Tango and I got in very early this morning (3:00a) from our 10-hour drive from Lexington, KY where we'd attended Clicker Expo 2010.
I Tweeted, I Facebooked, and now I'm blogging about the fun we had in KY. I traveled with three other positive reinforcement trainers and we talked the entire 10-hour trip. The subject? Dogs, naturally!
Tango traveled with us, laying happily at our feet. He trekked with me from seminar to seminar for three full days, never complaining, never causing any trouble. He's the perfect conference dog.
He even accompanied me on stage when I gave my talk Social Media for the Entrepreneurial Dog Trainer. You can't see him in this picture – he's behind the podium eating a rawhide. Later during the talk he came over and laid quietly. Until he wanted a tummy rub. Then he flipped onto his back and rolled with his feet in the air. Ever the obedient and well-trained person, I obliged him. I kicked off my shoe, rubbed his tummy, and never missed a beat in the presentation.
I found it extremely calming to share the stage with a dog. I gave this same talk at Clicker Expo – Portland and was much more nervous. It was a fun weekend filled with learning, fun, and catching up with training friends from distant states. Keep an eye on the blog for lots of ideas I picked up at Clicker Expo!
Neat! Do they ever have these expos in Denver? I’m not sure I’ve ever seen one advertised, but I would love to attend.
There are two per year and they try to have different locations every year. January’s ClickerExpo was in Portland, OR, and March’s was in Lexington, KY. The folks at Karen Pryor Clicker Training (KPCT) will announce the 2011 dates in June, I think.
Denver would be a GREAT city, I think! The trouble the conference planners have are these:
* dog friendly hotel with
* large dog bathroom area close by
* enough meeting space for 350 attendees
* reasonably close to airports
Past ClickerExpo’s have been in Rhode Island (Providence and Newport), Florida, Oregon, Kentucky (twice), Chicago, Pennsylvania, and more.
You can check out the website here: http://clickertraining.com/clickerexpo/
I’ll post the 2011 dates and locations on my blog when they’re ready.
I’m sorry I never ran into you Laurie!
It was my first clickExpo and I had a ton of fun, but it was a bit overwhelming at times!! I learned lots though.
I’ve been reading blog reviews of clickerExpo, which has been quite entertaining. For some of the reviews I’ve read, the person went to completely different sessions than me. Which is one of the coolest things about clickeexpo, I think. Since there’s so many sessions offered, each person can totally make it into the best experience for them.
cheers,
Mary