| Cheryl
Smagala
Member
of APDT
Former
member of TDI
Co-Founder
of
flyball team,
Great Balls of Fire
Participant
at Top Dog Training School Camp -
held by
trainers and authors,
Jack and Wendy Volhard
Assisted
nationally known trainer and author,
Suzanne Clothier,
with agility seminars |
| Cheryl,
the owner of Training with Kindness, has been training dogs for
over 30 years. She has owned, trained and placed titles on many
breeds of dogs including larger breeds, such as Newfoundlands. Cheryl
adopted a St. Bernard puppy in the early 1970's and took her to
obedience classes in Syracuse, NY in order to get more control over
a very big dog! |
| After moving to
Newton, NJ, she found a mix breed puppy and fell in
love. This puppy had many behavioral issues and was aggressive
to both people and dogs. Cheryl saw an ad for an agility seminar
being run by Suzanne Clothier, nationally known trainer and author,
and Linda Caplan. She took the youngster and was thrilled with
the way both ladies handled his issues. She started taking classes
with Suzanne in Frenchtown, NJ and was more comfortable with a
positive/reward style of training. She started teaching agility
seminars with Suzanne and then her beginner obedience classes.
Cheryl was also one of the instructors at Suzanne's Dog Camps.
During the early days of agility, Cheryl assisted Suzanne Clothier,
nationally known trainer and author, with agility seminars and
provided her own Collie, Token, as a participant in one of the
first agility videos ever produced, "Motivational Agility
Training" by Suzanne Clothier and Linda Kaplan. She also
participated in the study which preceded Suzanne Clothier's "Athletic
Dog" video and assisted Suzanne in teaching agility at a
training camp. In 1994, Suzanne sold the school to Cheryl since
she was moving to Upstate New York. The school recently moved
(October 2015) to its new location in Milford, NJ. |
Cheryl (Owner),
Ragen (left) and Kai (right)
|
Cheryl's
extensive training experience and knowledge includes the dog sports
of obedience - regular and rally, agility, flyball and tracking.
Cheryl has had many years of training using motivational methods.
She attended Top Dog Training School Camp held by Jack and Wendy
Volhard. The Volhards started teaching motivational methods long
before they became so popular in the dog training world.
Cheryl
is the former captain and co-founder of the flyball team, Great
Balls of Fire, and her mixed breed dog, Axle, was an experienced
anchor dog for the team.
Cheryl
currently competes in rally obedience and K9 nose work®.
Her Newfoundland, Kai, competed in agility and flyball. She is
a member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT)
and a former member of Therapy Dogs International (TDI). |
| It
is obvious by watching Cheryl that she truly enjoys teaching dog
classes. She has a special interest in helping people achieve a
better relationship with their pets. She is very patient with her
students, both human and dog, and is quick to laugh and enjoy the
dogs' expressions and antics. Cheryl is knowledgeable about problem
solving pet problems. She teaches classes in puppy kindergarten,
obedience, rally, trick dog, and nose work. Cheryl always
has a rescue since she loves the challenges these dogs' bring and
also has a giant breed (or two) hanging around - usually a Newfie! |
|
