Best Paw Forward, Inc. - Family Dog Training Center - Dog Training Based on Trust and Respect

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Introduction to BPF

Dog training based on Trust and Respect

P.J. Lacette and Sandy Guy who created Best Paw Forward, Inc. © have their training facility in the Central Florida/Metropolitan Orlando area. They have been training dogs for more than 30 years, and have earned titles on various breeds, racking up championships, obedience and field titles, therapy dog work and commercial work. (You have probably seen some of their dogs or their students' dogs in print advertising or on television programs such as Petsburgh, Disney specials, Ask the Vet, That's My Dog, Zig & Zag Alpha Dog Challenge, Way to Grow and others.

P.J. Lacette of Best Paw Forward, Inc. has been named to the faculty of the Karen Pryor Academy. KarenPryorAcademy.com The program for experienced dog trainers has been taking applications since early in May 2007. Participants have take on-line courses augmented by workshops around the country. Florida workshops are at Best Paw Forward in Sanford, Florida.

The major emphasis of the program is on temperament and behavior work. We started motivational training after hearing Ian Dunbar speak at his first series of seminars in Florida many years ago, and started clicker training after hearing Karen Pryor and Gary Wilkes speak at the Chicago Association of Pet Dog Trainers conference some years back. We continue to attend as many seminars we can get to.

Within a few months, we had added clickers as reward markers in our basic and puppy classes, and gradually added shaping exercises and operant conditioning info to our program so that of course it is used at all levels and in all classes now. Some of our students are clicker users, some clicker trainers, but we keep working on the conversion. We consider ourselves mostly positive trainers.

We rent a 5,000 square-foot building in Sanford, about 30 minutes north of Orlando and about an hour south of Daytona, where we have everything from puppy through utility, plus agility and conformation. Canine Companions for Independence puppy raisers also take classes with us.

Sandy and PJ are APDT charter members 17 and 18, and PJ is also a member of the National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors, plus both are members of national breed, all-breed and obedience clubs. Sandy and PJ are among 50 trainers from around the country that have attended every conference put on by the APDT.

We have been training for more than 30 years in Central Florida, Sandy with her Irish and Gordon setters, golden and flat-coated retrievers and bullmastiff; and PJ with Irish setters and flat-coats.

For 15 of those years, we trained with Nancy Maggiacomo Schenck, DMV and Claire Koshar at Three-J Dog Training in Maitland before we went out on our own, and we consider ourselves very lucky to have started with such sensible, fair trainers. Having mentors with great people skills and who exhibit such sportsmanship and grace under pressure is a major plus.

Our experienced, trained professionals offer dog training classes based on trust and respect, starting with our gentle Puppy Love sessions for puppies under 18 weeks old (it's easier and less expensive to prevent problems rather than fix them later).

Many of our methods are based on those of Dr. Ian Dunbar, and clicker training methods we learned from Karen Pryor & Gary Wilkes. Most of our classes are limited to ensure lots of individual attention. Daytime, evening and weekend sessions are available at our air-conditioned training center. We also do Private Classes.

Daytime, evening programs, indoors, on Agility Concepts have also been added for dogs with some obedience or behavior training background.

Speakers on dog-related topics are available for school, professional and civic group programs.
If your friends are considering getting a puppy or an adult dog, we will be glad to suggest breeds best suited to their households, and discuss the various merits of puppies vs. adult dogs.

Our staff can also help them find reputable breeders or offer tips on how to select appropriate pets from shelters and breed rescue groups

Members of the following

National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors N.A.D.O.I.
Association of Pet Dog Trainers - A.P.D.T.
Dog Obedience Clubs of Florida - D.O.C.O.F.

What We Do at B.P.F.

PuppyLove

PuppyLove is a family project; attendance by children is encouraged. Biting, chewing, digging, house training, jumping up, fun obedience tricks, socialization, stealing, running away and possessiveness are some of the subjects discussed. Most of the PuppyLove training is designed to be used around the house when the puppy is not on a leash. Boy and Puppy

The PuppyLove program teaches puppies to be gentle with their mouths, and not to be fearful or aggressive. Did you know that most dogs that bite do so out of fear, not aggression. Our five-step bite inhibition program produces puppies that are pleasant companions for children and seniors as well as Mom and Dad.

Our PuppyLove graduates also receive ongoing free play sessions with dogs who have been through our program, to maintain the social skills they developed. (A PuppyLove graduate must attend at least one session every few months to continue to have free access to play sessions.)

Basic Manners
Best Paw

Basic Manners, for puppy class graduates or for older puppies or adult dogs new to our program, or Puppy Plus (restricted to PuppyLove class graduates) encompass standard obedience commands as well as manners around other dogs and people. Both positive motivation and physical control are used so you can choose from several methods for most exercises. The primary goal is to create a dog that is under control on a leash or in a confined area.

Topics covered include household manners and traditional obedience exercises (sit, down, heel, come, stand and stay, for example). We again address common behavior problems such as jumping up, pulling on leash, stealing, chewing, biting, digging, barking, housetraining etc. Puppy Plus students also get to try agility obstacles and more off-leash activities, and continue their play times.

Manners Plus


P.J. & Mattie

In Manners Plus students progress towards off-leash training for adolescent and adult canine companions, and teach their dogs to jump hurdles, respond to commands from a distance, play retrieve, handle obstacle course work and show off useful tricks to help keep bright canine minds busy.

You can often prevent destructive behavior by giving your pet simple jobs to do, like bring in the newspaper or carry your gardening basket for you. Dogs who have progressed through this level are usually ready to pass the American Kennel Club's Canine Good Citizen test, which provides a certificate verifying your dog's good manners. The test is open to any dog, purebred or mixed-breed alike, 6 months or older; and is offered periodically at our training center

Competition


Sandy & Tori

Competition obedience classes, geared toward preparing students to compete for and earn obedience titles, start with NOVICE/ATTENTION and progress through OPEN and UTILITY, which includes scent discrimination, signal work, directed retrieving and other advanced skills. A number of our dogs at this level have done print and electronic media commercial work.

We also offer day and evening CONFORMATION/SHOW classes for those dogs working towards breed championships.


Candy At National Speciality

Agility Concepts

Our Agility program features fun, gentle methods that get your dogs leaping over jumps, racing through tunnels, and negotiating contact obstacles like an A-frame, teeter totter and dog walk. We bring our motivational approach to agility training to get newcomers started and fine tune skills for experienced agility competitors. We are very proud to have some of the top agility dogs in the country training with us.
Dogs must have completed obedience/behavior training through the Manners Plus level to participate because agility training and competition requires dogs to perform off-leash around lots of distractions such as other loose dogs, crowds of people, interesting sniffs etc. Of course there are substantial discounts for experienced trainers who join our program.

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