dogs

 

If you and your four-legged friend are looking to shake things up with a little competition, exercise, fresh air and amusement, Katie Ellsworth of Countryside Canine and her co-captain Christi Waldron are gathering a K9 Toss and Fetch Frisbee league in Genesee County.

Small dogs, big dogs, shy or feisty, all are welcome to participate in this timed fetching event with options of using rollers on the ground or frisbees in the air, Ellsworth says.

“It’s something fun to get people out with their dogs,” she said. “It’s an affordable, fun time and really doesn’t require a lot of skill. It’s something we can all build together. So you start with rollers and then you can learn how to throw a frisbee and your dog catches it. So it’s just something fun to get people out there with their dogs and enjoying their time together.”

There will be an informational meeting for people — no dogs this time — at 11 a.m. Saturday at Countryside Canine, 9207 Alexander Road (Route 98), Batavia. 

Ellsworth and Waldron will review the rules of the game and etiquette, as well as how the league works — including that the ranking is posted as part of an international league competition.

If you and your partner are serious enough, you might qualify for international Toss and Fetch, they said.

“You’ll be competing against hundreds of other teams and clubs worldwide,” Waldron said. “Above all else, it’s a great activity to just have fun with your dog and meet great people.” 

The five-week league begins at 9 a.m. on April 21 and the fee is $25 per team (person and dog), and $20 for a second dog.

The response has been enthusiastic so far, Ellsworth said, with 40 members registering. There is no limit to participation, so additional people are welcome and encouraged to attend the weekend meeting. Each team is given 60 seconds to see how many times the dog can retrieve the frisbee and bring it back, and repeat. 

Points are given for each team, and those scores are posted at Toss and Fetch. Don't worry about this being too highly technical or overly competitive, given its online description: “the easiest, friendliest, funnest dog sport on the planet.” Tucked into the myriad worldwide league locations on the map is Batavia, NY. 

Ellsworth has been involved with animals since childhood, having grown up on a dairy farm near North Java and being part of 4-H early on, she said. She hopes to return to 4-H, incorporating her love for dogs, with details yet to be worked out, she said.

She and her husband Andy opened Countryside Canine in Hamlin three years ago and then moved in November to an extensive 78-acre lot in the town of Batavia. She and Waldron have been friends through herding and other dog events, and then Waldron also suggested bringing a disc league to the area.

“And that was my whole goal, and opening a dog place in the area was to kind of bring that back because there’s really not much in the area that offers fun stuff with your dogs,” Ellsworth said. “I don’t think there’s an actual daycare facility, so I’m going to do that soon. I’m just trying to figure out proper personnel being there and such because my husband and I are doing everything by ourselves right now.” 

Plus, with three little kids, that adds to the challenge, she said. Once up and running with a complete line of services, they want to offer boarding, grooming, lessons, doggie daycare, groomed trails for pack walks and hikes, and the Toss and Fetch leagues (there are seven five-week seasons per year). The site is open now for some of those services, and they are planning to expand those this year.

For more information about the league, email countrysidediscdogs@gmail.com for more info or to sign up. Or go to the LINK for the private group. 

Go to Countryside Canine for more details about its services or email Ellsworth at countrysidecaninedogs@gmail.com. 

A Great Dane enjoyed the sunshine through a sunroof Saturday while stopping at Main and Jefferson in Batavia.

Photo submitted by Lynn Bezon.

Tori Ganino isn’t afraid to admit that self-assertion is her thing.

At least when it comes to dogs. That canine characteristic of extreme self-assertion — and unwanted aggressiveness — has fueled her career and prompted the 35-year-old to continue her education.

She has recently obtained certification as a Dynamic Dog Practitioner. 

“My passion is aggression. We need to know what’s going on internally,” she said during an interview Friday.“ This certification is more helping out and spotting behavior in dogs. I can see myself applying this to the dogs I work with and to my own dog. I just want to keep learning.”

Ganino is not new to embracing knowledge when it comes to working with dogs, and the canine behavior specialist eagerly added dynamic dog practitioner to her resume. Never heard of such a thing? That’s because the rigorous four-month course is only available in the United Kingdom. Other people have enrolled in the course but Ganino said that she is the only one in the U.S. to successfully complete it. 

While dynamic dog practitioner may seem like an embellished title, it makes sense as Ganino explains it. Say your dog Rufus is a bit more surly than usual, and he has been barking at visitors, and — especially uncharacteristic of Rufus — nipped at one of them. You might think he is just being a bad boy, however, there very well might be underlying issues at play. 

“Dogs are so extremely stoic; they hide things so very well,” Ganino said at her Elba residence. 

Beneath that quiet strength might be hip pain, an achy spine or pulled muscle, she said. By thoroughly assessing the dog, she will be able to pinpoint likely sources of the pain that are causing and coming out as aggressive behavior. Contrary to popular belief that older dogs would be more prone to this occurrence, Ganino said that she has seen it in younger dogs more often. They may be working dogs that herd animals or train for agility courses, or simply playful dogs that throw their little bodies out of whack scampering on slippery floors, she said.

An online dictionary defines dynamic as “a process or system characterized by constant change, activity, or progress; relating to forces producing motion.” Just like humans often do, dogs may overcompensate an injury in one area by overusing the other, Ganino said. That can in turn create a lot of pain and/or discomfort within the dog's body, she said.

The course taught her to understand what normal movement is for the dog so that she can determine what is abnormal movement. That involves taking a history of how the dog moves, what it was like before becoming more aggressive and how it behaves now, such as biting, barking or lunging at people. 

Ganino had owned and operated Calling All Dogs daycare until the dreadful Covid-19 struck. She made the difficult decision to close in March 2020, which ended up opening up a window.

“It has given me the opportunity to do this intense four-month course,” she said. “I had to present six case studies.  There’s not a similar program in the world.”

The programme (spelled properly in England) teaches how to spot potential pain and discomfort in dogs “using specific, measurable and professional techniques from the ground up, whilst giving you an in-depth knowledge of the canine body,” the course website, allaboutthedogtherapy.co.uk, states. 

“There are so many excellent dog training and behaviour courses out there that give you the latest up to date science based techniques to make you become an expert in your chosen field,” it states. “Despite all of them teaching you about A, B, C's they are ALL missing one vital component that is key to understanding most problem dog behaviours.”

Only 14 students are admitted at a time, and they are forewarned that the course is intensive with a blueprint for how to use the material, conduct an assessment and present the findings to the client’s veterinarian. This last piece is key to a fully implemented plan, Ganino said. She will perform a two-hour assessment of the troubled canine to evaluate its activities, movement, walking, running, standing and sitting, and the overall behavior of the dog, she said. 

The finished product includes a report, video and recommended plan of action that may include prescription meds, X-rays, physical therapy and exercises. That will go to the client, behavior consultant and vet. The vet will be the one to recommend a more specific route, such as the type of medical tests or prescriptions to implement for the dog's treatment.

“There’s a lot going on when it comes to behavior and aggression; it’s not just on the outside, but a lot going on inside. Unless you’re trained, you don’t see it,” Ganino said. “We can be that team to work through these problems.”

For more information, or to find out if your dog could benefit from Ganino’s expertise, go to callingalldogsny.com, and click on Schedule a Free Consultation.

Photo by Gina Sierra, ginasierra.com

A dog has reportedly been locked in a blue Chevy Equinox for more than 30 minutes in the parking lot behind Settler's Restaurant.

Batavia PD is dispatched.

Joshua Finn says he always wanted a blond female running partner and he wound up with Charlotte, a young golden retriever full of energy.

They run together a lot, as much as six miles on a weekend run.

"If she sees me grab my headphones and leash, she goes nuts," Finn said.

On one of his runs, Finn, who also runs in 5Ks, said he thought, "wouldn't it be cool to run in a 5K with dogs."

He shared his idea with Adrienne Penders and she, well, ran with it.

Penders, owner of Matted Mutts and involved with rescues and Volunteers for Animals for more than 15 years, has spent dozens of hours and thousands of dollars of her own money to bring together the "Mutt Strut," a 5K walk in the Genesee County Park & Forest at 9 a.m. on Sunday, April 19. (She also was helped by her boyfriend Jonathan Wright, who helped promotional material, including building the promotional website).

To bring the event together, there was insurance to secure, waivers to sign, release forms, and other paperwork and numerous meetings involved in getting approval from county officials.

All in the name of creating a family-friendly, and dog-friendly event where people can enjoy a relaxing walk in one of Genesee County's most scenic areas.

Since it's the first-ever large-scale dog walk/run event in the park, park officials wanted to keep it manageable so it's limited to 100 participants.

"We want it to be a success not only for the dogs but for the park so we can keep doing it year after year after year," Penders said.

To help with the success, dog trainer Tori Ganino, owner of Calling All Dogs, will be on hand to help spot dogs that might be not be suitable for the event. The event is for dogs who are comfortable around other dogs and children.

"Obviously, everybody thinks their dog is wonderful but sometimes you get into a close encounter with 50 dogs and 100 kids running around dogs, some dogs might act a little differently, so she’s there basically to either explain to somebody how to control their dog or advise that the dog shouldn't attend the event because it’s not going to be safe," Penders said.

Dogs and their handlers can sign up at mattedmutts.com/muttstrut/. Registration is $30 per person or $80 for a family of four. All proceeds benefit Volunteers for Animals.

The canines get a doggie gift bag and there will be food for participants afterward.

Photo: Joshua Finn, Charlotte, Adrienne Penders, and Pablo.

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Genesee County Park hosted its inaugural Park Paws dog walk event today and only three canines participated, though several more dog owners signed up who didn't show up.

While in the park, we also came across a group of riders on horseback (photos below).

City police are out with a possibly injured Rottweiler at 2 Cedar St. but don't yet have it in custody.

The officer says the dog appears friendly.

The dog may have a leg injury.

Lily has been granted clemency, at least for now.

Public Defender Jerry Ader, attorney David Fitch, representing the city, and City Court Judge Durin Rogers held meetings over the past two days and came to an agreement that will spare Lily her life, potentially, while the conviction of Duty Caswell for harboring a vicious dog will stand.

As part of the agreement, Ader withdraws his motion challenging Caswell's conviction and will file a new motion to vacate the sentence. That should happen in about two weeks.

In the meantime, Fitch must find a dog behavioral specialist who can certify that Lily is redeemable.

Rogers issued an order in May to have Lily put down as a vicious dog because of an incident on Hutchins Place on March 7 where she bit a 13-year-old boy.

She didn't help her case when she bit the Sheriff's K-9 deputy.

But folks at the Animal Shelter believe Lily is worth saving and rallied to her cause. They secured space for her with the Kramer Foundation, which specializes in rehabilitating dogs declared vicious and slated for euthanasia. 

Previous: Lily's fate hangs in the balance as City Court judge set to hear appeal tomorrow

It's an adrenaline rush to see one of his border collies racing through four jumps, grabbing a tennis ball and streaking back to him, said Hamburg resident Peter Russell, who was in Batavia on Saturday to compete in a biannual flyball competition at the Fairgrounds.

Flyball is a dog-racing sport. Teams are comprised of four dogs and four handlers. Each dog runs down a track, jumping over four hurdles, hitting a platform at the end of the track, which releases a tennis ball, and then the dog runs back through the hurdles with the ball. The race is a relay, so once the first dog returns, the next dog runs the next leg.

The sport was created in California in the late 1960s and has grown to international proportions.  

Russell is a member of the Buffalo Wings Flyball Team, which has won national championships.

More than 15 teams competed yesterday, with dogs and owners traveling to Batavia from throughout the Northeastern United States and Canada.

The exhibition hall at the fairgrounds on Saturday was a cacophony of yelps and yaps and a whir of flashing fur.

"I think people enjoy the sport because of how quick it is," Russell said. "Races come down to hundredths of a second."

It's also a social sport, said Cindy Henderson, a resident of Massachusetts and regional director for the North American Flyball Association.

"You're with four different people," Henderson said. "That's what's fun about it. You're working with a whole team of people. It's not like other sports where you're just one handler working with a dog. You're a team."

Each member of the team has a specific role. The lead dog needs to have stamina since false starts can mean multiple trips down the track before there's a legal start. There are the middle leg dogs who need to be fast and agile, and then there's the anchor dog, who ideally loves to race and has the competitive drive to overtake another dog if the team has fallen behind. There also needs to be a height dog. The height dog is the smallest dog on the team. The shorter the dog, the lower the hurdles for the team.

Russell and his wife own 13 border collies. Four of them are retired and nine of them race. They're also breeders.

Border collies are particularly well suited to the sport, Russell said.

"It gives them a job to do," he said. "Border collies are bred to herd sheep, so they need a job to do. Their job is to go get the ball and come back to you and tug on their toy. In essence, that's their job for the day. It gives them some mind stimulation, because it's a difficult sport to learn and master and it gives them the physical stimulation because they're running over four jumps, hitting a box, coming back, tugging on the tug when they get back to you."

Alissa Schwab, of Amherst, owns a Jack Russell terrier, the height dog for the Buffalo Wings.

"I got started because obedience training wasn't enough for Jack Russell terriers," Schwab said. "The Buffalo wings needed a fast height dog and they came to training and spotted him and he was hired."

She's been racing for seven years now and now owns three Jack Russells.

"It's great for my dogs," she said. "They look forward to it. The community of people from our region is just fantastic and the racing is good."

The owners enjoy the race. The dogs enjoy pleasing their masters and getting a treat at the end of the run, usually a tug on a rope, but maybe something a little more tasty.

"They like to be rewarded for doing things they love," Schwab said. "You're part of the reward. They want to come back to you."

The Seneca Siberian Husky Club, which is based in Rochester, held its show today at Falleti Ice Arena.

Above, Shira Barkon, of Pennsylvania, with Jewel.

Rick Church, of Michigan, with Sadie.

Jan Haring, of New Jersey, showing Trooper for judge Dr. Richard Hideman.

With a bachelor's degree in psychology from the State University of New York at Brockport, Tori Ganino understands the benefits of positive reinforcement in the development of children.

Conversely, this understanding has traversed into her developing business, Calling All Dogs.

She, along with husband Rich Ganino, opened the training and obedience "school" in February, this year. Both hold the belief that positive reinforcement is essential when training dogs with fear and aggression issues. 

“Positive training teaches a dog that something is a good thing,” the Elba resident said. “Punishment techniques only reaffirms fearful behavior.”

Using techniques referred to as "luring," "shaping" and "capturing," Ganino is able to assist dog owners with reshaping their animal’s negative behavior. These training methods use dog treats as a reward system for positive behavior. For example in luring, the owner holds a treat in front of the dog’s nose, brings it back over the top of the dog’s head, the animal then follows the treat and has no alternative but to “fall” into a sitting position; that is when the dog gets the reward. Shaping, though similar to luring, breaks down a command into small steps using treats for the “jackpot” reward. 

“This method rewards the dog for trying, so the dog doesn’t think 'Why am I not winning? This isn’t fun.' It’s a way to make a dog think,” Ganino said.

Capturing on the other hand, rewards a dog when it’s “caught” in an acceptable behavior like lying down. The animal is rewarded with a dog treat or other positive motivation, like petting or playing catch with its favorite ball.

Tori developed an interest in positive dog training methods when she adopted a dog from a shelter who had a negative experience with a person. Furthermore, she had a negative experience when she took her dog to a basic training course, then a second negative experience with a different trainer. 

“I knew that my dog had outward aggression and the techniques used by the other trainers were not helping me or my dog,” she said. “I needed to be an advocate for my dog and find training strategies that use positive reinforcement as a method for obedience.”

To develop her ensuing passion as an advocate for dogs with fear or aggression issues, Tori went to Animal Behavior College via an online course. In addition to classwork and tests, she had to also volunteer at a local shelter or training facility as well as intern with a certified trainer for seven sessions.

“The course taught me the basics, but I wanted to learn more,” the certified trainer said. “It was a great start though.” 

Tori interned with a trainer near Irondequoit for one-and-a-half years. During that time, she continued reading, watching videos and asking “lots of questions,” but she credits the hands-on experience for her enthusiasm to help other dogs and their owners. 

“I am constantly learning and updating my knowledge with books, seminars and other trainers,” Tori said.

Calling All Dogs can also prepare a dog to earn the Canine Good Citizen Certificate. Upon completion of this “rigorous” training, owners can have their dogs test through AKC.org to receive a certificate assuring that the dog is a “really good dog."

“However, emergencies happen and I am here to help,” Tori said. “One client adopted a dog from a shelter, brought the dog home and the dog bit her husband. This happened later at night, I was there the next day to work with the dog.”

Behavior adjustment helps a dog change its thought process, kind of like Pavlov’s Law. Another method is called "Clicker Training" -- work first, then rewarded for work.

“With fear, anxiety and aggression, we take the behavior out of the dog and make it excited that that person or object is really okay,” she said. “It also works with anxiety or fear of sounds such as thunder.”

Ganino also volunteers at the Genesee County Animal Shelter with Volunteers 4 Animals. There she teaches group classes with the volunteers to work with dogs to help them become more adoptable.

“We recently worked with one dog with barrier problems,” Ganino said. “He had a fear with people coming near his crate. We helped make him excited for people to be there.”

Currently, Calling All Dogs holds private lessons in both Genesee and Monroe counties. However, group classes will be starting in the near future at the Tractor Supply on East Main Street, Batavia. While their “ultimate goal” is to open their own building to foster, train and socialize dogs, the business does host Moderate Day Care sessions. 

“It’s like taking your dog on a play date with 10 to 15 other dogs,” Ganino said. “They need to socialize. It’s good for them mentally as well as physically.

“We encourage our clients to do the research,” Ganino said. “Communication is the key between me and our clients; call, text, e-mail; anything to keep the lines of communication open.”

Ganino stresses that her training techniques are based on positive methods, using tools that physically and mentally exercise the animal. She also emphasized that dogs want to learn and owners need to make it fun and get dogs excited about training. According to the dog trainer, oftentimes owners become impressed with what their dogs can do.

“Our business motto is ’Training for all breeds!’ There are always breeds being discriminated against for aggressive personalities,” Ganino said. “For this reason some major training chains do not allow them in their play group or training classes.

”Right now the breed being targeted the most is the pit bull,” Ganino continued. ”We accept all breeds. Every dog can learn and deserves the chance to.”

For more information visit CallingAllDogsNY.com or to volunteer at the Genesee County Animal Shelter visit www.vol4animals.org.

Jazzy won over a lot of hearts in New York City last week, but she made Joanne Mistler's heart soar when a Westminster Kennel Club judge named her one of two finalists among 25 English Setters invited to the competition this year.

It was a male English Setter that won best of breed, but 3-year-old "GCH Birdhavens and All That Jazz" (Jazzy's full name) was named "Best of Breed/Opposite Sex."

Just getting invited to Westminster to show Jazzy was a big honor, Mistler said, but to come home with a ribbon from America's most prestigious dog show is the thrill of a lifetime.

"She just showed beautifully, and she loves to show," Mistler said.

A few years ago, Westminster became an invitation-only show. A dog must score enough points in accredited competitions to get on the short list of dogs who can enter the ring. Mistler took Jazzy to more than a dozen shows in the past 18 months. She won her first major in Chicago, which helped her get into Westminster.

Jazzy was part of the Sporting Group. (Groups are what you see on TV, not the breed competitions.) The male that won English Setters advanced to the group, and from the four groups, Westminster judges picked Best in Show. This year, Best in Show was Banana Joe, an affenpinscher.

For owners who show dogs, getting to Westminster isn't cheap, and the payoff ... well, unless you get Best of Breed at Westminster followed by some endorsement deals, there isn't much money to be made from dog shows.

"People say, how much do you get? How much money do you get," Mistler said. "I say, you get a ribbon, that’s it. But this ribbon -- this is prestige."

Mistler started showing setters in dog shows in the 1970s.

She and her husband bought a setter when her twins were 2 years old, and one day she was walking down a New York street and a member of the Staten Island Kennel Club asked her if she ever showed her dog.

She hadn't. He said the club was having a "fun show," and she should enter.

She did, and her dog won.

"Of course, I was hooked," Mistler said.

Her son, local businessman Ken Mistler, said he went to a lot of dog shows growing up.

In the days before Westminster was invitation-only, Joanne Mistler did manage to enter the competition -- entries would open at noon and be closed (sold out, essentially) by 12:30 -- so getting an invitation this year was itself something special.

There were 2,800 dogs in this year's competition, with 25 English Setters, and of those 25, nine were females.

Owners showing dogs must be there by 9 a.m. and stay until 3 p.m., Mistler said. The public walks through the show freely, meeting all the dogs, talking to owners and learning about different breeds.

"It's a long day for exhibitors, but it's prestigious just to be there," Mistler said. "(Jazzy) had her picture taken a thousand times and was petted by a million people."

Next up for Jazzy is becoming a mother. Mistler said she will go into heat next month.

She already has a prospective mate.

A lot goes into picking a mate for a show dog, Mistler said. Show dogs are judged against a set of standards for the breed, and every show dog has some standard that gets just a little off.

"No dog is perfect," Mistler said. "If she has a tail set too low, you look for a male with an even tail. If she is not deep-chested, you look for a male with a deep chest. You try to offset it."

The owner of the prospective mate loves Jazzy's temperament and the way she showed, Mistler said.

Typically, a pure-breed setter puppy sells for about $1,000. The red ribbon might make Jazzy's puppies a little more valuable.

From the time of Mistler's first show dog until Jazzy's predecessor (a female that wouldn't breed), Mistler always kept a puppy from the litter. With Jazzy's litter, Mistler hopes to resume the line of dogs she's bred.

Picking that puppy is as much art as it is science. At about six weeks, you see bone structure and whether the animal will be well-proportioned.

If your puppy shows, great. If one of the other puppies shows, even better.

"You hope that one of these puppies will be shown," Mistler said. "It’s every breeders dream. The chances are, if you get one to go to show out of a litter, that’s wonderful. That’s what everybody’s dream is, to have the dog that you can say, ‘Joanne bred that dog. That’s one of Joanne’s breeds.’ ”

Amy Worthington and Stacy Mullett celebrated the opening of their respective businesses, "Amy's Fluffy Friends" and "Phoenix Creatives," on Saturday.

Pictured are Katie Chapell-Vaught -- proprietor of "Athena's Bakery," which specializes in dog treats that are sold at "Amy's Fluffy Friends" -- Worthington (holding Clifford) and Mullett at the grand opening. It was held at the two businesses' shared space at 238 Ellicott St. in Batavia. 

"Amy's Fluffy Friends" offers grooming services for canines of all sizes, including (but not limited to) baths with massage, premium shampoos and conditioners, brushing, nail trimming, hair removal and sanitary trim, as well as skunk and flea treatment.

Worthington carries a variety of shampoos, including kinds that are designed for dogs with sensitive skin. She is open to customers bringing in their own shampoos if they prefer to do so.

In honor of the opening, she will offer free nail trimming for the first month.

"Phoenix Creatives," meanwhile, features custom printing, art, beaded jewelry, painted glass and secondhand items.

Mullett is offering 50-percent off of custom printing orders and "U-Pick" T-shirt designs for the first month.

Worthington and Mullett were friends and coworkers well before they decided to share business space.

"(Then one day) we said, 'We should go into business together,' " Worthington said. "It was almost like a joke. But then the thought stuck in our heads. It was a good idea."

"Amy's Fluffy Friends" is open from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday through Friday (Worthington said she will stay until 5 p.m. if need be) and on Saturdays by appointment only. For more information, call 300-8765.

Hours of operation for "Phoenix Creatives" are 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and noon until 4 p.m. Saturdays. For more information, call 298-2045.