After enjoying our own healthy obedient pets, and training
over several years, it was time to develop USA K9 and share
the knowledge acquired so others will experience the same
rewards. I have trained various breeds of dog, all with
unique personalities and temperaments.
To stay current in training techniques, I attended the
4-week trainer’s course held by Veteran and Master
Trainer, Bob Conklin of Hudson
Valley K9 Academy. The HVK9A
4-week course was extended to 6 weeks, 6 days a week. Training
took place at the HVK9A Kennels
and the Middletown Humane Society. This intense course requires
the handler to have an all “hands on experience”
during the entire course working with various breeds, temperaments
and size dogs. This certification helps surpass other trainers
that are guessing what they should do with your pet or use
heavy hand techniques to train.
The techniques and knowledge gained from this course have
helped solve many of the issues created by bribing with
food, poor handling skills, compulsive training techniques
and have helped me coach others to pass AKC CD and Rally
obedience competitions. Using these techniques, I placed
1st with Arko in AKC CD obedience
competition, obtained Arko’s
Canine Good Citizen certification, and Therapy
Dog International certification. We currently visit
local nursing homes with Arko as part of a weekly pet therapy
program for alzheimers and elderly patients.
Training is not about how hard you can correct your dog,
or bribing them with excessive calorie treats. Understanding
the energy you release, proper techniques, giving your dog
the opportunity to think, and keeping a bond are crucial
when developing a clear understanding between you and your
canine
We provide our clients with the skill needed to continue
educating their dogs while forming a lasting bond and eliminating
stress created through outdated and old fashion techniques.
Our techniques teach your canine friend to work close to
you while dissolving the confusion created by poor every
day routines. Quality is not developed over night. Time,
patience and the proper techniques can lead to an ever-lasting
investment in you pet.
Bob Conklin & Harry Lozada
Harry, Xano & Kilo
Neiko's Brother Crugar & Harry
WE
LOVED IT SO MUCH, WE WENT BACK FOR MORE!
The success from the HVK9A
Trainers Obedience Course has been outstanding. To further
meet our customers demands, I took the HVK9A
Trainers Protection Course. During the 4-week protection
course, Master Trainer Bob Conklin had me join in his ongoing
Trainers Obedience Course. It was a great refresher to make
sure bad habits or deviations on the techniques were not
developed.
Bob Conklin set the Trainers Protection Course up to have
me build pray drive in puppies and young adults along with
teaching the foundation of bite work. Bob teaches the safety
in handling and building dogs at this level so nobody including
the dogs gets hurt. The course had me working with beginner
dogs, experienced dogs, highly advanced level 3 dogs, dogs
working in pray drive, defense drive, and fight drive. There
were extensive lessons on decoy work including how to catch
beginner and advance dogs, what point to out the dog, and
how to keep building a protection dogs confidence.
The skills learned in the HVK9A
course are based on Government/Police training, Schutzhund,
and some French Ring techniques. All of which Bob Conklin
has a working background in. The combination of these techniques
make this course and phenomenal course for those seeking
handler skill, trainer skills, or looking to get their dogs
protection trained.
Working the dogs in the HVK9A
Trainers Protection course gives handlers a tremendous amount
on experience in reading dogs behavior, learning the point
of avoidance in any type of training, and building a confident
dog with out corporal punishment or threatening techniques.
The course also included, training on performing building
searches for suspects, long line, and off leash attacks.
All without building a lunatic, out of control dog. The
dogs involved and I, were taught to react based on the owner
being physically attacked and not other discrepancy around
the dog and owner.
For more on Master Trainer Bob Conklin, his working line
German Shepherds or getting your dog trained in obedience,
protection, narcotics, USPCA agility, and tracking, in the
up state NY region, visit
Along with the HVK9A
handler’s course, I successful ran an in home pet
sitting program for many years. The program involved pet
sitting one dog at a time in my home allowing me to access
breed and social behaviors of various dogs. The guest dogs
lived with my pack. They interacted with my family and dogs
in a controlled environment. This allowed me to gain further
knowledge of dog behavior. The ages of the dogs that vacationed
with us were from 16 week old puppies to 14 years old seniors
and had temperaments with a range of, shy, submissive urinating,
confident, no confident, fearful, untrained, multiple levels
of aggression, bluffers, serious pack leaders, weak pack
leaders and fun loving. The breeds we pet sat ranged from
3 lb Chihuahua, Poodles and Yorkies to 200 lbs plus, Mastiffs,
Great Danes and mix dogs.
Our training and pet sitting business grew to the point
where I had to make a decision so that the quality and attention
clients received did not suffer. To balance this, the only
dogs being accepted in home are dog that attend the BEHAVIOR
MODIFICATION/IN-HOUSE OBEDIENCE PROGRAM.
AKC's
Canine Good Citizen® (CGC) & TDI Therapy Dog International
Evaluator
Adding to the above credentials, I am an active AKC's Canine
Good Citizen® (CGC) & TDI Therapy Dog International
Evaluator and can certify your dog as a Canine Good Citizen
and TDI Dog. Please visit our service page
for CGC & TDI certification information.
HVK9 & USA K9 AT WOODBURY PARK & RECREATION CENTER
ON JULY 8TH 2004
July 8th 2004 | Guest Appearance
Woodbury Parks & Recreation Center. The demo was done
for over one hundred guests. Harry and Arko performed obedience
work that was followed up by Bob and Kilo obedience and
protection work.
BROADLAWN
MANOR CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION 4/20/2006
This certificate was given to us by Broadlawn
Manor assisted living for consistent volunteer work. We
visit Broadlawn Manor with Arko our TDI certified dog.
June 17, 2006 — Last
week, a pair of loose pit bulls charged into a San Fernando,
Calif., school, chasing students into a restroom and attacking
an 11-year-old girl. She's going to be okay, but she's just
one of 4.7 million people who'll be bitten by dogs this
year. Bob Conklin, a professional dog trainer
and owner of the Hudson
Valley K9 Academy, and his assistant Harry
Lozada, owner of USA K9,appeared
on ABC's "Good Morning America Weekend Edition"
with a Hudson
Valley K9 Academy Czech Bred German Shepherd
patrol dog (Xano), to give advice on how
to protect yourself or your child from a dog attack.
What Not to Do
Take flight. Don't run away from the dog,
because it triggers the dog's prey drive. Once that happens,
the dog will want to turn and chase you.
If the dog catches you and starts attacking, don't hit it.
The more you fight back, the more the struggle feeds into
the dog's defensive drives and the more he wants to kill
that prey and take it home.
What to Do
If you are approached by a vicious dog, relax
and be as still as possible. Drop your head so you don't
make eye contact, but maintain an upright position.
Cover you ears and press your elbows to your sides. This
way, if the dog bites you, your ears, eyes, rib cage and
vital organs are protected.
If the dog grabs your arm or your leg, try to remain motionless.
If the dog thinks you're dead, it should let go of you.
How to Rescue a Child
Grab an object and start hitting the dog
so you can redirect it. You can also grab the dog's "scruff"
— the area on the sides of the dog's neck. This should
control the dog's head and keep it from swinging around
to bite you. You can go one step further and grab the dog's
Adam's apple and choke him.
Do not pull the dog off the child. That can rip the skin
right off the child.
HVK9 & USA K9 AT WOODBURY PARK & RECREATION CENTER
ON JULY 16TH 2006
July 16th 2006 | Guest Appearance
More dogs and more action at the 2006 Woodbury Park &
recreation demo!
Socialization with the dogs is a must. Sound breeding and
solid training is a key part of HVK9’s
superior dogs.
During the set up children gathered all around Kilo, Xano
Arko & Eros. This is Eros 1st trip to the park. The
children got to pet, hug, sit around and play with the dogs
for about an hour.
The demo started with Bob informing the crowd about the
dogs and training. While Bob narrated, Harry demonstrated
Arko’s obedience on and off leash followed by Arko
retrieving a dumbbell on a flat surface. Arko then retrieved
the dumbbell over a wall jump. He returned over the wall
and sat in front of Harry waiting with the dumbbell in his
mouth. Harry and Arko finished with Harry shooting Arko
and the children bringing him back to life by yelling “I
LOVE GERMAN SHEPHERD PUPPIES”.
For part two, Bob demonstrated Kilo and Xano’s protection
work. These are the same dogs the children where hanging
all over.
Kilos protection work included on leash guarding Bob, off
leash protecting Bob when Harry attacked him, send outs
when Harry tried to run away, and finished with showing
how clear Kilo is by sending Harry running between the crowd
as Kilo apprehended him.
Xano’s protection work included much of the work
Kilo performed but with serious intensity. It’s business
with Kilo and personal with Xano. To show the dogs are not
sleeve happy. Harry put down the sleeve and threatened Bob
and Xano. With a bite suit on, Harry tried to kick Xano.
As you can guess, Xano came forward and got a solid hold
on Harry’s leg releasing only on Bobs command.
Everyone had a great time. Special thank to Gilda for the
yearly invitation.
Christopher Appoldt
photo of Harry and Lexi is in January’s 2008 edition
of Popular Dogs Series Magazine, Volume 16, page 121. This
is a full page photo of Harry and Lexi performing a SAR/Tracking
scenario under the “WORKING for a living” article.
The AKC announced the top 10 most popular
dogs for 2007. The German Shepherd was number 3. Harry and
Neiko were invited on The
Moning Show with Mike & Juliet to represent
the German Shepherd breed.
Harry and Arko were invited on the The
Moning Show with Mike & Juliet. A few days
prior to this segment, a German Shepherd saved his owners
life by dialing 911. This service dog was trained to dial
911 when his owner had a seizure. Mike and Harry discussed
and demonstrated training a dog to retrieve a phone or touch
a phone to dial 911.
