The Lemonade Conference 2022 Lunch Panel: The Future of R+ Training

Host Melissa Breau with panelists Denise Fenzi; Kamal Fernandez; and Dante Camacho talked about The Future of R+ Training during our lunch break for the Lemonade Conference on February 13th, 2022 — and we've shared it here for those who missed it live!

Continue reading
  1189 Hits
1189 Hits

The Lemonade Conference Free Lunch Panel on Mental Health for the Reactive Dog

 On Feb. 11th, 2022, the first day of The Lemonade Conference, our free lunch panel was on Mental Health for the Reactive Dog. Melissa Breau was joined by Amy Cook, PhD; Sarah Stremming; and Sophie Liu, DVM. The recording from the live stream is available below. 

Continue reading
  1600 Hits
1600 Hits

Ripples and Bubbles: FDSA Training Camp Welcome Lecture 2016

This post is a transcript of Denise's camp talk from 2016 that inspired the "ripples and bubbles" in the current FDSA logo.

DENISE FENZI: The theme of this year's conference is "Ripples and Bubbles" and since some people in here are probably relatively new to FDSA, I'd like to take a moment to talk about what that means. And for those who know all about ripples, I'd like to talk about ways to expand our circle of people who might be interested in some of our ideas.

At FDSA, we often talk about ripples.

Ripples are about your ability to create change, a tiny bit at a time. So how might one go about doing that?

The basic idea of "ripple theory" is that each positive action or decision you make has the potential to influence other's actions or decisions. And when those little spheres of influence go out into the world, they can become a very significant force, just one tiny ripple at a time. Significant change often start with the tiniest of things — just a ripple.

For example, when you go somewhere and you model excellence in training or emotional connection with your dog, others will see that. When you do what is right for your dog even when it hurts you personally, like pulling out of a show when it becomes obvious that your dog is miserable – others see that too. And kindness to people matters just as much! When you take an extra minute to help someone, anyone else who chooses to watch that interaction also recognizes your kindness.

As the example I just used demonstrates, when we talk about ripples we are often talking about modeling change. Showing others how you train your dog and interact with people, in an effort to influence their behavior. But I'd like to spend a few minutes talking about how you can expand your ability to ripple – to influence others – simply by considering how you choose to make other people feel, in addition to the ripples created by the behaviors which you model.

In a nutshell, if you can positively affect a person's happy emotions, then that also gives you the possibility of influencing that person's beliefs. And if that is true, then every single person in this room possesses the capacity for positive change at a very fundamental level.

Continue reading
  2162 Hits
2162 Hits

The Secret Behind How to be a Good Online Student

Taking online classes can sometimes be challenging! On the upside, you tend to get access to some really talented instructors and you get lecture material that covers aspects that you might not learn locally. In some cases, you might not have local options but you can STILL learn virtually! On the downside, if you are busy and have a lot of demands on your time, it can be really easy to pay for a class and never really use it. It's not that you lack desire…. But it can feel SO overwhelming that you just don't train.

I get it…. Which is why I wanted to write this blog!

Continue reading
  2701 Hits
2701 Hits

25 Dog Training Books by Fenzi Dog Sports Instructors (and where to buy them)

​Stuck at home and looking for new ways to expand your dog training knowledge? Or maybe you're a Fenzi fan looking for more from your favorite instructors... either way, this list is for you. In it, I share a full list of books from our various instructors! And we'll plan to come back and update it, so if you want to bookmark it and check back in later, you can. 

Books are organized alphabetically by author last name, and each book includes a bit of a summary and where you can find it, so you can click straight through to go shopping! 

Continue reading
  5775 Hits
5775 Hits

Recording of AMA with Denise Fenzi

In honor of the start of the new FDSA – pet professionals program, (FDSA-PPP) Denise Fenzi did a free webinar open to anyone. She offered to review videos and answer questions on any topic someone wanted to discuss! The following is the recorded webinar. Enjoy, and feel free to share with anyone who might benefit. If you'd like to be notified of ra...
Continue reading
  2860 Hits
2860 Hits

Welcome to the New FDSA Blog!

Welcome to FDSA's shiny new blog! We look forward to having you look around. But probably hold off on your look-around, because if you do it now, your journey will be short. That's because there's nothing here. Yet!You see, getting this new website up and running was a bit of a project and it took all hands on deck. That didn't leave much time or e...
Continue reading
  4383 Hits
4383 Hits