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Puppy sitting
 
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Susan Greenholt
began training in 1989 with her first German Shepherd puppy, Grendl.
Quickly bitten by the obedience bug, she went on to advanced levels with
Grendl and then with her next German Shepherd pup, Zak. Although Grendl
was happier at home, Zak loved the work and excelled in the obedience
ring. Susan led him to his CD, CDX, and 2 of the needed 3 "legs"
required for his UD before elbow arthritis earned his early retirement.
Both Zak and Grendl earned their CGC (Canine Good Citizen) certificates,
as well. Susan's next German Shepherd, Falkner, was clicker trained
from the age of 7 weeks (he's now 12 yrs old) and earned five agility
titles before retiring due to an injury. Susan is now competing with Ika
(8 yrs) and Vista (5yrs), both beautiful German Shepherd bitches. Ika
has earned the coveted Agility Dog Champion title (ADCh) through the
USDAA! Vista now has earned her Performance Masters Agility Dog
title, as well. Ika and Vista are therapy dogs with PAWS for People and are visiting elementary schools with the READ program. Newest to the Greenholt family is Hedda, a precocious black German Shepherd puppy.
Susan is committed to keeping abreast
of the most humane and effective training techniques available. She and
her dogs attended the Volhard's Instructors Training Camp three times
and attended Camp Gone to the Dogs. Thrilled with what she learned about
positive reinforcement training at the 1998 Association of Pet
Dog Trainers conference, Susan reads everything she can get on the
subject and has attended seminars given by noted trainers Leslie Nelson,
Jean Donaldson, Sheila Booth, and Pat Miller (among others.)
Susan has enjoyed teaching at
Greenwood so much that she has gone back to school herself. She is
close to finishing her Master's of Education degree and plans to teach high
school social studies classes.
Susan brings a special touch to her
classes. She cares for each and every dog, whether it is destined for
the performance ring or is a beloved pet. Students are always commenting on how
much they love seeing Ika, Vista & Hedda when she uses them for
demonstrations. Watching the excitement and love in their eyes - you
know they have a great trainer!
Mary Woodward
began training at the same time as Susan, owning two Rottweilers at the
time (5 yr old Bear and 6 mos old Teddy). Both Bear and Teddy earned
their CD titles, and did the groundwork for their CDX's before Mary
became too busy with motherhood to continue training. They did make a
brief re-appearance in 1995, both earning their CGC certificates. The
Woodward family now enjoys their current Rottie, 10 yr old Sugar Bear, who
has an unusual loag coat. They have clicker trained her since getting her
at 8 weeks of age. Sugar Bear has earned her CGC certificate &
served as a therapy dog with PAWS for People,
where Mary served on their advisory board and helped develop their dog/handler training & testing
program. She then trained and tested the new therapy dog teams for a
number of years before retiring. The Woodward family is
also enjoying their newest dog, Déjà Vu, a 5 year old Borzoi. Both Sugar Bear
& Déjà Vu love to serve as demonstration dogs at Greenwood. The
Woodward family enjoys the company of two cats, Tao and Sirus Black, who
keep the dogs in line.
Also inspired by the APDT conference,
Mary was thrilled with what she learned at Leslie Nelson seminars, Camp
Gone to the Dogs, and seminars by such noted trainers as Sheila Booth
and Pat Miller. Among her favorite books on the subject are Reaching the Animal Mind and Don't Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor, The Power of Positive Dog Training by Pat Miller, The Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson, Clicker Training for Obedience by Morgan Spector, The Other End of the Leash by Patricia McConnell, and Purely Positive Training - Companion to Competition by Sheila Booth.
Mary brings plenty of teaching
experience to her classes at Greenwood. She taught various subjects at
Conrad Middle School for 7 years before moving to Wilmington Friends
School to teach high school computer classes for 11 years. She is now
working with technology in the library at Friends and teaching Quakerism classes. She frequently brings
Sugar Bear to school to teach the younger children about how to act
(and not act) around dogs and gives training tips. Sugar Bear now has a
pretty nice routine of tricks (such as "lick your chops" and "high
five"), which even the high school kids find quite entertaining. Mary's own children love
their sweet, furry Rottie and their lighting-fast Borzoi.
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Page last updated 12/20/11
Site created & maintained by Mary Woodward
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