Coming Soon -- Cyber Rally Club!
As a spring/summer project, I was thinking of starting a cyber rally club for clients and former clients!
What’s Rally? What’s Cyber Rally?
Rally obedience is a dog sport where you follow a signed course and at each sign you have to complete the specified obedience maneuver with your dog. You have to be in heel or at least loose-leash position between sports. Cyber Rally is a titling venue (meaning your dog can earn official, recognized letters behind its name!) that’s set up for participants to download the official courses, set them up in real life, and submit videos of you and your dog doing them. If you qualify in enough courses, you earn a title! (and a ribbon from the organization.)
Why a club?
I have all the signs, and I have all the cones, and since I’m already out there with a set up course, why not invite others to share the fun? Plus it’ll be great experience for the dogs. A lot of the dogs in training right now are all about the same age, 6-18 months, and are getting pretty good at their obedience and moving right along in their distraction work, and this is a great time to start putting the two together. And if you ever want to enter an IRL competition, your dogs will totally be ready. Plus it will be fun.
How will it work?
I’ll announce course dates and locations with as much advance time as possible (probably at least a couple of weeks.) Locations will be at local parks. You don’t have to sign up or pay dues or anything. Just show up if it works for your schedule. You can email me questions if you have any. Savvy participants may even want to drop by the park and do some training practice there a time or two before rally club day, so that the dog is familiar with the environment!
There will also be regularly scheduled online "rally lessons" which will be sent by email approximately every two weeks. Subjects covered will be ring entrances, dealing with distractions, specific rally exercises and more. Let me know if you want to be on this list!
For the first few ones, I’m going to “host,” which means that I’ll likely be dogless (or have my dog crated in the car.) The host will be the one to set up the course, hold the video camera or phone if people want to video and submit for titles, pick up any signs that get knocked over, and run interference on loose dogs or stray children that potentially run onto the course. My hope is that after a few times someone will volunteer to try their hand at hosting if it works out and they want to pitch in.
Depending on how many people show up, everybody should get at least a couple of runs or training runs in, probably a maximum of five minutes per run on the course.
The fine print?
You are participating at your own risk. You understand that dogs at any level of training can be unpredictable. Dogs can bite, scratch, jump up on or otherwise injure you or your dog. Footing in park locations can be wet and cause slips. The park is an uncontrolled environment and can have unpredictable events and unpredictable hazards. By showing up, you are holding K-9 Prodigy Dog Training harmless from any injury you or your dog may suffer.
Are you going to teach us or coach?
I’ll definitely give you hints and tips! But it’s not a class, it’s a club. I’m happy to help as much as I can though, and check back soon on this page for samples of the exercises and techniques on how to train them.
Can reactive dogs participate?
The plan is to get the ball rolling and do at least a couple of months without reactive dogs, while we figure out what the best way to incorporate them so they can participate too. After all, Cyber Rally is one of the few titling venues where reactive dogs can thrive, and I don't want to leave them out! What it will probably look like is "regular" runs first, and then "reactive" runs after everybody else, so there won't be too many dogs hanging around and causing stress for our sensitive ones. In the meantime, feel free to work on rally exercises at home and continue your reactivity practice out in the world!
STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFO!!!