Trainers

Deborah Barone

Deborah Barone took her first dog obedience class with a Standard Poodle when she was 13, and put her first title on another poodle at 22, having trained her from a book . Coincidentally, after training this dog through utility using a tennis ball as a reinforcer, she got a job as David Premack's principal research assistant teaching language to apes and doing cognitive research with apes, children and dogs. She has primarily owned poodles but has been humbled by the task of putting a CD on a miniature pinscher and training a Great Pyrenees. Deborah has trained several dogs through utility obedience and novice agility but has retired from competitive dog sports. She has taught obedience classes at all levels in south Florida, Bloomington, IL and at DTCCU.

Steve Bauermeister

Steve Baumeister has been training, instructing, and judging dogs (4H shows/State Fairs) for over 35 years. He was an Off Leash Scout Dog Handler in Vietnam. In past years, he’s been Obedience Chairman for the Terre Haute and Bloomington IN Kennel Clubs. A DTCCU member for many years, he’s earned several obedience/rally titles at the various levels, including a utility obedience title. He regularly conducts beginning through advanced obedience classes in the Terre Haute, IN area. He and his wife have raised several Labrador Retrievers and English Springer Spaniels and produced several Champions.

Mary Davis

Mary became involved in dog obedience training as a 4-H member in 1975. Since then, the love for the sport expanded to exhibiting dogs in conformation as well as performance events. A mutual enthusiasm with husband Bill, numerous bench championships, obedience, and rally titles reflect the human / companion animal bond shared between owner/handler and the Labradors, Chesapeakes, Goldens, Pointers, and mixed breeds calling Rainbow Lane home. Other dog activities include dock jumping, therapy dog visits, and retrieving birds. The Davis Family currently includes 5 Chesapeakes (Lex, Ruby, Heisman, Deacon, Payton), 4 Labradors (Cooper, Quincy, Busy, Val), Hunny the Australian Cattle Dog mix, and four very tolerant felines (Digit, Hillary, Scooter, LaVerne).

Lee Ann Donner

Lee Ann Donner is finding that assisting is a great way to learn more about dog training. She came to DTCCU in fall of ‘08 with her Shepherd/Corgi Mix in Puppy K, and they have been working their way through classes since then. She also enjoys helping out at agility and obedience trials, and has hopes of training her dogs in agility. She and her husband moved to the Champaign Urbana area in 2008 from Boston, where they spent too much time in traffic and not enough time at home to be able to have a dog. So adopting a canine member to their family was a high priority. They have recently adopted another, a lab mix puppy who has already started classes, as well.

Linda Glynn

Linda Glynn has trained her dogs at DTCCU for 15 years and has taught Home Companion and Rally Obedience classes. She is a strong believer in positive training and developing teamwork between handler and dog. She has had the pleasure of living with a wide variety of breeds including mixed breeds, Labradors, Irish Setters, German Shepherds, Great Pyrenees, and a Basenji. The current roster includes two Airedale Terriers (Zowie and Olive). She and Zowie have earned several APDT Rally titles. Olive will be competing in rally as soon as she is old enough. Linda is also an APDT Rally Obedience judge.

Robin Haggard

Robin Haggard has been involved with the sport of purebred dogs and obedience since the early 1960s, first with German Shepherd Dogs and, since 1963, with Alaskan Malamutes. Robin and Jim Kuehl have completed almost 30 obedience titles on their Malamutes and have bred over 50 conformation champions. They are also active in working their Malamutes and have completed many working titles as well. Robin is a founding member of the DTCCU. She has served the Club in various capacities through the years, and taught many classes. Robin feels very strongly that pups need to be well socialized to people, other dogs and new environments as soon as possible in a positive way and for that reason feels that Puppy Kindergarten is a very important class.

Janna Heuer

Janna Heuer began 4H dog training with her Smooth Collie in 1977. Since then she has loved, learned, and trained with several breeds and mixes including Australian and German Shepherds. She is currently an active DTCCU, ASCA, & APDT member with two Aussies, a high-energy mix, and a new Aussie puppy. They regularly train in herding stock, tracking, competition obedience, APDT rally, and dabble in agility. Janna believes a strong positive relationship built on trust and teamwork is the foundation of all training.

Kim Knap

Kim Knap started dog training in 1993 and joined the DTCCU in 1995. Her personal pets in training have included a Rottweiler, a Mastiff and a few rescued mixed breed dogs. She enjoys home companion and low level obedience, and is the person half of a delta society pet therapy team. Her paying job also involves animals in the veterinary medicine school at the University of Illinois Teaching Hospital. She works closely with a wide variety of dog breeds. She is most fond of working breeds and loves a good challenge. Kim also does foster care for the Champaign County Humane Society for dogs and cats with some behavioral and medical issues. Kim feels that every pet should have good manners, respect, security and love. Some pets need more help than others, but all pets should have a chance. Kim's pets include an elderly terrier mix, a Mastiff, two cats, a horse and a mini donkey. She also has two small children and, thankfully, an animal-friendly husband.

Jim Kuehl

Jim Kuehl is a founding member of the DTCCU. He has been training in obedience for over thirty-five years. With Robin Haggard, they have put over twenty-five obedience titles on their dogs, all Malamutes, which they bred themselves. Their dogs have earned numerous working titles through the Alaskan Malamute Club of America for weight pulling, sledding, and backpacking. Their dogs have earned "High in Trial" at three Malamute National Specialties in obedience and one in agility. They have bred or finished more than seventy-five AKC Malamute conformation champions and nine Canadian champions. They have bred and shown several conformation winners at National Specialties, including Best of Breed, Winners Dog and Winners Bitch, and have bred and finished the first two all-white male Malamute champions in breed history. Jim is past president, past board member, and past director of training of the DTCCU. He was on the board of directors of the Champaign County Humane Society and the AMCA.

Mary Lantis

Mary Lantis has been involved in dog training for over 25 years. She started with general house manners, tricks and traditional obedience. She has earned obedience titles with several dogs including AKC and UKC CDX's with her yorkie, Shae. She loves doodling work, as does her yorkie. Mary and her yorkie have earned titles in rally, including highs in trial, perfect runs, and awards of excellence, and agility. When Mary learned about canine freestyle, she began studying books and videos about freestyle and attended a two day working seminar with Carolynn Scott, handler and well known freestyle competitor and owner of Rookie, a Golden Retriever. Mary and Shae have achieved one freestyle title and are planning to work toward the next level in this sport in the future. She is currently training a Papillon in these performance sports. Mary has taught and been an assistant in several classes at DTCCU in the past few years. As an instructor, watching her student teams improve their skills has been very rewarding.

Carol Le Seure

Carol Le Seure has taught many classes for DTCCU. She was an English teacher and counselor at Urbana High School for 33 years. She has taught Puppy Kindergarten, Intermediate Puppy, Home Companion, and Novice 1. She earned several obedience titles with her dog Tucker, a Shetland Sheepdog, and now trains Rebel, another Shetland Sheepdog.

Carole Lindholm

Carole Lindholm has been involved with the Dog Training Club for many years. Carole has served the club in many capacities and is the current president of the club. At present, her household consists of Robbie, a Golden Retriever, and Andi, a Goldendoodle. Carole enjoys all dog venues but has a primary interest in the conformation ring. She spent many years involved with the Champaign County Humane Society and benefited greatly from that experience. Carole is co-host, along with Jim Kuehl, of the monthly dog training/behavior radio program on WILL 580 AM.

Chris Mayer

Chris Mayer has taught agility classes at DTCCU since 1999. She puts an emphasis on teamwork and enjoys helping handlers and dogs through the learning process. She also believes in using positive motivation to create a happy and confident performance dog and handler team. Chris competes in agility and obedience with her Norwegian Elkhounds and, no matter how things go in the ring, she always manages to bring the best dog back home with her.

Lynette Nehmer

Lynette Nehmer has been active in dog training since 1994. Her Novice A Rottweiler, Blitz, went on to earn an AKC UDX, TDX, AX & AXJ, along with becoming the first Rottweiler in breed history to earn a VCD3 title. Blitz won multiple High in Trial and High Combined awards along the way. Lynette also trained and trialed her mixed breed, Aries. Aries earned her U-CDX with a High in Trial, as well as a trip to the Pupperoni Tournament. Aries earned her U-AGI when she was 9 years old. Lynette's current Rottweiler, Charm, is proficient in many venues. Charm is a breed Champion, UD, TD, AJP, OAP, RAE and therapy dog, who is also a Schutzhund 3. Lynette's up and comer is a Rottweiler pup named Dextrose. Dexie is in training to be a good dog.

Lisa Pellum

Lisa Pellum engages in a wide variety of dog activities and has earned titles in Flyball, Agility, Tracking, Obedience, Rally, Herding, and Frisbee. She loves training tricks and she and her Border Collie, Sam, have appeared on the NBC Today show to perform their award winning tricks. She has taught classes in Home Companion, Flyball, and Agility for DTCCU. She is an AKC CGC Evaluator and Delta Pet Therapy Evaluator. She is a founding member of the club and is involved in the local pet therapy group, Canine Connection. Her passion for dog training is to make it fun and successful for both the human and dog.

Mary Phillips

Mary Phillips started obedience approximately 19 years ago with her first dog, a Shetland Sheepdog named Ariel. Ariel taught Mary a great deal about dogs and how to be a trainer. She attained the AKC CDX obedience title, the UKC CD, and was working on her AKC UD when she injured herself. Ariel was one of the first dogs at DTCCU to title in agility. After Ariel, Bill, her husband, Mary owned a Standard Poodle and two other Shetland Sheepdogs who have earned titles. Hercules received his AKC UD in 2006 and has also titled in agility, herding, and in AKC and APDT rally. In 2006 Hercules was awarded a National Ranking of 18th in APDT Rally. Hercules has also earned UKC titles. Mary has attended several seminars on obedience, agility and rally over the years. She has taught obedience and rally at DTCCU. Mary says each time she teaches she learns something new from the students and their dogs.

Hanna Rao

Hanna Rao believes that the most important aspect of dog training is to teach the handler and the dog to communicate clearly and efficiently with one another. Everyone is different, and no two dogs learn the same way. Training is an important way to strengthen the handler-dog bond. Hanna trains her own dogs in obedience, rally obedience, and agility. She makes a point to compete in many different venues and registries, especially those that encourage mixed breeds, veteran dogs, and disabled dogs and handlers to compete. Hanna is the director of training at DTCCU and a member of the Rally Club of CU.

Mary Rivers

Mary Rivers has been a member of DTCCU since 1990 when Carol Ruthenberg talked her into buying a Belgian Tervuren, and she realized the dog was smarter than she was. Once she began owning Alaskan Malamutes, courtesy of Robin Haggard and Jim Kuehl, DTCCU was her sole avenue to sanity. She trained the Terv to track and do her own version of obedience, and the Mals continue to teach her how to be creative, patient and ready to laugh. Over the years she’s worked her dogs in pulling, sledding, and back-packing as well as obedience. She’s assisted in many classes, been a student in even more, and reads everything she can get her hands on. She believes that there are almost as many ways to train as there are dogs, and so she tries to help others discover which method will work with their dogs. She is currently heavily involved in Animal-Assisted Therapy (through Canine Connection in Champaign), and training her dogs in agility and rally obedience.

Jerri Rogers

Jerri Rogers was given her first dog in February, 2004: a chocolate Labrador who gave stubborn a whole new meaning! After two years of rally and agility, she added a male lab. Realizing that she wanted to help others accomplish more with their dogs, she helped teach basic obedience and became a CGC Evaluator in 2009. Believing that with positive motivation, any dog can learn to be a well-mannered companion, she utilizes a variety of teaching methods, including a clicker, concentrating on teaching Home Companion classes. With a strong base in behavior modification through working with her own reactive male, she is happy to help others find solutions that don’t involve punishment to their problems. She currently competes in rally and obedience with Roxie, and is constantly continuing her education through extensive reading, seminars, talking with other trainers, and through trial and error, with her own and friends’ dogs. She hopes to add a bloodhound to the mix sometime in 2010.

Carol Ruthenberg

Carol Ruthenberg started in the sport of dog training 30 years ago with her Siberian Huskies. She so enjoyed it that she "went to the dogs" and never looked back, training a Flat-Coated Retriever, a Labrador Retriever and now her much loved Belgian Tervuren. She has trained and titled dogs in all levels of obedience, has several owner-handled champions from the conformation ring and has trained, exhibited and judged all levels of tracking dogs, her real love. Carol is also a member of the American Kennel Club Tracking Advisory Committee. Carol has enjoyed instructing for the DTCCU for the past 25+ years, working with many breeds of dogs in obedience classes and tracking seminars. She has been an AKC tracking judge since 1993.

Barb Scanlan

Barb Scanlan learned the value of a creative outlook and positive training with her rescue Toy Fox Terrier, Shaun. He taught her to work toward a partnership based on trust -- by building attention, motivation, and teamwork. Shaunie, despite severe prior abuse and behavioral problems, went on to earn his novice obedience and open agility titles. He also became the first Toy Fox Terrier to earn the AKC Rally Novice and Rally Excellent titles. Barb now trains primarily with her Papillon, Taylor, whom she calls, “The Little Engine that Could.” He earned his novice obedience titles with a High in Trial, and has earned his PAX, the highest title available to AKC dogs running in the Preferred class. She has begun a new challenge, training a high spirited young Papillon named Samurai. Barb especially enjoys formulating problem/solution techniques, and helping beginner trainers.

Cindy Scheidemantel

Cindy Scheidemantel began her dog addiction in 1969 handling her doberman in junior showmanship, conformation and obedience. She joined DTCCU in 1979. She has titled in conformation, rally, tracking, obedience and agility with various breeds: westies, dobermans, goldens, labradors, border terriers and flat-coats. Her primary interest is cultivating a mutually satisfying bond between the dog and handler. She believes dog training should be fun, and if it's not, stop what you're doing, and try a different approach.

Jan Sears

Jan Sears has had dogs all her life, including a wide variety of breeds and mixed breeds. As a child, she taught them mostly tricks. Jan began formal training about eleven years ago and has been competing with her Miniature Australian Shepherds for about nine years. They have earned numerous titles in agility and rally obedience in several venues. Jan enjoys training her own dogs using positive reinforcement and likes helping others to reach their own goals. She says it is very rewarding to see the progress of the dog and handler teams. Jan has taken many classes in basic obedience, rally and agility, has attended a few agility seminars and spent one weekend with Carolyn Scott learning canine freestyle dancing. She has learned much from each instructor and believes it is beneficial to have an array of methods and techniques to draw from. She has taught and/or assisted with puppy, home companion, agility, rally and novice obedience classes. Jan has been an officer of DTCCU, served as membership chair and is a CGC evaluator.

Regina Sherman

Regina Sherman has been training and showing dogs in obedience for 30 years and has been with DTCCU for about 20 years. She has trained many breeds over the years: Collies, Maltese, Poodles, Border Collies, a Belgian Sheepdog, and many Australian Shepherds. She has titles in AKC (American Kennel Club), UKC (United Kennel Club), APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers) and ASCA (Aust. Shep. Club of America). She shows in Obedience and Rally Obedience. She has achieved titles on all these breeds from Companion Dog to Utility Dog in regular obedience and from Novice in AKC and Level One in APDT to the highest Rally obedience titles. She just retired her female Aussie Fina (UCDX R Valley’s Grand Finale UD, RAE, ARCHEX), at 11.5, with 20 titles and a National Ranking of #14 in APDT Rally.

Dave Stone

David Stone, http://www.uni.uiuc.edu/~dstone/, has been training dogs for 19 years. He has taught or assisted with a number of DTCCU classes and has served as Vice President numerous times. He has titled dogs in conformation, obedience, flyball, agility, tracking, retriever fieldwork and terrier trials. Besides finding the training and the social aspects of club membership satisfying, he also met his wife, Marian, at the club in 1982 when he was a student in her Novice obedience class.

Marian Stone

Marion Stone started training in 4-H obedience and earned her first obedience title in 1972 with a German Shepherd. Her current obedience/tracking/agility dog is a Chihuahua. In between she has trained and shown multiple German Shepherds, Keeshonds, Irish Terriers, Flat-Coated Retrievers, German Shorthaired Pointers, Gordon Setters, Border Terriers, and a couple of mixes. She has also shown and titled dogs in conformation, tracking, flyball, earthdog and agility as well as assisted her husband train his retriever in fieldwork. She has taught all levels of classes at DTCCU though has not been as active recently due to family and work commitments.

Nichole Summers

Nichole Summers has been a member of DTCCU since 2002 and began teaching classes here shortly thereafter. She has taught and assisted in several classes, each starting with a positive framework and a focus on motivational relationships between dog and handler to work towards attaining desired goals. She likes to concentrate primarily on puppy socialization and behavioral modification challenges. Nichole seeks out continuing education and has been involved in a number of canine-community outreach opportunities. In addition, she has been training her own dogs since childhood and is currently dabbling in Obedience, Agility, Rally, and Tracking with her English Mastiff and Pembroke Welsh Corgi. Such diversity in breed type with respect to her own dogs and those in class is part of what makes organizing each class so much fun!

Duane Walton

Duane Walton has trained dogs for over 30 years. He has instructed many classes for DTCCU, from Home Companion through Utility, and has been a past director of training for the club. He has made an ongoing effort to stay informed concerning various training techniques and AKC rule changes. He has titled dogs in obedience, tracking, and retriever hunt tests, including three Tracking Dogs (TD), eight Hunting Retrievers (HR), three Hunting Retriever Champions (HRCH), six Utility Dogs (UD) and two UDX dogs. In spite of these titles, he still strongly believes in the AKC stated purpose of obedience: “to recognize dogs that have been trained to behave in the home, in public places and in the presence of other dogs in a manner that will reflect credit on the sport of obedience at all times and under all conditions.” He currently has seven Golden Retrievers and three Labrador Retrievers at home. Duane is a retired Elementary School Principal.

Mary Young

Mary Young describes her training methods as "play-training," expecting all interactions to be high on the fun scale-breaking new training into baby steps with high value reinforcement games, toys, treats, energy, and affection. Mary has loved dogs as long as she can remember. As a youth, dreams of life in the company of dogs were realized by befriending and play-training neighbor dogs. She adopted her first dog after graduating and has lived and played with dogs ever since. Mary's early training experience evolved to formal competition training within DTCCU's club environment, at professional seminars, and through private lessons. Her main focus is agility, but she is also a tracking and obedience/rally enthusiast and dabbles in positive, non-force retriever training. Mary is shared by two labradors and two Jack Russells, but appreciates the training challenges and talents of every dog. All but one of her dogs have been adopted from rehome situations or shelter-rescue and several have worked as therapy dogs. Mary served on the Champaign County Humane Society board and is a principal of Canine Connection, a local pet therapy group.

DTCCU 2210 E. Ford Harris Rd Urbana, IL 61802

Phone: 217-643-7733

TRAINERS