April Newsletter

Thank you to everyone who came out to support the Dublin Creek Animal Foundation Easter Egg Hunt.  As many of you know, I work closely with this organization which rescues animals at risk of euthanasia from animal shelters.  The work we do costs money as all of the animals need to be spayed or neutered, vaccinated and of course fed, walked, given toys, day to day care, etc.  Fundraisers, like the Easter Egg Hunt, helps us with those costs.

For those of you who had your own Easter Egg Hunts at home, save those leftover plastic eggs.  Filling the eggs with treats and then hiding them around the house for your dog to find (supervised, of course) is a great mentally stimulating game!

DOG OF THE MONTH
Paprika and Chili Werth

Paprika (far left) and Chili (third from left) belong to Karen and Merv Werth.  They have been coming to Braveheart since they were tiny puppies.  In fact, Vicki met the puppies when they were just 5 weeks old.  They are pictured here with brother Bigges (second from left and belongs to Kathy Kinney, Vicki's assistant) and mother Lily (far right), also Braveheart students.  They are wonderful boys and we love having them in our classes!

Upcoming Classes
Small Dog Beginning Obedience/Manners, Castro Valley, Mondays, 6:30-7:30pm, 6 weeks, $150, starts April 23
Intermediate Obedience, Castro Valley, Mondays, 7:30-8:15pm, 6 weeks, $120, starts April 23

Three's Company, San Leandro, Tuesdays, 6-6:45pm, 5 weeks, $200, starts May 1

Marshmallows, Dublin, Thursdays, 6-7:15pm, 3 weeks, $100, starts May 17

Beginning Obedience/Manners, Dublin, Saturdays, 9-10am, 6 weeks, $150, starts June 2
Puppy Preschool, Dublin, Saturdays, 10-10:50am, 6 weeks, $150, starts June 2
Fun with Agility, Dublin, Saturdays, 11-11:50am, 6 weeks, $150, starts June 2

No Conformation Class on Wednesday

There will be no conformation class this Wednesday.

Important Information About K9 Nose Work Classes

Effective April 1, 2012, all six week K9 Nose Work classes will be $185.  Due to the longer classes and limited number of students, it is necessary to increase the cost of these classes.  Thank you for understanding.

March Newsletter

K9 Nose Work
As you probably know, I have been going through the K9 Nose Work instructor certification course.  Becoming certified is a fun and challenging process that involves attending 7 day long workshops taught by the sports founders, teaching classes of what you learn, collecting video and turning it in, keeping training logs of training, passing an Odor Recognition Test with your own dog and then finally taking an exam.  I began the actual process in June of last year and am happy to say that as of March 1, my certification became complete and I am now a Certified Nose Work Instructor (CNWI).   


Paco Collar Class
On Friday, March 9, I am hosting a Paco Collar making class.  The way it works is that Paco makes you a plain collar and you get to use their studs, conchos and other things to decorate your own collar!  The cost is $112.50 and you get to take your collar home that night.  The class will be held at Paco Collars in Berkeley at 7pm.  Please let me know ASAP if you would like to attend as I need to let them know the collar, length and width of what you would like.

Upcoming Classes
Beginning Obedience/Manners class, Dublin, Saturdays, 9-10am, March 17, 6 weeks, $150
Puppy Preschool, Dublin, Saturdays, 10-10:50am, March 17, 6 weeks, $150
Fun with Agility, Dublin, Saturdays, 11-11:50am, March 17, 6 weeks, $150
Three's Company, San Leandro, Tuesdays, 6-6:45pm, March 20, 5 weeks, $200

DOG OF THE MONTH

 Rudy Lynch is an 18 month old French Bulldog!  The Rudester and his mom Diane have been coming to Braveheart conformation classes and our small dog play groups since he was a wee lad!  He and his brother Milo and sister Kendall are all regulars at Braveheart.  He is a friendly and happy go lucky joker and we are so happy to have him!

No Conformation Class Tomorrow

There will be no drop in conformation class tomorrow, Wednesday, February 29.

Two spots left in Introduction to K9 Nose Work starting Sunday!

I still have two spots left in the Introduction to K9 Nose Work class that is starting at Pride and Pedigree in Oakland this Sunday at 11am. If you are interested in registering for this class, please let me now ASAP and we will get you registered.

February Newsletter

Happy February everyone!  So far, this year has started out great with full classes and lots wonderful dogs to work with, new and old!  I have added two new locations for Nose Work classes too!

K9 Nose Work
After spending over a year doing K9 Nose Work with my own dogs and realizing what a growing activity this is, I made the decision to pursue becoming a Certified Nose Work Instructor through the National Association of Canine Scent Work.  My friend, assistant and co-trainer Yvonne Chohan made the decision to do the same.  We started the process in June of last year.  Over the past several months we have attended several training weekends, taught classes and practice groups, collected video of us teaching classes, turned in hours of training logs and student evaluation forms of our classes.  Two weeks ago, we took our final exam and completed the process.  We are still tying up loose ends and making sure all of our materials have gone through and awaiting official confirmation, but for the most part we have completed the process and excited to get the final approval to call ourselves Certified Nose Work Instructors (CNWI).

K9 Nose Work Classes in Oakland and Pleasanton
I have added two new locations for K9 Nose Work classes to the schedule.

We will start classes on Sunday, February 19 at 11am at Pride and Pedigree, a doggie daycare in Oakland, owned by my friend and colleague Kelli Danielson.

We will start classes on Monday, March 19 at 6pm at The Dog School, a dog training facility in Pleasanton, owned by my friends and colleagues Christine Salazar and Susi Hankins.

I am very excited to be not only branching out to these areas but also to be working with good friends that I respect as trainers and people!  If you are interested in either of these classes, please contact me to register.

DOG OF THE MONTH

Cosita Palin

Cosita belongs to Gail Palin.  Cosita has attended several classes with Braveheart and currently just finished our Winter Games class.  She is the sweetest little dog and look how cute she is!


UPCOMING CLASSES
2/11, 11am-12:30pm, Introduction to K9 Nose Work, Pride and Pedigree, Oakland
3/8, 6pm, Marshmallows, Braveheart, San Leandro
3/17, 9am, Beginning Obedience/Manners, Dublin Creek Kennel, Dublin
3/17, 10am, Puppy Preschool, Dublin Creek Kennel, Dublin
3/17, 11am, Fun with Agility, Dublin Creek Kennel, Dublin