2012 Winter Courses

Hello Zoomdog crew! 

We are happy to announce the winter courses for 2012. Classes will fill up quick so let us know if you would like to participate as soon as possible. Classes are as follows:

Focus and Attention: (Tuesdays at 6pm) this course teaches you and your dog how to bond together as a successful team by working on your skills as a handler and improving your dog’s ability to maintain focus on you.

Advanced Handling: (Tuesdays and 7pm) this course focuses on cuing as a way to communicate with your dog to strengthen on-course performance. Floor work is a prerequisite for this class.

Courses begin on Tuesday November 6th, are 4 weeks long (no class November 20th for Thanksgiving break) and will take place inside the Cache County Fairgrounds 4-H building. Classes are $45 and $35 for club members.

We will be doing a make-up class if anyone has missed previous class sessions on Tuesday November 6th at 5pm in the 4-H building. Interested handlers MUST let me know if you will be attending so I can plan the set-up in advance.

Don’t forget our Zoomdog meeting on Thursday, November 8 at 6 p.m. at Bridgerland Applied Technology College, Room 840. This is a "humans" only club meeting with a workshop (this workshop is free for club members and $5.00 for non-club members). During the meeting we will be discussing equipment needs, training facility, and upcoming classes for 2013. This is a great time to provide input, meet other club and class members, and learn.

Lastly, we are trying to raise funds for a new teeter! So far we have $50, only $250 to go! Thank you to everybody and their dogs for your continued support!

Wags,
Maria Hansen Training Director,
Zoomdog Agility and Sports

Tricks for Halloween

Are you looking for some additional training ideas or tricks? This was a fun video:

Message from Kellie and Koda

I am a finalist in the Beneful Dream Dog Park Contest which, if I get enough votes, could bring a $500,000 renovation to the Valley View Dog Park behind the Cache Humane Society!

Here is a link to the contest page where you vote:

http://

www.beneful.com/Dream-Dog-Park/Finalists-2012/Kellie-and-Koda

And, here is a link to my facebook event page:

https://www.facebook.com/events/357946344294118/

You can vote once a day, now through November 7th. Please encourage everyone to vote early and often to give us the best chance at this incredible opportunity!

Thank You so much for your support!

Kellie and Koda

Marker Training

Here is a good refresher on training your dog with markers. It is a fundamental we use in agility and has probably become second nature by this point. In any case, this is a good refresher for all for us! Listen to training your dog with markers on http://leerburg.com/dogtrainingpodcasts.htm.

This blogpost was contributed by Maria.

Can You Relate?

AKC Agility Trial Pictures

HMKC's AKC agility trial on October 5, 6 and 7 in Helena. The link will connect you to Ron Armstrong's pictures.  They are excellent -- great close-ups. There are incredible shots of both dogs and handlers. You can learn so much by just looking at the pictures. Enjoy (I know I did).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/montanapets/sets/72157631732486654/

Balance in Agility

Balance and coordination are basic fundamentals that need to be encouraged and developed in agility dogs. Many dogs learn early on in training that they do in fact have back legs!  In normal dog life the back legs are easily forgotten as they just are required to follow the front ones around. However in agility, where we ask our pups to do somewhat unnatural things like weave and balance on teeters, a working knowledge of the hind limbs (which contain the largest and most powerful muscles) is essential.  Improving balance and coordination in the back end will help our dogs perform better in the ring. Next time you see the wobble board out in practice, work it for a while!  Also, when doing the dog walk, ask your pup to stop intermittently so they can work on balancing on the obstacle.   Remember that handler balance and coordination is important too!

This post contributed by Maria.

Sweat for a Pet

Agility Cues

Thought it would be worth sharing cueing again (from class last night, learning from Linda Mecklenburg, Developing Handling Skills for Awesome Agility Teams).

The six cues used in agility are:

• motion
• shoulders
• location
• eye contact
• verbal
• arms/hands

The first four cues listed are natural cues for your dog (so be aware of what you are doing here . . . your dog sure is). The last two cues are trained cues.

Motion naturally trumps all other cues and is the primary cue (motion is the backbone of handling). Providing direction information and motivation are key to good handling. Location relative to your dog naturally provides a direction cue.

• Forward motion with acceleration = forward cue
• Lateral motion with deceleration = turning cue
• No motion = true collection and round jumping arc

Arms and hand signals are trained cues. Arm signals can be used to provide direction information. 

• Inside arm = forward cue
• Outside arm = collection cue

Eye contact naturally cues your dog. 

• Direct eye contact = collection cue (strong, natural side cue)

Remember, by looking over one shoulder or the other when you are in front of your dog you are providing a natural cue for your dog to "collect" to that side.

As a handler you are always providing motion cues, so be aware of them.

Thanks for letting me teach class Tuesday night, I had fun and hope those who attended were able to take a few things home that were new for you and that you want to continue to work on and develop.

Happy Dogs Have Jobs

Dogs need something to do to release mental and physical energy.  When you give your pup something to do you not only provide them with a release but you build the human-canine bond.  This is what agility is all about!  What better way to stimulate both dog and handler than with fun agility problems to solve and communication to work on.  With all the commands, athleticism and even mishaps that go on in the agility ring, one thing you are sure to see is a wagging tail.

This post contributed by Maria

Canine PTSD

Came across this interesting article about canine PTSD.

We had an opportunity to talk with the trainers for some of the Utah Search dogs and they were talking about what their dogs went through after a search.

Makes you really appreciate what our four-legged friends really do for us.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/military-dogs-taking-xanax-receiving-therapy-canine-ptsd-222819057.html