A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF JANE SHARP
Jane Sharp hails from England and has been involved with dog training activities both as a sport and professionally since 1973. She has owned and trained dogs from a variety of breeds, including Belgian Shepherd Dog – Malinois, Border Collie, Boxers, Flat-Coated Retriever, German Shepherd Dog, German Shorthaired Pointer, English Springer Spaniel and Cocker Spaniel, Labrador, Staffordshire Bull Terriers and has also trained cats, horses, rats and chickens. She currently owns a Jack Russell Terrier, who is highly trained to give Jane hours of entertainment!
In 1987, Jane started work as a Narcotics Detection Dog Handler for HM Customs and Excise (now UK Border Force), working at the busiest International airport in the world, London’s Heathrow Airport. Trained by the Royal Air Force and The Metropolitan Police Force, Jane has experience as a “pro-active” and a “passive” handler. She now serves as Dog Unit Team Leader at Heathrow Airport where she manages and deploys the operational detector dog teams, as well as trains flexible “general purpose” detector dogs to look for Narcotics, Currency, Tobacco or Product of Animal Origin.
In 2002 Jane was one of the first dog trainers in Europe to train detector dogs to look specifically for endangered wildlife under the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species – (CITES). Her specific target has been Elephant Ivory, Rhinoceros Horn and Tiger products. She has participated in European Workshops in Germany, Italy, UK and Hungary speaking on the subject.
In 2011 Jane spent time in Beijing, China, assisting The General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) in collaboration with TRAFFIC China (a wildlife trade monitoring network), to assist with the setting up and development of their Wildlife Detection Dog Programme, looking specifically for Elephant Ivory. As a result GACC now have four Labradors trained specifically looking for endangered wildlife, something that Jane is very proud of. During this visit Jane also introduced the Chinese Customs dog trainers to clickers and their use in the operational environment.
Jane’s professional memberships include:
- Behaviour Clinic
- All Paws – Pet Dog Training Centre
In the UK, she has successfully competed in competitive Obedience, UK Working Trials and in Agility.
In October 1999 Jane successfully completed her studies at the University of Southampton gaining a Post Graduate Diploma in Companion Animal Behaviour Counselling.
Since 1996, Jane has been in demand for a variety of Seminars, both in the UK and USA. Not only is Jane a knowledgeable and capable trainer, she has great rapport with both the people and animals she works with. One of her greatest attributes is her talent for problem solving. Jane loves a challenge and can create solutions that suit the talents of the owner and temperament of the dog.
Jane has recently worked with Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in London, teaching their staff some fun detection games, which have been used to great effect, to reduce kennel stress in high prey drive Staffordshire Bull Terriers.
Since the early 1980s Jane trained with both Roy Hunter and John Rogerson and is involved with behaviour counselling, she also owns All Paws – Pet Dog Training Centre.
In 2011 Jane travelled to Pune, India with John Rogerson, where she trained a mixed group of professional dog trainers in the art of Narcotics and Explosive detection dog work. Jane believes that although detection dog work is a serious subject, it should still be fun for both the dog and the handler, and endeavours to make her training scenarios as much fun as possible.
Her speaking engagements include the following venues:
- Roy Hunter Training Camp – (UK)
- Home Office Instructor’s Seminar – hosted by The Metropolitan Police Force – 1996 (UK)
- Training with Tambourine – Agility Seminar – (USA)
- Legacy’s International Canine Behaviour and Training Camp – 1996 & 1998 (USA)
- Anglo-American Dog Training – Cambridge Section Summer Camp – (UK)
- National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors Workshop – 1998 & 1999 (USA)
- UK LEADS Workshop (professional dog trainer organisation) – Defence Animal Centre, UK
- Battersea Dogs and Cats Home – (UK)
- Canines Can Care – John Rogerson’s 21 Day Course for Dog Trainers and Behaviourists – 2011 (Pune, India)
- Country Canine Hawaii - 2013 (Oahu, USA)
- Harper Adams University – 2013 (UK)
