New Hope Dog Training Center

New Hope Dog Training Center I've been a certified Professional Obedience Trainer since 1985.

In the last 40 years I've trained thousands of dogs in the Triangle, owned and performed with the Durham Bulls' canine mascots for 15 years, and built New Hope Dog Training Center in 2011.

08/03/2026

Off Leash Obedience In Two Days?

The dog getting into the run on her own is a five-month-old Catahoula mix named Tilly. She came in for training on Thursday morning and this video was taken first thing on Saturday morning. This was her third "lesson" going into her run without being leashed. I've got two more videos of me teaching her to do this that I'll share with you soon. She's come a long way in 48 hours!

This article was published on July 25, 2005. That was 21 years ago today! Back then we were performing at the ballpark f...
07/25/2026

This article was published on July 25, 2005. That was 21 years ago today! Back then we were performing at the ballpark four nights a week, and I was running my dog training business. It was fun, but tremendously demanding. Life is much easier now!

22 Years Ago Today — In 2004 I had these two dogs. Scott, on the left, was my last German Shepherd from my time as a bre...
07/24/2026

22 Years Ago Today — In 2004 I had these two dogs. Scott, on the left, was my last German Shepherd from my time as a breeder. He was my stud dog and a magnificent companion. Lucky, the Labrador on the right, was the first of my dogs to work as a mascot for the Durham Bulls. I really enjoyed living with these guys!

14 Years Ago Today — Lucky Jr. posing with young fans at a Bulls game. I like both of these pictures. But, the one with ...
07/22/2026

14 Years Ago Today — Lucky Jr. posing with young fans at a Bulls game. I like both of these pictures. But, the one with the toddler has always been one of my favorite ballpark pics.

Guess The BreedAce, the puppy in this picture, is a mixed breed who graduated a few weeks ago. It can be hard with mixed...
07/21/2026

Guess The Breed

Ace, the puppy in this picture, is a mixed breed who graduated a few weeks ago. It can be hard with mixed breeds to determine what they're mixed with, but that's not the case with this pup. It doesn't show in the photo, but Ace has double dewclaws on his back legs. Double dewclaws on the rear legs are unusual, except in one breed — and that breed cannot be shown unless it has them. Any guesses? It's a Great Pyrenees. When the owners picked him up, they had the DNA results back, and sure enough — Ace is a Great Pyrenees mix.

A Very Unusual Hummingbird!Let me start by saying that this post has nothing to do with dogs. But it's still very cool a...
07/20/2026

A Very Unusual Hummingbird!

Let me start by saying that this post has nothing to do with dogs. But it's still very cool and something I thought worth sharing.

I saw this hummingbird at my feeder yesterday, and it immediately caught my eye. All we have around here are Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, and this one didn't have the coloring I expected. But that wasn't the main thing that made it stand out. With lots of birds, juveniles don't have their full adult colors yet, so that wouldn't have surprised me.

What I couldn't explain was the bill. I thought maybe it was some other kind of hummingbird that had drifted here from somewhere else.

After looking it up, I found out it's actually a Ruby-throated Hummingbird—a juvenile or a female—with avian keratin disorder (AKD), a condition that causes the bill to become abnormally long and curved.

Apparently, this condition is very rare and makes it harder for the bird to get nectar from flowers. From what I read, hummingbird feeders can be a tremendous help to birds with this condition. I looked at some photos, and this bird doesn't appear to be as severely affected as many others. I hope this little guy makes it!

07/19/2026

Bichon Frisé Swimming and Blowing Bubbles!

Sometimes dogs need training because they have behavioral problems. Sometimes they need training to make them easier to handle. And sometimes they get trained just for fun. That was the case here.

A few years ago, Lexi, my wife's Bichon Frisé, hated the water. We couldn't even get her to put a foot in the pool. Over the course of a few summers, she not only learned to enjoy it—now she loves it!

Watch her go underwater (and blow bubbles) in pursuit of her toy!

Graduation Day for Rupert and Clover! These dogs are Wirehaired Pointing Griffons and they're brothers. Very cool dogs b...
07/18/2026

Graduation Day for Rupert and Clover! These dogs are Wirehaired Pointing Griffons and they're brothers. Very cool dogs but they have tremendous energy levels. I think these boys could run all day long. Their owners are going to have their hands full for the first week or so, but things will get easier after the dogs are home for a bit. They sure are handsome dogs!

07/18/2026

Ace working at the DBAP, July 6, 2014 - I've owned a lot of dogs, but this is one of my favorites. He's a Border Collie named Ace. In this video he's doing a victory lap after the Durham Bulls won a baseball game. He still lives with my wife and I, but the years have caught up with him. We play fetch for a few minutes every day, but he spends most of his time sleeping. After all those years of working at the ballpark, he deserves a rest!

07/17/2026

Bella's Last Workout - This beautiful Rottweiler finished her basic training and went home two days ago. Her name is Bella. She weighs 100 pounds and has tons of energy. If you'd seen her three weeks ago, at the beginning of her training, you wouldn't believe it's the same dog. Her owner actually applauded when I showed her how much her pup had improved! In the 80s Rottweilers were my least favorite breed to work with. She then, serious breeders have really improved the breed. These days I'd just as soon work with a Rottweiler as with any other breed.

Address

719 New Hope Church Road
Chapel Hill, NC
27516

Telephone

+19199692771

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when New Hope Dog Training Center posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to New Hope Dog Training Center:

Shortcuts

Share

Category