Winner of APDT's 2011 National Train Your Dog Month
So, I’ve stalled long enough on this one and it’s about time I put this important bit of information out on the information super highway. I’ve decided that pack members around the globe should not go on one more day without knowing that WE WON A CONTEST! Yes, that’s right, we won! We were selected! Me and Rocco and our video. Filmed on the beautiful streets of the fine Eastern Shores neighborhood using only the highest quality equipment (my blackberry) and produced and directed by the distinguished filmaker and biggest supporter of Rocco’s Pack (my mother). It was the morning of January 31st about and hour before her departure that I remembered that it was the last day of National Train Your Dog month. “Yikes”, I thought, “the contest, I need to submit my photos, my videos!”. So we skipped all the lessons on using a smartphone and jumped right into the very advanced crash course on making videos with a blackberry…and boy she passed that with flying colors because not only did she get it, but we did one take and best of all WE WON! Just a few short weeks after downloading, converting and uploading my video which was quite a tasking endeavor for someone who’s never done anything with videos, I received an email from the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) letting me know that our video demonstrating loose leash walking had been selected. Yay! Shortly thereafter I received my Amazon gift card followed by what was supposed to be a basket of premier products. In reality it turned out to be a huge box full of goodies from special food bowls to fancy training clickers and intricate dog toys designed to mentally stimulate the doggies…you know what that means, fun toys for all pack members! And if that wasn’t enough, the wonderful people at APDT also sent me a NewTrix halter, which I absolutely adore and highly recommend as an alternative to harsh prong collars and choke chains, which not only hurt your dog, but also can cause permanent damage, people please…for the love of your pooch!
So without further adieu, I’d like to publicly thank the wonderful folks at APDT for their second annual “National Train Your Dog Month” campaign http://www.trainyourdogmonth.com/media/20101229/default.aspx
designed to bring awareness to the importance of socialization and training. And on a personal note, I’d like to just say to everyone that has a dog and enjoys spending time with him/her that training is so much fun. In addition to giving your dog a job, which will make him a confident and thriving member of your pack, it’ll increase the bond between the two of you and it is truly rewarding to see just how eager he/she is to please you, his benevolent leader.
Take a look at our video where I get to show off a little bit of the work that I, with the help of the awesome trainer, Nadine Litterman have done in training Rocco to not drag me down the street and walk on a loose leash. Best part: ALL of it was done using positive reinforcent which equates to treats, lots of praise and lots of love, oh and a dash of patience too.
