Course Details
Utility IS fun!! In this class, I deconstruct all the exercises into manageable pieces. Each piece is taught and maintained like a trick. This makes the exercises accessible for us and the dogs. Your dogs will not only understand the exercises, your dog will perform them with joy and energy. As we put the pieces together, we will maintain that light attitude. We treat it like a game that both you and your dog will enjoy. We will use backward chaining and forward chaining to pull the exercises together. All while maintaining the quality of the pieces that make up the chain. Utility is my favorite class, and it can be yours too! This approach makes it easy to problem solve and “fix” pieces within an exercise. This class can benefit people that have a foundation in utility and are looking to put the pieces together. It can also help teams that are trained through utility but are having problems or that want to add attitude and joy to the exercises.
Teaching Approach
This class will have written and video lectures each week. Each lecture will be broken down into small pieces. There will be video examples demonstrating all exercises. Because everyone has their own learning style, I encourage students to move at their own pace. I understand that each dog and handler are unique and do my best to accommodate their needs. Students will need to move around with their dogs as is required for typical exercises pertaining to the Utility exercises. I will work with you to modify the exercises to your abilities. A few of the games will require quick physical movement from the trainer for short periods and distances. Later in the class and for certain exercises students will need access to a space large enough so they can perform a full Utility exercises.
Instructor: Petra FordPetra (she/her) graduated from Rutgers School of Health Related Professions 17 years ago with a degree in physical therapy and has experience working with an extremely varied caseload including pediatric through geriatric clients with a vast range of diagnoses. Her areas of expertise included in-patient rehabilitation, orthopedics and neurology. (Click here for full bio and to view Petra's upcoming courses)
