Think Pawsitive

This class builds on and extends the proficiencies and exercises learned in Agility Foundations I. Successful completion of this course prepares you for Foundations III.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Agility Foundations I. Suitable for dogs of all ages.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This class builds on and extends the proficiencies and exercises learned in Agility Foundations II. Successful completion of this course prepares you for the special skills classes (Contacts, Weave Poles and Jump Grids) that follow it in the curriculum. NOTE:

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Agility Foundations II. Suitable for dogs of all ages.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

In this class, you will learn techniques and skills for successful contact performance. Consistent execution will be sought by using teeter games, building your understanding of contact end-behavior criteria, and building your dog’s confidence and drive over contacts. Continuing Contacts students will advance your progression on back-chaining to full height contacts, increasing lateral and forward handler movement and proofing your dog’s contact end-behavior with distractions, distance, movement and speed.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Agility Foundations III at Think Pawsitive or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This class will extend the skills you learned in Contacts. You will work through reinforcing your dog's contact end-behavior and adding distractions, distance, movement, speed and obstacles.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Contacts at Think Pawsitive.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

You will work progressively through various foundation jump grids inspired by Susan Salo. This class will work on your dog’s strong understanding, desire, and mechanics of jumping. You will perform Set Point, Bounce, and Slice grids.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Agility Foundations III or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

You will continue to work progressively through additional jump grids inspired by Susan Salo. You will increase your dog’s confidence on the previous grids and introduce One-stride and Bending grids. If your dog is performing the foundation grids with stability and speed, we may incrementally interject some handler movement into your exercises.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Intro to Jump Grids or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Key ideas and components of the 2×2 Weave Pole training method will be presented. We will discuss how to plan, set up and progress your training sessions, the “allowing your dog to fail” learning process, and we will practice the mechanics of reward placement and properly sending your dog. This lecture must be completed before attending Getting Started With Weave Poles.

PREREQUISITE: Dog is at least 11 mos. old and you’ve completed Agility Foundations III.

This class is 1 week, approximately 45minutes and is for handlers only (no dogs).

This class is for students that are just starting their weave pole training and will progress to the performance of 4 poles straight-up. You will learn: The mechanics of training weaves with 2 x 2’s, the difference between shaping and luring, how to help your dog understand difficult weave pole entries and to maintain his/her drive and focus through the entire set of poles. Successful completion of this course has your dog successfully performing 4 poles straight-up from a variety of angles and distances.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Agility Foundations III at Think Pawsitive or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This class is for students whose performance is 4 poles straight-up and are working on progressing toward full 12-pole performance. It is a problem-solving class that will focus on entries, placement of rewards, maintaining consistent weave pole performance, adding additional sets from 4 poles straight-up to 6 and 12 pole sets. Depending on the skills of your dog, we may also add obstacles before and after the weave poles.

PREREQUISITE: Dog/handler teams must have completed the Weave Poles: Getting Started class at Think Pawsitive.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

You will learn how to connect all of the “DOTS” (prerequisite classes listed above) to help you and your dog maintain obstacle criteria, lateral distance, desire and accuracy. You will work on small sequences that will link all of the skills you have learned thus far. You will improve your team’s relationship, understanding, confidence, speed and overall agility performance. On successful completion of this course, you will be ready for Putting It All Together where you will learn and practice the details of the Derrett Handling System. NOTE: This class will be repeated until your dog successfully performs all skills from previous classes.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Contacts, Jump Grids II, Agility Foundations III: Jump Drills, and have at least 6 straight up weave pole performance.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

You will learn how to connect all of the “DOTS” (prerequisite classes listed above) to help you and your dog maintain obstacle criteria, lateral distance, desire and accuracy. You will work on small sequences that will link all of the skills you have learned thus far. You will improve your team’s relationship, understanding, confidence, speed and overall agility performance. On successful completion of this course, you will be ready for Putting It All Together where you will learn and practice the details of the Derrett Handling System. NOTE: This class will be repeated until your dog successfully performs all skills from previous classes.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Connect the Dots or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This class will cover exercises that will relate to the following: acceleration /deceleration, front crosses, building a strong understanding of flat-work exercises, and developing your skills/mechanics on jumps and tunnels to improve your dog’s responses to your position and motion cues. The first time you take Putting It All Together classes, they must be completed in sequential order (A->B->C).

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Connect the Dots or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

You will learn the proper mechanics, positions and reward protocols for teaching your dog a solid understanding of the performance of 270’s, Threadles, and Lead-out Pivots. Once practiced and comprehended, we will apply these techniques on a variety of obstacle sequences and situations.The first time you take Putting It All Together classes, they must be completed in sequential order (A->B->C).

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Connect the Dots or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This is a handling class that will offer skills work and course challenges to improve readiness for competition.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed all Putting It All Together classes OR must get an evaluation and approval from a Think Pawsitive instructor.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Now that you know all the obstacles and handling positional cues, we will prepare you to take your skills to the next level and compete at agility trials. This class is designed to help you understand when and where to apply specific handling cues. Sequences consisting of 8 – 12 obstacles will be analyzed and performed with your dog. Your instructor will help you develop a better understanding of applying these skills in competition.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed all Putting It All Together classes OR must get an evaluation and approval from a Think Pawsitive instructor.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Now that you know all the obstacles and handling positional cues, we will prepare you to take your skills to the next level and compete at agility trials. This class is designed to help you understand when and where to apply specific handling cues. Sequences consisting of 8 – 12 obstacles will be analyzed and performed with your dog. Your instructor will help you develop a better understanding of applying these skills in competition.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed all Putting It All Together classes OR must get an evaluation and approval from a Think Pawsitive instructor.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Now that you know all the obstacles and handling positional cues, we will prepare you to take your skills to the next level and compete at agility trials. This class is designed to help you understand when and where to apply specific handling cues. Sequences consisting of 8 – 12 obstacles will be analyzed and performed with your dog. Your instructor will help you develop a better understanding of applying these skills in competition.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed all Putting It All Together classes OR must get an evaluation and approval from a Think Pawsitive instructor.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Agility workshops, leagues and competitions are a great opportunity to showcase your training and test your skills, but can also be very distracting for new dog and handler teams. Join us for a series of TRAINING MEMBERS ONLY Fun Matches to prepare you and your dog for the next level of training and trialing. Throughout these fun matches we will address: · Working through distractions (music, bar setters, leash runners & much more!) · Developing routines that will set you and your dog up for success throughout your agility career · Managing your event day (what to bring, helpful hints, volunteering, crating, etc.) · Preparing your dog to enter the ring (pre- and post- run routines) · Engagement at the end of your run · Mental preparation and strategies for success · Choosing to run NFC – Not For Competition · Understanding agility trials (venues, registration, entry forms, classes and games, etc.) These fun matches will include a combination of learning and working activities to engage both you and your dog. Come train in a fun environment and prepare both you and your dog for your future in agility!

PREREQUISITE: Must be enrolled in Connect the Dots or higher OR OR must get an evaluation and approval from a Think Pawsitive instructor.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

In this class, we will advance the foundation skills you learned from the Intro to Scent class and start basic container and interior room searching.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Nose Work I: Intro to Scent or the Think Pawsitive Nose Work Workshop.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This class will work on building the interior and container search skills taught in Nose Work I. We will also introduce both exterior and vehicle searching where handler/dog teams learn to navigate outdoor scent scenarios. We will introduce your dog to the odors of “Anise” and “Clove” and teach leash management, understanding your dog’s signal language and in the importance of varying search environments. This exciting class will help you expand your dog’s searching capabilities and build more confidence in your teamwork. NOTE: This class will be repeated a minimum of 2 sessions.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Nose Work I: Basic Searches at Think Pawsitive.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

This class progresses your dog’s confidence in searching and applies his/her skills to new scent puzzles. Dog/handler teams will test their searching skills on both box and non-box containers, vehicles, exteriors, and interiors both with and without distractions. Expand your knowledge of the fun sport of canine scent detection and develop your dog’s searching with multiple hides, overlapping scent cones, combination hides, inaccessible hides, height and combinations of the previous items. Select classes will be held at pre-determined offsite locations.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Nose Work II at Think Pawsitive or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Nose Work workshops, leagues and competitions are a great opportunity to showcase your training and test your skills, but can also be very distracting for new dog and handler teams. Join us for a series of TRAINING MEMBERS ONLY Element Nights to prepare you and your dog for the next level of training and trialing. Throughout these fun matches we will address: · Working through distractions · Developing routines that will set you and your dog up for success throughout your Nose Work career · Mental preparation and strategies for success · Planning your search patterns Come train in a fun environment and prepare both you and your dog for your future in nose work!

PREREQUISITE: Must be enrolled in Scent Puzzles OR approval from a Think Pawsitive instructor.

Please register for each individual session you wish to attend.

Class Cost $45 or upgrade one week of class to attend.

Part of being successful in nose work is taking your training on the road and working on new and challenging scent puzzles. This class will give you the opportunity to expose your dog to both new and challenging puzzles. It takes the nose work fundamentals learned in the foundation classes and uses them in new environments. The class will meet at various locations to allow the dog/handler team to expand their experience and knowledge with container, interior, exterior, and vehicle searches. Your instructor will contact you with location information and details prior to each session. The focus of this class will be NW1/NW2 searching. Dogs need to have been introduced to container, interior, exterior, and vehicle searching. Dogs must also understand Birch, Anise, and Clove.

PREREQUISITE: Must be enrolled in Scent Puzzles at Think Pawsitive or instructor approval based on a skills evaluation.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Do you want to improve your dog’s manners? This course advances the skills and games you learned in your previous puppy or adult manners class. You will expand It’s-Yer-Choice and Crate Games to help set boundaries and improve control. You will strengthen your dog’s understanding of “Sit” and “Down” through longer duration, harder distractions and from longer distances. Recalls will also be proofed with greater distance and distraction and, once your loose-leash walking with distractions has been mastered, you will be introduced to off-leash work! In addition to many other skills, you will be cueing your dog to a mat or bed from long ranges and teaching him/her to maintain that behavior with increased duration and distraction as well as teaching him/her to calmly greet people and dogs.

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Think Pawsitive’s Beginner Puppy School, Adult Manners or Canine IQ Camp.

Class Dates are the start of a 4-week session.

Are you looking to take your Rally skills to the next level? Evolve your recall, sit, stand, down, and stay foundation pieces by continuing your practice of Novice signs and being introduced to Rally Intermediate signs. Each session will expose you to different skill-building exercises and the chance to put them together in various Rally courses. This class is suitable for those who have completed Beginner Rally Games and received instructor approval.

PREREQUISITE: Beginner Rally Games Class and instructor approval.

Class Dates are the start of a 4-week session.

Are you looking to take your Rally skills to the next level? Evolve your recall, sit, stand, down, and stay foundation pieces by being introduced to Rally Intermediate signs. Each session will expose you to different skill-building exercises and the chance to put them together in various Rally courses. This class is suitable for those who are familiar with all Rally Novice signs.

PREREQUISITE: Novice Rally Games Class or instructor approval.

Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

Pleased to Meet You! is a meet and greet class specifically for dogs that have difficulty socializing and/or display undesirable behavior toward other people and around dogs. Whether they present too much enthusiasm or actually do something “unseemly”, this is a great class for any dog owner. This class is perfect for dogs that display inappropriate behaviors, including: Over-Excitement Jumping Excessive Barking Lack of Focus Shyness

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed Beginner Puppy School or Adult Manners at Think Pawsitive.

Class Dates are the start of a 2-week session.

During this class we will extend the skills you learned in Please to Meet You! You will work through proofing your dog’s understanding of the exercises that were taught and practiced in the first two classes. We will evolve into structured set-ups to help work through normal, everyday distractions such as: food, toys, various people and working in close proximity to other dogs that you and your dog may encounter in your everyday life experiences. Throughout the exercises we will look at what is motivating your dog, how we can change their perspective, and what you can do to ensure they will respond with excellent choices when meeting people and or being around other dogs no matter what environment is presented to them!

PREREQUISITE: Must have completed both weeks of Pleased to Meet You! at Think Pawsitive. Please register for the two week class you wish to attend.

Class Dates are the start of a 2-week session.

Do you and your dog find joy in playing with a Frisbee? Join us for a four-week series focusing on the activity of K9 Disc! Each week you will be learning a new disc game and playing it in class. Various skills will be implemented into the game to improve your throwing, timing, and communication with your canine teammate. This class combines learning and playing and is suitable for dogs who are already showing drive for a disc. PREREQUISITE: Must have completed the Beginner Canine Disc Workshop or gain instructor approval. Please register for each individual week you wish to attend.

BRONZE STAR ONLY - Please select the Workshop you wish to attend. Details of each workshop can be found at https://thinkpawsitivedog.com/events-page/