Classes

For puppies 3 - 5 months of age, this class starts every puppy off right, including the basics (sit, down, stay, off, come), plus walking on a loose leash, sharing, house-training, crate training, positive reinforcement, and most importantly - structured socialization! This is a critical time for your puppy to learn proper social behavior, how to tolerate gentle handling, how to share food and other resources, and the beginnings of self control. Motivating your dog, playing good-habit-forming games, training equipment, leadership, and basic communication language are stressed. Small and toy breed puppies may attend up through 12 months of age.

At some point in your dog's training, you might find yourself thinking "My dog behaves great in class, but not out in the real world." This class takes you and your dog all over our beautiful town, where we work on obedience skills and test them in real life situations. 6-week class that meets in six different locations each week, including parks, shops, and farms. Class runs rain or shine, and is completely outdoors. Designed for pups of any age that have completed a Basic/Puppy 101 class. Owners must have good leash control, and dogs should be able to sit, down, wait, and keep off easily.

No time to train? If you have limited time to attend training classes, but your wayward adolescent or adult dog needs some obedience *now*, this class might be for you. Designed for dogs of any breed over 5 months of age, this class meets just three times yet covers all Basics of Obedience, including general dog behavior, 13 basic performance requests, and loose leash walking. Some structured socializing may also be included. Motivating your dog, playing good-habit-forming games, and basic communication language are stressed. Each class is just under 2 hours long.

Designed for dogs over 7 months of age, or that have just completed Basic 101 Obedience or Puppy 102 Obedience. Owners must have basic leash control, and dogs should be able to sit, down, wait, and keep off easily. A continuation of our Basic 101 and Puppy 102 Obedience classes, the number of communication words is increased, as is working at distances and around distractions. Horse 'whispering' concepts are utilized in this class, and the dogs are encouraged to think and problem solve!

At some point in your dog's training, you might find yourself thinking "My dog behaves great in class, but not out in the real world." This class takes you and your dog all over our beautiful town, where we work on obedience skills and test them in real life situations. 6-week class that meets in six different locations each week, including parks, shops, and farms. Class runs rain or shine, and is completely outdoors. Designed for dogs over 7 months of age that have completed a Basic/Puppy 102 class. Owners must have good leash control, and dogs should be able to sit, down, wait, and keep off easily.

Cross Train With Your Canine! Love weekend hikes with your friends, or early morning walks with your neighbor? Try something fun and different! Join our Furry Fit Club for the summer to mix up your doggie exercise routine! Together you and your dog will be doing stations of cardio, agility, balance, strength and stretching exercises. Your dog will be alongside you on leash during the cardio and agility elements, and down or sit stay next to you when you are on your mat working on strength and stretching. Exercises vary by both your and your dog’s individual fitness levels. All ages, shapes, sizes and levels of fitness are welcome! Outdoor class, it runs rain or shine! You will need to bring your own yoga mat.

This class is geared towards people who have fallen in love with the sport of agility through our 101 class and are interested in increasing their skills. Off-leash work is central to this class, because to really enjoy the sport of agility, handlers need to be able to run their dogs off-leash. In addition to working towards off-leash control, key elements of this class include getting your dog to focus on you, improving your timing with commands, getting better contacts, and running simple courses. This class is a great way to exercise and bond with your dog and enjoy special, productive time with each other each week. For dogs of any breed 7 months or older, and owners of any skill level.

Petite Pooch Agility provides an exciting and challenging venue for our companions of small stature. This class is open to all dogs under 25 pounds, and no experience is required. All petite pets will learn to build their confidence, enjoy constructive play, and try out real agility obstacles like the A-frame, dog walk, and tunnel. Of course, they will also have a chance to practice the basics like "sit", "wait", and "come here". There will even be age-appropriate obstacles for young puppies, too!

This class is designed to teach you how to best interact with your own dog that is overly reactive to other dogs, people and in novel circumstances (a motor cycle speeds by unexpectedly, a trash can is left on the sidewalk, etc.). We use progressive positive behavior conditioning to develop new responses to situations that prompt your dog to over-react. This class will accommodate only 6 dogs to ensure effective learning and practice. All participants must complete a questionnaire that will be submitted at the first class meeting. The first week of class is a required orientation for people only. Dogs do not attend the first week so participants can focus on information without managing their reactive dogs. You may also be contacted by one of our experienced instructors prior to the first class to discuss specific issues/needs. Be prepared to learn new ways of relating to your dog that will increase their ability to handle challenging situations.

For dogs and handlers new to training, and those wanting better attention from their teammate. We use a clicker in this class. Human exercises for learning clicker timing, and exercises for the dog to get a good start on attention. Stationary exercises, short heeling segments, changes of pace and direction in this class. Attention & Focus is a 4 week class, and a good pre-class before Rally or starting any obedience class."

A wonderful way to invest in your dog and your community is by doing pet "therapy" as a team. You volunteer to visit people in places where the presence of a loving dog can provide much needed support and comfort, such as hospitals and court rooms. This program provides a new level of training, support, assessment and deployment of canine-human teams, focusing on canine behavior and handling skills. We will work towards mastering Project Canine Therapy Dog standards such as displaying an appropriate temperament, interacting safely and predictable with people of all ages & abilities, demonstrating both dog and human friendliness, and responding obediently in a variety of environments.

In this continuation Rally class, all the Advanced exercises are covered and coursework practiced. Off-lead work is at the handler’s comfort level, rather than a training class requirement. While this class is ‘aimed’ at those wanting to compete, and the level of difficulty increases with the behaviors learned. To take the class, you will need either the instructor's permission, completion of Rally Novice class, or a qualifying leg in Rally Novice. Limited to 6 teams.

In this session, the Excellent AND non-regular exercises are practiced with coursework. Off-lead work is at the handler’s comfort level – it is not a training class requirement. While this class is ‘aimed’ at those wanting to compete, and the level of difficulty increases with the behaviors to learned. The increased difficulty of this level makes it a challenging class and very rewarding for the team!
Prerequisites: Instructor permission, completion of Rally Novice or Advanced Class, or a qualifying leg in Rally Novice or Advanced.
Limit: 6 teams

Rally Tune-Up for novice and advanced teams wanting to brush up, perfect, and work on rally exercises. Full course night, flash card night, difficult sequences.

For puppies and dogs of all ages, all breeds. Unlike most handling classes that focus on the structure of dogs, our class emphasizes the handler's skills - eye contact with the judge, presentation, speed and timing, etc. Stacking, free-baiting, and moving work are done, and hands on work with the dogs is done several times during each class. Great class for beginning handlers and novice dogs.