Once you have completed Bellarine Puppy School or one-on-one lessons with the Gentle Modern School of Dog Training, you may be eligible to apply for an Ideal Dogs of Australia (IDA) course with either the Kintala Club in Heidelberg or with Kintala Bellarine.

The IDA course has been developed to assist you to teach your dog to be a well behaved and sociable member of the community.

Bellarine IDA consists of four practical sessions and an optional assessment. The cost is $100.  No more than five dogs will take part in each course.

The following lessons will be taught:

• Coming when called – when distractions are present

• Walking on lead without pulling & going through a door or gateway under control

• Moving through a “crowd” politely

• Meal time manners

• Being handled without showing fear or aggression

• Staying in position for a short period

• Supervised tolerance to separation – being tied up and remaining calm

• Responding to the handler when distractions are present; e.g. bikes, joggers, lawn mowers

• Road safety – getting out of the car under control

• Reacting appropriately to another dog when they are both on lead

Socialisation is an important component of the course and will take place both before and after the formal training sessions.

This is a State Government approved course and handler and dog teams who pass the course may be eligible for a reduced council registration fee.