5420 Hwy 55 Durham NC 27713

Tanisha Mankes will be teaching an Agility for Fun class. She will offer 2 classes one on Monday and one on Tuesday.

This class will prepare you for participating in any open time as well as fun matches on Friday nights.

Agility for Fun is a non-competition style class for anyone who wants to try a fun hobby with their dog. Agility is a

canine sport where dogs must correctly perform a series of obstacles (jumps, tunnels, teeter-totter, etc.) under the

guidance of a handler. This class will introduce the dogs to agility obstacles that have been brought down to a “baby

level” in order to ensure success and accomplishment. Dogs of all shapes and sizes, mixed breeds or pure breeds can

play. This class will strengthen the bond between you and your dog and provide fun and exercise at the same time.

Together you will develop a sense of teamwork which will carry over into your whole relationship with your dog. This

class is for dogs that are at least 8 months of age with basic obedience skills. Most work will be done on-leash so

off-leash control is not a requirement for this class. It is recommended that you bring lots of small, soft treats

(small pieces of cheese or hotdog) to every class. Corrective collars are not permitted (chokers, pinch/prong collars)

please bring a flat, buckle collar and a non-retractable leash.

A little bit about Tanisha!

I’ve been an animal lover for as long as I can remember. I worked as a veterinary technician for 11 years where my

love and bond with animals continued to grow. I learned about dog sports through a co-worker in 2000. I joined the Go

Dog Go! flyball club in 2001 and began training and competing in agility in 2008. I am currently owned by 3 dogs –

Rufus, a 12yr old shepherd mix who has retired from competition but is currently training to be a therapy dog; Blaze,

a 7yr old border collie that competes in flyball, agility, and k9 disc; and Bender, an 18 month old border collie who

is already an accomplished flyball dog and is currently training in agility and k9 disc. I believe that training

should be a positive, fun, and rewarding experience for both dog and handler.

Shirley Deasy has been training dogs since she got her first dog when she was 7 years old. She always has used positive

methods in teaching her dogs but embraced clicker training over 15 years ago. Shirley has taught basic pet manners,

obedience and rally classes for a number of years. As an instructor and member of the San Antonio Dog Obedience Club,

she started a rally practice group when rally was first developed. Her dogs qualified in the 2nd APDT trial in the US.

Her dogs have numerous rally, agility, earthdog and obedience titles. She is currently owned by Winston, a Cardigan

Welsh Corgi and Nellie, a Scottish Terrier.

She will be holding a Saturday mid morning Rally class.

We are in our 3rd week of construction. My days are filled with talking to the contractors, solving problems and throwing in some marketing efforts. Many changes and some setbacks along the way as we adjust based on “real” conditions. They are digging the pool now, with jackhammers to break the original concrete. Talk about a mess! Mess was always anticipated, but this is just a bit more than I expected.

I have so many hopes and dreams for this place and as it comes together, I am getting really excited. I am almost ready to order the materials for our maze so I can start playing with the blocks and testing my configurations on dogs (my own at first then volunteers). Personally, I cannot wait, not sure, if my dogs will have the same passion but I sure hope so.

Still, I have no idea of an opening date but at least one is floating in the not too distant future at this point. In many ways, I am glad this is taking a bit longer than expected because it is giving me time to prepare, or over prepare as some who know me will say.  Read the rest of this entry »

I’m happy to get a chance to introduce myself and to let you know a little about the type of agility classes I’ll be teaching at Lap It Up.

I took my first agility class in 1989, only a year or so after the sport was first introduced to the US. Since then I’ve competed with 5 dogs in USDAA, AKC, CPE and NADAC (all agility organization who sanction US agility trials). I’ve travelled all over the US to participate in agility seminars and camps with many of the top agility trainers and competitors and normally attend an average of two agility trials a month.

I’ve been teaching agility since about 1992. I’ve taught for many different local agility facilities such as Paws 4 Ever, Bon-Clyde, and Pet Behavior Help and also independently as Cedarfield Agility. I really enjoy teaching and I find great satisfaction in helping people develop a system of communication with their dog that allows for a consistent and efficient handling style. In my opinion, the smoothest teams are the ones with the best communication so that’s what I strive to teach to my students. Read the rest of this entry »

October 10, 2011

Welcome to the revised website of Lap it Up. For now, we will use this blog to keep everyone updated on the progress of construction. I am not sure where the future will take us but I would love for you and your dogs to join me on this journey to create the perfect place.

Lap it Up is a place that will provide a fun experience for you and your dog. You get to define how to use the facility based on your dog’s unique personality and preferences! Founded on the principle that dogs and humans should have fun together, the goal is to enhance the human animal bond through controlled activity and games.

We have started construction, dust and piles of rubble abound as we remove existing walls and create new openings to make moving around the space easy for people and dogs.  Read the rest of this entry »