Paws for Tails a Waggin'

Newsletter of the Dog Obedience Club of Las Cruces, Inc.

Nancy Chanover, Editor
4210 Sotol Drive, Las Cruces, NM 88011
(505) 522-0812
chanover@zianet.com
DOCLC Club Phone Number: 527-3983

June 2005

The next meeting of the Dog Obedience Club of Las Cruces will be a restaurant meeting. We will meet on Thursday, June 2, 2005, at 6:30 pm at the Bountiful Bakery on East Lohman (at the east end of the Petco/Marshall's/Ross shopping center). The restaurant serves sandwiches, salads, soups, some light dinner fare, and exotic pastries and coffees, and we will have a private meeting room. For those of you planning to skip the food, please join us at 7 pm since we need to leave the restaurant by 9 pm at the latest. Hope to see you there!

We will be holding registration for our summer session of obedience classes at the end of June. Registration will take place on June 30th at the Branigan Library; 6:15 pm for returning students and 7 pm for new students. Remember, this summer we are experimenting with a short-course format, where classes will be held twice a week on Mondays and Thursdays for three weeks. Classes will begin on Mon. July 18. We would appreciate any current or prospective members who can come and help out with registration! Thanks in advance for your cooperation.

Well, our obedience classes have come to an end, and what an overwhelming great response we got to the new classes! It seems that everyone really enjoyed the new curriculum and I think we (the instructors) had a fun time teaching with it. We are looking for new speakers for our meetings in the upcoming months; if you know of anyone or have any suggestions please let me know. Our next class sign up is just around the corner on June 30th, so please come help if you can. Congrats go out to Pam Smith for her undying devotion to agility with her new purchase of a mobile K-9 transportation unit (RV) - I understand we may have to have our next meeting mobile in her RV. Hope to see you all at the next meeting!

Vic Villalobos

MINUTES OF THE DOG OBEDIENCE CLUB OF LAS CRUCES

May 5, 2005

Members Present: President Vic Villalobos, Vice-President Nancy Chanover, Secretary Marjorie A. Henson; OTHER MEMBERS: Julie Goodrich, Janet Miller, Shannon Murray, Brian Owen, Steve Stochaj, Gayle Treakle; VISITORS: Michelle Malden, Kathy Stevens, Nick & Erica Voges

The meeting was called to order by President Vic Villalobos at 7:10. Introductions were made.

For the Agility Trial: Vic Villalobos is grounds chairman. Still looking for a course builder as Steve Stochaj may be gone.

Julie Goodrich moved & Gayle Treakle seconded to accept the minutes as presented in the newsletter. Motion passed.

The treasurer's report was presented in the absence of the treasurer.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:
SEMINAR: Janet Miller reported that there is nothing going on right now.
DOG LOVER'S BOOK CLUB will be meeting May 19 at Pat Warren's house.
AGILITY TRAILER: Steve & Vic will be working on it during the summer.
WICKET FOR AGILITY: Brian Owen would like the club to authorize the spending of up to $325 for an AKC approved wicket for use at the agility trials. Brian moved that we get it & Janet Miller seconded. Motion passed.
OBEDIENCE CLASSES: These are going well. Some of the evaluations were returned & the major complaint has been inability to hear what the instructor is saying. The class members are enjoying the book and attendance is up in the beginning classes. Puppy class is going well.
REGISTRATION: Registration is June 30 for the experimental class that will be twice a week. The classes start on Monday July 18 & be held again on Thursday July 22. This will be for 3 weeks. If we have enough interest for 2 classes is there enough room for 2 beginning classes & a puppy class at the park. It was suggested that x-pens could be bungeed across the openings in the play area so that could be used. With the smaller classes & not doing as much heeling we might even be able to use the big area for all 3 classes.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR CLASSES IN SEPTEMBER: With this new curriculum, we need to offer something for those who want something more. Rather than have a CGC class perhaps we could offer an advanced skills & obedience skills class. Janet offers one that consists of Attention work, fronts & finishes, distance work, introduction to hoops, weaves, and the play bow. With PetSmart opening and the future increase in Karen Wagner's classes, we need to be offering stuff for people with us to continue & improve their interaction with their dogs. Brian Owen will assist if there is interest in a competition class & someone willing to teach it.

There needs to be a board meeting in June. It will be at 6:15 before the regular meeting.

SUMMER PARTY: The club usually holds a party in July instead of a meeting. When do we want to hold it? Perhaps on July 30th at Charlene Curry's if she's able to.
RALLY OBEDIENCE: The upcoming thing is Rally Obedience (Rally-O). J & J have everything available to put it on also a book on how to teach. Janet Miller would like to have Rally Obedience next year at our Trial. Janet is interested in being Rally-O chairman. A discussion was held about buying everything that we need from J & J as an order is being put in. Brian made a motion but then withdrew for the club to buy this packet. The book is available separately. Brian Owen moved & Nancy Chanover seconded that the club buys a copy or the book on How to teach Rally form J & J. Motion passed.
OBEDIENCE TRIAL: AKC has approved the trial on Saturday and verbally approved the one on Sunday The judges have been approved and confirmation for Saturday has been received. Steve will be grounds Chairman and Vic will get the mounted patrol for the security. There may be a problem with the people who are members of the Search & Rescue group helping on that weekend if tha'’s the same weekend as the Whole Enchilada Fiesta as that is their big fund raiser weekend. We need hospitality Chairman. Also we need to decide if we are going to offer trophies or just ribbons. There were several people last year that complained that we didn't offer trophies and offered to chair that for us, but the trophies are a big money loser. We can decide this at the next meeting.

Brags were presented.

Brian Owen moved that the meeting be adjourned.