Evan Graham Training Seminar

Evan Graham

Smartworks

Handling and Transition

July 21-23, 2023

Sponsored by Midnight Sun Gun Dog Association and Wetland Retrievers/Baron Rea

Hello everyone, you asked for it and we are very excited to have the opportunity to bring back Evan Graham and his assistant trainer Vince to Alaska.

First a little about the seminar, from Evan, “Our standards for seminars. We have a finite amount of time, and a vast amount of information to cover. Because of that, there is a standard announcement I make the first morning at our seminars. That is: “This is not a train the dog day. It’s a train-the-trainer day. With that in mind, I have no idea which attendee’s dogs will actually work, or to what extent. But, because of the nature of this event, we will do our best to involve as many dogs as are instructive to the group as a whole; no more, no less.”

Our goal in any seminar is that all of those who attend will be substantially better trainers when the event is over than they were when it began. I believe that is how I can be of most value during our time together.”

There will be 20 handler dog teams that will be chosen, and an unlimited amount of observer spots. We know there will be lots of interest into becoming involved in the seminar. The handler/dog teams will be “chosen by us” that will best demonstrate what Evan is looking to teach on specific days. This 3-day class will have advanced basics and marking setups. Demonstration dogs will need to be forced fetched and through basics up through TT, having swim by and decheating is preferred. If you wish to be a handler/dog team you will need to sign up as an observer first, then drop us a note requesting to be upgraded to a Handler/Team. Please use [email protected] for all correspondence. Handler teams will be picked by July 10th, and an additional Invoice will be emailed to those chosen. A list of the handler’s teams will also be put on the MSGDA website. All payments are via PayPal, or you can also mail in a check made out to MSGDA. Prices are below, please note there is an additional fee to use PayPal, this covers our costs to use this service. The PayPal button on the MSGDA site will only be set up for observers and will be active on the MSGDA website very soon.

Handler / dog team $300 PayPal (Invoiced an additional $75 after selection Process

Observer spot $225 Check/$235 PayPal

Class locations will be in the Mat-Su Valley and could be as far out as Pt. Mackenzie. You do NOT have to be a member of MSGDA to participate. One thing to note regarding this class, this is not a fundraiser for MSGDA, or Wetland Retrievers. Our purpose of this class is to support and promote the local retriever community and make everyone better at what we love doing. With that being said, we will have expenses. To limit as many as possible, we are looking for volunteers to house Evan and his assistant for a few days, as well as airline miles or a companion ticket to help cover airline expenses. If you can help with that, please reach out to the email above. Thank you

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MSGDA Winter Training Class

October 17, 2022

Fall/Winter Training Classes

MSGDA is happy to once again be teaming up with Baron Rea at Wetland Retrievers to provide retriever training this fall and into early winter. Field work will typically be held in various locations in the valley, there may be classroom classes help in Anchorage. Classes are scheduled to begin October 29th and run until early January 7, 2023. Classes are typically scheduled for Saturdays, but there will be a few Sunday classes. Exact dates are as follows, October 29th, November 5th, 12th, 19th, and 26th. December 3rd, 17th, and 31st. Final class is scheduled for January 7. (Dates are tentative, and weather dependent.)

We will once again have an advanced class that starts at 10am, and a Started/Early Transition class with a start time of noon. Each class is limited to 15 dogs, and we ask that you limit 1 dog per handler per class. Please sign up quick as classes will fill. We ask that each participate in a current 2022 or new 2023 member. Questions can be directed to MSGDA at this email address. [email protected].

Wondering what class your dog should be in? Started dogs need early obedience, field into, early multiple marks, force fetch, and collar conditioning. Started dogs need to get through basic handling such as T and baseball before moving up.

Advanced dogs should be completely forced fetched, collar conditioned and are past T work. These dogs should be able to run patterns, and at a minimum run established blinds with a gun in the field. Advance dogs should be steady at the line, capable of doing multiple marks, and stop on a whistle and accepts cast to change direction.

Please understand your dog may get moved up or down during these classes based on its level and performance.

Current Spots available as of 10/27/2022

Started: FULL

Advanced: FULL

BOTH CLASSES ARE CURRENTLY FULL, but spots sometimes do become available. Please Email [email protected] to be put on the waiting list.

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2023 Event Dates

September 21, 2022

2023 Event Dates (Dates are tentative and can change)

MSGDA fun day -to include membership meeting, raffles, auctions and potluck dinner.
Saturday May 13, 2023 Boyd’s Farm Palmer.

MSGDA Training Day
Saturday June 3, 2023 Boyd’s Farm Palmer.

MSGDA NAHRA Field Test
May 19-21, 2023 Boyd’s Farm Palmer (Triple Senior)

MSGDA NAHRA Field Test (Alaska Regional)
July 7-9, 2023 Boyd’s Farm Palmer (Triple Senior)

Evan Graham Seminar
July 21-23, 2023 Multiple locations

MSGDA NAHRA Field Test
August 5-6, 2023 Boyd’s Farm Palmer