sea4th Posted July 16, 2009 Report Share Posted July 16, 2009 Anyone know of any besides PetCo? ETA -- Sorry, I meant Morgantown, WV. (duh) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lrayburn Posted July 16, 2009 Report Share Posted July 16, 2009 SueR will chime in. She worked with the Kennel Club classes there. There is at least one other group that did do classes there - don't know if they are still active. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted July 16, 2009 Report Share Posted July 16, 2009 The Mountaineer Kennel Club on Pt. Marion Rd. offers excellent classes. You can go to their website for information and to download application forms. In Obedience, they offer classes for puppies, basic family dog obedience/manners, more advanced obedience/manners, fun with your dog, rally-o, and sometimes therapy. They also offer agility classes. The obedience will be a six-week session preceded by an orientation meeting, and that will be followed by a six-week agility session, and so on. Classes (other than the Wed evening conformation - yuck!) are offered on Mon, Tues, and Thurs at 6, 7, and 8 pm. The classes cost $85 or $90 a session, with each session having six classes of about 50 minutes or so apiece. The Obedience program is run by and staffed by excellent people (all volunteers!) and given indoors on quality rubber matting for comfort and safety. Certain basic supplies can be purchased at very competitive prices - leather leads from J&J, Premier Collars, prong collars (only for those handler/dog combos that need them as a training/safety tool), No-Pull Harnesses (by Premier, I think), bait/treat bags, and long lines. You can find contact information at the website but you should contact Cindy Luster, who runs the obedience program. As I said, it is all staffed by volunteers (I was one for several years) who have experience, receive training, and are very capable - if one can't answer your question, they will find someone who will. It's an excellent program and, while being an AKC-affiliate club, it is largely made up of wonderful, dog-loving, and responsible people who welcome all - mutts, purebreds, working-breds, rescues, shelter adoptees, you-name-it. As in any organization, there are a few people whom you might not get along with (I know there are some I don't care for) but I would heartily recommend this group of people as a great group of volunteer trainers. By the way, if you wish to join the club, you have to attend a couple of activities (a class session may count) which include the monthly pot-luck (sometimes themed) dinners (I can't go because I have a conflict every week on that night) dinners which are wonderful and fun, and sometimes have an educational program (I've done one on stockdogs). Members get a discount on classes that is very worthwile. There are also the DogTags classes offered by BOPARC (Morgantown Board of Parks and Recreation) at Marilla Park. You can probably locate them on a Google search. I know nothing about their program but have heard that some of their instructors have, in the past, been prior trainers at MKC. Best wishes, and I'd be happy to help you make contacts. My working schedule and other concerns made it difficult for me to continue assisting. While I did not like being associated with a kennel club, I do feel they provide a very valuable service to the dog-owning community with their classes. Lisa's Nellie and my Celt, Megan, Bute, and Dan are all graduates of puppy, family dog, and/or agility classes. And, Vickie, are you near M'town??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sea4th Posted July 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2009 And, Vickie, are you near M'town??? Good info. Thanks Sue. In answer to your question, no, I'm nowhere near Morgantown. I'm in NE Ohio near the PA border. I have an inquiry on one of my dogs, a rescue and the guy lives in Morgantown. He said he would like to take obedience classes at Petco and eventually get into agility. Well, I knew there must be something better out that way than Petco and so I asked. I'd like to steer him, if he gets one of my dogs, into better hands than Petco. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted July 17, 2009 Report Share Posted July 17, 2009 I would absolutely recommend MKC (sorry about the AKC connection but to me, this is for the sake of the dog) to anyone. The quality of the obedience classes in terms of pet classes is excellent, with folks who have been doing this for some time. I haven't taken agility for a while and so don't know the quality there currently but feel pretty sure it will be good. Certainly way beyond Petco. By the way, Petco was the location where a local so-called rescue (apparently breeding the "rescued" animals to produce more sickly pups) "adopted out" (sold) pups and dogs. They were busted for inhumane conditions and so on. When this all blew up, Petco donated nothing or next to nothing to the local shelter to help house and care for the many animals seized. PetsMart in PA donated a horse trailer of supplies, food, and crates. Since then, I don't even go to Petco to browse. I'm sure they meant well in allowing or supporting the "adoptions" but they sure didn't step up when the going got tough. JMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenN Posted July 17, 2009 Report Share Posted July 17, 2009 My brother has taken obedience classes at the Mountaineer Kennel Club with a couple of his dogs and was extremely pleased with the quality of the classes and the teaching methods. Says he would definitely recommend them to anyone in the Morgantown, WV area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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