Kamal Fernandez's Obedience Seminar

Hi everyone! I am Mint!

Last weekend I attended a two-day seminar by one of the world's best dog trainers, Kamal Fernandez!!

Do you know Kamal? He is a professional dog trainer based in England. He had been to New Zealand a few times to do seminars before. But, Mum didn't attend them because she thought that we were not up to that level. However, this time she didn't only sign up for the seminar as soon as it was announced but also she even secured a working spot for me!

Do you want to know how we knew him? Well, we learned how to heel nicely through his online courses at Fenzi Dog Sports Academy (FDSA), and that's where we came to know him.

Of course, we had learned how to heel from several instructors before that, such as several instructors at our dog training club as well as a few other instructors who taught us privately. We also learned it through a couple of other courses at FDSA. But, nothing worked better than methods that Kamal taught us. So, Mum and I really looked forward to the seminar!!

In the seminar we learned a lot of foundation skills rather than specific skills for each obedience exercise including heelwork.

Before our first work session, Mum asked Kamal to ask others to make sure to close their food containers so that I wouldn't go to hunt for other dogs' treats. But, Kamal said that her request was unrealistic and instead he showed Mum how to teach me to ignore others' food. It seems I should expect Mum to do that exercise with me a lot :-P 

However, I think it was an unnecessary concern. As long as the training is fun, I won't go anywhere but near Mum! If fact, I had no trouble staying focused on her during the seminar. Mum just needs to remember to prepare larger pieces of treats so that I can find them more easily!! Look! Kamal was saying the same thing!

During the two days the most difficult exercise we did was "Simon says"!! We dogs had to sit wherever our handlers put their hands on. I had no problem when Mum put her hands on her head, shoulders, or hips. But, I sometimes made a mistake and lied down when she put her hands on her knees. When she put her hands on her toes, it was really confusing!!! 

Anyway it was so much fun overall!! Mum, thank you for attending the seminar with me!!