New Bertie Intermediate class - Wednesdays

If you have completed a beginner course either at Bertie or elsewhere and wish to continue with your dogs training please contact us as the course will soon commence on 11th April at 7:30 at Rosemead Drive, Oadby. The course will focus on consolidating the basic elements as well as providing new work orientated challenges which will help to keep your dog's mind occupied. Places will be limited to 7 in the class.

Philip and Rufus - Oadby Inters

Philip and Rufus joined us only two months ago starting in our Fast Track one-one class and then joining the inters. To say that Rufus was a a handful is an understatement, however he was also quite sensitive. Over the weeks both made progress though it was slow however in the last two weeks Rufus started to gain his confidence. On the last night of the Inters Philip informed me that he was going to take a six week break before rejoining the class and after some delicate threatening behaviour on my part Philip agreed to stop on. He even took on the offer of a free session in last nights Friday inters. All I can say is since Tuesday Philip must have consolidated 6 weeks of training because having joined the class as newbies he left with a dog that complied with every request, completed every exercise confidently and looked like a veteran. Well done both for all your hard work not to forget Philips wife who also train the Rufus.

Success I find is always just around the corner and if you give up you will never find it.

Please take a look at the following video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj1GAQDCPiY&feature=related

Absolutely fabulous - Maria and Maisie - Church Langton Beginners

This week saw the last of the beginner sessions at the Langtons venue. Maisie came to us 7 weeks ago and could not walk on the floor let alone take part in training.  three weeks later she started to grow in confidence which left her with just three weeks remaining on the course. Last Thursday on the last night Maisie was in the middle of doing heel work when she suddenly stopped. Rather than continue I asked Maria to leave her, call and stop her after one step. Maisie obliged. She went on to do a stand stay, down stay, having refused to lie down before, greeting test, heel work, recall etc to earn the foundation certificate in but ten minutes of work. Maria is to join the intermediate group on 12th April and ordinarily would not have started any work towards the Foundation certificate until then . Yes of course she made mistakes but at 7 months of age and having such a difficult start what Maria and Maisie have achieved was a first in Bertie history and Maria must take full credit for being able to take advantage of this opportunity. Below is a short video of them working.

Many members have heard me say that learning to read your dogs body language is far more important than listening to me and this point was proved here.

Read the next blog for a report on Philip and Rufus.

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Oadby Inters and sheep social

Bertie inters at Oadby will be held at Rosemead Dr, same as te beginners on Wed 11th April onwards. The session will start at 7:30 pm and is open to anyone who has completed a beginner course. Places will be limited so please contact us as soon as possible to book a place. Email:  nij@bertiedogs.com

There are still places available for the sheep social session on 1st April at 9:30-11:30am.

Dogs Vs Bitches

It is worth bearing in mind when you sometimes notice your bitches being of colour, going of their food or  being indifferent in response to training exercises that their change in mood may be due to pre-seasonal behaviour. Sometimes this can occur up to two months prior to their season and despite many bitches coming into season on average 6 monthly it is no unusual for their first season to be around 8/9 months.

Similarly dog behaviour will change as they approach 6 months of age and they can become more aloof and ignorant.

I have found it useful to keep a diary of their mood and behaviour changes so that you are able to predict them in the future as well as a record of when they start and finish their season.

If you work your dog you may find that bitches may not change during work but around the home they will be different. You will have to be sensitive to their moods and look to deflect their behaviour rather than get drawn in and be frustrated or angry.

Bertie Langton Beginners and Inters

Beginners

Young Dotty  a collie course started a few weeks a go a bit of a handful, barking pulling but what a transformation a few weeks can make. Positive and calm handling on the part of his owners has transformed this young pup into a calmer more biddable dog that is now showing tremendous promise. The journey is not over yet but the potential of this dog is evident to all and I for one am looking forward to seeing this pup develop.

Inters

The inters continued their good work from last week and it is a joy to work with this committed group of dog handlers who are finding success easy to come by although probably are not so positive as I am. Now the basics have been consolidated the members are now able to undertake more work orientated exercises such as scent and nosework.

There are still a few laces left for the sheep social on Sunday 1st April if anyone is interested.

Bertie Oadby Inters

The Oadby inters last night turned up with different dogs last night.  All of a sudden the dogs are grown up and feeling comfortable in the training environment which probably speaks volumes for how calm their owners must have been feeling. It is an absolute joy for me to see handlers with small dogs treat them as dogs rather than accessories and our Yorkie cross and Dachshund are proving that there is more to them than just the cute factor. That they have brains and personalities. Dog training is not just about well behaved dogs but it gives an opportunity for owners to build their dogs confidence, to give them coping mechanisms  and all of theses lead to a well balanced dog.

I am looking forward to seeing how all our inter dogs progress over the next 12 months.

Last night was also about the Bertie Foundation certificate and all of the handlers achieved success in the various elements.

Further information on theses can be obtained on: Foundation Award - download here for details
Advanced award - download here for details

Bertie Dog Training - Outdoor summer course dates now available

Outdoor training at both Stonton Wyviille and Brockshill Country Park, Oadby have now been finalised so please contact us to book a place. Our summer courses have proved very popular and to enable people to go on holiday we are again offering two short 5 week courses as well as the fast track training. Discounts will also be on offer for those joining the intermediate classes.

Bertie Venue change

We have once again managed to secure the Oadby United Reformed Church for the Intermediate one class so classes will change from Tuesdays to Wednesdays as of the 11th April.

We are still holding out for another venue in Wigston and news will follow as soon as we are informed.

Both intermediate classes are performing really well at the moment and we look forward t seeing the dogs move onto the inter two class.

Sheep social

On Saturday last we had a sheep social session at the farm with 7 dogs and their owners. The session looked ta the level of training necessary and the commitment needed to achieve success with dogs in difficult surroundings. The mix of dogs was interesting from Yorkshire terriers to cross breeds. The major focus was on introduction to sheep as well as recall based training, looking at the various techniques I use to actually work my own dogs on sheep. All in all the session proved very useful with everyone achieving some success and leaving with a new found confidence.

There will be another session very soon on April 1st so if you are interested please get in touch as soon as possible as places a restricted.

LANGTON INTERMEDIATES ROCK

Never in my two and a half years have I seen so many dogs transformed in less than two weeks. The hard work put in by the inters at Church Langton was so evident that last night was by the the best nights training I have enjoyed since the club started in Harborough.

On Tuesday a similar transformation was achieved by the Oadby Inters.

It is worth bearing in mind that most dogs will always behave and perform  better at home and the dogs with the greatest potential will often be the worst behaved. All that is required is time and patience and of course hard work.

Two more weeks left for the inters and we look forward to everyone moving into the Friday night Intermediate two class or Thursday at Church Langton.

ALL IN ALL A VERY SATISFYING WEEK. WELL DONE!!!

EXCITING NEWS REGARDING NEW VENUE

There is a possibility that Bertie will secure a new venue in the Oadby/Wigston area as of the end of April. We would like to hear from members old and new as to whether they feel a Wednesday night would be more convenient for the Beginner training than the current Friday evening. If so we will endeavour to swap our Beginner and Intermediate classes round.

This is what we will be considering:

Wednesday: Intermediate one and two
Friday: Beginners or
Wednesday Beginners and Intermediate one
Fridays: Intermediate two

Would you please email us at: nij@berteidogs.com and let us know which option you would prefer/preferred given personal circumstances like child care, swimming classes, dance classes, football etc