The purpose of this class is to prepare you and your dog to compete in the dog sport of obedience trialling.

In order to be successful,  the following prerequisites are required: reliable “sit”, generally loose leash walking on handler’s left.

The content of each session will be chosen according to the needs of the students attending. Key elements will include:

• Precision heeling, on and off-leash
• Motivated recalls with a formal finish
• Learning effective handling skills
• Sit stays and down stays of varying duration with distractions

Lessons will progress towards refining details of each exercise while increasing dog/handler connection and reliability despite distractions.

Students  who are new to trialing will learn how to enter, participate and succeed at a trial. Helpful hints such as warm-up exercises, calming and motivating your dog will be covered.

For dog/handler teams ready to enter trials, particularly the NYOC Trial in June, there will be opportunities to work through all the exercises together in partial/full runs

Note: The exercises you’ll learn in this class (Loose Leash Heeling, Figure 8 Heeling, Standing still for Examination by Judge, Recalls, Sit/Stay, Down/Stay.) will also help you managing and enjoying your dog each day around the house, out walking, in social and public settings, vet visits etc.)