Foundations: Beginners 1 & 2 Basic Skills Class
*New Sessions Every 6 Weeks!*
The Animal Clinic of Milford offers a Foundations course for dogs and puppies of all ages and walks of life. Whether you have a brand-new puppy that you want to provide a strong foundation to or an older dog who needs a little help and a brand new start, this is the class for you. Janis Copes, ABCDT from Escape the Crate, LLC will guide you and your new family member through fundamentals that will help them become a polite member of their new family. Our clinic’s specially designed canine education and exercise training room, provide plenty of space to safely learn the basics together. Janis uses positive, force-free reinforcement techniques to help you, the handler, learn how to get the behavior that you want from the newest addition to your family.
Tuition Cost: $255.24 (Includes a free bag of training treats)
Length of Session: Each session runs for 6 weeks
Duration: 45 minutes to 1 hour
Time: Wednesday Nights: Beginner 1 – 5:30PM | Beginner 2 – 6:45PM
*There may be sessions where days/ times differ. You will be notified in the event that changes are made to current or future sessions.
Pre-requisites: All students must be at least 10 weeks of age and have all age-appropriate vaccinations. These include: Distemper/ Parvo and Bordetella at 8 weeks old, Leptospirosis and Canine Influenza at 10 weeks old, and the Rabies vaccine for dogs 14 weeks of age and up. Students who have not fulfilled the vaccine requirement are welcome to begin class, provided that the missing vaccines are scheduled to be completed. Students must also have a negative fecal in the last 6 months and be current on their monthly flea/ tick prevention.
Equipment: Janis will review any recommended or required training equipment on the first day of class.
Curriculum: Themes and topics covered in the Beginner 1 and 2 courses include the following:
Beginner 1:
The Handler will gain an understanding of:
- What socialization is and how to socialize their new family member correctly.
- How to be an advocate for their new family member and build trust.
- Basic canine body language
- Hand signals vs. Verbal cues.
- Different leash techniques.
The Handler will be given problem solving tools for:
- Housebreaking
- Chewing
- Mouthing
- Jumping
- Walking on a loose lead
Classes will also include laying a foundation for and the reinforcement of basic commands such as:
- Name recognition
- Sit/ Stay/ Come
- Down/ Leave it
- Focus/ Touch
Beginner 2:
Will help the Handler advance and refine the skills they acquired in the Beginner 1 class by building upon:
- Focusing on verbal cues with duration and distractions.
- Staying in a sit or down position with duration, distance, and distractions.
- Leave it when walking by or dropping food.
- Basic handling skills for grooming and veterinary visits.
- Loose lead walking at your side without pulling.
- Reliable recall from a distance.
- Polite interaction with people and other dogs.
- Supervised separation.
Space is limited! Enroll today!
Wednesday Evenings by Janis Copes
Meet Your Trainer: Janis Copes, ABCDT
View Bio – Click Here
Beginner I
Please join Janis Copes, ABCDT from Escape the Crate, LLC for this informative 6 week course designed to help you, the handler, learn how to get the behavior you want from your dog using force free positive reinforcement techniques. Lessons will include teaching sit, down, come, stay and walking on a loose lead. The goal is to teach your dog to be a polite family member.
Beginner II
Please join Janis Copes, ABCDT from Escape the Crate, LLC for this 6 week course designed to help you refine the skills you were taught in the Beginner I Class, or equivalent, using force free positive reinforcement techniques. Lessons will focus on walking on a loose lead, come, stay, polite greetings and working with distractions.
Contact Information:
Animal Clinic of Milford
100 Gulf Street
Milford CT 06460
Phone: 203-882-8311
Email: animalclinicofmilford@gmail.com