S.T.A.R. Puppy Class

The AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy is an exciting program designed to get puppies and their owners off to a good start.  It is an incentive program for those owners who take their puppies through a basic training class. S.T.A.R. stands for Socialization, Training, Activity, and Responsibility and focuses on teaching owners how to better communicate and bond with their dog.

Quincy Kennel Club launched this program in October 2019.  Puppies need to attend at least six weeks of class and will be assessed on twenty different items, such as walking on a leash, sitting, coming to the owner, allowing another person to pet them, lying down on command, and staying with another person while the owner walks a short distance away and returns.  Another component of the program is owner behavior, and includes having an exercise plan for the puppy, maintaining the puppy’s health through regular vet visits, and having some form of ID for the dog.

Instructors will administer the AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy test at the end of the course.  Upon passing the course, owners will get an application to send to AKC for enrollment in the S.T.A.R. Puppy Program.  All dogs, purebred and mixed breeds, are eligible to participate. Puppies will receive the S.T.A.R. Puppy Medal, and will receive an AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy package including a handbook, a certificate from AKC designating S.T.A.R. puppy status, and an ongoing monthly e-mail newsletter with training tips and up-to-date information.

More information about the program is available on the AKC website and from the puppy class instructor, Ann Behrens akbehrens@comcast.net.

For more information specific to the S.T.A.R. Puppy class at QKC, please refer to the S.T.A.R. Puppy Class FAQ’s.

The first graduate of this program was a Cane Corso puppy, Phoenix, owned by Myron McCord and Neesha Elkin of Warsaw.

S.T.A.R. Puppy Graduates