Northwest Obedience Club

Obedience: Pre-Novice
2026-05-04 09:00 - 09:50, 2026-05-04 17:00 - 17:50, 2026-05-04 18:00 - 18:50, 2026-05-05 12:30 - 13:20, 2026-05-07 20:00 - 20:50 (America/Chicago)
Prerequisite: Mastery of Beginner Obedience objectives.
As well as learning new exercises, Pre-Novice students will refine the skills they learned in the Beginner Obedience class.
Students in Pre-Novice class must master a level of criteria prior to advancing to a Novice level class with Instructor approval.

Heeling Skills:

Focus on handler/engagement between handler and dog (use of high-value treats)
Appropriate marking and rewarding of behavior
Proper leash handling
Use of commands
Heel position; auto sit in heel position upon halting
About turn, U-turn, Quarter turns on a pivot (left and right)
Gait changes (slow/fast)
Reverse and call to front
Dog is under control at all times

Commands:

Heel position (set up, get in, etc.)
Sit
Down
Sit and stand for exam
Finishes (swing and around)
Stay/wait at end of leash (one minute stay on sit and down)
Front/come at 40 feet (recalls)

Figure Eight:
Handler pacing remains the same while dog speeds up or slows down to accommodate the handler.

Obedience: Beginner
2026-05-04 10:00 - 10:50, 2026-05-04 19:00 - 19:50, 2026-05-04 20:00 - 20:50, 2026-05-05 19:00 - 19:50, 2026-05-07 09:00 - 09:50, 2026-05-07 10:00 - 10:50
The skills taught in this class that are necessary to move up to the next level are:
1.) Limited use of luring
2.) Automatic sits during heeling
3.) Down on command
4.) Heeling appropriately during a simple heeling pattern
5.) Handler is able to walk around the dog to heel position when returning to dog from a stay (dog remains in Sit position)
6.) Sit for exam
7.) 30 second sit/stay and down/stay
8.) An on leash recall
Our training method is to mark & reward correct behavior, so food rewards will be used. For information about any of our Obedience classes contact the Training Hall Secretary.

Obedience: Novice
2026-05-04 11:00 - 11:50, 2026-05-04 21:00 - 21:50, 2026-05-05 17:00 - 17:50, 2026-05-05 18:00 - 18:50, 2026-05-05 20:00 - 20:50, 2026-05-07 11:00 - 11:50
Prerequisite: Pre-Novice class skills and approval from the Pre-Novice instructor or with approval from the NOCI Director of Training.
In this class you will refine the skills developed in the Pre-Novice class and ultimately have the skills necessary to show your dog at the Beginner Novice or Novice level in AKC or UKC to achieve the Beginner Novice (BN) title, or Novice level to achieve the Companion Dog (CD) title.
Showing your dog is certainly not mandatory, but that is the standard you will be training up to. Anyone who has met the criteria to be in a Novice class is welcome.

Exercises to be Refined:

On and off leash heeling
Figure eights
Sit & stand for exam
A 40′ recall on the flat and a recall over a high jump
Group exercises consisting of a one-minute sit/stay and one minute down/stay
A sit/stay while the handler walks around the room
Sit/stay — get your leash exercise

Handler Skills:

Footwork
Hand position
Non-verbal cues

Obedience: Utility
2026-05-04 13:00 - 13:50, 2026-05-09 12:30 - 13:20
Prerequisite: The dog must have earned at least one leg in the Open class toward their CDX, be able to execute scent discrimination among several articles, and have a general understanding of the Directed Retrieve & Directed Jumping exercise, or with the approval of the NOCI Director of Training.
All the skills covered in the Pre-Utility class will be refined to prepare the student to show at the Utility level.

Skills:

Heeling with no verbal commands to their dog (all signals)
A drop, sit, & come using no verbal commands (all signals)
A stand at the halt in the heeling & signal exercise
The scent discrimination exercise, where the dog is trained to find & retrieve an article scented by the handler
The directed retrieve exercise, where the dog will learn to retrieve the correct glove from the three placed out
The moving stand exercise, which includes a more thorough exam than at the Novice level
The directed jumping exercise, which consists of a 40’ go out, and then a directed recall over either the high or the bar jump

Obedience: Open
2026-05-05 19:00 - 19:50, 2026-05-07 13:00 - 13:50
Prerequisite: The dog must have earned at least one leg in the Novice class toward their CD, be holding and retrieving the dumbbell, and be started on the Drop on Recall, or with the approval of the NOCI Director of Training.
All skills introduced in the Pre-Open class will be refined so that eventually the dog can compete at the Open level in AKC or UKC.

Skills:

The drop on recall
The command discrimination exercise (stand, sit, & down from a distance)
Introducing the dumbbell to the dog, and how to get them to hold it
The retrieve on the flat & retrieve over the high jump
The recall over the broad jump
The open version of the stay and get the leash exercise
Variations of these exercises that are used in the UKC Open class

Obedience: Pre-Open
2026-05-06 20:00 - 20:50, 2026-05-07 12:00 - 12:50
Prerequisite: Dog must have earned at least one leg in the Novice class toward their CD to be eligible for the Pre-Open class, or with approval from the NOCI Director of Training.
In this class students will begin to work on the skills required at the Open level.

Skills:

The drop on recall
The command discrimination exercise (stand, sit, & down from a distance)
Introducing the dumbbell to the dog, and how to get them to hold it
The retrieve on the flat & retrieve over the high jump
The recall over the broad jump
The open version of the stay and get the leash exercise
Variations of these exercises that are used in the UKC Open class

Obedience: Puppy
2026-05-07 18:35 - 19:15, 2026-05-07 19:15 - 19:55
Puppy Class is for puppies 6 months and younger. Puppies must have proof of vaccinations appropriate for their age, which would include two DHPP vaccines.
Puppy class is a non-formal class that covers more than sit, down, stay, but also encompasses socialization, building trust, confidence and building a positive connection to the handler with positive training methods that shape behaviors. Your puppy will learn all foundation exercises to move on to beginners class after puppy graduation.

Obedience: Utility Drop-in Training
2026-05-08 10:00 - 12:00
Drop-in training takes place every Friday from 10:00a.m. to 12:00p.m., with Sits and Downs taking place at 11am. Please sign-in as you enter the building.
Watch our Facebook Group page for announcements of any possible conflicts or cancellations.
We have 3 drop-in rings available:

Utility (sign-in, 15-minute time slots)
Open (work together as desired)
Novice (no jumps—use as needed)

Fees:

Non-Members - $10.00 (unlimited number of dogs)
Members - $5.00 (unlimited number of dogs)

Free Fun Match Certificates
Free Fun Match certificates given to workers at NOCI Agility Trials will be honored at Friday Drop-In Training in the following way:

Non-Members - 1 certificate = 1 Friday Drop-In Training session
Members - 1 certificate = 2 Friday Drop-In Training sessions

Drop-in Supervisors
Debbie Fields
doodles382@gmail.com
Phone: 847-651-3607
Nancy Taylor
bikeandkayak@aol.com
Phone: 815-245-0411
