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Watch the 4th Ranked Dock Diver, Doni, at the Open House event!
DevObal Admin • April 24, 2016
Watch the 4th Ranked Dock Diver, Doni, at the Open House event!
It all started about 6 years ago when Deb Feller and her partner, Laurie, attended at dockdog competition at SEWE (Southeast Wildlife Expo) in Charleston.
Both were thrilled by the dogs and and the competitive nature of the event. Deb said, "the next water loving pup we have, is going to do this!"
Time passed and 1 year later Deb was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Four surgeries and six months of chemotherapy later, Deb was exhausted and somewhat defeated. Laurie had a plan, puppies! Puppies make everyone happy! And especially Deb.
Doni, and his litter mate, Sirius's Black (Harry Potter's godfather), came to live with them. During the six weeks post chemo before returning to work Deb spent 24/7 with the pups.Upon Deb's return to work both puppies had all basic commands and we're launching from the side of a pool.
Sirius, was Deb and Laurie's son and daughter-in-laws puppy. When Gentry and Macy (USMC family) were stationed in California, Sirius moved to California with them. Sirius was six months old.
Doni competed in his first dockdog event at two years oldin charleston at SEWE.
He placed in all three disciplines and received a warrior Iron dog score.
Two weeks later, at a Dock Dogs event in Georgetown, SC he shocked every one by scoring first place in Big Air finals and first place Titan Iron dog.
This was the beginning of the Dockdog journey for Team Skinnydip.
Later that year Deb and Doni won 2nd place in Elite division at the 2014 World Championship. Deb and Laurie's granddaughter, Kaitie, won 1st place in Youth Handler division. Kaitie went on to handle Doni in 2015, she and Doni won many accolades. At the 2015 World Championship, Kaitie was name Youth Handler of the year and Doni was awarded Top Ranked Yellow Lab of 2015. Third in speed retrieve and seventh in super elite finals with Kaitie handle lying.
Sirius came home to Charleston in spring of 2015 as Gentry moved duty stations to Buford, SC. Sirius's dockdog training and conditioning started immediately. His first event was SEWE 2015. He was successful in all three events, and had a warrior ID score. His journey took him and Macy to the 2015 world championship, Sirius place first in every discipline he entered. 1st cadet EV, 1st warrior ID.
Team Skinnydip has two more members of the pack. Fitzgerald (Fitz) his handler, Amanda Feller, is Deb's cousin. He is an exuberant 18 month old that holds a great deal of promise. He placed first place in Speed retrieve and first place in Master big air finals at Georgetown SC April 9, 2016.
The newest addition to the pack is Ella, she is a 6 month old "goldador" golden/lab hybrid. She is handled by Laurie and Kaitie. Ella successfully competed at Georgetown in speed retrieve and big air.
Personal bests:
Doni
Big Air 27'9". Currently ranked #1 in club rankings and #4 in national
Extreme Vertical : 6'10"
Speed retrieve: 6.954
Iron dog: 3009
Sirius:
Big air: 23'0"
Extreme vertical: 6'8"
Speed retrieve 7.363
Iron dog: 2903
Fitz:
Big air: 22'9"
Extreme vertical: 5'10"
Speed retrieve 6.904
Iron dog: 2894
Ella:
Big air: 8'2"
Speed retrieve 13.271
Top 2 pics are Doni, Sirius Black, Fitzgerald, Ella
HOWL-O-WEEN is back with a virtual costume contest and prizes for the best dressed! 👻 Entering the contest is easy: Simply submit your picture to happening@astrokennels.net or DM us on any social media. All photos will be gathered into an album and voting will start on the 15th. Not enough time to take a photo? We got you! Book your dog for a full day of daycare wearing their costume and we will take a photo in our spooky booth for you! There's no excuse not to join in the fun. Let's give your dogs treats for all their tricks! We cannot wait to see what you'll come up with. Winners will be announced on October 31st. Good luck!
Training Camp is back for another season this Winter! This camp includes four days of customized day board and train plus a group class. How does it work: Pick 3 skills from our Training Menu and we do the rest. Don't worry, though, we'll host a group graduation class at the end of the week to teach you everything you need to know to handle your dog at home. How to sign up: Click here to be redirected to our Customer Portal. Once we've received your payment you will get an email with more details and a questionnaire about your dogs and the skills you'd like to work on. Price: $150 When: Mauldin: December 8th-11th & Five Forks: December 15th-18th Drop off: Between 7am-9am Pick up: Between 5pm-7pm Notes: This is a day camp. Overnight boarding is available upon request for an additional fee. Training camp is for obedience only. Aggression issues need an assessment and will not be addressed during this camp. Please call us on (864) 297-9636 if you have any questions or need help enrolling.
All law enforcement agencies are welcome.
We are excited to announce that we are now an AKC North America Diving Dogs (NADD) sanctioned facility. We will be hosting our very first NADD event on October 27th and 28th. For registration and event details, please visit: https://northamericadivingdogs.com/Event/info/eventid/1936.
For event information and registration, please visit: https://northamericadivingdogs.com/Event/info/eventid/1936. At the conclusion of air retrieve on Saturday, October 27th, we will be offering a fun costume contest for the dogs with great prizes. Get creative and let your dog strut their stuff down the dock! This event is free for spectators. Proof of current Rabies, DHPP, and Bordatella vaccines is required for all dogs on-site.