About Us

Our Training Philosophy

Positive Reinforcement

Our training is based on a simple idea: dogs are more likely to repeat behaviours that have good results.
When your dog does something we like, we let them know! This might be through a tasty treat or playing with a toy.
By rewarding the behaviours we want, those behaviours more likely to happen again.

We focus on positive reinforcement, clear communication and consistency.
Rather than telling your dog what not to do, we teach them what the correct behaviour is and reward them for getting it right.
Research has shown that reinforcement is an effective way to help dogs learn, understand expectations and build good habits.
Our goal is to make your training with your dog clear, rewarding and enjoyable for both of you.

Rewards

There are two main rewards the we use:
Food – For training treats we recommend Chunky Dog Roll. You can cut it up to whatever size is appropriate for your dog, it’s soft so your dog can easily swallow it, it is more economical than other treats, it is made as a food so your pooch won’t get sick if they eat to much, and it is used by majority of our instructors.
Toys – If your dog likes toys, you can use this to your advantage in training. Pick a toy that is easy for you to carry as you train (no noisy/squeaky toys). Keep this toy hidden at home, only bring it out for training, and make sure that you control when playtime starts and finishes. If you dog enjoys a toy, please bring one along.

Handling Your Dog

While only one family member can handle your dog in classes at any one time, you are welcome to swap who handles the dog during the evening and on different nights. It is important that if two people are coming to handle the dog, that the handler has the treats and dog, and the other one remains quiet, not distracting the dog. Other family members are welcome to come and watch and listen.
We have a minimum age for child handlers for safety reasons – only children aged 12 years and above are permitted to handle dogs in classes. This means that at no point should the dog be under sole control of the child and the instructor will be giving instructions to the older handler.

Our Rules and Policies

View Club Rules (PDF)

View Club Constitution (PDF)

Refund Policy

The general recommendations are as follows.

If 4 or more classes in one term were missed due to the sickness of the handler or the dog, or the dog’s being in season, it is offered that fees are rolled over to the next term for a repeat of the course & a place in classes held for them. If they do not want fees to be rolled over to the next term, a refund is given for the missed classes.
If 4 or more classes in one term were missed due to unexpected work commitments, it is offered that fees are rolled over to the next term for a repeat of the course & a place in classes held for them. If they don’t want fees to be rolled over to the next term, a refund is given for the missed classes.
If the dog died partway through the course, the Club will refund the course fees for this term
When a dog is excluded from classes for any reason upon application, the training fees for the rest of the course may be refunded, at the discretion of the committee.

In all other circumstances, refunds are at the discretion of the TADTC committee.

Our History A Look Back at tadtc

The first meeting regarding forming an all-breed club was held on the September 9^th, 1979. There had been murmurings about separating from Manawatu Kennel Association to an all-breed club for dog training. There was an unsuccessful special general meeting held on December 12^th, 1979, in an attempt to get the club formed. The inaugural AGM was held March 27^th, 1980. Correspondence from Rosemary Cleator was sent afterwards, confirming TADTC was recognised as a club. Marie Stewart helped set up club and came up with the name Tararua Allbreeds Dog Training Club.

Our first club logo (left) made shortly after the club was established. It adorned club clothing and was put on the obedience champ show catalogues. The second club logo (right) was drawn by life member Tanya Emms. This logo was created in 1997 and is still in use today.

Through the many years, the club has grown and evolved, members coming and going. The best people to tell you about the club would be the life members who have made significant contributions to the club.

Life Member Testimonials:
“We used to do displays. Mostly mass heelwork and recalls. One popular exercise was to have a row of dogs doing a down stay, while other dogs treated them as hurdles. Always got applause.
Travelling to shows was an adventure. Dogs ranged from corgis to wolfhounds. Travelling back from a show with Robyn Bland and our GSD and Boxer were loose in the back. She had won a trophy made of some sort of cow bone and when we got home, we found one or both dogs had had a good chew on the way.”
– Sue Cooper

“TADTC continues to have a positive culture supporting and encouraging members to achieve goals no matter what they may be.”
– Tanya Emms

“I started with the Tararua Club in February 1998 with my first dog “Polly”, a Yellow Labrador. I joined the club to learn basic obedience and then fell in love with competing and the people I met. I joined the committee in 1999 holding various roles. We were a very social bunch of people, many fun evenings were spent after club night, in the club rooms socialising or socialising after many working bees spent tidying the grounds and club rooms.
My first time in Beginners with a 5^th placing thanks to Tanya Emms’s coaching (she was also the stewarding). The Judge was Norm Claude, far left, who was a great supporter of our club and towards the end of his time in Obedience, he became our Test Manager for our champ shows, which he did for a number of years.”
– Robyn How

“My best memories were from various NDOA’s. Whanganui had a Riverboat theme evening function. Tanya and Clayton were dressed in theme attire. Of course, Clayton had his face blackened. They made a detour joining the wedding party at the same venue. Oops. I remember Bronwyn, Kevin and others doing a wonderful lip sync and at to ‘I want to break free’ by Queen. I represented Zone 3 in Novice obedience with Tully at an Auckland NDTA and the great support of the team. Those were very special times, fun and a great team spirit.”
– Meredith Pitcher