About us and contact

 About us:

I’m Birgitta Geerlings-Wensveen and live with my husband Marcel and our 2  dogs in Germany. 

Dogs have always played an important role in my life. I think the unconditional love of dogs towards people is incredibly beautiful and that is why dogs deserve that we understand them well and that dogs therefore have a beautiful dog-worthy life.

We have now 2 adopted dogs. Bob and Iefke an ex shelter dog from Romania. tMy dogs are my best teachers. I still learn from them every day and I am very grateful to them for this.

I have been certified since November 2017 as a Natural Dog Trainer & Behavioral Expert Level 5 (NDTE) and I followed this training at Calming Signs in Koningslust in the Netherlands. Since  December 2021 I'm a certified Separation Anxiety Dog Coach and help dogs to get over their home-alone issues. You can visit my website www.friends4ever.dog for more info.

 In 2017 I introduced The Snuffle Garden Project in the Netherlands. Sniffing is very important for dogs! We as humans often forget this or simply do not know this. Dogs are calmed by this and you prevent many behavioral problems.. More than 13 Snuffle gardens in the Netherlands and 1 in Greece are participating in the project. Read more on www.snuffeltuinen.jimdo.com or on this website

In 2020 I started to give Webinars "how to build a snuffle garden for your dog" and more than 600 people from all over the world joined me. 

I am a full member of the international professional association PDTE, a member of the Dogwelfare Alliance and ICAN. 

I am Laura Dobb, a dog coach (Lala Human Dog Coach) based in North Yorkshire, UK and founder/director of the Slow Dog Movement C.I.C.. You are welcome to read more about my background from both of these websites linked above!

I am very grateful to Birgitta for inviting me to participate in her project and to Laura Aitken in the UK for asking me to take over the UK Snuffle Garden Project. Both had the same roots, beginning with Carolin Reger, the founder of the Snuffle Garden Project in Germany.

I ran an indoor enrichment facility for dogs in Cornwall called 'Dog Sense' in 2020 and learnt many things about dogs and their senses and the importance of improving their balance, proprioception, self confidence and reduce their stress levels from Kirsty Grant of The Dog Nose in Swindon, UK, along with other Pet Dog Trainers or Europe (PDTE) colleagues. 

I recently moved to Old Malton, North Yorkshire and will grow my dog coach and hope to open a sensory garden for dogs in 2022 if all goes well! 

I learn new things about dogs every day. I learn from my own dogs, both rescues, Izzy (a 9 year old JRT) and Ted (a 4 year old Weechon), from my clients' dogs, from my Slow Dog Movement and PDTE colleagues and from my own research. 

What amazes me is how very similar our dogs' physiology and emotional makeup is to our own. Dogs get lonely, lose their balance, lack confidence and get grumpy, just like we do. Sensory gardens are an amazing tool for rehabiliating dogs and for bringing dogs and their guardians closer together. 

I encourage you to get involved in creating a sensory garden for your own dog(s) and/or for others to visit - for your own pleasure, or as a business or charity. Many dogs are needing this unique natural space in which to relax, sniff, climb, balance, explore, and more. 

I am Thirza, dog lover and proud owner of sensory garden Sneupen bij Willem, located in Noordwolde-Zuid, the Netherlands.  Birgitta and I have been running the Dutch Snuffle Garden Project (www.snuffeltuinen.jimdo.com) for many years together. 
And I am a huge fan of Laura's Slow Dog Movement!

Sneupen bij Willem.
How wonderful is it to see your dog freely and undisturbed using its nose and other senses in a safe, enclosed environment? To see your dog go on a sensory garden adventure in a rural setting while you enjoy the peace and a cup of tea? A mini-vacation, a wellness moment for both dog and owner, that is the Sensory Garden! 

A place where the dog can truly relax, be itself, and do what it is good at: using its nose. Where you, as the owner, can see your dog completely free and discover who your dog really is. All that sniffing and sneuping meets an important need of a dog, good for its well-being and behavior. And the visit to the sensory garden is not only beautiful for the moment but is also a real investment. 

Curious about me and my garden? Please visit my website for more information www.sneupenbijwillem.nl