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Today we chat about the little vs big debate when it comes to sports dogs with 3 trainers who have trained and worked with both and who offer their insights into the differences, pros and cons. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an o

Denise has a new project... and that means some changes for FDSA and some exciting plans for the future. We got on a call to talk about it. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high-quality instr

Today I talked with breeder and trainer Erin Lynes about dog sledding and dock diving, and what it's like to train and compete in them as sports! Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high-quality

Life skills are easy to overlook with a potential competition dog — but investing the time and energy to get those things right can benefit your sports training, and the rest of your life with your dog. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Acad

Starting to think about obedience competition? Laura and I talk about the aspects of competing folks tend to overlook in training, and how to truly prep for heading into the ring! Transcription ​Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school

Shaping is all about the ABCs... and Sarah and I go into what that means in today's episode all about shaping! Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high-quality instruction for competitive dog sp

Known as "Whataboutbunny" on Instagram, Alexis has taught her dog Bunny to talk using talking buttons. Bunny has learned over 70 words, including concepts like "you" and "human." Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school de

I have whippets and have been lure coursing for 17 years now. Most dogs and owners love lure coursing and the AKC's all-breed version of the sport, the Coursing Ability Test (CAT). But before you get out to your nearest CAT trial, participants should understand the risks to make an informed choice about whether the sport is right for them. It

For this week's show, I brought on 3 freestyle stars to talk about the sport, what got them hooked, and how they approach training. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high-quality instruction f

Dr. Amy Cook and I go deep in this episode on management vs. training, her approach to treating reactivity, and what to do while you work on it. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau, and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast, brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high-qualit

Stacy recently designed a new working model to visually represent the various capabilities successful nosework dogs need — and on today's podcast we chat about the pieces, and how they help you get trial ready. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau, and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sp

If you're getting tired of hearing from your agility coach that your cues were late AGAIN, Loretta and I talk about why we end up late and what we can do about it in this week's cast. Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online scho

Amy and I talk about what it takes to get great photos of our canine companions — we cover tips for photographer and subject alike!   Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online school dedicated to providing high-quality i

Learning agility and having the skills to be able to learn agility well are two separate things! In this cast, Nancy and I talk about the critical but often overlooked skills dogs need to be able to learn and compete in agility.   Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast broug

Julie and I chat about some of the key questions nosework newbies need to know, and what it takes to prep for competition — plus, how and where to look for novel search environments!   Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an

The state of the rescue world and the breeding fancy have changed significantly in the last 50 years... Dr. Hekman and I chat about what those changes are, and what they mean for pet and sports dogs in the future.    Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by t

In this episode, Ryan and I talk about the idea of overcoming differences in mindset and training, having difficult conversations, and building better relationships for it!    Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast brought to you by the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, an online sc

A few weeks ago, I did something bonkers. I decided to get a cat. That might not seem so strange until you realize that I live with a dog who kills things. Breezy is a 9 yr. old husky x border collie. He has killed birds, rodents and rabbits. He would have LOVED to add 'cat' to that list. Historically, Breezy has been totally unable to function cog

Deb recently brought home the newest member of her household... a koolie puppy named Wizard! Today we talk about what she's been working on since bringing him home and how she approaches building a relationship with a new puppy!   Transcription Melissa Breau: This is Melissa Breau and you're listening to the Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast broug

Teaching your dog to sit seems so simple until you start thinking about the different ways a dog can sit. There is a stand to sit and a down to sit. In either of those position changes, the dog can either plant his front end or his rear end.When I'm thinking about teaching my dog position changes, I try to think about the final behavior. If yo