Seminars

I like to host seminars and I like to attend them. I think that going to different people (whether working your dog or auditing) where you can learn different training techniques that might work better for the individual dog and handler is a great thing.

I like to host seminars to network and plus I like the hosting part of it.

My goal is to bring instructors in that create a draw for others as well. It is hard to afford to bring someone in, no matter what they cost, if you don't have a good draw.

Of course I want to keep my seminars to the lowest cost that I can for people. But I also like to keep attendants (working dogs) to the lowest numbers that I can so that everyone gets quality time training their dog and there is not a lot of downtime or conversation in between each dog (other than the debriefing on your training session).

I have a seminar in the works for the middle of Spring (will post firm details later) that it should be a good time. Waiting to hear back on dates that will work for the instructor as well as the decoys.

At the French Ringsport (Rick Rutt / Jimmy Vanhoeve) seminar I attended this last year, I was a little skeptical of the cost initially but considered it "Fair Enough" (if memory serves me correctly, it was $200 for 2 days??) to be worth going (& I'm pretty stingy with paying for training ).. However, because of the excellent content, time spent & patience of the speakers, I came away feeling like *I* got a deal. The time spent with the attendees as *Amazing*! I can't imagine anyone would complain about not getting enough training time for their dog(s).
I took my Bouvier Ness to work on esquieves, but also had to drag along my young male Boerboel Neb for the trip. Even though I had no intention of taking up "seminar time" with Neb, as IMO his foundation wasn't far enough along to monkey with a bunch of new stuff, I was asked multiple times if I wanted to work him. So while I didn't, the concern of the trainers to make sure everyone was satisfied really made an impression on me.
IMO they didn't have too many folks there, but even if there's a higher number of participants at a seminar, as long as enough time is made for everyone, it's more beneficial to try to keep the cost down to get folks there in the first place. I wouldn't hesitate to attend another seminar by these guys, even if they jacked the price up a bit because you will really get your money's worth!
I can say I've enjoyed the same experience & would likewise recommend Michael Ellis & Shane Carter, especially if you are working Bully or Molosser dogs. :smile: