Help the Handler, Help the Dog

HERE'S A GOOD REASON TO WAG YOUR TAIL:
We have decided to extend the Early Bird deadline for Suzanne Clothier's upcoming November seminar!

This is one you won;t want to miss. With topics covering a wide range; there's bound to be a specific gem in here for everyone!

Not to worry: even if you've been away for vacation at the old cottage and missed the Early Bird --- not to worry: it's been extended! You have all of August to get your registration in -- WITH Early Bird Fees! 

The seminar will run over the whole Remembrance Day weekend: November 9-11, 2013 and will be held at Sit Happens! Companion Dog Training in Calgary, AB. 

So, what will Suzanne cover in November?

Starting with The Elemental Questions (TM)

...if you attended her seminar in Calgary just months ago in April, you know what profound meaning one of the questions bear; asking the dog: "How is this for you?" Well, this time, she'll delve even further as she will continue and teach us more of these, six in total, Elemental Questions.

Help the Handler, Help the Dog 

will do a dive into how handlers help or hinder dogs with body language, posture, breathing, muscle tension, expression, stance and use of space. I know I personally hear many people know and comment on the fact that "it's not the dog that needs to be trained - it's me!" - well, here is an amazing opportunity to learn about how you, as a person may be able to sharpen up your communication by understanding how you influence your dog with your body and your being.

You had me at Sniff is a whole day on the very hot topic of dog-to-dog interactions. 

When putting two or more dogs together: are we being too cautious? Too careless? Do we just "let them work it out"? or try to orchestrate pleasant encounters? What is play and what is not play? How do you recognize a suitable playmate? etc etc...

Herder, Helper, Hunter, Hugger

promises to be a Very Fascinating seminar-topic, dissecting the different myths and realities about different breeds, and breed specific behaviours and preferences that have been affected by human selection in our dogs. Guarding and territorial behaviour, low dog-dog aggression breeds, toy breeds, understanding the working dog, controlling space: the herding breeds, why and why not? the "hard to train" dogs...

The Relationship Puzzle: Cooperation, Conflict and Compatibility

"Relationship" is a popular concept these days, but what does it really mean? How do you know if there is a match or a mis-match? Can you recognize the patterns of interaction that tell the tale? How do you identify the foundation issues that may be underlying conflict and training problems? 























So: to wrap up: You can sign up with Early Bird Rates all the way through the month of August. Please help and share the word about this seminar. Suzanne Clothier is an AMAZING teacher and we truly believe each and every person learning from her will benefit the dog world as a whole. 

Registration info is available here.
Please take note of Scholarships available: if you know of a dog enthusiast TEENAGER - get them in touch with Annette to find out requirements to apply. 
Also available: SAR/ Search and Rescue dog- scholarships.

Wags has hosted Suzanne twice in past - What have past participants said about Suzanne? 

"Loved it all!! Especially impressed with pacing: Powerpoint, dog examples, questions, interactive…using leashes together. Nice variety. Suzanne is amazingly informative, knowledgeable, entertaining and made the information clear!"

"My favourite part of the whole weekend was "How is this for you?" Dogs don't lie!"

"The Information overall was Fantastic. Very helpful organizers and staff."

"Favourite part was the Observation Skills taught: Learning to ask the Questions, and to listen to the dog's answers!"

"Suzanne is incredible knowledgeable. And she's got a great way to share her information - great analogies and humour - and great patience :-)"



Finally - check out Sit Happens! - our venue as well as Mungo's Books - our favourite source for dog books .Mungo's will again be present and looking after everyone's shopping needs and desires before start each day and during breaks and lunches.

Please just ask/ email or comment below if you have questions. Hope to hear from you and see you in November!!!

Hosting a Canine CSI course...what could possibly go wrong?

Now that the 4-day John Rogerson Canine CSI event is behind, and I have had an entire week to rest and get my feet back on the ground, I am finally ready to sit down and write a little bit about it. I will start with a part of the back-story. Behind the Scenes.

This is a collection of some of the clues our CSI Group
had gathered during day 3 and 4 and tried to piece together
to solve a murder mystery.

I was very excited going into the two back-to-back seminars with John Rogerson. But the honest truth is that the real anticipation (for me, personally) was for the second part of his little tour here: the hands-on Canine Crime Scene Investigation course - hosted in the gorgeous National Park I get to call home: Banff, Alberta. Smack in the middle of the gorgeous Canadian Rockies.

The lead up to part of that excitement is that the course had been in the making for a very long time - over one and a half years. When I initially had heard back from John about the possibility to bring him to Canada and was communicating with him about options for the CSI course -  I had presented him with three different hosting options and locations (two of them being in the outskirts of Calgary) - the third one; by far the most difficult to pull off in terms of permits and and logistics - was Banff. 

Which one did he get excited over? 
Banff. 
So it needed to happen.

And it did. Over the course of several months, through many phone calls, meetings face to face as well as emails and more meetings: permissions, permits were granted and contracts were signed and indoor- as well as outdoor options were scouted. A plan with multiple back-up-plans started to take form and things seemed to be in absolute control. Working with not only Town Officials, but also Wildlife Management Specialists from Parks Canada, our main concern for having 18 dog-handler teams as well as 12 auditors, training outdoors, was to have plans and then back up plans for avoiding clashes with wildlife. 

June in Banff, is elk calving season - and the interesting effect in nature with newborn baby elk is that they tend to draw in bears - who are hungry after hibernating for the winter. We certainly didn't want to put a group of dogs on a collision course with a bear hunting for breakfast...

But everything had come together. Every necessary plan seemed to be in place and the outdoor training options, in turn, had alternate back-up-plans in case we would need to move the group. Hosting a multiple-day dog seminar in Banff was actually going to happen! 

By Wednesday June 19th, after finishing up a 3-day Lecture course in Calgary, we were in the Mountains and we were touring John and his wife Judy around all the different locations in and around Banff. My dear friend Catherine Thomas had already joined us from New Brunswick for the Lecture Course in Calgary and stayed on through the CSI Course to lend a much-needed hand. Another friend, and participant in the CSI course Susan Gottselig, had so graciously offered to host Judy and John in her home and now joined us all for the site visits. 

It was a rather grey and rainy day. But we were all sporting our rain gear and none of the four dogs we brought along for the outing seemed to mind. John was excited about the possibilities seeing all the places; photos were snapped to map out the crime scenes and the story was coming together (although kept secret from Catherine, Susan and myself who were going to be participants in the course). As the rain kept pouring down, we said "See you tomorrow morning at the Fenlands Rec Centre!" to Susan, Judy and John...and Catherine and myself headed into a final night of some last minute prep and loading the van with seminar snacks, water bottles, props and dog gear.

The rain kept pouring. We didn't really think much about it that night. But as I lay in bed with the bedroom window open, I heard it all night. Relentless, hard and persistent. All night long it Poured.

Very early Thursday morning, June 20th I woke up to a message on my phone from one participant who had planned on driving in to Banff that morning. The message was short and got me right out of bed with amazing speed: "The highway from Calgary to Banff is closed." Did that ever get me going! Onto weather channels on the internet and a quick glance through news pretty quickly filled me in: there was flooding and the highway between Calgary and Canmore had already been closed -- and now -- the section between Canmore (where John and Judy were hosted at Susan's house!) and Banff was also in danger of being closed. 

That wasn't pleasant news: the seminar presenter is a pretty substantial part of hosting a seminar - I needed to get John and Judy to Banff asap! 

My phone call to Susan caught her as off-guard as I had been myself to the first news of highway closures. But she didn't waste a single moment, got the key people in motion and set off in the downpour in her van toward Banff.. crisscrossed the Town of Canmore to get out through rising flood waters everywhere and passed through park gates into Banff moments before that section of highway also closed...

...what we didn't know then, of course, was that bridges and that section of highway were going to be partially washed out and the highway would be closed and remain closed for the next two days and John, Judy and Susan would now also be stranded in Banff without ways of returning to Canmore...
Further to this; it would involve a serious juggling act to get all the CSI Props from Canmore to Banff in time for us to solve a crime. 

Thursday afternoon's reality. A walk up there with my iPhone camera captured what was really happening. Semis in a stand-still, parked along the highway by Banff's Norquay exit - lined up as far as they eye could see. There was no leaving town for anyone at that point..Officially stuck in Banff.

In the end, our Canine CSI Course was hosted through the Great Flood of 2013. Wildlife was the least of our concerns. Out of a sold out and full course with 29 registered participants - all but 4 made it to Banff before the highways closed. As of Thursday June 20th and the official start of the course, we were all stranded in Banff. It was not possible to leave and get out because of highway closures, mudslides and wash-outs all around us. But we were able to stay dry and safe, and the feeling was that "If we are all going to be stuck in Banff together - we might as well be stuck together and doing something we all love: training and working with dogs."

Dog Training in the beautiful Fenlands Rec Centre - the Curling arena minus the ice surface. Absolutely perfect for a dog training seminar. Very grateful to the Town of Banff for the use of this space! It was (and is) Perfect.

So, despite much chaos that ensued on the outside, the course went ahead. Plans changed many times and then changed yet again. John and Judy continually adapted and flexed with the ever-evolving plans. No content was lost and while we couldn`t get to locations such as Cascade Ponds (flooding made it impossible to get there) nor the Rec Grounds (completely flooded and under water) - we DID get outside and we did enjoy some beautiful scenery right within the Townsite. Overall the feeling was that participants left with big smiles on their faces, they had a great experience - although not exactly in the way that was originally planned.

Now the question that lingers in my own mind is --- the next Wags unlimited seminar is Suzanne Clothier`s return in November (Nov 9-11, 2013). How much extra planning and discussion will go in to making sure we`ve discussed all the unlikely natural disasters...in the event and IF..? 
I have a feeling that for myself: I am not able to walk away from this untouched.

Newspaper headlines in the days after the Great Flood. Devastation for many who were directly impacted by water damage. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who suffered loss due to the flooding. We were very fortunate. In the big scheme of things, the stress we experienced during our CSI event was nothing. We were safe and dry. A bit inconvenienced perhaps but able to juggle and change and keep going.

The landscape of much of Southern Alberta has forever been altered due to the floods. I think event planning in my own books is in that same category, too. Forever altered. 
But I would not necessarily say that's a bad thing :-)

Lastly a MASSIVE Thank You to all the participants who stuck through it all. You were simply an amazing group of people!! Truly a phenomenal bunch!!
Thanks to John and Judy for continually flexing and re-creating new plans on the fly and just making it happen despite flooding and rain. Thanks to Catherine for all your help and support through the whole event. And Thank you, Susan for stepping in and helping where help was needed! It's because of big efforts from people with big hearts that it all came together - despite crazy obstacles being thrown in our path.

THANK YOU! You are Amazing!

Judy and John Rogerson, Annette and  her canine sleuth: Maggio after the CSI Course had come to an official and successful close.
What could possibly go wrong?! (LOL)

Getting ready...

My life has been extra-ordinarily busy for the last few weeks. Not so much due to regular classes and privates, but because of something else. Since a long time back now, I'm gearing up for hosting two phenomenal learning opportunities back-to-back. They've been a long time in the works, but now suddenly they're here and knocking on my front door! 
Having now hosted Suzanne Clothier successfully twice, I will add that in some ways it's not that much more work to host two courses back to back, (than hosting one seminar), and in other regards it is three or four times the work!

What put a smile on my face this morning, though was the Realization that the work that started more than a year and a half ago is now coming to fruition.

The seemingly endless inbox of emails, registrations, inquiries, receipts, phone calls and admin work (which admittedly is not my favourite cup of tea) - is now about to change and turn into real human contact, dog training and connecting with people who share the same passion for dogs and training! 

Organizing a seminar does truly not happen overnight. The original letter I sent to John Rogerson, asking whether it might be a possibility to bring him to Canada to teach, was sent in October 2011. 
And here we are - June of 2013 and today he left the UK to fly out to come and teach two courses for a group of keen enthusiasts and trainers! We start on Saturday morning!

June 15-17 he will be teaching a Sold Out  "Advanced Dog Behaviour Counselling course". Then we switch locations and come into the Mountains and Banff and will experience something I am not sure we're quite ready for...Canine Crime Scene Investigation. Complete with all kinds of fun and interesting Crime Scene props, a group of participants SO enthusiastic it's just too funny. It's definitely going to be the highlight of my summer!

All 18 dog/handler spots filled in record time after announcing the course in December. A small number of 12 (only) auditors are allowed to take part side-by-side with the Canine Sleuths. 11 of those spots are taken. One final auditor spot amazingly still remains open?! Anyone?

As the courses start to take on a life of their own, I hope to be able to get a few reports in for how they progress and what is taking place. Stay tuned as I will invite some fellow course participants into guest blogging and sharing a few experiences and learning? 

One thing is for sure; all of us having the privilege to attend these courses in person, are in for a Treat and some extra-ordinary learning from a Legendary teacher! There is no doubt in my mind about that.

Canine CSI: Murder Mystery in Banff

A shrill scream resonates in the dead of the night. You jump out of bed, to realize your partner is missing. As your mind feverishly races to figure what has happened, your friends surround you and convey the bad news – your partner has been kidnapped. As you grapple with your socks and grab your trusty dog’s leash you realize you have only 2 hours before your friend could be killed. Your hands tremble as you command your dog to search. Questions race through your mind… who could it be? Could it be the cannibalistic tribe that lives in the neighbouring valley? Or the strange man who accosted your car on the way to the campsite? Another scream pierces the air. Visions of the person being tortured flood your mind. Can you find the lost person before it is too late?

Have you always dreamed of becoming Sherlock Holmes? Well, dream no more, join us for this unique opportunity to work hands-on with John Rogerson: canine scenting and crime scene investigation course – it teaches you how to train a dog to find anything – drugs, explosives, even a lost person. Are you up to the challenge? Do you have it in you to become Sherlock Bones? And train a dog to become Dr. ‘Paw’son? Then take up the gauntlet and read on.

Past courses of this type have included:

• Tracking, scent detection, advanced control and problem solving
• Team and relationship building exercises in a variety of groups
• Working on almost every exercise connected to controlling and having lots of fun with your dog
• The first couple of days you and your dog receive training to become a super sleuth
• The final days participants work in a small team of dogs and handlers while attempting to solve a heinous crime using your canine detective, your powers of observation, and problem solving skills to sort out the case
• Arson, explosive, firearm, and drug detection (real weapons, accelerants, explosives and drugs are NOT used)

This is going to be an Amazing experience! What a privilege it is for Wags unlimited to be hosting this fun learning opportunity. You can find more details here.

We're booked in to do this course in Banff June 20-23, 2013 and the course sold out incredibly fast! Now it just so happens that *ONE* auditor spot has opened up as a cancellation. Some lucky person who has dreamed of getting in on a John Rogerson course will have a chance to join us...

Please Note: This course is not intended for law enforcement officers as it is a fun mystery course designed to “have some of the most fun you could ever imagine having with your dog” (quote from past course participant) as well as create new ideas for running dog training classes where there's a real purpose and end result to the training.

So what do you need to join? Do you need a degree in forensics? Be able to shoot straight or run like the wind?  Nah. What is needed is a huge amount of enthusiasm, the ability to get along with others and work in a small team, and… nerves of steel. This training course is like no other – can you handle the challenge? Yes? Then sign up today and don’t forget to bring along your thinking hat – you’ll need it!