Virginia Community Dog Training Centre

23/08/2026

We don't want to have to cancel another night of training but we also don't want people and dogs out traveling in storms, especially thunderstorms, so unless the forecast changes we will cancel. Stay safe, and if you have a dog that is affected by thunder, please help them feel as comfortable and safe as possible.

20/08/2026

Dog doesn’t want a stranger touching them: “Needs socialisation.”

Human doesn’t want a stranger touching them: “Reasonable boundary.”

Dog doesn’t like every dog they meet: “Not friendly.”

Human dislikes approximately 74% of the people they meet: “Good judge of character.”

Dog barks because someone unexpectedly walks into their house: “Territorial.”

Human hears a noise downstairs at 2am: Turns on every light in the house and investigates while holding an object that was absolutely not designed for self-defence.

Dog gets overwhelmed at a busy café full of people, children, dogs, food and noise:
“He needs to learn how to behave.”

Human gets overwhelmed in IKEA on a Saturday: Completely understandable. Possibly grounds for medical leave.

Dog growls when uncomfortable: “Dominant.”

Human says “DON’T TOUCH ME”: Clear communication. Boundary successfully established.

Dog has one bad interaction and remembers that type of dog forever: “Reactive.”

Human has one bad experience with a cat: Hates all cats forever.

Dog loses their mind because the postman comes every single day and somehow STILL refuses to learn his lesson: “Problem barking.”

Human watches the same neighbour park slightly over the line every day: Has been documenting it photographically since March and is “just keeping a record.”

Dog doesn't immediately come when called because they're halfway through smelling something interesting: “Stubborn. Knows exactly what he's doing.”

Human hears their name being called from another room: Remains completely silent in the hope that whoever it is will solve the problem themselves.

Dog gets nervous at the vet after previously having something unpleasant done there: “He knows there's nothing to be scared of.”

Human has one uncomfortable dental procedure in 2009: Hasn't been back since.

Sometimes dogs aren't the weird ones

17/08/2026

Sorry for the late notice, but it doesn't look like the rain is going to ease up,so we will be cancelling training tonight

10/08/2026

There's a bit of water lying on the oval this morning, so if you are coming to training tonight expect some soggy spots on the oval.

For those who do want to brave it and come out to training we may work under the verandah, or in the cricket net area, we might practice our tricks or set up a "Cafe" scenario and practice some "being able to settle, and watch people walk past or approach", we can also do some basic scentwork training if anyone is interested,

29/07/2026

Are you interested in trying DWD (Dances with Dogs) but aren't quite (or at all) ready to enter the Competition world.....this may be for you. The DWD Club of SA has created a new event called Rookies, this is a non-titling event, there are no prizes or awards given out, but also no pressure of being "judged". You can work on or off lead or a combination, have treats on you or on a treat table (similar to Trick Dog trials), you can practice a full routine, or just have fun with your dog in the competition ring environment.

Enter into Freestyle or Healwork to Music (or both) there is Starters, Novice, Intermediate, and advanced options for both.

Entries are $10 for DWD Club of SA members, or $15 for non-members.

More information can be found at https://www.topdogevents.com.au/trials/2004 or message us

11/07/2026

Some of our members, have been doing some extra training at Puppy Partners for the last few Saturdays, well done Gretel, Bailey, Draco, and Sirius.

06/07/2026

Just a heads up we might be short on instructors tonight, a couple of our instructors/helpers have come down sick and Jenny has been given the opportunity to start training one of her dogs for what will hopefully be a very successful Agility career, on Monday nights.

Send a message to learn more

28/06/2026

This weekend two of our members did amazing at the South Australian 2026 Scent Work trial.
Elisabeth Brady and Vanessa Henley braved the cold today at Kapunda, with their dogs Otto and Loki, both entered into all 4 elements for their first ever scentwork trial, and boy did they get their sniffers working.

Otto gained 3 out of 4 passes well under the time allowed AND was the highest placed Associate registered dog (that just means not a pure-bred dog) in the Novice Containers Element (and 5th overall with a great time of 9.22 seconds). Anyone who has seen his usual container search will understand how unbelievable this is 🤣🤣.... (No containers were harmed in this search) 😂

Loki was also entered into all four elements, and also got 3 passes. He missed out on vehicles, where he found the scent well within the time allowed, but his indication was just a little bit too far away from the actual hide for a qualifying score, truly a NQ = "Not Quite" moment.

Well done Lis and Otto and Vanessa and Loki, great sniffing and great teamwork!!!!!

If you are interested in teaching your dog scent work, or entering into trials (it really isn't that scary) message us or talk to one of the instructors.

22/06/2026

The rain seems to be staying away this week, but if you haven’t noticed, winter is definitely here and has started bringing with it some rather cold nights, so make sure you rug up if you are coming out to training tonight.

14/06/2026

We might be looking at another wet and rainy night tonight. We were hoping the rain will hold out to let us do training tonight, but the “weather experts” are telling us we will have a very good chance of rain this evening. If you are ultra keen to come out to training, please let us know, and we will convince at least one of our instructors to come out of their warm dry hibernation, but otherwise we think everyone will be much more comfortable staying home.