We're at the beginning of a great new journey! The businesses are settling down from the frantic (disorganized) hectic days of October; and we're finding our rhythm. The ewes are still days from lambing up here on the ranch, as they have been for the past 6(!!!) weeks! Tagg is starting to find her adult self under layers of goofy puppy; while Billy shows no signs of an inner adult as she bounds gleefully, scattering poultry in her wake, into her second year.

We're so excited that we're already thinking about the new year! We are setting the calendar for January with some fun new classes! December is a time in dog training to take a breather, so we will be doing that as well, with only one class starting on December 6: Urban Critter Hunt (named by my friend, Randi - thank you!). This is for folks who have dogs who want to sniff out critters! We will be setting up courses made of boxes, tarps, tunnels, and other whatnot in the training area, and safely hidden in this maze will be a couple of rats all tucked in their tubes snacking on Nutella! The dogs will be taught to seek out the rats and tell their owners, "Hey! There's a rat here! (and it's eating my Nutella!)". All dogs with working sniffers will enjoy the game! If your dog already does Barnhunt, then think of this as a new challenge! This will be a short little class only lasting three weeks - enough to keep our dogs busy, and their dreams filled with glorious hunts past and present!

Also in December, we will set out to help owners with one of the greatest struggles that they have with their dogs: Focus! How many of us struggle with keeping our dog's focus? How many of us hear ourselves 'reminding' our dogs time and again, 'hey, we're on the other end of this leash!'? If you have ever struggled to gain or keep your dog's attention, this workshop is for you!! We will be offering a one-night work shop focusing on FOCUS!! This will be a working class - so seating is limited! You will walk away from this class with a host of new tools to create focus and drive in your dogs through games and play! $40 payable in advance - only 10 spots - so sign up today and start the new year with more focus! Reserve your space today!

Speaking of focus, There's a lot a dog or puppy needs to learn to live with us! For those of you who have new dogs or older dogs who are still struggling with the basics, we will be offering our first ever Basic Lifeskills Class. Pet owners will learn how to create focus and drive in their dogs so that their dogs want nothing more in life than to work with them! We will teach your dogs to settle, to walk on a leash, and come when called. This will be a fun, active class with tons of great information that will set you and your dogs on the right path!! (If you have already been to a Beginner Obedience class elsewhere and are not satisfied with the results - contact us for a special, 'Oops! I went to a big box store for training!' Discount!)

For those of you who have herding breeds, I've had a lot of folks who have wanted to take my herding class but just couldn't make five weekends in a row work for them. Good news! We will be hosting a one-day Stock Dog Mini Camp January 12 from 9 am till about 1 or 2pm. This is perfect for folks who are just starting off and want to see what their dogs can do! This class will be geared towards beginners whose dogs are still working on the very basics, and even for dogs who have never been on stock. This class is limited to 6 dogs, so you need to sign up fast if you want a spot!!

We have great things coming up at both the in-town location at The Dog Spot, and our Ranch location at Empire Ridge Ranch! Keep sharing your stories with us on Facebook! We can also be found on Instagram; and for those of who who prefer email, we have a newsletter! Signing up is easy, and we promise never to spam you with useless crap!!

As I write this, Tagg is midway through her puppy class (thank you Brittany at k9 Guidance to Inclusion!) and in my absolutely unbiased opinion, she is the standout genius of the class; Dice and Cody are working the sheep lightly because the sheep seem determined to stay 5 months pregnant indefinitely; and Billy is on the lookout for monsters, which, it seems, includes errant ducks! Life with dogs is far better than life without dogs!! A page turns, and a new adventure begins! Join us on our journey, as we continue to work hard to be the trainers our dogs deserve!