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About Suzanne Clothier. . .
Involved professionally with dogs since 1977. Her background is widely varied,
with experience in breeding, kennel management, grooming, showing, training,
canine midwifery, puppy aptitude testing, instructing,
behavior consultations, in-home training, K-9 Search & Rescue, holistic health care
and various club memberships & activities (show/trial superintendent/secretary, and
obedience chairman) Served as a committee member for the American Humane
Association's Task Force for the Development of Humane Standards for Dog Training,
and as a member of the AKC's Agility Advisory Board.
Current activities include private behavior consultations & canine athlete evaluations,
teaching seminars internationally, ongoing development of educational materials/programs,
articles,
videos and writing. Her latest book, Bones Would Rain from the Sky:
Deepening Our Relationships With Dogs (Warner, 2002) has received
widespread acclaim.
Read an
excerpt from Bones.
Listed in "Who's Who in Dogs" by Connie Vanacore (McMillan,
1998), Suzanne is an award winning author whose articles have been reprinted worldwide by dog trainers, clubs, humane
societies, rescue groups, veterinarians and breeders. Bones is currently available in
the US, with German, Korean and Japanese versions due out soon.
Suzanne is a breeder of German Shepherd dogs, usually producing one litter per year.
Her
goal is healthy, correct GSD's for companion/competition. Dogs produced by her
Hawks Hunt breeding program have been active
and successful in obedience, therapy dog work, tracking, agility, herding, Search &
Rescue, and as companions. Foundation bitch listed on GSDCA's list of top obedience
producing sires & dams. Produced dogs nationally ranked in the U.S. & Canada in
obedience and agility (thanks Tigris, Zorro and Savannah!)
For more
information, see our Hawks Hunt German Shepherd page!
She also was fortunate early in her career to co-breed Brittanys with Katherine Murphy (Sequani Kennels),
and their last litter together produced group
winning Am/Can/Ber. CH. Sequani's Brook of Confort - BOB at the National Specialty.
In addition to her Brittany experience, Suzanne has over 25 years experience with puppy aptitude testing and canine midwifery
(too many breeds to list!)
1977 - 1987 - Various positions with local boarding kennels, training
centers, show/breeding kennels, Guiding Eyes for the Blind, management of 22
horse dressage/breeding/boarding stable, I.D. Pet (animal tattooing), and
development of private & group instruction under Training With Kindness name.
1987 - Established Training With Kindness in Frenchtown, NJ as a full service
training: private/group classes, in-home training, board/train, conditioning
and consultations.
1989 - Developed step-by-step training method, Motivational
Agility. Until 1994, taught agility classes & seminars. Some students went
on to national rankings in agility. With co-author Linda Caplan, wrote and published The Agility
Training Workbook (the 2nd US book on agility) and the video, Motivational
Agility Training
1989 - Developed, wrote and published The Clothier Natural
Jumping Method, a systematic approach to retraining problem jumpers and
teaching inexperienced dogs to jump safely and correctly. This is the most
widely recognized system for teaching jumping. In 1992, J&J Dog Supplies
developed jumps specifically for the Natural Jumping Method.
1992 - Implemented a monthly veterinary chiropractic clinic with Dr. Sue Ann
Lesser DVM. (Featured in 5/95 Sports Illustrated article, and on 6/20/95 by CBS This
Morning) Now grown into 7 clinics in New Jersey, and more in the NY, PA & CT area.
1993 -Involvement with Dr. Lesser led to Suzanne creating a study, "Exercise with a
Purpose." This 10-week research project evaluated the effects of specific
exercise/conditioning as a stand alone modality vs. effects of specific
exercise/conditioning in conjunction with veterinary chiropractic. This study was
supported in part by a grant from the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association.
Results of this study led to production of video, Your Athletic Dog (1995), and
seminars on the canine athlete.
1993-94 - Served on the AKC Agility Advisory Committee. Began annual
week long training camp, Camp Dances With Dogs, which was held for 11 years
before being discontinued for a few years (may start again in 2005).
1994, sold Training With Kindness. At time of sale, TWK (located in rural
western NJ) held 12-14 classes per week. All levels of instruction - Puppy Kindergarten,
Basic Obedience (Levels 1-3), Advanced (Open/Utility), Show Handling, Agility. &
behavior consultations.
1995 - Published Your Athletic Dog (video), and a series of booklets:
Following Ghosts; Understanding Puppy Testing; Understanding & Teaching Self
Control; Body Posture & Emotions; The 7 C's; Physical Therapy for the Canine
Athlete; Finding A Balance.
1998 - made the big move to a 193 acre working farm in upstate NY.
2000 - Served as a committee member for the American Humane Association's
Task Force for the Development of Humane Standards in Dog Training.
2002 - Release of Bones Would Rain from the Sky (Warner Books); this
labor of love took nearly 4 years from start to publication.
Suzanne has been teaching seminars nationwide since 1989. Suzanne has
taught for a wide variety of kennel clubs, dog
training clubs, humane organizations, national specialty clubs, private groups, FEMA Northeast
Region Disaster Dog Teams, the Association for Pet Dog Trainers,
Alaskan Dog Mushers Association, Wolf Park, Berkshire Mountain
SAR, as well
as speaker for AKC Obedience Judges Education, key speaker for National
Association of Dog Obedience Instructors Annual Conference, and the
first European Dog Trainers Conference. She
has taught in the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and
Belgium.
Seminar topics have included:
- If Dogs Could Speak
- The
Clothier Natural Jumping Method
- The
Integrated Approach - Alternatives to Traditional Methods'
- TTEAM
& The Tellington Touch
- Your
Athletic Dog
- Understanding
& Handing Aggression
- The
Fragile Circle
- Problem
Dog Clinics
- Puppy
Aptitude Testing
- Understanding
Performance Problems
- Instructors'
Workshops
- Motivational
Agility
- Holistic
Approaches to Canine Health Care
- K-9
Search & Rescue - Maximizing Performance
Co-lecturers have included Sharon Willoughby (founder of the AVCA),
Copper Love, Marnie Reeder, Dr. Jean Olsen DVM, Dr. Nancy Bozeman DVM,
Dr. Sue Ann Lesser DVM, Dr. Adrian Marnell DC, Dr. Mark Sommers DC, Helen Greven
PhD,
Marlene Sandler, Katrene Johnson, Dr. Dennis O'Brien, John Valvardi, Pat
Goodman of Wolf Park, and John W. Rice.
Publications
The Agility Training Workbook
(with Linda Caplan) out of print
The Clothier Natural Jumping Method
(with Linda Caplan)
Motivational Agility Training
(video) out of print
Your Athletic Dog - A Functional Approach
(video)
Booklet series:
Following Ghosts:
Developing the Tracking Relationship (with John Rice)
Understanding Puppy Testing
Physical Therapy for the Canine Athlete (with Sue Ann Lesser DVM)
Body Posture & Emotions: Shifting Shapes, Shifting Minds
Understanding & Teaching Self Control
Finding A Balance: Issues of Power in the Dog/Human Relationship
The Seven Cs: A Guide to Training & Relationships
Columnist for WOLF CLAN magazine (now defunct). Articles
included the four part series "The Seven C's of Dog Training," and "Self
Control." Subject of a Wolf Clan feature article, "Can Training Be
Holistic?"
Training/behavior consultant for Steve Dale, syndicated pet columnist
Featured & quoted in various articles for Pets: Part of the
Family, as well as a number of books from a variety of authors.
Suzanne's work has been published in the AKC Purebred Dog Gazette, Dogs In
Canada, Dog Fancy, Wolf Clan, Delta Society, APDT Newsletter, Off Lead Magazine,
TTEAM Practitioners Newsletter, German Shepherd Review, Clean Run, and countless
breed & club newsletters worldwide in 12 languages.
In her spare time (ha ha ha), Suzanne sometimes exercises her talents as an
artist and accepts occasional commissions. Produced several black & white
limited editions, and limited edition full color GSD prints (offered as Veteran's trophies
at GSDCA National Specialty 1985 -86.) Her work featured on cover of German Shepherd
Quarterly and the American Horse Show Association Magazine, and
created illustrations for The
Brittany Spaniel produced by the American Brittany Club. Click here to see
a 8' foot whale or for
detail of a limited edition print
Currently shares life with 9 dogs (8 GSDs, 1 Chow/Lab), 5 cats, 2 rat, 2
donkeys, 3 horses, a 25-30 head herd of cattle (25 Scottish Highlands & a Jersey/Holstein cross steer),
turkeys, chickens, quail, 4 pigs, a parrot, and African spur-thigh
tortoises. Also, one really great man - added during a Dr. Doolittle type wedding on May 12, 1996.
Husband John Rice is an expert Search & Rescue and tracking
trainer, and now an expert multiple species animal caretaker & all round
farmer.
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