MT. NITTANY DOG TALES - JANUARY 2015

Board Update: Cleaning the Building

Kate Eldredge’s Lynah was Best Bred-by-Exhibitor in Breed at Eukanuba and won Best of Opposite in the regular judging!

January 2015

One of the issues the board has been consider-ing is how to keep the training building clean. Currently, folks who use the building for per-sonal training “pay” for their time by vacuum-ing and emptying the trash. This has always worked well during times when the building is not heavily used. Additionally, a crew of volun-teers always cleans the building before and af-ter club events such as seminars and obedience and agility trials.

But during class sessions, there is no designated cleaning crew. With large numbers of people and dogs attending classes four days and nights a week in addition to run-throughs for both agility and obedience, the place gets pretty hairy. Relying on the personal trainers just isn’t keeping up with the dirt. In the past we’ve had classes stay an extra night once a month to clean, but many thought it was unfair to ask

paying customers to clean.

So members of the Building Committee and others, in consultation with the Board, have

put forth several suggestions that they would like club members to consider for a vote at the March meeting. Members may vote for all of these or select some and reject others. Options (all apply only during times when classes are in session):

1. Reward those who clean with vouchers for classes: one voucher for four sections cleaned five times.

2. Reward those who clean with gift cards (we cannot pay cash) for local businesses such as Sheetz and Walmart. Although no specific hour-ly “pay” has been recommended, perhaps $10 for one cleaning of four sections would be in line with the value of class vouchers.

3. Those who use the building for personal training would have two options. They could either compensate the club for usage by clean-ing one section per training session or they

January General Membership Meeting & Elections Tuesday, January 13, at 7 p.m.; potluck dinner at 6 p.m.

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Pine Grove Mills

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OFFICERS President Karen Keller karpediemaussies@comcast.net Vice President Sandy Roth fanfaredogs@gmail.com Secretary Nancy Miller chesydog@verizon.net Treasurer Jill Paige j.graydogs@verizon.net Board Members Trish Alexander talexander@psu.edu Linda Arble lindacfr@yahoo.com Ginny Esh ginny@eshfamily.com Janet Lewis macleod05bcs@gmail.com

Coming Up for MNDTC…

Jan. 13: General membership meeting, 7 p.m., St. Paul’s Lutheran, Pine Grove Mills; potluck dinner before the meet-ing at 6 p.m.

Jan. 30 to Feb. 1: Agility trial, Ag Arena on Penn State’s main campus

Feb. 3: Board meeting, 6:30 p.m., St. Paul’s Lutheran, Pine Grove Mills

Feb. 28 & March 1: Agility trial, Ag Arena on Penn State’s main campus

March 3: Board meeting, 6:30 p.m., St. Paul’s Lutheran, Pine Grove Mills

March 10: General membership meeting, St. Paul’s Luther-an, Pine Grove Mills

For more information on some events, as well as dates of up-coming run-throughs, go to the MNDTC events and run-through pages at www.mndtc.org.

CLUB OFFICERS

In This Issue

Election Candidates ········· 3

New Building Calendar ······ 8

Judy Kolva Seminar ·········· 8

February Agility Trials ······· 9

2015 AKC Events ············· 9

Winter Travels ·············· 10

Congratulations ············ 12

Newsletter Help Wanted!

Mt. Nittany Dog Tales desperately needs a designer to lay out pages; can you help? The newsletter is published every other month, so this is not a huge job. If you are able to help or would like more info, please email news@mndtc.org. Also, we’re always looking for club members who would like to help edit, write, or take photos. Again, please email news@mndtc.org if you’re interested in helping with the news-letter.

Time to Pay Your 2015 Dues!

Club dues for 2015 are due to the treasurer by Feb. 1. Fees are $20 for individual mem-bers, $30 for families, and $5 for juniors (ages 9 to 17). For complete information, re-fer to the Dec. 17 and 18 LBN emails, which included an info form to print out or to fill out and send via email. You can pay via check or PayPal.

MT. NITTANY DOG TALES - JANUARY 2015 3

Elections are at hand! Please review the statements provided by our many well-qualified candidates, and plan to vote at the January 13 meeting. Thanks to Trish Alexander, Marliene Froke, and Kay Waslohn for serving on the Nominat-ing Committee and presenting the following slate: President – Tracey Dooms, Vice Presi-dent – Kathy Huey, Secretary – Janet Lewis, Treasurer – Lois Albright, and Board – Katie Kennedy and Lynn Klees. Nominated from the floor were: President – Roberta Horner, and Board – Mardi Hockenberry and Cindy Tier. Candidate bios continue through page 7.

Annual Elections January 13

Kathy Huey During my 19 years as a MNDTC member, I have served as Secretary and Treasurer several times. Currently I am responsible for retaining judges for our Agility tri-als as well as filing paperwork with AKC for these tri-als. Dogs have always been a significant part of my life. Currently I have two Golden Retrievers — senior Reg-gie and youngster Mick. They enjoy Tracking, Agility, and Obedience. I have always given the club my best efforts and will continue to do so in the position of Vice President.

Candidate for Vice President

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Tracey Dooms When I was a child, my family bred and showed Ger-man Shorthaired Pointers, but I had a different breed in mind and was 12 when I got my first Shet-land Sheepdog. Chief earned his obedience CD title, and I helped my father teach Beaver County Kennel Club obedience classes. Over the years, my Shelties and I have trained and competed in Junior Showmanship, Conformation, Obedience, Rally, and Agility. At MNDTC, I teach Agility classes, serve on the Agility Class Committee, and help edit the Mt. Nittany Dog Tales newsletter. I have served as a Board member, club President, and trial chair, and I’ve helped with activities including Obedience and Rally trials, K-9 Carnival, Penn State visits, and launching of the PayPal option and club Facebook page. I look forward to helping our club build on its strong foundation for a secure future that involves and benefits all club members and their dog activi-ties, while educating the general public about responsible dog ownership.

Candidates for President

Roberta Horner I have been a member of MNDTC since 1999. I have served several terms as a Board member and have been the chairperson for our Obedi-ence/Rally trials for many years. I have served on Agility trial committees. I got my first purebred Siberian Husky in 1979. We earned our first CD in three trials and have been trialing ever since. I have trained and shown sev-eral Siberian Huskies and Shetland Sheepdogs. I show my dogs in Obedience, Rally, Agility, Barn Hunt, and as Working Pack Dog. I am an instructor for MNDTC and coordinate the run-throughs and also am an AKC licensed Rally judge . I am seriously committed to promoting training and education to the public and membership in all areas of dog training, from general pet obedience to higher levels of canine companion and perfor-mance events, in order to have a dog capable of anything.

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Candidate for Secretary

Janet Lewis I’ve been a member of the dog training club for most of the time I’ve lived in this area (since the 1970s). Hard to imagine the little club I first met struggled to do one Obedience trial a year and one match. Look at us now!! Agility, Tracking, Obedience, seminars, workshops, and lots of members participating and working. My goal is to do away with opposing camps, and help all members feel welcome and appreciated. As a past secre-tary for the Juniata faculty (for almost 30 years), I’m looking forward to NOT listening to long-winded faculty speeches but to Board meetings that will speak to the needs of all our members.

Candidate for Treasurer

Lois Albright I’ve been a member of MNDTC since 1982. I’ve served as Secretary, Treasurer and Board member, and have assisted with Obedience classes. The Keeshond breed has been part of my life since 1980, when I purchased my first puppy. I’ve shown my Keeshonden to various titles including AKC, CKC, and UKC breed champions; AKC, CKC, UKC, and CDSP Obe-dience titles; AKC Rally titles; and AKC Agility titles. I currently share my life with two Keeshonden, namely Morgan and her son Cory, who is my first home-bred champion. I’m also a member of the Keeshond Club of America, and Keeshond Club of Delaware Valley, which is a regional club. My work experience includes five years as a budget clerk at HRB-Singer, Inc., one year as a clerk in ac-counts receivable, and 35 years assisting with general ledger entries, account reconciliations, and bank rec-onciliations for HRB-Singer, Inc., HRB-Systems, and Raytheon State College. I retired after 41 years of ser-vice. I look forward to serving as Treasurer for MNDTC.

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Candidates for Board Member (choose 2)

Katie Kennedy A new puppy brought me to MNDTC for classes in 1999, and I joined in 2003 when I started competing in Agility. I wanted to learn from others who love and live with dogs and who enjoy training and promoting dog training to the general public. I have two Border Collies and a PBGV, and have trained in Obedience, Agility, and Tracking. One day I hope to try other sports such as Nose Work. I love the seminars our club offers with opportunities to learn about and try so many different activities. I have supported and volunteered for the club at many events, and I would like to become more involved. As a Board member, my goal would be to encourage membership growth and to encourage an atmosphere where all of our members feel welcome to partici-pate, whether it is volunteering at trials, teaching, serving on the Board or committees, or taking classes.

Lynn Parker Klees I’m a relatively new member of MNDTC. My first expe-rience with the club was 14 years ago when my daughter wanted to participate in Agility and we adopted an Aussie. We attended MNDTC and local classes. My daughter eventually decided Agility was not for her. Fast-forward nine years: We added a Min-iature American Shepherd, Toby, to our family. While we were taking puppy classes, Karen Keller encour-aged us to get involved in a dog sport. We took clas-ses in Obedience and Rally, but found our niche in Agility. One of my strengths is helping a diverse group of indi-viduals develop consensus. I am interested in making sure we are able to deliver the safest and most enjoy-able experience during our trials and events. When not involved in Agility, I am a full-time instructor at Penn State and have experience serving on state and local boards. Prior to Penn State, I worked as a diabe-tes educator/dietitian for 36 years.

(Board Member candidates continued on next page)

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Candidates for Board Member (continued from previous page)

Mardi Hockenberry I have been a member of MNDTC since 1981. I have served as Secre-tary and Board member. I assisted and taught classes in the ’90s and my reviews were always excellent. My dogs have won High-In-Trials in Obe-dience and MBIS, MBISS in Confor-mation. I have participated in and chaired Hunt tests, Obedience trials, breed specialties as well as assisted at Agility trials. I am Secretary of Brandywine English Setter Club. I worked at Penn State as an under-graduate coordinator for over 600 students. Juggling many responsibili-ties and working with students, parents, and faculty required good skills in communication and diplomacy. I feel I have a diverse level of experience to bring to the Board. If I am given the opportunity and your trust to join the Board, it will be my immediate goal to bridge the gaps so our organization grows stronger. I will be an objective member of the Board, respectful and open to all members’ ideas. I would also like to see educational/health articles in the newsletter and mentorships developed for new trainers.

Cindy Tier I’ve been a member of the MNDTC since 1976 and taught classes for over 20 years. I served as Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Board member. I also chaired Tracking tests and Agility trials, as well as arranged seminars and the annual awards ban-quet. I currently serve on the Agility Class Commit-tee.

I put Obedience, Agility and Fyball titles on my dogs, including an Irish Setter, an English Springer Spaniel, two Shelties, and seven Border Collies, although my main focus now is Flyball. I also showed several breeds in Conformation.

I work with assistance dogs and their handlers. I vol-unteer for Border Collie rescue, evaluating, foster-ing, and transporting dogs.

I owned a successful dog grooming business for 10 years, and prior to that I was a medical secretary.

MT. NITTANY DOG TALES - JANUARY 2015 8

New Online Building Calendar

The club has a new, self-serve online calendar for reserving the training building. If you haven’t used it yet, check it out at www.mndtc.org by clicking on Members Area, then Build-ing, and finally View Calendar. Members can type their own reservations directly into the calendar. Complete instructions, as well as other information about using the building, are in the building area of the web-site. If you have questions, email bldgschedule@mndtc.org. Any club member can reserve the building free of charge for dog training. Provisional members can use the building if a full member is with them. When you reserve the building for the first time, be sure to read the rules first and make sure you get the combination to unlock the door.

Judy Kolva Seminar April 25 & 26

After a well-received seminar in 2014, MNDTC is bringing back Judy Kolva for a second agility seminar April 25 and 26 at our Ag Progress training building. Registration is open now for club members and will be opened to nonmem-bers on March 1.

Each day of the seminar will feature a morning and an afternoon session; you may register for as many sessions as you would like. Each session is limited to 10 working teams, but auditing spots are unlimited. Saturday’s sessions are: 9 a.m. to noon, Contacts: running vs.

stopped, proofing, and in sequences. 1 to 4 p.m., Out of Your Comfort Zone:

learning to run sequences with different handling and determining the fastest way.

Sunday’s sessions are: 9 a.m. to noon, Fancy Handling: using some

of the new handling maneuvers, and where to use them.

1 to 4 p.m., Mental Management: exercises and techniques to improve your course memorization, efficiency of your walk-through, your handling plan, and when it doesn’t go as planned.

For more information about the seminar and instructor Judy Kolva, as well as pricing, see the Dec. 10 Late Barking News or email organiz-er Wendy Rote at shekou@windstream.net.

Judy Kolva (right) instructs club member Car-ol Crouch and her puppy at last year’s semi-nar.

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February Agility Trials at the Ag Arena

MNDTC’s AKC Trials & Tests in 2015

Our club plans to hold AKC sanc-tioned trials and tests on 7 week-ends this year. Mark your calen-dars now, whether you plan to enter, watch, or volunteer. (Each competition day of these events counts as one activity toward ful-filling your provisional member-ship requirements or toward your annual requirement of helping at two events to receive your club awards.) Jan. 30-Feb. 1: Agility trial,

Ag Arena Feb. 28-March 1: Agility trial,

Ag Arena April 5: Tracking test, Ag Pro-

gress May 8-10: Agility trial, Ag

Progress June 13-14: Obedience and

Rally trial, Ag Progress July 3-5: Agility Trial, B&D,

Latrobe Oct. 25: TDX Tracking test,

Ag Progress

Sharon Hagerty’s Willow at an Ag Arena trial

Club members and their dogs will be heading for the dirt in February at Penn State’s Ag Arena. This year, we have two Agility trials at the arena – Jan. 30 to Feb. 1 and Feb. 28 to March 1. Volunteers are always welcome for our events, whether you can help for an hour, a morning, or a whole day. No experience or Agility knowledge is necessary! Most jobs give you a great view of all the action. To volunteer for the Jan. 30-Feb. 1 trial, email Betsy Geertson, betsy@orionwheatens.us. To volunteer for the Feb. 28-March 1 trial, email Alicia Alwine, Ali-cia@mndtc.org.

Here are some of the jobs done by volunteers at Agility trials:

Scribe: Write down faults based on the judge’s hand signals. Assistant scribe: Put the scribe sheets in the correct order and make sure the scribe always

has the correct sheet. Sheet runner: Take the scribe sheets from the assistant scribe and deliver them to the trial

secretary’s table to be recorded in the catalog. Leash runner: As unobtrusively as possible, pick up the leash/collar from the handler and

deposit it in the designated place at the ring exit. Timer: Press the “go” button to indicate that the next dog can start, and make sure the elec-

tronic timer is working properly. Gate steward: Make sure each team enters the ring at the proper time. Ring crew: Reset equipment for different jump heights, and replace jump bars that are

knocked down.

MT. NITTANY DOG TALES - JANUARY 2015 10

November brought Wild and Wonderful West Virginia, fol-lowed the next weekend by more Trials and Travails for MNDTC (foolhardy) members Laura Kuterbach, Elaine Swancer, Marliene Froke, Tracey Dooms, and Patty Horne. Elaine and Marliene’s first near-mishap on the way to Morgan-town was a close encounter with a deer. Barely into Maryland, they then glided across one of those bridges that ices before the roads. About the time their blood and heart rates had sub-sided, they reached the top of a West Virginia mountain, only to find black ice and vehicles strewn across the landscape. No po-lice; no ambulances; no salt. Elaine was in first gear, aiming for the rumble strip on the right. Tracey skidded by about 15 minutes later. Even with traffic crawling down the mountain at 15 mph, antilock brakes still shuddered trying to gain traction. Friday morning’s temp of about 18 replaced Thursday night’s black ice. Puffs of breath dotted the landscape. This was the coldest indoor trial we had ever attended. Marliene foolishly left a banana on a crate overnight, only to discover it the next morning totally frozen and black. Five days later, Laura, Patty, Elaine, and Marliene embarked for Edinboro. A snowstorm had in-

Winter-Weather Dog-Trial Travels

One Scary Accident...and Two Obedience Titles By Craig Bohren

By good fortune, this account replaces an obituary that would have to have been written by someone else. Early morning Nov. 16, we were driving on Rte. 22 to Delmont for an obedi-ence trial. Although the sky was overcast, we saw no precipitation. But while crossing a bridge about 10 miles from our destination, we suddenly found ourselves in a wildly spinning truck. We crashed into two barricades, the airbags deployed, and we eventually skidded to a halt. There must have been an exceedingly thin layer of frozen drizzle on the bridge. No other vehicles were involved, and we and the dogs were unhurt. But our truck was demol-ished. We called Bob Hummer in State College, and he set out to fetch us. An off-duty EMT was the first on the scene. Although she had a small car, she offered to ferry us and our gear to the trial site. Nanette, Cuz, and Dart made the first trip. When Janet Lewis got the news, she followed the EMT back to the crash site and picked up Birch. I waited for the tow truck.

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Elaine, MACH 3 Wizard, Patty, and MACH Bunny

MT. NITTANY DOG TALES - JANUARY 2015 11

Accident (continued from previous page)

Eventually, we were reunited at the trial site. Bob arrived just in time to see Nanette’s Util-ity B run with Cuz. Despite the trauma of the crash, they qualified, placing fourth. Cuz earned her UD and Nanette her first-ever obedience title. Bob took Nanette, Cuz, and Dart back to State College while Birch and I stayed behind for our Open B run. We qualified, earning the final leg for Birch’s CDX. After the trial, Janet drove me and Birch home. Although I said that we were unhurt, this is not completely true. The airbag explosions were sufficiently intense to seriously affect Nanette’s hearing. You don’t read much about this aspect of airbags, but it is quite common. The sound intensity exceeds the pain threshold. Nanette’s hearing has deteriorated to where it was eight years ago when she had surgery that dramatically improved her hearing. We do not yet know if her hearing loss is perma-nent.

Trials and Travails (continued from previous page)

undated Buffalo and many roads were closed. When Patty saw the snowfall on the weather map and compared it with her Corgis’ legs, she stopped at Walmart and bought a kids’ snow shovel. Saturday began uneventfully enough, with Elaine and Wizard claiming MACH 3. Within a few minutes, the electricity went out, and agility became something different. The site is in an old mall, so the ring has no windows or outside lighting. For about 1 ½ hours, there were spots of light from phones and a few flashlights. Even the exit lighting was strangely missing. The deci-sion-makers eventually decided to resume the trial. Each exhibitor team entered the ring as the preceding team started. This way, the dogs and handlers could adjust to the lighting. Ooops, non-lighting. The scribe followed the judge’s path so she could see the hand signals. Laura and Skittles were the first MNDTC team up. They Qed with an incredible run that narrowly missed the judge. Next, Patty and Bunny set up for…their MACH run! Good grief. Could anything be more stressful for a first-time MACHer? They did it perfectly. Here’s the link for their incredi-ble run. Warning: You won’t see much, but this is exactly what the ring and the run looked like. By the time Stash ran 8”, it was almost “the-same-old/same-old” in the dark/black ring and he, too, Qed for a QQ that day, with time 4 seconds better than the next day. We think given the limited visibility, he felt compelled to stick with the course Elaine directed rather than to impro-vise a variation, which he often does. By comparison, the Sunday trial was no big deal. Except for the arrival of an illegal alien — Elaine’s new Rottie puppy, Strider. Recent changes make it more difficult to bring any animal into the U.S. Elaine and the breeder filled out two rounds of paperwork. Then Mother Nature closed Buffalo, where the exchange was to take place. The breeder volunteered to bring Strider to Erie. After all the paperwork drama, the border check consisted of the guard exclaiming how cute the puppies were and she just loved Rottweilers. No paper involved. Wizard and Skittles used Morgantown and Edinboro as warm-ups for the Eukanuba Invitational in Orlando. We suspected those runs would not present any more challenges than they already had faced. The tally of results for MNDTC members in the two weekends was pretty impressive: MACH, MACH 3, six Triple Qs, 10 Double Qs, several single Qs.

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Congratulations!

Nina, GCH Winmor’s Luv Never Fails, finished her Grand Cham-pionship on Nov. 22 and 23 at the Rock Creek KC show. On Sat-urday, she won BOS for a 4-point major and on Sunday, at the Upper Marlboro KC show, she was select bitch for a 3-point ma-jor. I was very proud of my girl. She also was select bitch at the Philadelphia Kennel Club Show on the 15th. —Joan Stone

Std Schnauzer JJ, owned by Lisa Davis,

earned his RATN title at the Bella Vista Barn Hunt trials Nov 16.

*****

Are you and your dog

celebrating a new title, big win, or other

achievement? Send it to news@mndtc.org for

the March issue of Mt. Nittany Dog Tales. From

blue ribbons to “my dog finally stayed in the ring,” share your

achievements with your fellow club members!

Patty Horne’s Tillies Sweet Bunny earned her MACH on

November 22 in Edinboro. See pages 10 to 11 for the story of

their “MACH in the Dark!”

MT. NITTANY DOG TALES - JANUARY 2015 13

Congratulations!

For the fourth year in a row, Skittles qualified for and competed in the AKC Agility Invitational in Orlan-do, Florida, which was held in December 2014. In 2013, he was the #1 Cavalier at the event and just missed being in the finals by less than two tenths of a sec-ond. Despite a rigorous trialing schedule, Skittles just barely qualified for the 2014 event, being the fifth of five dogs invited in his breed. He and the #6 dog were separated by only 31 points (31 seconds) over the 12-month qualifying period (this is less than the typical number of points that we earn in just one trial day). This type of national competition brings competitors together from across the country for more than just this one weekend. Because this close race was down to the wire, I established a "Facebook" friendship with the #6 Cavalier team, Bonnie and Spencer. A few months later, Bonnie made a cross-country trip from Washington state and stopped at a trial in Latrobe, PA, to meet us! I promised to make the most of our trip to Florida. Given our "underdog" status, I had a hunger to prove myself worthy of attending this event and I wanted to make the most of it. I was up against really tough competition, as one of the Cavaliers had been the all-breed #1 MACH dog of the year for 2013; however, run after run, Skittles was fast and clean. We ran our hearts out and ended up as the top Cavalier and one of the top 12-inch dogs, qualifying for the finals! This was my first appearance in a finals at a national event and I will cherish the experience, and the coveted finalist shirt, forever! We almost faulted in the finals when Skittles went wide and was about to miss a jump, but he turned just in time to take the jump (I still don't know how he kept that bar up)! This exciting finish made Skittles a crowd favorite! We ran clean in the finals and placed seventh! I was hungry to have a great weekend so I used a few clips from the Hunger Games to spice up my video tribute to this memorable weekend and my little Dog on Fire! The weekend after the Invitational, Skittles earned his 17th AKC Agility Championship under Judge Howard Etzel in Lewisberry, PA! Congratulations to MACH 17 Skittles (the #1 Lifetime AKC Agility Cavalier)! We ended 2014 on a high note! — Laura & MACH 17 Skittles

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Congratulations!

Ch. Pond Hollow Bryce Canyon added some letters to the end of his name. Bryce finished his NA, NAJ, and NF in October 2014. My best buddy...I love you to the moon and back. — Nancy Miller

Alabi finished her championship at the Turkey cluster in Howard County, Maryland, before Thanksgiving. She has started her Agility career and qualified three times at the Williamsport trial. Picture is after her very first Q in FAST. — Linda Arble

For Sale

Set of twelve 22" spaced weave poles in very good condition, no rust. Make me an offer. Email Nancy Miller at chesydog@verizon.net

could pay $5 per session. Those fees would be used for the purchase of gift cards.

4. Cleaning can be used by provisional mem-bers to fulfill activity requirements (one cleaning session/four sections for each activi-ty). Provisional members must be accompa-nied by a club member if they choose this op-tion.

5. Those seeking awards may also use the cleaning option (one session/four sections) to qualify for awards.

Update (continued from page1)