Being a fur guardian always has some challenges, so your farm vacation includes meeting marvelous instructors who share their expertise on dogs. We have the most noted teachers available to work one-on-one with you and your dog. Unlike other camps, our teachers are not separate from campers. At the Camp the instructors are with you 24/7 - they join with you not just during sessions, but dining and other activities as well. so feel free to converse with them freely. Unlike most class obedience situations where you are in a large group in an artificial setting, meeting once a week, your time at the Farm works quite differently... You can be learning all the time!

You get to see dogs being dogs and grow to understand what motivates
your dog more clearly and how you can have a better relationship
than you may have thought possible!

A Day at Camp Every full day includes 3 mealtimes, a morning and afternoon sporting session, 2 lectures and a group trail walk exploring different areas of the property. This is your time with your dog... so there's never any rush at the Farm. If you want to attend a class, or skip it to explore the trails or relax in a hammock, it's all fine!

Sporting Sessions

Many people want to try new things to do with their dog like agility, herding, tracking, treibball, scenting games or disc dog, so sports are offered every day. Campers sign up for individual instruction in 20 minute increments. Sports activities run concurrently, but with both AM and PM sessions, you and your dog will have plenty time to try them all. You'll have access to the top talent in each of these fields, so this week is the time to gain that edge! Some campers attend with more than one dog so they bring portable crates to house one dog while working with another. We also have a pair outdoor shaded kennels at the agility fields so you may work with one dog while your other furry friends can wait their turn in a secure and comfy environment. Large crates are also available for use in the main barn.

Campers find that the cumulative impact of doing a sport day after day has great results and even clarifies direction on what to pursue upon returning home.

Tracking Tracking is a marvelous sport where handler and dog work to follow scent trails, searching through fields, finding hidden items. Dogs absolutely love it and so do their guardians. Freestyle Freestyle is an inventive new way to build a relationship based on tons of fun! Think of it like dancing with your dog!

Water Sports

Water sports are truly a blast giving handler and dog a chance to really enjoy the water with swimming, retrieval, towing and targeting activities. While many dogs take to the water right away, others may take a little coaxing. Camp teachers can help you slowly introduce your canine buddy to the water. You'll have a water dog before you know it!

Agility

Our agility equipment is available for use anytime during camp. With 2 complete courses of obstacles, you can practice any aspect of the sport you like and use each day to build greater skills or just have fun challenging both you and your dog. You'll have experts at the top of their game available to improve both you and your dog's performance. If you've always wanted to try agility, this is the perfect opportunity!

Herding

Herding is an amazing way to learn how your herding dog thinks and solves problems. Rather than go to a weekend clinic, here at Camp you can go twice each day and accumulate real experience with your dog over many days. You and your dog improve and learn together.

Rally Obedience

Rally Obedience is a challenging sport that combines obedience with movement, adding action to the exercises. Handler and dog walk a course by following a series of signs placed along the course and performing the exercise listed on each sign. So many dogs and their guardians find this to be the perfect combination of mind and body.

Disc Dog

Disc Dog is a very popular and accessible sport for you and your dog. Work on learning to toss discs, building your dog's drive, and fetch with your dog or move on up to learn some fancy freestyle moves with assistance from our talented instructor.

Treibball

Triebball is a fun sport that has only recently migrated to the United States from Europe and involves teaching dogs to herd a number of large, inflatable balls into a pen or goal. While herding breeds may have a natural penchant for the work, dogs of any breed, size, and nearly any age can participate and have a blast! In our sessions, we will build and build upon critical foundation skills such as: left/right heeling, handler focus, targeting, distance work, and place work. We will be using marker training to teach the dogs, so if your dog is clicker savvy, please bring your clicker or feel free to substitute the verbal marker of your choosing if you are more comfortable and bring lots of treats! Check out this great video which demonstrates some of the same exercises we'll be working on during Camp sessions.

Lectures to Stimulate your Mind

The world of dogs has even more to offer us two-legged creatures who want to learn. Enlightening lectures in animal communication, Tellington touch, energy balancing, canine bodywork, nutrition and holistic care and more are available throughout the week. Our guest speakers share their knowledge and experiences and often give you hands-on experience whenever possible. It's a rare situation to have access to such noteworthy people in their fields in a casual open setting where questions and thoughtful discussion is encouraged. The sessions, held in the main Barn, are a fun relaxing break for you and your dog from outdoor activities and a great way to stimulate your mind with new ideas!

Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dog Evaluation

During Camp, you'll also have a chance to participate in a Canine Good Citizen evaluation and/or Therapy Dog Evaluation. A noted authority on both test guides you and your dog through this process. If for some reason, your dog is not quite ready the guides can help you determine how to do well on future evaluations. The Camp is a great setting to go through the tests and many, many dogs pass with flying colors.

Explore on Your Own...

Here at the Farm there is no shortage of activities to enjoy outside of camp sessions. Go exploring the trails with your dog! Glen Highland Farm provides a remarkable outdoor experience where you can enjoy miles of lush trails with your dog and perhaps with a few new canine buddies. Wander through huge flowering meadows, pass towering trees in the Hemlock Forest, or rest creekside as water rushes over fallen logs. The variety of scenery will be a feast for those canine senses. Trails lead wind through distinctive areas of the property suitable for human and canine activity alike: light hiking, swimming & wading.

The trails cross varied terrain depending on where you are on the property. Most are flat or rolling grassy footpaths through the meadows and creekside or cleared trails through the woods with exposed tree roots and some loose rocks. There are several rocky inclines so sturdy footwear is recommended.

Bring out the naturalist in you and have fun identifying wildflowers in the meadows and spotting deer, beaver, herons and foxes. If you like taking photos, what better place to be inspired than a 60 acre meadow or ancient forest? How about fishing? The creek is a superb trout stream, catch and release only.

Of course, the beauty of nature may compel you to just sit back and relax and take in the surroundings. You'll find strategically placed benches and lounging chairs to take a load off while your furry friend cools off in the Creek.

Remember, there's never any rush at the Farm. If you want to
attend a class or skip it, it's all fine. No matter what, it's your vacation
so you can create your week at dog camp the way you want it.