This year's lecture series is one to amaze and delight! Professionals from the Veterinary community and the Canine Community have come together to bring you knowledge, teach a new skill, and simply have fun!
This lecture series is free for club members. Non-members may pre-purchase all five lectures for $25 or attend any individual session for $10.
This lecture series is free for club members. Non-members may pre-purchase all five lectures for $25 or attend any individual session for $10.
Seminars
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE SEMINARS HAVE BEEN RESCHEDULED DUE TO COVID-19.
Mr. Erik Strickland
Erik started in dogs 35 years ago in obedience with his mixed breed pet, “Lady.” After showing her at unsanctioned matches, he began helping friends in conformation. At his first AKC show, he was hooked after winning with a Brittany.
While today being known as a Golden Retriever specialist, Erik began first breeding Brittanys, Collies and Pugs. He has shown a wide variety of breeds over his successful show career. However, he was first introduced to Goldens when showing one for Paul and Kathleen Scoggins of Peppercreek Golden Retrievers.
At the age of 19, Erik won his first Best in Show with a Golden at the prestigious Beverly Hills Kennel Club. He went on to put multiple Best in Shows on nine different Goldens and has won the Top 20 three different times. Over the last few decades, and still today, Erik enjoys giving grooming and handling seminars to help owner handlers within the competitive breed of Goldens. In 2006, Erik retired as a professional handler of the Number One Golden in the country.
While starting a family, Erik shifted to “owner” with the Number One English Setter in 2011 and 2012. He most recently showed his beloved “Dazzle” to Select Bitch at 2018’s English Setter National at the tender age of 11. With a brief stint back into all breed handling while in Florida in 2017 and 2018, Erik soon realized his back was no longer able to handle it full-time. For now, he may occasionally show for a client, but mainly focuses on his own dogs. Erik is currently enjoying a less hectic travel schedule while being at home with his wife, Jenn, his 8-year-old daughter, Shelby, and their dogs, cats and horses.
While today being known as a Golden Retriever specialist, Erik began first breeding Brittanys, Collies and Pugs. He has shown a wide variety of breeds over his successful show career. However, he was first introduced to Goldens when showing one for Paul and Kathleen Scoggins of Peppercreek Golden Retrievers.
At the age of 19, Erik won his first Best in Show with a Golden at the prestigious Beverly Hills Kennel Club. He went on to put multiple Best in Shows on nine different Goldens and has won the Top 20 three different times. Over the last few decades, and still today, Erik enjoys giving grooming and handling seminars to help owner handlers within the competitive breed of Goldens. In 2006, Erik retired as a professional handler of the Number One Golden in the country.
While starting a family, Erik shifted to “owner” with the Number One English Setter in 2011 and 2012. He most recently showed his beloved “Dazzle” to Select Bitch at 2018’s English Setter National at the tender age of 11. With a brief stint back into all breed handling while in Florida in 2017 and 2018, Erik soon realized his back was no longer able to handle it full-time. For now, he may occasionally show for a client, but mainly focuses on his own dogs. Erik is currently enjoying a less hectic travel schedule while being at home with his wife, Jenn, his 8-year-old daughter, Shelby, and their dogs, cats and horses.
Ms. Suzanne Clothier |
July 15 |
Suzanne Clothier has been working with animals professionally since 1977, with a deep, broadly varied background of experience including obedience training, agility, Search & Rescue, conformation, breeding, kennel management, and program development. She is well respected for her humane, effective Relationship Centered Training (RCT™) approach to dogs and the people that love them.
First listed in Who’s Who in Dogs back in 1997, she has taught in the US, Canada, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and Poland for groups as varied as Assistance Dogs International-NA, Wolf Park, Association of Pet Dog Trainers, FEMA Northeast Disaster Teams, Alaskan Dog Musher Association, the University of Minnesota’s Nature Based Therapeutics conference, University of Warsaw/Poland, many national and international conferences, and for training groups and clubs.
Regarded as an innovative trainer, Suzanne’s work includes:
Her tools and materials have been put to use in guide & service dog organizations, in animal assisted therapy, for every day pet owners, and by trainers, breeders, veterinarians, academics and in research. She has served as a consultant to Guiding Eyes for the Blind (Patterson, NY), Southeastern Guide Dogs (Tampa, FL), Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation (Bloomfield, CT), Assistance Dogs of the West (Santa Fe, NM) and Guide Dogs of America (Sylmar, CA). For all of these organizations, her Enriched Puppy Protocol™ and RCT™ techniques have helped them improve their puppy raising programs.
Her work has been presented in multiple international conferences, including most recently at the 2017 International Working Dog Breeder Association conference. She has served as a committee member for the AKC’s Agility Advisory Board, and as a committee member of the American Humane Association’s Task Force for the Development of Humane Standards in Dog Training. She is an ongoing consultant to Frankie & Andy’s Place, a sanctuary for senior dogs.
Her book, Bones Would Rain from the Sky: Deepening Our Relationships With Dogs (Warner, 2002) has received wide spread praise from every corner of the dog world, including twice being included in The Wall Street Journal's list of Top 5 Dog Books. An award winning author of videos, books, booklets and numerous articles, Suzanne’s writings have appeared around the world in countless languages from Danish to Japanese.
A long time German Shepherd breeder, her 10 generations of Hawks Hunt German Shepherds have been successful in multiple competitive performance sports, as well as in Search & Rescue, herding, therapy work, AAT and of course as beloved companions. Suzanne lives on an upstate New York farm with husband John Rice, and their considerable animal family of dogs, cats, parrots, tortoises, horses, donkeys, Scottish Highland cattle, pigs and chickens.
First listed in Who’s Who in Dogs back in 1997, she has taught in the US, Canada, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and Poland for groups as varied as Assistance Dogs International-NA, Wolf Park, Association of Pet Dog Trainers, FEMA Northeast Disaster Teams, Alaskan Dog Musher Association, the University of Minnesota’s Nature Based Therapeutics conference, University of Warsaw/Poland, many national and international conferences, and for training groups and clubs.
Regarded as an innovative trainer, Suzanne’s work includes:
- CARAT™ - a novel temperament assessment & scoring system
- The Enriched Puppy Protocol™ - Program for early puppyhood development, birth to 9 weeks
- RAT™ (Relationship Assessment Tool) – dog/human relationship dynamics assessment
- FAT™ (Functional Assessment Tracking) – 15 dimension functional assessment of individual dog
- CCC™ (Connection, Cooperation & Control, with Cindy Knowlton) – a puzzle based training program
Her tools and materials have been put to use in guide & service dog organizations, in animal assisted therapy, for every day pet owners, and by trainers, breeders, veterinarians, academics and in research. She has served as a consultant to Guiding Eyes for the Blind (Patterson, NY), Southeastern Guide Dogs (Tampa, FL), Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation (Bloomfield, CT), Assistance Dogs of the West (Santa Fe, NM) and Guide Dogs of America (Sylmar, CA). For all of these organizations, her Enriched Puppy Protocol™ and RCT™ techniques have helped them improve their puppy raising programs.
Her work has been presented in multiple international conferences, including most recently at the 2017 International Working Dog Breeder Association conference. She has served as a committee member for the AKC’s Agility Advisory Board, and as a committee member of the American Humane Association’s Task Force for the Development of Humane Standards in Dog Training. She is an ongoing consultant to Frankie & Andy’s Place, a sanctuary for senior dogs.
Her book, Bones Would Rain from the Sky: Deepening Our Relationships With Dogs (Warner, 2002) has received wide spread praise from every corner of the dog world, including twice being included in The Wall Street Journal's list of Top 5 Dog Books. An award winning author of videos, books, booklets and numerous articles, Suzanne’s writings have appeared around the world in countless languages from Danish to Japanese.
A long time German Shepherd breeder, her 10 generations of Hawks Hunt German Shepherds have been successful in multiple competitive performance sports, as well as in Search & Rescue, herding, therapy work, AAT and of course as beloved companions. Suzanne lives on an upstate New York farm with husband John Rice, and their considerable animal family of dogs, cats, parrots, tortoises, horses, donkeys, Scottish Highland cattle, pigs and chickens.