Best Friends Forever Conference 2010

Eric Goebelbecker | Sat, 08/14/2010 - 17:48

D Crevling, C Barney, N Williams, S Hetts, P Silvani, P Reid, T King, E Levine, P McConnell, V Catalano

Last weekend I attended the first Best Friends Forever Conference. The conference was organized by Dana Crevling's Dogs Of Course as a fund raiser for St. Hubert's. It was an outstanding educational opportunity for dog people of all types.

St. Hubert's is, of course, a cause near and dear to my heart. It was there that I "discovered" dog training and then apprenticed and became a trainer myself. Under the tutelage of Pia Silvani and the amazing staff of St. Hubert's Dog Training School I learned about effective dog training and have made some lifelong friendships.

The lectures at the conference were nothing short of amazing. Two lectures were given during each timeslot, and oftentimes I would see people in the hall, having a hard time deciding which one to go to.

The speakers were:

Pia Silvani CPDT-KA
Nancy Williams MA, RVT, ACAAB
Patricia McConnell, Ph.D., CAAB
Carolyn Barney, CPDT-KA
Vincent Catalano, M.B.A., CPDT, CPBC
Suzanne Hetts, PhD, CAAB
Trish King CPDT-KA, CDBC
Emily Levine, DVM DACVB MRCVS
Pamela Reid PhD, CAAB

I'll be honest; this post has been open on my computer since Sunday night, and I am having a hard time coming up with a representative list of highlights or a synopsis of the weekend that doesn't leave something out. By midday last Saturday people were asking in earnest if this could become an annual event.

Here's a (very) partial list. I apologize if I am leaving something critical out. As a matter of fact, let me know in the comments.

Pia Silvani on "The ties that bind" and how trainers can better reach pet owners.
Patricia McConnell on emotions in people, dogs and mammals of all stripes.
Nancy Williams on aggression: what it is, what it isn't, some ways to address it and a bunch of ways not to.
Dr. Suzanne Hetts on the use and misuse of punishment.
Dr. Emily Levine on medical problems "disguised" as behavior problems.
Pia Silvani on helping fearful dogs.
Pia Silvani, Vincent Catalano, Carolyn Barney and Trish King in a panel on "growl" classes.
Trish King on matching shelter dogs to people.
Dr. Suzanne Hetts on the dangers and risks of misinterpreting dominance.

If the weekend had been spread over 6 days, I'd still have arrived home tired. Here's hope this is the start of a new tradition!