General Training Information

Certified professional dog trainer Mary Fish Arango MA MEd CPDT-KA teaches all classes offered at Horses and Hounds. Clicker training and positive reinforcement are the primary tools, as they are exceptionally effective and transferable to teaching new behaviors independently. At all levels, classes focus on polite greetings of people and dogs, impulse control, basic skills for family and community living, and solutions for common challenges. As puppy skills increase and maturity grows, we introduce greater distractions and more complex tasks. Classes are kept small to give opportunity for individualized attention and problem solving.

Mary has 30 years’ experience teaching obedience skills and manners at all levels and has been a therapy dog evaluator since 1997. Seven of her family dogs have worked as therapy dogs in hospitals, psychiatric units, assisted living facilities, and schools. She has competed in AKC obedience, rally, and agility with eight of her dogs. Three have been certified Disaster Stress Relief Dogs for deployment to comfort first responders and people affected by national disasters. She has worked in shelter environments in several communities and has advised hospitals in the development, implementation, and ongoing accreditation of therapy dog programs.

In addition to group classes, private lessons are also available, either at Horses and Hounds or in a home setting or neighborhood. Private lessons are an excellent way of addressing specific needs or goals and accommodating individual scheduling. Mary travels in a wide radius and has a flexible schedule.

Class Descriptions

Younger Puppies

In this class, we work on the basic preliminary skills of sit, down, off, following on a loose leash, hand touch, recall, trade, polite interactions. We take time to brainstorm about common concerns while raising puppies -- teething, chewing, potty training, crate training, thoughtful socializing, etc. We use clicker training extensively to mark, shape, and reward polite behavior and new skills. Some puppies continue this class through several cycles, learning to work in the presence of new puppy peers and different distractions.
Fees: $130 for Private Lessons and $265.88 for Group Classes.

Older Puppies

This group encompasses a broad range of puppy ages and needs. Some puppies continue into this class with foundation skills well begun; some arrive with boisterous teenage energy and not much impulse control. Some come from rescue organizations without detailed background information, and a group class is a beneficial place to gather data about what they know and how they learn. We work on routine household skills of sit, down, stay, recall, etc., and add impulse control exercises of leave it, walk away, polite greetings. We work on refining loose leash walking and skills related to ignoring other dogs on leash. Clicker training is effective in teaching dogs and owners how to learn from each other. Many teams repeat this class to continue practicing and refining skills as their dogs gain experience.
Fees: $130 for Private Lessons and $265.88 for Group Classes.

Mature Dogs

This class is for dogs who are ready for proofing their basic skills with greater distractions and higher expectations. Some handlers seek to work with their dogs as therapy dogs and take this class in preparation for evaluation. Some dogs are maturing out of adolescence and developing steadier impulse control. Many handlers keep attending the class cycle after cycle in order to keep bonding with their dog and setting new goals.
Fees: $130 for Private Lessons and $265.88 for Group Classes.

Private Lessons

Working one-on-one is a great way to get individualized attention in a home setting, out in the neighborhood, or in a setting designed to address particular needs. The process of a private lesson is fluid and adaptive, recognizing key details of a dog's behavior and body language and a handler's needs and skills. An observant trainer can front-load a lot of information and set a family up for successful training on their own in preparation for another session that might fine tune skills or highlight new goals. With a new dog or puppy, a private lesson can help set up success with management and training.
Fees: $130 for Private Lessons and $265.88 for Group Classes.

My work with dogs and their humans is influenced by 38 years as a teacher in independent schools, working with teenagers who were highly motivated, mostly hard-working, and in the middle of determining the kind of person they would become. It is also, of course, influenced by a lifelong love of animals and a fascination for how they learn and interact with people. I have worked with all kinds of breeds and mixes from all kinds of backgrounds - purpose-bred dogs from thoughtful breeding, rehomed dogs with new beginnings, and rescue dogs with unknown pasts. That work has been done through working with shelter dogs, training in dog obedience and agility clubs, and teaching in my private training business.

I am a huge proponent of clicker training and positive reinforcement. They are powerful tools. Rewards come in the form of food, praise, attention, touching, and resources; learning through positive reinforcement activates a different part of the brain than punishment-based training. Odds are good that our favorite teachers and professors earned that title because learning from them was rewarding. These tools are valuable in all kinds of relationships - with your dog, your colleagues, your life partner, your family members, your friends. And they're contagious, which is an added bonus when the same tools that you model are used mutually on you.

I trained and competed in agility and obedience in Alabama and California for 22 years before our retirement from teaching and administration took us to Medford, Oregon, near Ashland and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. In 2015, I started Storybook Farm Dog Training on our pastoral property in southern Oregon. We were fortunate to have level fields for three separate training areas, and the climate was favorable all year long for outdoor classes. I worked with 40-60 clients a week in agility, rally, private lessons and puppy classes for socialization and manners. The Almeda Fire, a devastating fire a mile from us in 2020, finally compelled us to return to Connecticut, where my husband and I both spent our childhood and teenage years.

I currently live with four border collies and train for agility and therapy dog work. We've had ten dogs since 1993. Seven have been extraordinary therapy dogs doing volunteer visits in hospitals, hospice, psychiatric units, and schools. Three of those were certified Disaster Stress Relief dogs, evaluated for deployment to FEMA disaster events. I have been an evaluator for therapy dogs since 1997, mentoring new teams and consulting with hospitals as they develop therapy dog programs. I have competed in AKC obedience, agility, rally obedience, and conformation since 1994. I currently compete and train for agility, Barn Hunt, and scentwork and hope to have a new therapy dog candidate as two young dogs mature. But most of all, I like to teach.

Education

BA, Williams College (psychology)
M Ed, University of Virginia (sports medicine/athletic training)
MA, Oakland University, Michigan (counseling)
Annual Continuing Education CEU's to maintain certification as a professional dog trainer

Affiliations

Association for Professional Dog Training International
Dog Writers Association of America
Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers
Licensed Evaluator for Pet Partners Therapy Animal Program