WOOFS! trainer and Private Training Director Ariana Kincaid is the Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner of the Month for March 2013. Karen Pryor Academy is a rigorous education program for experienced dog trainers; it is a mark of distinction to simply become a Certified Training Partner. We are very proud of Ariana for this… Read more »
Laura and Ariana named Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partners
WOOFS! owner Laura Sharkey and Private Training Director Ariana Kincaid have graduated with distinction and named Certified Training Partners by the Karen Pryor Academy for Animal Training and Behavior. Karen Pryor Academy for Animal Training and Behavior is an innovative institution committed to educating, certifying, and promoting the next generation of animal trainers. Certified Training… Read more »
Patti Hight and Rebekah Klemm certified by CCPDT
We are pleased to announce that trainers Patti Hight and Rebekah Klemm have been awarded CPDT-KA certification through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers. CPDT-KA stands for Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed. Applicants must complete 300 hours of client training before trainers are eligible for an extensive semiannual test. Certificants must demonstrate… Read more »
Laura Sharkey to speak at APDT conference 2012
Congratulations to owner Dr. Laura Sharkey on her upcoming lectures at the The Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) annual educational conference. Her talks include “Everything I Know I Learned From Playing Tug” and “Stop Talking, Start Training”, a presentation of our signature Tranquil Training™ program. We are very proud that she has been asked to speak to such an… Read more »
Erica Pytlovany published in “Chronicle of the Dog”
WOOFS! Trainer and Rally Obedience expert Erica Pytlovany has been published in the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) nationwide bi-monthly magazine, “The Chronicle of the Dog”. Her article on Rally Obedience appeared in the 2011 Nov/Dec issue. Erica is also writing a series of articles on effective group class teaching that will be published… Read more »
WOOFS! training class basics
WOOFS! number one priority in our basic class is something we call Voluntary Attention (VA). Simply put, voluntary attention is the ability of the dog to pay attention to it’s handler in a distracting environment without the owner using the leash or constantly cueing to the dog to look at them. The idea is that… Read more »
The truth about being the Pack Leader, Part 2
In my last post I promised to tell you how to be an effective leader without resorting to dominance and intimidation. Quite honestly, Iʼll probably offend some people here, but intimidating animals and using physical dominance is for Neanderthals. And thatʼs probably an insult to Neanderthals. Letʼs examine the facts. Iʼm talking specifically about dogs… Read more »
The truth about being the Pack Leader, Part 1
I learned something last week when I was visiting Wolf Park in Battleground, Indiana. Wolf packs donʼt have pack leaders. Thatʼs right. NO pack leader. As it turns out, the concept of the pack leader was a mistake. A mistake made many years ago by people studying a group of unrelated captive wolves that were… Read more »
Is your dog running your life?
Let’s talk about schedules. Is your dog on YOUR schedule or are you on your DOGS schedule? It is an important question and something you really want to consider when your dog is a puppy. Of course, when you first bring a puppy home, everything MUST revolve around the dog in order to teach the… Read more »
The Why and Why Not of the dog park
So I have been talking a lot about puppy socialization and exercise, and how to accomplish those intertwined goals. Both are critical for the health and well being of your pup and the exercise part can be essential for your sanity! The dog park seems to be the go-to answer for a lot of people,… Read more »