H.I.P. Trickility

No tricks here—it’s a hot, new activity for you and your dog.

By: Amy Bulger
Date: 09/14/2007
Need a little exercise? Want to have fun with your dog? Think agility might be fun but way too much activity?
Then you might want to try a brand-new activity called Hand in Paw (H.I.P.) Trickility.

H.I.P. Trickility is the brainchild of dog trainer Christy Paxton, the owner of Hand in Paw: Real World Training for You and Your Dog, based in Middleburg Heights. Her new program combines elements of agility with trick performance. Dogs travel a course containing low-level obstacles—like weave poles, tunnels and jumps—performing tricks in between. These tricks can range from easy (sit, shake hands) to difficult (linked behaviors like putting an object in a wagon and pulling it).

“The course design possibilities are endless,” Christy says. “That means H.I.P. Trickility can be customized to any size dog, with varying ability levels.”

Needed a New Challenge
Christy created H.I.P. Trickility while trying to come up with something different, fun and challenging for her own dog, Tawny.

“I wanted to start Tawny on agility, but I wasn’t really into the big obstacles or the competitiveness of it,” Christy explains. “I wanted an activity that would enhance her overall training and responsiveness. So I began wondering if I could somehow combine trick performance with agility.

“I taught Tawny to go through the weave poles,” Christy continues. “Then I asked her for a high-five before going into it and a rollover when coming out of it. She did it, we were both thrilled, and I thought, ‘This could work.’”

Christy spent months developing the basics of H.I.P. Trickility and teaching it to Tawny. She shared the idea with some close associates, and, spurred on by that positive feedback, she and Tawny debuted the activity in June at the Westlake Animal Hospital’s Pet Fair.

Now it’s time to offer classes to teach others how to do it, and later, organize friendly competitions.

Fits Her Philosophy
Coming up with ideas that are a bit different is nothing new to Christy. Her training methods are also a bit different from the norm. “I got into training because I could never find solutions for my own dog problems,” she smiles. “I had a ‘bad dog’ for 17 years, and no training method available at the time worked. I kept looking, even after he died, determined to find a better way.”

She found it, first in the form of British trainer Jan Fennell (a.k.a. “The Dog Listener”), then later in U.S. trainer Patricia McConnell, and finally in local trainer Michelle Blount-Jordan of PAWSitive Dog-Human Training.
“When I first read Fennell’s book, I was bowled over,” Christy recalls. “The philosophy she had was so simple, so logical, and I knew it would have helped my old dog. In fact, I tried it out on a friend’s dog, which was just as ‘bad’ as mine. When I left that dog a few hours later, he was completely changed. I was euphoric, and I wanted to shout from the rooftops, ‘Eureka! I found it!’ My path into dog training was forged that day.”

That day was nearly six years ago. Since then, Christy has further developed her methods through studying a range of trainers and interacting with loads of dogs. In 2005, she added group classes (basics, tricks/clicker, CGC/Therapy Dog) to her private lessons. Today Christy partners with vet clinics—Westlake Animal Hospital and Big Creek Pet Hospital in Middleburg Heights—The Mutt Hutt dog daycare in Tremont, and the Cleveland Animal Protective League to bringher classes and workshops to as many dog owners as possible. “I don’t want one more owner going through what I went through,” Christy insists.

Continuing Development
Christy says she will continue to develop H.I.P. Trickility and hopes her students and participants will help her do that. “Although I currently walk with Tawny through the course, I want her to learn to do it herself, taking directions from me at a distance,” she says. “That’s absolutely doable, which means people who are less mobile, say in wheelchairs, can also have fun with H.I.P. Trickility.”

As she expands the number of skill levels offered, Christy will add other obstacles and trick requirements—but she’s keeping mum on what those are. “You’ll just have to wait and see,” she smiles knowingly.

For more information call 440-263-2314. Or view the new H.I.P. Trickility video to see what it’s all about. Visit www.handinpawdogtraining.com and click on Trickility. To find out more about Hand in Paw, visit www.handinpawdogtraining.com or e-mail christy@ handinpawdogtraining.com.

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