Online Classes
Megan offers a variety of online learning materials. Click the descriptions below to learn more.
Essential Skills for Stopped Contacts
FDSA Webinar: September 8th @ 6pm PT
There are a lot of skills and concepts that go into building a clear and confident stopped contact performance. All of these skills can be split into small pieces and trained without the actual contact equipment. The ability to think outside the box and build fluency within those pieces away from agility equipment is powerful! When you go to teach the obstacle, if your dog already understands the game and knows the answers, learning the obstacle will be very easy and incredibly empowering for the dog! Bonus points for these essential skills being super puppy friendly and very easy to individualize for any team.
In this webinar, the skills and concepts will be broken down into small, trainable pieces, and some games will be combined to help students build more dynamic training sessions that are fun and interesting for their dog.
Skills we will cover:
– Reinforcement strategies
– Cue discrimination
– Bravery games
– Speed games
– Stay put vs go
– Positions out of motion
– Combo games & putting pieces together
AG195: Teeter Training: From Trick to Teeter
FDSA Class October 1 – November 11, 2022
This class starts with a trick and ends with a teeter! Teeter training can begin pretty early in a dog’s agility career because it begins with a simple trick: backing up! From this rear end awareness exercise, we will introduce the 4-on behavior onto a wobble board or tippy board, name and proof the behavior, and then start the process of transferring that behavior to a low teeter. Each team will be on their path to a full-height teeter, complete with sequencing and handling skills. This goal of this method is to produce a dog that runs across the board to the end, weight shifts back, rides the board to the ground and waits in position for the handler's verbal release cue. The class is suitable for dogs with no prior teeter experience, and also suitable for dogs wanting to retrain their teeter performance.
Teaching Approach:
Lectures are released in one chunk at the beginning of the week. Lectures include written instructions, diagrams, and short demonstration videos. Demonstration videos are of actual training sessions, so sometimes things don’t go according to the script. It is important for students to be able to take the lecture assignments, along with trouble shooting tips, and make adjustments in their training that their individual team needs, since every scenario cannot be covered in lecture or demo material. Megan is direct in her feedback. “Keep doing this. Change this. Give this a try.” This training process is very step-by-step and should be followed pretty closely by each team, only making slight adjustments as needed. Steps shouldn’t be skipped as they all serve a specific purpose in the program.
AG245: You've Been Framed: Running Aframe Training
FDSA Class February 2023
This class is for building a clear and confident running aframe performance. Regardless of your skill level, this class is for building a clear and confident running aframe performance. Regardless of your dog’s aframe experience, you will have the step-by-step process for teaching your dog how to adjust their strides and hit the contact-area consistently. Right from the start, you will add distractions and proofing layers to the behavior, ensuring that your dog can maintain their criteria no matter what the handler is doing.
Teaching Approach:
Lectures are released in one chunk at the beginning of the week. Lectures include written instructions, diagrams, and short demonstration videos. Demonstration videos are of actual training sessions, so sometimes things don’t go according to the script. It is important for students to be able to take the lecture assignments, along with trouble shooting tips, and make adjustments in their training that their individual team needs, since every scenario cannot be covered in lecture or demo material. Megan is direct in her feedback. “Keep doing this. Change this. Give this a try.” This training process is very step-by-step and should be followed pretty closely by each team, only making slight adjustments as needed. Steps shouldn’t be skipped as they all serve a specific purpose in the program.