Our summer puppy classes are on Wednesdays at 7pm until 8pm ish at Orchard Farm. Puppies can join the classes when they have had their second vaccination. We socialise the puppies and start their basic training. We also provide friendly advice and support for any problems people are having with their new dog. The initial 2 classes are free but then cost only £5 pay as you go. As the puppies develop we increase the level of their training, for what ever people would like to do with their dogs. If people want to we can train for and arrange Kennel Club Good Citizens tests, or we can prepare them for agility, working trials or herding.

We have puppy training and socialisation on Sunday mornings at 10 and Wednesday evenings in the summer. They  have been very popular and great fun. Young puppies have joined as soon as they have had all their vaccinations and the older pupies are now able to do more advanced training. So we split the class into 2 parts. We base the training on the Kennel Club Good Citizens Scheme with some additional things we like to do to prepare dogs for Agility or Working Trials. Not just competing but making sure that they are well behaved and able to relax and enjoy themselves in a busy show environment. We are now planning to run KCGC tests and train the young dogs for them.

Age to start training

There is a lot said about when puppies can start training and how much they can do. People talk about young bones and dogs being fully grown  before doing any sort of training. There is very little actual research or scientifically based information about the effects of early training one way or another. 

When we started agility it was with older dogs that had already been doing Obedience and Working Trials. When we got puppies we started training them from a quite young age to the level of their ability, at that time they could compete from 12 months old. We did not notice any difference in their health that could be attributed to agility or any other sort of training.

We are now training our dogs from a young age and we are monitoring their progress carefully. Our initial observation is that what they do when training is far more controlled and safer than when the are playing. They have their hips ex-rayed just after they are 12 months old and so far have all had excellent scores.

This has also confirmed their bones hase finished growing at it is at this time we start more serious work with them.   

We are now running puppy classes for people who have dogs that they would like to do competitive agility. Neither handlers or dogs are pushed beyond what they are comfortable with. We do exercises that help develop puppies co-ordination and confidence without high impact and we have some very confident and promising young dogs coming on.

                                                                                     Embers first look at the equipment at about 10 weeks old.  

Ember went through the tunnel on her own at 10 weeks old
 she is now 18 months old and totally confident.