SAODC Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Could you please be more specific about the Club's location?

What times do you train?

S.A.O.D.C.'s location and class times don't suit me,
where can I find another club?

What does it cost to join the club?

Can I join the Club online?

How do I join?

Are bookings required?

When is training cancelled because it is too hot or too wet?

How long are the classes and how long will it take me to train my dog?

What collar do I need?

Do you use food in your training?

What age can I bring my Puppy / dog?

What vaccinations do I need?

What do letters before or after a dog's name mean?

Could you please be more specific about the Club's location?

SAODC  grounds and club rooms are sited in Adelaide's parklands, just south of St Andrew's Hospital. The best approach is along South Terrace past St.Andrew's Hospital, turning Right at the eastern end: you will find us about 80 metres along on the right hand side, just before where the road is barricaded as it is a no-through-road.   The Club building is nestled in the trees, but quite evident from the road in daylight, or when our lights are turned on for evening training sessions.   Access to Beaumont Road from the south via Greenhill Road involves a hike from the barricade, and we do not recommend this approach in the evening.

What times do you train?

We train Tuesday morning with beginners' and puppy classes starting at 10:30am and Tuesday evening at 7:30 pm.
After you have joined, you may attend either or both training sessions each week, please inform your instructor.

For more details including Agility training times on Thursday evenings, see our classes page.

Training, weather permitting, occurs between February and November inclusive.

S.A.O.D.C.'s location and class times don't suit me - can I still train my dog?

What does it cost to join the club ?

Can I join the Club online?
Sorry the answer is No but you can Download a Membership Form.
At this stage the Club does not have facilities to accept credit card payments.
There is no eftpos or EFT either.

How do I join the Club?

How long are the classes?

The classes are half an hour long.

How long will it take for me to train my dog?

This question is about as easy to answer as the old one about how long is a piece of string. There are so many variables involved! The breed, age, and even gender of your dog, and their early socialisation and experiences, influence their readiness for the environment we provide, as does your own relationship with your dog, and your willingness to be consistent with training outside of class.

Theoretically, it is possible to progress through the classes being graduated each month, and so achieve your Basic Obedience Certificate in five or six months, but it is unusual for anyone to manage this in training their first dog. Rushing through the classes also doesn't ensure a better trained dog, or a happier team, and we may sometimes recommend that a dog & handler repeat a particular class for reasons other than the performance of the required exercises, to facilitate their progress and teamwork later on.

S.A.O.D.C. does not offer 'crash courses' but can occasionally offer one to one instruction in order to overcome specific behaviours or problems in training. We would also like to think that you and your dog will come to enjoy your membership of the Club, and be in no great hurry to move on, unless it is towards higher levels of Obedience.

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What collar does my dog need?

For Obedience training the club recommends the use of a Martingale (pictured on the right) or Slip Collar (pictured below). (It is important to note that a slip collar is not intended to be used as a choke collar). Our Instructors will teach you how to use them effectively. Flat collars are permitted. Harnesses are ideal for restraining dogs in the car but are not suitable for training. Our Chief Instructor is happy to answer any 'collar' questions you have. They may also approve the use of an alternative collar ie a head-collar, where it is considered more suitable for a particular dog and handler. For Agility training - a flat collar, with no dangling tags or fittings, is required. This is to reduce the risk of catching on the equipment and potential injury to the dog. When buying a collar it is important it is fitted correctly, don't be tempted to re-cycle an old collar unless your new pup is much the same size as the previous dog and the collar is still in excellent condition. Good quality collars are available from the Club's sales counter, where they can be custom-fitted to your dog on the spot, and you will be shown how to put them on and use as intended. 'Eemia' Sandison, our dog model in these photos, is a G.A.P. (Greyhound Adoption Program) girl who found a new home with Bill and Jillian.

Slip collar correctly fitted (below): Slip collar incorrectly fitted - does not release correctly (below):

Will training be cancelled in bad weather?

Training will be cancelled under the following weather conditions:

What vaccinations does my dog need ?

All dogs must be vaccinated at least to C5 level
(Distemper, Hepatitis, Parvo & kennel cough), plus Parainfuenza & Bordetella.
Proof of this will be required to be sighted before your dog may participate in classes.

At what age can I bring my dog?

All dogs must be fully vaccinated so from 3 months or two weeks after the last booster vaccinations.
Puppies under six months of age automatically go into a Puppy class while older (dog) beginners start in Grade 1, unless they have had previous training and need individual assessment which might put them in a higher class.

Do I bring my dog when joining?

Yes: each week, new members attending for the first time, have paperwork to complete and pay fees, then join an Orientation class in which Club rules, class structure and expectations are outlined. A basic introduction to training is given to new members and their dog, before being allocated to their class for the following week.

Do you use food in your training?

What do the letters before or after a dog's name mean?

In your reading about dogs, you may find reference to the results of canine competitions, or stories on individual dogs, you may have seen a series of letters before or after a dog's name, and wondered what they signify.

You may also have noticed that some dogs' names are written up differently. The usual practice is to put inverted commas around a nick name, but not a kennel or pedigree name, so that O.C. Kayaman Alexis is known as 'Alex' although many pedigreed dogs' registered names have no obvious connection to their nick names, like the well known Hillacre High Performance CDX, ADX, JDX, TDX who is known affectionately as "Frosty" presumably because she's blue.

There is a bewildering array of "titles" on offer to dogs in competition in different classes of Obedience, Rally Obedience, Agility, Jumping, Tracking, Herding, Conformation (the Show ring), various forms of Retrieving, Dances with Dogs, and others which are even less common.

Letters before the name indicate a Championship achieved, most frequently in the Show Ring (Breed Conformation), which will appear as Ch. or Aust. Ch.(you may also see N.Z.Ch.or Am.Ch.or similar, indicating titles gained overseas) There are Obedience Champions too, or the older form, Australian Obedience Champion, O.C. or A.O.C. We also have here in this Club a  T.Ch. (Tracking Champion) and at least one dog with a Dual Ch. (Championships achieved in two disciplines, Conformation and one other).

The initials you will see most often around S.A.O.D.C., and may already be competiting for, yourself, are: