Stian Berg – owner, trainer and behaviourist at Beautiful Beasts – has a long and diverse career working with our canine companions. When he is not trying to avoid being bitten in half, or teaching owners about their new puppies, he spends his time reading books, practicing new techniques, teaching his resident dogs tricks or showing his current foster dog how to have some manners.
Hailing from the frozen viking lands of Norway, Stian arrived in Australia to continue his career in advertising. He then got his first ever dog – a kelpie named Red – and quickly realised owning such a high drive dog, was trial by fire. Well out of his depth, he found and attended puppy schools and classes, where he soaked up every word, thought and technique he was exposed to. He began working with friends and friends of friends, and friends of friends of friends who were having various issues with their dogs, learning as he went along, and loving every second of it.
Stian quickly realised that what he was doing was working, but he also understood that he didn’t know why it was working. So he undertook the National Dog Trainer Foundation (NDTF) Certificate III in Dog Behaviour and Training. This provided an excellent basis for understanding classical- and operant-conditioning, learning theory, proper puppy socialisation, fear, aggression and much more.
But his thirst for knowledge was still not quenched. Working alongside other professional trainers and attending numerous workshops by both national and international trainers, Stian has never stopped training himself. His goal is to learn all he can and to provide your dog the very best care and understanding.
With more than eight years of experience working with dogs, Stian is a well-rounded, balanced trainer with a large knowledge pool and a strong support network. He can even help you before you get a dog, recommending breeds and conducting behavioural assessments of your potential, desired canine adoptee. Or if you’re having issues with a resident dog, in-house training and behavioural modification can alleviate stress and help to reconnect you with your family pooch.
Get in touch today and find out how we can help you.
Let’s have a conversation with Dog.
FORMAL EDUCATION
NDTF Certificate III in Dog Behaviour and Training
ADDITIONAL EDUCATION
Josh Moran – Advanced Aggression workshop
Pat Stuart – NePoPo® workshop
FourPaws K9 – Conducting Behaviour Assessments
The Canine Paradigm – NePoPo® for aggression & puppy development
Larry Krohn – Aggression workshop
Tyler Muto – Mastering the remote collar
Ted Efthymiadis – Dog Aggression Decoded
AND LET’S NOT FORGET
My four-pawed assistants
RED – The grumpy boss-man
Life motto; Nobody is perfect.
Red is a 7 year old kelpie x koolie, who has been with us since the ripe age of 8 weeks. As a little puppy, he was an absolute terror, and would chew everything in his path. We would take him on very long walks, which would end in tantrums. Tantrums as in lying down, refusing to walk, while squealing, but also crying if we picked him up, type tantrums. But he was cute and funny, most of the time.
He loved puppy school when he was young, but neither we, nor the people running the classes, understood proper puppy socialisation. This lead to him lacking some confidence when out and about. And top that off with being attacked by a big dog when he was only 6 months, he developed a fair amount of reactivity.
We have worked a lot with Red and he is now quite a stable dog. A master in dog language, he will show other dogs his private space with posture, fur, growls and sometimes teeth. Most dogs only need a single correction from him, before learning to keep their distance. He does not accept rudeness from other dogs and will try to teach them a lesson if he believes it necessary.
Red is a great mentor, both for myself and others, and while he may never become the friendliest dog, he certainly has ‘the touch’ with puppies.
OLLIE – The playful woofer
Life motto; Turn up the volume!
Ollie, our 6 year old kelpie, came to our house at 12 weeks of age. He was part of an accidental litter, by two abattoir working dogs, and their owner called a rescue group to get rid of them. He so nicely expressed that; “if they didn’t get picked up right away, he’d hammer them to death”. Sometimes people make us very angry, here at Beautiful Beasts.
As luck would have it, Ollie and his litter were rescued and brought to Melbourne, where we got to meet them all. Most of you may be familiar with the saying; “you don’t choose the dog, the dog chooses you”. Well, I had never seen it in real life until the day Ollie chose us. Without a moment’s hesitation, he walked straight up to me, calm and quiet. While the other puppies barked and played, he fell asleep in my lap. And so we brought him home.
Being of working stock (the kind that vocalises a lot), Ollie loves to bark. When he’s running, playing, watching people walk by the house or seeing other dogs play. Despite his noisy nature, he is a very laid back and playful fellow. He pretends to be tough around puppies, but we have caught him several times playing tug with the little ones (he promptly stops the game and walks away when he sees us).
Ollie is a kind and fun dog, who loves to learn and explore. He keeps Red and other dogs company whenever needed.