Let’s Focus on Friday! Cool Games for the Hot Summer! Round 3
August 8, 2025 :: 6-9pm :: Pets Behave, Niceville, Florida
Once again, we had a great group at the 3rd and last of the Cool Games for the Hot Summer Workshop series! During this summer series we were once again treated to AC and ceiling fans in the Pets Behave training room. The intention for this workshop series was to introduce skills that you and your dog can work on preferably indoors or for short sessions outside. We broke the 3-hour workshop into three parts: canine balance and strength, 1-Jump around the clock drills and finally ideas for the human component to strengthen core muscles and improve balance.
I am so thankful to everyone who is choosing to come to these monthly workshops. We hope YOU will join us soon! For September, we will be moving back outside. The date and topic will be announced soon.
Let’s Focus on Friday! Cool Games for the Hot Summer! Round 2
July 11, 2025 :: 6-9pm :: Pets Behave, Niceville, Florida
Once again, our Let’s Focus on Friday workshop for July was full of learning, inspiration and laughter. This month’s focus was an introduction to balance and strength work for our dogs as well as an introduction to the one jump exercise of around the clock. Handlers were also surprised with a human balance exercise and we talked about ways to make it more challenging as their balance improves.
During our summer series of Cool Games for the Hot Summer we were treated to AC in the Pets Behave training room and while we were working on balance, most of the floor was covered with everything from Cato boards to off-brand inflatable discs to yoga blocks and even sponges for the little dogs. My goal was to inspire students to look at things in their house, both stable and unstable, to illustrate that they don’t have to break the bank to find exercise “equipment.”
And for the 1-Jump around the clock exercise, when our dogs understand how to approach the jump from different angles 4’ to 5’ away, it will make the same angles from 15’ or 20’ away much easier. Start close, develop the understanding and then slowly work on the distance.
I am so thankful to everyone who is choosing to come to these workshops. We hope YOU will join us soon! The August date and topic will be announced soon.
Let’s Focus on Friday! Cool Games for the Hot Summer!
June 20, 2025 :: 6-9pm :: Pets Behave, Niceville, Florida
Summer Solstice was a perfect time to have the June Let’s Focus on Friday Workshop! We were inside the building all night while the evening sizzled outside. AC and ceiling fans provided a very comfortable night of training.
Everyone enjoyed witnessing the “ah ha!” moments (dogs, handlers and instructor) throughout the night. We started with the basic 2 bowl set up, which reinforced those dogs who were familiar with the B2B (bowl to bowl) game and was the correct introduction for those who were new.
After a few B2B rounds for each Team, we switched to the 2-cone game, which is more for the handler than the dog. Cone work highlighted the fact that many handlers heavily rely on their arms to direct their dog but the secret is that most of the dogs, especially small ones, heavily rely on the handlers feet for their direction.
After a couple rounds of 2-cone work, we switched back to the B2B game and added a few more cones as well as a Cato board and it was such fun to see how well each dog worked through the new puzzle.
We ended the evening with another round of foot work exercises but instead of using 2 cones, we tried 4 set up in a square. So many handling options to try – front cross, rear cross, tandem turn, blind cross. Interestingly, several of the seasoned handlers got very flustered working through the 4-cone setup. That was MY ah ha moment. Much like adding too much too soon to the B2B game can be overwhelming to our dogs, by adding 2 cones instead of just 1, I inadvertently overwhelmed the handlers. Lesson learned.
Thanks to all who attended! The date and topic for July will be announced soon.
Let’s Focus on Friday! Susan Salo Jump Grids #2
May 16, 2025 :: 6-9pm :: Pets Behave, Niceville, Florida
In September, for the return of the Let’s Focus on Friday workshops, we presented four of the Susan Salo foundation jump grids. For this workshop, will be introducing four new jump grids found in her workbook. I have chosen these grids because they add some bend work but more importantly, much like our first jump grid workshop, they are small enough to fit in most people’s backyard and use only 4-5 jumps.
If you are new to jump grids, or more specifically the Susan Salo jump grids, then you will love this workshop. The grids are designed to help our dogs to better judge their takeoff and landing zone and will teach them the type of jumping effort required. The grids will also help build the muscles that will allow them to clear the bar every time.
Because each jump grid is geared to the individual, please be prepared to take notes by drawing the grids out and recording the jump height and distance between the jumps that are specific for your dog. Susan Salo’s workbook offers basic guideline for extra small, small, medium and large dogs, but as we found in the first workshop, each dog has a unique stride and therefore may need the spacing to increase or decrease.
Let’s Focus on Friday! Penguin Games and Relationship Building
April 4, 2025 :: 6-9pm :: Pets Behave Dog Training, Niceville, Florida
For April’s Workshop, we will talk about the 6 Basic Cues of Handling, what they are, how and where they are applied and what your dog naturally understands about them. While our arm motions and verbal cues are helpful, we will go back to the beginning and use our motion as our main cue to maneuver through a few short sequences. Because our dogs are naturally very good at understanding our body cues, we will then become very conscious of how we use/move our body on course. I find that when handlers quiet their arm movement and their mouth, the dogs actually “listen” better. Very likely you will discover that when these cues are applied correctly, calling the dog’s name, yelling “come!” Or “here!” several times during a run will be things of the past. This is always an eye-opening experience and many times I hear “why didn’t I know this before?”
We are also going to explore what it means to be a Team Player. We should understand that Agility is a TEAM SPORT and to do it successfully will require a relationship with our dogs. The better the relationship, the better our outcome – both on and off an agility course. We will talk about how our attitudes about our dogs and about ourselves can make or break our relationship with our dogs and I will suggest activities that we can do to help foster a better bond.
Two-Day Workshop at MADOC
March 1, 2, 2025 :: Montgomery Area Dog Obedience Club :: MADOC Agility Field, Montgomery, AL
The weekend had four 4-hour segments and Foundations was the only one that went as planned. The other three were a fun mix of planned skills that morphed into “ok, what do you all want and need to work on?”
Thanks to the club for hosting and to all participants for their enthusiasm and great questions. I hope my answers and ensuing conversations will peak your interest to continue to want to learn more about the great, fun game that we play with our dogs (aka agility). Thank you MADOC for the return invitation!
Let’s Focus on Friday! Weaves that WOW!
February 21, 2025 :: 6-9pm :: Pets Behave Dog Training, Niceville, Florida
Yes! Your dog CAN perform the weaves quickly, reliably and with distractions!
The theme of this workshop is to understand that just like running a course, our motion and positioning relative to the dog and the weave poles can affect our dog’s performance. We will begin the workshop going over some fundamentals to help your dog understand his job and also to build drive and speed. We will then work on some entries with a set of six poles and follow with a few exits on 12 poles where your dog needs to stay in while you pull away. Be ready to help your dog deal with distractions and some difficult entries. DO NOT forget your dog’s high value treats/rewards!
This workshop is for Teams who are proficient in the weaves but would like more speed, distance, consistency and confidence and will stay with their handler for 6-8 obstacles.
Three-Day Workshop at LCCOC
November 22, 23, 24, 2024 :: Louisiana Capitol City Obedience Club, LCCOC Agility Fields, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
What a great weekend in Baton Rouge at the new (and very awesome) LCCOC agility field! We were blessed with good weather and lots of sun for our 2 1/2 day Workshop. For the 4-hour Friday night segment, we worked our way through one of the finals courses from NAC and then did a few drills to refine mechanics. The 4-hour segments for both Saturday and Sunday were the same – Foundations in the morning and Drills for Skills the afternoon where we worked on front, rear, rear on the flat, blind and landing-side blind crosses. It’s always fun to work with young teams to help them learn just how important those foundation skills can be as well as those teams already competing who appreciated revisiting the basics and refining their skills.
Special thanks to Ken and Noel for inviting me, to Noel for organizing the entire weekend’s Workshop and to everyone who attended for their curiosity and great attitude.
Let’s Focus on Friday! Specific Drills for Specific Skills
Friday, November 8, 2024 :: Pets Behave Dog Training, Niceville, Florida
This workshop is designed to help you and your dog work through many of the most commonly seen cue combinations on agility courses today. Using Linda Mecklenburg’s “Skills Drills” sequences, as well as sequences designed by Daisy Peel, you’ll be challenged to perform a variety of “cue combinations”, which will provide you with a nice foundation.
Short, 6-8 obstacle drills help each team really work through specific skills. We will set up a small course using one tunnel and several jumps and then work through several drills that will allow each team to try different handling options for common sequences. This basic set up has 20+ options to handle the short sequences. Workshop participants can choose which options they would like to work on or try: front cross, rear cross, blind cross, landing side blind crosses, ketchker turns … some you might use all the time, some you can try for the first time. For each drill, you will be directed to perform a specific skill or combination of skills. Sequences are short so participants will have several opportunities to finesse each cross.
Novice dogs and handlers will learn new skills and Masters level handlers will be encouraged to step outside their comfort zone. This is one of my favorite group of drills.
Let’s Focus on Friday! Susan Salo Jump Grids
September 27, 2024 :: Pets Behave Dog Training, Niceville, Florida
We are so pleased at the response and we appreciate everyone who came out to show their support for FoF. For this workshop, we focused on a few of the Susan Salo foundation jump grids. Susan considers each grid a puzzle and it was very interesting to watch each dog figure out what jumping effort they needed to get through the grids.
Practicing grid work gives your dog an opportunity to focus on his jumping skills so he can develop understanding and confidence, and ultimately speed. It also aids in the development and maintenance of the muscles and strength necessary for successful jumping.
For this workshop, the grids presented are intended to give you a means of isolating the various aspects of jumping mechanics and allow time for your dog to practice jumping skills. Lisa will set up and demonstrate several foundation jump grids that you will be able to set up and practice at home. We will video your dog’s session so that we can point out what to look for and when and how to troubleshoot any issues.
3-Day Workshop at MADOC
March 2, 3, 4, 2024 :: Montgomery Area Dog Obedience Club, Montgomery, Alabama
It was a nice surprise when Dawn from MADOC approached me and asked about offering an agility workshop at their facility in the Montgomery area. Between hip surgery, recovery and then COVID, LGA workshops had been put on the shelf. So nice to get back out there and share the love of agility and especially foundation skills with an ever growing family of agility friends. We intended to begin the weekend with a Friday night lecture and demonstration of agility foundation skills, but due to what seemed like 24 hours of rain, we moved this segment to Monday night. This opened up the opportunity for me to work with several members for private lessons during the day.
The group chose the following workshop segments:
Agility Foundation Skills
A good, solid base of foundation skills is invaluable for every agility Team. Through several years of teaching and coaching students of various skill levels, Lisa realized that Linda Mecklenburg’s observations in agility’s early days were still viable today. In this workshop segment, Lisa will show you how to use the 4 natural cues (motion, shoulders, positioning, eye contact) and the two learned cues (arms and verbals) to maneuver your dog easily and seamlessly through any level of agility course. Each participating Team will work through a simple drill that will help clarify how the cues “work”.
Skills and Drills
Short, 8-10 obstacle drills help each team really work through specific skills. Lisa can create drills that will allow each team to try different handling options for common sequences. Will you try a front cross, rear cross or blind cross? Are rear crosses your go-to moves? Maybe it’s time to give blind crosses a try. Are you confident that your dog will take that obstacle over there if you layer a jump in between? There are no definitive right or wrong answers – each team can try different options to see what works best.
Course Work – Beginner to International
For this workshop segment, Teams will be presented with sequences and coursework to meet and challenge any skill level. Participants can walk/run the sequences and suggestions will be made on an individual basis to help each Team maneuver through the course to the best of their abilities.
Contacts
For this workshop segment, we will concentrate on how to help your dog with smooth, safe approaches and exits from the contact equipment. Just how independent are your dog’s contacts? Can you handle from a distance – even just a little? We will work on several common sequences, including turn back to tunnels, managing turns off the equipment and building confidence in all contact performances.