# Judie Howard?



## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Anyone know anything about her? I guess she is coming her in the spring so I'm going to have to go! Sounds pretty good to me--



> Judie Howard owned one of the largest obedience schools in the country for 24 years, with an enrollment of over 350 dogs per week. She has put more than 70 AKC obedience titles on dogs, including 18 UDs, 6 UDXs and 12 OTChs. (Another dog is three-fourths of the way and has all his firsts.) She has earned more than 140 AKC Highs in Trial, including twelve 200s on six dogs and has given more than 120 camps and/or seminars throughout the U.S. and Canada. She is also:
> 
> A member of the National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors
> A member of the 1988 AKC Obedience Advisory Committee
> ...


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## Judi (Feb 26, 2007)

I never heard of her.
Where is she going to?


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

she is on the obedience list, and has been incredibly kind, supportive, and helpful to me with Tito via email. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to go to one of her seminars!!!!


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## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

one of my friends went to her seminar and said it was the best he ever paid for and he goes to a lot!LOL


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Judie is a very well known obedience competitor and her seminars are quite popular.

I have heard from everyone that has been to one of her seminars that she could write a training book called "101 Ways to Use Chicken Wire" LOL


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Well...I signed up for a three-day working spot at a Judie Howard seminar! I am excited and hope it is good. I hear they are true working seminars so you get lots of time to work your dog.


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I am soooooooooooo jealous!


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I just signed up for another Linda Koutsky seminar in Dallas. I wasn't going to go but I managed to scrape up enough money since I'm not showing much right now.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

What? Now I am jealous back :

Well, we are trying yo get Pat Hastings to do a seminar here in Summer or Winter this year. I plan on going to that one!


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## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

I am spoiled. I train and show with my best friend who just happens to be a great trainer with lots of honorifics to her name. She SHOULD be out doing seminars but she likes to show too much and is very unasumming about her talents.. I met Judy at the NOI and she seems like a very nice lady and I have friends that just love her.Have fun at her seminar and let us know what you think!


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## Bogey's Mom (Dec 23, 2008)

GoldenSail, where do you live?


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## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

far, far away from us


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

I live out in the boonies  I'm in Boise, Idaho area. Love the country, but I do feel like being in a rural state I miss out on a lot of opportunities...no golden retriever club here, and almost no reputable breeders (I know of two, but they rarely breed). Very few shows. But, since it is the capital city and big for me we do have some stuff going on


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

GoldenSail said:


> .no golden retriever club here, and almost no reputable breeders (I know of two, but they rarely breed). Very few shows.


I know how you feel!


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Judie has sent me several emails over the past few days to give me advice based on the videos I posted of Flip's Figure 8's. She has everytime I post video of him and ask for opinions and tips. Very nice and generous with her knowledge.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

On my way this morning to day 1 of my first ever seminar with Judie Howard. I hope it is good! I am nervous though, as I have a really hard time training in front of other people. Ack!


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## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

Have a great time, take LOTS of notes! We have Bridget Carlson this weekend and I have a private lesson with her tonight. I love seminars, I always take something away from them that helps me train. Enjoy!


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Loisiana said:


> Judie has sent me several emails over the past few days to give me advice based on the videos I posted of Flip's Figure 8's. She has everytime I post video of him and ask for opinions and tips. Very nice and generous with her knowledge.


 
Where can we post videos for help?  Thanks


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## Titan1 (Jan 19, 2010)

have a great time today. I really liked her and thought she was very genuine when I met her last winter.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Have a great time


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## Karen519 (Aug 21, 2006)

*Judie Howard*

Please let us know how it goes!


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Well folks day one and if I am going to be honest...I am not impressed. It is my first seminar, so maybe they are not my thing. I did not like having nearly 20 dogs in the same ring at the same time heeling around. Scout did well the first time, but after that it felt boring to both of us and I stopped doing it because I did not want to practice poor heeling (head down, bumping into other people, altering paces to avoid people). There were a few interesting things I learned and I hope tomorrow is better and picks up with us moving onto Open.

It also sucks when someone yells across the room that your dog is crate aggressive. Scout has been in many crated situations around dogs and has never had issues. But I was told that she charged the crate twice--I never saw it, I heard one of them. So that's a huge downer. They think it might be because she's a dominant dog and who knows what signals the other dogs might have given off. Anyway, I am bummed about it but we will see if I can recreate it in training, determine cause, and fix it. Really though, she has had many, many dogs pass her crate today and on other days and been totally fine.


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

I wouldn't let it bother you too much. You know to be aware of it, work on it when you can. I've been told that my dog has the "potential" to be dog aggressive, not because they have actually seen him being aggressive, but because he is such a dominate dog when playing with other dogs. Being told that worried me some, but I generally don't allow my dogs to play with other people's dogs anyway for many reasons.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Some seminars are just boring! I usually audit the first time I go to a person's seminar.

I am sorry you are not impressed, but hopefully tomorrow it will improve. And you will get at least a few pointers that make it worthwhile.


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## BayBeams (Jan 3, 2010)

I've been to many seminars and most of them I had the same experience that you expressed. I no longer take a working spot with my dogs but audit instead. That way I can focus on what the speaker is saying instead of worrying about what is happening with my dog.
I'm sorry you have been disappointed and hope the next day goes better.


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## wakemup (Feb 6, 2011)

I would give my left kidney to go to a Judie Howard seminar!


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## wakemup (Feb 6, 2011)

Oops! Sorry, should have read the report from your first day. Hope the other days go better for you.


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

Hey Beth how did the Janice Gunn seminar go?


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Yeah, I think she is a wonderful, nice and smart person. Very good trainer and versatile--I can't believe the number of OTCHs on such a wide range of dogs. And she trains the dog she has. One of her dogs got an OTCH in four days over one weekend trial!

But, I did not find the seminar today to be what I expected so far. I wanted more than what I can get here. :/ I think if I ever go to a seminar again I am auditing!


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## wakemup (Feb 6, 2011)

Loisiana said:


> Hey Beth how did the Janice Gunn seminar go?


I'm glad you asked! I enjoyed it very much. She presents her methods very clearly and worked us in small groups. She had us each write down two things we wanted help with and we spent the whole 2nd day proble solving. Very well presented methods and it was really fun to see the dogs respond. We also goy to see video of Fisher's super cool son Puzzle from one of her camps.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Day 2 was better, but I just HATE group heeling in circles over and over again, several times day. Random things are thrown in like fast down, fronts, etc to make it fun, but I think it is so boring! Am I the only one? People give me strange looks because I either opt out, or I stand to the side and work on stationary attention. 

But it just boggles my mind how many people want attention heeling, and yet they let their dogs practice in this setting where they are bumping into each other, the dog's head is down, etc, etc. 

What I love is watching problem solving with different dogs--the various problems and breeds. That is so fun and informative!


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

My final word--seminar was 'meh.' It did get a little better with Open and Utility but I really expected more from someone who has obtained a lot of OTCHs, particularly in competitive NorCal. The first two days everytime the group got together it was heeling in a circle with random things thrown in. I hate that and find it VERY boring. Plus, I can get that every week for $5 if I wanted it.


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## MaddieMagoo (Aug 14, 2007)

I would kill to go to a Judie Howard seminar! She is an awesome and has emailed me back and forth about Maddie. She was SUCH a help and I think when you go to a seminar you must bring an open mind. Don't think for a second because that's not your style or you think it just won't work before you even try it...really think about it and try it on your dog. You can always disregard something you don't like.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

It has nothing to do with her training style--she obviously is very admirable in her training experience and accomplishments. It has everything to do with the fact that I felt like she did not really present her methods that well. There was a lot missing--like outlining each step of the exercise and the transitions and proofing. 

The problem solving was good, and she did a great job fixing various things.

EDIT: And I know she is such great help to people online an over the phone even when she has not met them. And I do think she is a very talented trainer.


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## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

GoldenSail said:


> I live out in the boonies  I'm in Boise, Idaho area. Love the country, but I do feel like being in a rural state I miss out on a lot of opportunities...no golden retriever club here, and almost no reputable breeders (I know of two, but they rarely breed). Very few shows. But, since it is the capital city and big for me we do have some stuff going on


Hey! Did I know you lived in Boise? I can't remember if we ever talked about it. I lived there for many years (Boise and Kuna). Our great friends live there and we try to get there once a year or so. Next time we go, maybe we can plan a meet up. :wavey:


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

DNL2448 said:


> Hey! Did I know you lived in Boise? I can't remember if we ever talked about it. I lived there for many years (Boise and Kuna). Our great friends live there and we try to get there once a year or so. Next time we go, maybe we can plan a meet up. :wavey:


Alright let's do it!


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

wakemup said:


> I'm glad you asked! I enjoyed it very much. She presents her methods very clearly and worked us in small groups. She had us each write down two things we wanted help with and we spent the whole 2nd day proble solving. Very well presented methods and it was really fun to see the dogs respond. We also goy to see video of Fisher's super cool son Puzzle from one of her camps.


Now how cool is that! What was the video? 
Puzzle turned three yesterday and celebrated by getting his first two SH passes. His owner Leanne is amazing.


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

Lisa, I did FOUR DAYS of a Celeste Meade seminar two years ago. I hated every second of it. I hardly got to work at all and the only thing Celeste said to me, was that Fisher "worked like a neutered dog." That was supposed to be a compliment. Most of the stuff she said was way over my head, I thought she was boastful and obnoxious, and her border collie demo dog trotted in a circle ALL DAY LONG and gave me a migraine. I was MAD when I got home from it.
But you know what? It's taken two years but I slowly have come to appreciate and really understand what her seminar was all about. Now I wish I could go AGAIN! 
Seminars in general can be a letdown. I've yet to attend one that left me doing backflips. They are tiring and information overload, or not what we were expecting and leave us disappointed until we can ponder and assimilate the information. I think in time you will appreciate the seminar.


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## Loisiana (Jul 29, 2009)

ROFL Anney I have been to see Celeste twice and your description is dead on. And the first time I went I brought Conner (who I was feeling pretty cool about because he had just gotten a UD and OTCH points) she asked me «do you have ANY titles on this dog?» because he was acting all scared of everything. The next time I brought Flip as a puppy and she took one look at him and said «that is a Sunfire dog. Do you know how crazy they are? Why did you want a dog like that» LMAO she surely doesnt censor her thoughts. But I would not hesitate to see her again,I picked a lot of things from her that were really helpful.

Actually I have pretty much the opposite reaction as Anney towards seminars. I think every seminar I have ever been to I left saying that was the best seminar ever and the person is a genius and I want to move to train with them. It isnt until later that I can take a more objective look at it and see the downsides.


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## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

K9-Design said:


> Now how cool is that! What was the video?
> Puzzle turned three yesterday and celebrated by getting his first two SH passes. His owner Leanne is amazing.


Yay for Puzzle! Do you have any pictures? I love seeing Fisher and Titan kids (and am anxiously waiting for Tito offspring...hint, hint, hint).


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

DNL2448 said:


> Yay for Puzzle! Do you have any pictures? I love seeing Fisher and Titan kids (and am anxiously waiting for Tito offspring...hint, hint, hint).


Here is Puzzle's page: Puzzle - Tucker Golden Retrievers

And Puzzle's picture:









He has 9 HITs, 1 200 score in Novice, and as of this weekend, 2 SH legs. Finished Can. CH at 10 months. He lives in Calgary, AB.


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## DNL2448 (Feb 13, 2009)

Oh WOW...Be still my heart! He is gorgeous!!!! Kudos Fisher (and Anney).


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## K9-Design (Jan 18, 2009)

I just put a pic of Puzzle's brother Fetcher on my FB. I spent the last 3 weeks with Fetcher and he is awesome. He looks like a stretched out version of Puzzle (Puzz is 23" and Fetcher 24.5") and is an AMAZING worker. His owner trains religiously with Bridget. 
Best part is the temperament, after a 5-minute meet-n-greet through a babygate, Fetcher assimilated with my two boys and they worked and played together for the rest of our trip with NO problems whatsoever, not even a cross look. Slater and Fetch would play tug and chase each other. All three intact males of 8, 3 and 2 years of age. We met Puzzle at the national last year and he was the same with my guys. Good boys.


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## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

I know Puzzel lives in Calgary, but since he is a Zaniri boy, I keep hoping he will be visiting the his birth home and pop down to the States compete. I would love to see him in person.
......back to your regularly scheduled thread.


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

Thanks Anney!

I definitely took away something from it--and it probably would have meant more if we were actually trialing right now. Perhaps my expectations were too high. I think I have decided that I am an auditor. 

Scout was doing awesome. Her attention heeling is coming along well and she looked great. Judie had us do a few exercises to challenge the retrieve. She stood over the dumbbell, had it hide behind her, set it on her knee, put it under a chair and sat on the chair, etc etc and each time Scout went and picked it up without fail  

Shoot, Judie even asked me who I trained with--someone who is incredibly talented and smart. Wish I would have had her from the start. She's taking me back through basics because she feels like we have a lot of potential as a team and won't tolerate anything but clean and perfect. Hard work, I hope we do well some day. Getting there...


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

And I think Puzzle is just amazing!


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