Dogs Ran to Spokane

EverythingDogBlog #88: The Conference Came to Spokane!

Who: Me! Dog professionals and interested dog people

What: 20th annual educational conference of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT) (see logos courtesy of APDT) (see apdt.com for conference information)

Where: Beautiful downtown Spokane, my hometown

When: October 23 - 27

Shown above are the cute conference logo and the newly created logo of the APDT (courtesy of APDT). A few days in October promised to be chockfull of fun learning for both (shelter) dogs and dog people, professional or not. And the promise was kept. Plenty of cutting-edge presentations, early morning walks (optional), roundtable discussions for the lunch bunch, new items for dogs and their people to try out and take home, a 3K run, silent auction and live auction, and more. (I brought home a suitcase full of new dog toys, leashes, harnesses, DVDs, books, treats - Mia the lab went crazy. But I'm sure it was just because she was glad to see me, right?)

If you are looking for a dog trainer, apdt.com is the place to go! APDT’s Train Your Dog Month is January of each year: check out the contests at http://www.trainyourdogmonth.com/ along with free webinars and Facebook chats.

More information on the Association of Professional Dog Trainers:

Purpose - To advance excellence in the profession of dog training and behavior consulting.

Vision - To be the leader in building and promoting dog training and behavior consulting as a profession.

Beliefs

• We believe in the fundamental value of the special relationship between dogs and humans, which benefits the individual and society as a whole.
• We believe in the fundamental value to society of the profession of dog training and behavior consulting.
• We believe in treating our human clients and their dogs with honesty and respect.
• We believe that dog training and behavior modification should be based on critical thinking, open inquiry, shared knowledge and standards of practice.
• We believe that reward-based training enhances the human-animal bond.

Values

• Professionalism - We will act respectfully and responsibly to dogs and people and colleagues alike.
• Excellence - We place value and importance on lifelong learning, continuing education and the pursuit of knowledge.
• Integrity - The APDT values honesty and integrity and we will conduct our business with professional ethics and respect.
• Inclusiveness - We welcome anyone seeking to learn more about dog training and behavior and its application in a variety of working environments.
• Collaboration - Working collaboratively with colleagues and allied animal professions is the best means by which we can all succeed.
• Service - We believe in the value of our members' contribution to our association, and to the clients and communities they serve.

In a nutshell: Building Better Trainers Through Education!

All I can say to that is “Yippy Skippy!”