Marc von Ah

How it all started

My first memory of working with dogs: I’m eight or nine years old, running through the neighbourhood in my socks in pouring rain, chasing after our Airedale Terrier, Raja. Raja was an escape artist — it sometimes felt like she could get through closed doors. Though with three kids in the house, that was rarely necessary. Something was always left open somewhere.

I didn’t catch her because I was faster in my socks. I caught her with a spontaneous, clear command.

That was my first lesson, and it still holds true today: dogs don’t react to what we say, but to how we mean it.

Coach first, dog trainer later — and why that’s not a disadvantage

I make no secret of it: I come from the human side.

I’ve worked with people for decades — as a journalist, in corporate communications, and most recently as a coach and trainer. Seven years of coaching and training, over 1,500 hours of courses and coaching, more than 500 people.

Dogs were always part of my life, in my family and my circle of friends. It became a profession later: once I had two Labradors of my own, I trained as a dog trainer at the Wolfsrudel Academy and worked there with real clients for the first time.

What I learned there wasn’t what I expected.

I’d thought I’d mainly need knowledge about dogs. Instead, I kept seeing dog owners who knew exactly what to do — and just didn’t do it in the crucial moment. Not out of ignorance. But because they reacted two seconds too late, because the leash wasn’t positioned the way they’d planned, because the decision was only made once things had already started.

That’s exactly where my strength lies. I see these things because I’ve spent years practicing how to watch people in action.

And honestly: if you’re looking for someone with 25 years of experience with dogs, you’ll find a few in Canton Zug. What’s harder to find is someone who can explain to you what you’re doing in the situation — and how to change it.