TRAINING

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Introduction

It is simply amazing how obedience training can cure or alleviate most difficulties presented to you by your family pooch. How does it work? Not only does your dog learn obedience but, more importantly, the process redefines and greatly improves your relationship with and your expectations of your dog. Your dog learns to live in harmony with you. All training is positive in nature and reward-based (Clicker Training). For those unfamiliar with the process, the Clicker assists in teaching your dog/puppy new things and, when those new things are learned, the clicker goes away. It is not something you must use all the time for the life-time of the dog/puppy.

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Education

Training instruction is offered on a variety of issues including: Potty Training (house breaking), Crate Training (every dog needs a place to call their own), Nipping & Biting, Chewing Issues, Puppies/Dogs & Children, Handling & Massage, Socialization.

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Private and Small Family Group Lessons

All lessons are private and based from your home and neighbourhood. This format provides:
  • A more flexible time slot
  • Focused attention on you and your dog without the stress of a large classroom environment
  • Tailored teaching sessions designed to fit your needs.
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Training for Puppies

Puppy Manners
Every puppy needs guidance, supervision, exercise, play, and rest. At this age, they learn at an enormous rate and it depends on you to teach them appropriate behaviour for family life. This is a six week program for puppies and can begin as early as eight weeks of age.

The training includes:

  • Loose leash walking (follow me)
  • Sit and Targeting
  • Go-to-Mat
  • Down
  • Stay
  • Coming when called
  • Greeting visitors

We will also offer information and instruction on important topics like socialization, inappropriate chewing, house soiling, handling, jumping up etc..... You will also learn the "trade" game: a gentle way of teaching your puppy to release objects they shouldn't have. We'll also touch on those "terrible twos" adolescent behaviour where you puppy begins to test his or her boundaries and your rules.

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Training for Older Dogs of All Ages

Good Manners
This course is 6 weeks in length and for dogs at least 5 months of age. It includes:
  • Loose leash walking
  • By-me: an introduction to formal heel (for those times when you need your dog to walk very close to you)
  • Sit and Targeting
  • Go-to-Mat
  • Stay
  • Down
  • Come and sit
  • Wait and release
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Tailored Short Courses

We offer short programs to address specific skills and/or difficulties. Some examples are:
  • Pulling on leash
  • Not coming when called
  • Poor greeting skills
These programs are tailored to the issues at hand and may only take a few sessions.

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Basic Obedience

This course is 8 weeks in length and is for dogs at least 5 months old who have completed their series of vaccinations. In this course, you will learn proper leash handling, hand signals, and voice training techniques which will, in turn, help your dog to learn:
  • Watch.
  • Walking on a loose leash, both at ease and on heel.
  • Sit/stay.
  • Down/stay.
  • Stand for examination.
  • Recall (the "come" command).
  • The Finish.
At the end of the course, and in order to graduate, all exercises must be completed without leash correction. As well, there will be a test on the long sit/stay (1 minute) and the long down/stay (3 minutes) with the handler 20 feet away. You may wonder if it is possible to learn all of this in such a short time, but it’s simply amazing how quickly this can progress as long as you are committed to training EVERY DAY with your dog.

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Advanced Obedience Level 1

This course runs 8 weeks and is open to students who have successfully completed a Basic Obedience Course. You will learn to handle your dog in all the basic commands off-leash. You will use a long line to provide security for your dog in the early stages of training. As well, there will also be:
  • Sit in Motion
  • Down in Motion
  • Stand in Motion
  • Remote Sit
  • Remote Down
  • Drop on Recall
  • Recall and Finish
At the end of this course, and in order to graduate, all exercises must be completed without giving assistance to your dog by touching or collar correction. As well, there will be a test on the long sit/stay (3 minutes) and the long down/stay (5 minutes) with the handler out-of-sight.

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Advanced Obedience Level 2

Building on those skills mastered in Level 1, you will have the opportunity to really utilize your dog's brain power by learning such things as:

  • Sending your dog to a target.
  • Teaching movement over a course using hand and/or voice signals only.
  • Scent discrimination.
  • Seek back (retrieving dropped glove).
  • Retrieval skills (dumbbell).

As this course, as well as all others, are taught outdoors, it is essential that off-leash work as described in Level 1 is excellent as your dog will be learning to work freely from you at some distance.

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