Valentine Kennel

09/15/2025

Please restrain your best buddies.

09/15/2025

HERITAGE DAYS RECAP!

Doing a sale like that is quite an adventure. A hard work adventure.
It was enjoyable sitting with my good friend, Heather while she sold her kids’ book.
Finn, Zoe and Tessa really drew the people into the tent. One lady came back just to snuggle Finn as she had recently lost her dog.
We met many friendly people.
We sweated bullets until the evening cool off.
We cleaned up a soggy tent after an all night storm on Saturday night. Some tents collapsed completely and I felt so bad for those vendors.
All in all, it was what I expected. Though we live in a farming area, most prople turned their noses up at rabbit for themselves or their pets. There was a young couple that bought a sample of dog treats on Friday, and returned for more on Sun because their dogs “are obsessed” with it.
Gives you a real appreciation for the folks that do this for a living.
My first and probably last Heritage vending experience. Check that off the bucket list.

08/29/2025

Oh Boy Oh Boy Oh Boy
Our little man won big today!

I left the ring knowing he won 2 points. After I was resting in the RV, it occurred to me that he beat a specials (CH) boy by getting Best Opposite S*x. I went back and checked with the super to see if I got to count that dog too. Yes! And in fact he beat 2 Ch boys, not 1. He was also BOB Bred By, but no love in the groups for us.

I want to thank Judge, Mrs Donna Ernst She must have liked him a lot.

Being off for 5 months didn’t slow him down. He showed better than ever. Likes to move out now.
We’re 💩 out.

08/15/2025

Just the first batch of dog food meal prep. We do it when we get up to Orleans, IN for great prices on hamburger ($4.99/lb) and boneless chicken thighs ($2.99/lb). Each jar is a meal for both dogs. They are especially nice to have for our pet sitters.

07/30/2025

Congrats to Luna and Jax who are one step closer to being service dog ready.
Jane and Jax and Susan and Luna earned CGC Advanced AKC Titles today.
On to learning eating out and service behaviors.
You should both be very proud of this accomplishment!

07/26/2025

SERVICE DOG TRAINING!
If you’ve ever considered training your dog LEGITIMATELY as a service dog, consider training with me. Instead of several thousand dollars to get there, my training will typically cost less than $1000 all in because you are doing the training.
I have several dogs starting out now. I have experience with assistance dogs, dogs to help with hearing loss, and diabetic alert training. Though I have not yet trained specifically for Autism spectrum disorders or PTSD, those are possible also.
I require a person to have a disability that will work towards earning CGC (canine good citizen) and CGC Advanced (work in public access). We also train your dog to lay quietly under a table in a restaurant and how to check into a hotel, and maneuvering in public
You can be the trainer for the person with the disability. Dogs in training with the “trainer” or with the disabled person themself are allowed public access for the dog in training.
Your dog’s training will be designed to your specific disability when it comes to the behaviors we teach him to do for you.

Look up the American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA), to understand the federal laws regarding service dogs.
Service dogs are NOT required to be certified or registered. However, if you feel like you need a helping hand to train your own service dog, I am here for you.

Call to discuss your situation. 217-840-1419.

07/17/2025

Help me CONGRATULATE Jane and her Red Fox Lab, Jax on successfully completing and testing for the AKC CGC Title
They are going right on to train for Service in diabetic alert. This is icing on the cake for me as a trainer!
So proud of these two!

07/17/2025

BO…way to go! You passed your AKC STAR PUPPY class beautifully.
Congrats to Andrea, your “responsible” owner for getting you off to a good start.
Hope to see you in CCG classes in the near future.

07/05/2025

Congratulations to Luna and Desiree…they are both a big step closer to being service dogs for John. Good job, Susan for being highly motivated to get them there. What a lucky day when we met at Hobby Lobby and struck up a conversation because I had my Finn with me.
Next up- restaurant (under the table) practice and hotel check in practice. They’ll also be working on their service behaviors for helping John.

06/28/2025

It’s a proud day for Valentine Training! Please, help me congratulate Kim and Dixie-A NEW THERAPY TEAM- through petpartners.org.
I’m so proud to have had a small part in helping them accomplish this goal.
Go out and WOW the world you two!

06/24/2025

Good analogy.

Positive reinforcement is the gas, and punishment is the brake.

The number one reason owners are struggling, and the number one reason why great dogs are surrendered and euthanized daily, is due to the delusional, feel-good, reality-hating narrative that everything you need to train and live well with a dog is contained within the realm of positive reinforcement.

You would expect that driving a car with no brakes would be a foolish and dangerous undertaking, and yet day after day owners are attempting to train and live with dogs in precisely the same fashion.

It’s not you or your dog that is broken, it’s the incredibly toxic, dangerous, and delusional narrative you’ve been fed that is broken.

When you’re ready to escape the delusion, and embrace reality — a reality that requires both positive and negative consequences, the “gas and the brake” — the answers you and your dog need will materialize.

06/16/2025

Please, help me give a shout out to Valentine Training’s newest STAR PUPPY, Polly. She won the lottery with her family- Barb, Dennis, Megan and Catherine. They love her to pieces and are doing a great job training her.
CONGRATULATIONS 🎈
Took a few shots to get that cute picture.