Old ICC Newsletter - Winter 2008

House move and new centre manager of the Hougham (covering Grantham, Sleaford and Newark) Branch of ICC

Well, the big news from my point of view is that David and I are now living in Cambridge whilst he is studying for his Theology degree before becoming a Vicar. It’s been a big change but everyone has been very friendly and welcoming here and were are settling in very well indeed. I have been enjoying travelling back up to Lincolnshire to teach the advanced classes on a Wednesday evening and keeping in touch with all of my friends in those classes. Saturdays have also been extremely busy and I think I have had two free Saturdays between September and Christmas! Lorraine has done a wonderful job of taking over as Centre manager of the Hougham branch and after a very stressful September trying to get to grips with the many strands of running the centre (thank you to those of you who have been so supportive to her!) she has now well and truly settled in. For any of you who are interested in training classes her contact details are – Tel - 01400 230965 or E-mail lorraine@iccdogtraining.co.uk . I must say a huge thank you to each one of you for having made ICC Dog Training the success that it is. I certainly wouldn’t have thought when I started the centre that just a few years later that there would be three centres, and we would be privileged to have such wonderful visiting speakers taking workshops for us. For me it has been a dream come true to be able to do something that I love so much as a job.

Christmas party and Summer sale all in one!

Before handing over of the Hougham branch I meant to have a sale in August of all of the items in the shop – leads, collars, harnesses, treats, toys, etc. etc. However, due to the time restraints of moving house and the lack of Saturdays available this has proved impossible before now and so we are now combining it with our Christmas party. It is due to be held on the 15th November, 10am-2pm. Please see the bottom of this newsletter for further details of the day and how to book onto it.

Workshops

We are coming to the end of a wonderful year of guest speakers and trainers and I have heard from a lot of people just how enjoyable and informative they have found the workshops. We just have one more weekend left this year that you may be interested in –

Saturday 29th Nov, 10.00am-4.30pm - UNDERSTANDING AND HANDLING BEHAVOURAL PROBLEMS IN THE RESCUE DOG, workshop with Al Matherne. Al is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers and the UK Registry of Canine Behaviourists.

Sunday 30th Nov, 10.00am-4.30pm - SQUARE PEGS IN ROUND HOLES? A workshop with Paddy Driscoll of particular interest to anyone working with rescued dogs – do you despair of matching a dog with the right owner sometimes? Do some dogs get returned too often? This workshop attempts to address some of the issues around assessing dogs and how to match them with new owners and the many pitfalls of trying to make the perfect partnership. This day will include group work and hands-on assessment of dogs. Paddy is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers and lecturer in Canine Behaviour Counselling at Bishop Burton College.

Probable venue (depending upon numbers) – Hougham training centre (in the heated shop!) Cost - £50 for the weekend or £25 per day. 25% discount for those working for a dog rescue charity (proof needed.)

Home boarding

Our home boarding services run by Debbie and Lorraine are proving to be very popular indeed. If you would like your dog to board with them whilst you are away on holiday please contact them as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. For local home boarding (staying with Lorraine or Jan in their homes) for dogs that are happy to share the home with the resident dog please contact Lorraine, for dogs that are not as happy with other dogs please contact Debbie – Tel - 01754 830192 or E-mail Debbie@iccdogtraining.co.uk (Debbie lives in Spilsby, approx a 45 minute drive from Sleaford. She offers a home collection service for those of you who may find the drive difficult.)

Finally, thank you again for all of your support over the years. I greatly appreciate the opportunity to have worked with so many of your dogs (over 1000, although some have seen other instructors) and they have taught me so much,

Best wishes to you and them,

Christina

From Lorraine…

Hello and a very warm welcome to all of you. I have to start with a huge thank you to Christina for this fantastic opportunity and dream come true; I truly believe that I would never be running my own branch without her and for this I will always be extremely grateful. Of course without all of you none of this would be possible either so a big thank you to each and every one of you for your support; be it past, present or future. I will strive to continue to take Ichthus Canine Centre from strength to strength and I am sure you will join me in thanking Christina for starting the centre and giving us all the opportunity to train our dogs in such a kind, reward based manner.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of those people who have supported me during my transition from office employee to Canine Centre Manager, you know who you are - thank you from the bottom of my heart, you have all certainly helped and continue to do so - again I would not be able to do this without you.

As I have said before we could not have a training centre without you, our clients so please feel free to contact me should you need to discuss anything.

Wishing you all of the best

Lorraine

Christmas Party 2008 (yes, I know we’re only in November!) - 15th November, 10am-2pm

Morning (10am-12pm)

NOVELTY

a) Best fancy dress – best 6 legs on a Christmas theme

b) Prettiest bitch

c) Most handsome dog

d) Fastest sausage eater

COMPETITION CLASSES

Agility

1) Just jumps and tunnel

2) Also includes contact equipment (no weaves)

3) Agility pairs (find a friend and add your times together – friends can be found on the day!)

Afternoon (12-2pm) ISH!

NOVELTY

e) Best condition of dog

f) Waggiest tail

g) Novelty best trick/s (choose up to 5 tricks to show off!)

h) Fastest recall

COMPETITION CLASSES

Obedience

4) Puppies, Beginner and Bronze only - loose lead walking / 30 second stay (either sit or down) / recall to owner

5) Open to all – Off lead heelwork / 30 second sit stay, 2 minute down stay / recall with distraction ( Christina being silly!)

6) Clever Clogs! (no food or toys) – Off lead heelwork with turns / 2 minute out of sight down stay / recall with present (may be against a wall if needed) / ‘party piece’ something to show off of your choosing.

7) Heelwork-to-Music Competition (no food or toys unless doing a training round)

OTHER

- Seasonal photos competition (entries in by 11am, each person can vote for their favourite photo throughout the day, winner announced at 2pm. Cost - 50p per entry)

- HTM demos

- Shop – stock clearance (large reductions – very handy before Christmas!)

- Heated wheat and lavender bags on sale (make great pressies)

- Delicious home made food from Mrs B’s country kitchen (also includes home made dog treats.)

NOTES

- Rosettes / prizes for top places

- Food / toys may be used unless otherwise stated

Cost - £1 per Novelty class, £2 per Competition class. Get your entry in before Wednesday the 12 th Nov and get a free Novelty class – our caterer needs to know numbers so I thought this would encourage you to get it in on time!)

* Entries to be given to your instructor with full payment (minus £1 if you’re taking advantage of the free Novelty class,) please circle the number or letter of the classes you’d like to enter and write your full name here ……………………………

Or E-mail Christina@iccdogtraining.co.uk or ring Lorraine on 01400 230965 for further details (ideally before Wednesday 12th Nov.)