Sally Wood, from Bridgwater, has beaten four other finalists to win an Outstanding Achievement Award for her dedication to dogs, and the great work that she has done to train a deaf Boxer puppy, Lilly.

The award, newly introduced this year, has been designed by Royal Canin, manufacturer of tailored dog and cat food, to reward an individual who has shown outstanding commitment to responsible dog ownership through the Kennel Club’s Good Citizen Dog Training Scheme, by carrying out exceptional work on a project, dog training initiative or dog.

Five finalists were selected for the award for their great work and the public were encouraged to vote for their favourite online at the Royal Canin website, choosing Sally Wood as the worthy winner.  Sally was announced as the winner of the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Kennel Club’s annual Good Citizen Dog Scheme Awards in London’s Mayfair, where she collected her trophy.

In September 2012, Sally brought home a white Boxer puppy, who was deaf.  Aided by research into training deaf dogs, and with help and instruction from local training club, Somerset Dog Training, Sally set about training her new four-legged friend.  With lots of patience and enthusiasm, Sally’s positive, reward-based training saw Lilly learn steadily, and eventually pass her Bronze Good Citizen Dog Scheme Award, as part of the largest dog training scheme in the UK.

Sally said: “I am touched to have won an Outstanding Achievement Award as part of the Good Citizen Dog Training Scheme.  Seeing Lilly enjoy her training and all the new exercises she has learned really is its own reward, so to be recognised by the Kennel Club and Royal Canin for all the hard work we have put in is a lovely feeling.  My experiences with Lilly go to show that any dog has the potential to be trained well if you put in the effort.  We are looking forward to working on achieving the Silver Award next and I am confident that Lilly can do it.”

Mike Townsend, Kennel Club Vice Chairman, said: “We are thrilled to announce Sally as the winner of the Outstanding Achievement Award.  Those who voted obviously recognised the fantastic work Sally has done for the world of dogs, notably her dedication to training her deaf Boxer, Lilly, and she should be exceptionally proud of her achievements.”

Gemma Duffield, Royal Canin Marketing Manager, added: “Congratulations to Sally Wood, this year’s winner. We are proud to be able to commend great dog owners like Sally, who has gone above and beyond to support Lilly. Responsible dog ownership is at the heart of Royal Canin and we are pleased our new Outstanding Achievement Award can contribute to celebrating responsible dog owners.”

The Outstanding Achievement Award is a new addition to the existing Kennel Club Good Citizen Dog Scheme Awards this year, which are held annually to recognise the efforts of organisations nationwide which have invested their time and energy into helping to train dogs and educating their owners on the importance of responsible dog ownership.

More information on the Good Citizen Dog Training Scheme can be found at www.thekennelclub.org.uk/dogtraining.

Pictured (from left to right):  Mike Townsend, Kennel Club Vice Chairman, Sally Wood and Gary Gray from Royal Canin.