life ....with you". This project won Jon a national award in 2022 for services to education from Nemises - Greek animal welfare foundation.
A professional musician - Jon has cowritten and performed on "Underdog", a song with Greek artists written to raise awareness of the plight of dogs in the country.
Jon is an ambassador for the intoRescue organisation and his overarching ambition is to bring similar education programmes to countries that want to improve education and animal welfare