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Christy Thomas Competitive Obedience Instructor |
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Christy has been showing her golden retrievers in competitive obedience for over 18 years. She also participates in AKC hunt test, earning a Master Hunter, as well as tracking and agility. She has an OTCH with both Syke (left) and Echo. Christy holds a Masters Degree in Education and is a second grade teacher who understands the importance of teaching the small pieces that go into making a successful performance. Whether your goals are to earn a qualifying score or to perform at the top level, Christy is eager to help you and your dog reach your goals!
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Ramona Cartwright Agility instructor |
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I decided 11 years ago to take my dog, Poncho, to a basic obedience class. After our first class we went on to Puppy II class which incorporated agility equipment to instill confidence in our dogs. Now, this was fun I thought! I decided to learn more and started going to watch real agility shows. We continued to train and entered our first show. I'm sure I was a nervous wreck. The shows were mainly outdoors which meant you were at the hands of Mother Nature. Poncho, being a big, long haired Australian Shepherd didn't always appreciate the heat. We went as far as both our agility excellent titles and by then I had Diva, my golden retriever, who had much more drive for agility. I decided to continue with just Diva and in June we achieved our MACH!!!!! Diva took time off to get her CD in obedeicne and also to have a family - 9 puppies!! I now have one of these puppies, Steamer, who is more than halfway to his masters titles in agility. Agility to me is a game we play with our dogs. If they are having fun they will love doing it with you! I love to teach handlers how to get their dogs to maneuver from obstacle to obstacle. Teaching the dog how to do the obstacles is the easy part compared to running a course successfully. If we keep our training fun and positive, especially since most of the mistakes are ours, we will be successful. The biggest compliment I've received when I show my dogs is that they love to work for me or that they looked liked they were having alot of fun! I like the handlers in my class to feel comfortable and have fun with their dogs. I know they'll be successful when they get being over being nervous in the ring and pretend they are at class! |
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Karen Phillips Pet classes instructor |
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| I was bitten by the competition bug over 16 years ago with my first lab in obedience classes. I have been teaching basic obedience and puppy agility for over 15 years. I have titles in field - Junior Hunter (JH), in obedience - Obedience-Companion Dog (CD), Companion Dog Excellent (CDX), in Rally - 10 legs in both Advanced and Excellent (RAE) and in tracking - Tracking Dog (TD) and Tracking Dog Excellent (TDX). I currently own and show golden retrievers
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Laurie Loeffler Agility instructor |
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I have been showing my dog, Savannah (top), in agility for five years. Savannah was born in Texas on a cattle ranch. While we lived in Texas she had the run of the horse farm where our horse was stabled. When we moved to Florida I needed to find another outlet for her energy and discovered agility! We became part of a wonderful group of "dog people" in Florida, traveling around the state together for agility trials. My son, Scott, even learned agility and is solely responsible for Savannah's Excellent (AKC)and Masters (USDAA) Jumpers titles! Auby (bottom) was born in Tennessee on a sheep ranch. His daddy was a champion sheep herder which explains Auby's natural instinct in the pasture! Auby is not only doing sheep herding but is training in agility too. When you move around as much as my kids and I have (4 states in the last 10 years) you discover the lasting friendships that can be formed with "dog people". I love teaching and becoming friends with the wonderful dogs and humans of Ohio!!
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