The ethnicity of dog training?

I've just come back from a weekend away, am very tired and should probably go to bed. However, I didn't have internet access all weekend, so of course the first thing I did when I got home was check my emails, and one of those emails really got me thinking (via a convoluted, over-tired thought path!)... Is dog training in this country a "whites only" club?

According to figures from Manchester University, 88% of the British population is white. That means that 12% isn't. So out of every 10 doggy people you can think of, statistically speaking, 1.2 of them should be something other than standard-issue white. No matter how I try to shuffle people around in my head, there's no way I can come up with that figure in the real world. When I think about non-white, British, professional or amateur, dog people I can honestly only think of Robert Alleyne. Why is that?

Perhaps it's a cultural thing. Brits have a reputation for being animal lovers - someone moving to the UK from a culture with a different view of animals would probably not choose dog training as a career path, and might discourage their children from it too.. but that theory doesn't really hold much water. Our society is developing into a delicious multi-cultural soup now, with people descended from immigrants of generations ago who no longer adhere to the values of their ancestors. That society still produces young dog trainers, but their ethnic mix is disproportionately white.

Perhaps it's lack of access to suitable education materials, whether formally or for personal study. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of books about canine behaviour and training but what if someone feels more comfortable or confident reading the language they use in their home, rather than English? Is it possible to find a Hindi translation of a Coppinger book? An Arabic translation of Serpel? A Farsi translation of Fisher? I have tried, not with any intention of buying, just out of curiosity, and haven't been able to find anything of the sort. Then again, I can't read any of those languages so stumbling around book sites looking for cover pictures of dogs probably wasn't the most thorough way of going about it! And could language problems fully explain why the numbers don't add up anyway? I doubt it, and even if that were the case there are translation agencies that will help resolve the problems, for a price.

If you're waiting for me to tell you why there's an ethnic imbalance in dog training, you will be disappointed! I really don't know, I'm just speculating in print because it helps me clarify my thoughts sometimes. I'm no nearer having the answer now than when I started this post, though. If anyone would like to leave a comment, or email me, with their thoughts on the matter, please do!