NORTH LAPEER CANINE ACADEMY (NLCA) is located just off Michigan 
Highway M-24 between Lapeer and Mayville and offers top quality Agility training
in a quiet country setting.  The client can choose the type of instruction which best
serves his needs; we offer PRIVATE COACHING,  GROUP SESSIONS,  or CLASSES
 at ALL LEVELS OF AGILITY. 

        CLASSES are offered five times a year, in January, May, July, September and
 November. Enrollment is limited to 6 students per Instructor for Focus/Motivation,
Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Level Agility classes. Competition classes are 
a bit larger (8-9 teams) to  create a more trial-like atmosphere, and longer ( 1.5 hours).
 Both Daytime and evening classes are available.  
Students may register online, which we prefer (see note at the bottom of our
  CURRENT SCHEDULE ) or by telephone(989)795-2663. See the class descriptions 
for more information.

        Owners/ Instructors Gary and Sherry Wargo have been involved in dogs and 
dog training since 1970.  For many years Sherry taught dog obedience and puppy 
training classes for breed clubs and in local schools.  After becoming involved in Dog 
Agility in 1990, they realized that if they wanted to teach agility classes it would be 
necessary to find a facility willing to allow them  to store equipment on the premises.
 In 1993, when they were unable to locate such a facility in their area, they  decided to 
build a dog training facility on their own property.  

The Academy building was 
completed and this website launched in April of 1993, and the first classes were held 
in May 1993.  Originally the NLCA program was focused on Competition style 
obedience and Conformation classes, with just a bit of agility and community obedience.
 As the interest in Agility has grown, the Competition obedience and Conformation 
classes were dropped to allow more space for agility classes.  NLCA still offered one 
day per week of basic obedience classes until December 2000, when the decision was 
made to specialize in Agility.  Both Gary and Sherry have titled dogs at the highest 
levels of agility.  They continue to compete and win, though age and the demands of  the 
business dictate that they enter only a half- dozen or so trials each year.

       NLCA has grown rapidly and has developed a reputation as a top-quality training
 center.  In 1996 Gary took early retirement from his position at Eastman Kodak Co.
 to work full time as  instructor and equipment manager at the Academy.  As a team, 
the Wargo's are particularly dedicated to enhancing the relationship between the  
students and their dogs.  Their training style is positive and non-violent, with emphasis 
on creating a means  of communication between dog and handler. To this end, they 
teach only positive incentive methods, and make use of  operant conditioning methods
 promoted by such wonderful animal trainers as Karen Pryor and Gary Wilkes.  
They feel these methods are continuing to revolutionize animal training and dog 
training in particular.  Agility training is an extremely dynamic field, with new and 
better training methods being developed constantly. To stay abreast of these new 
methods, Gary and Sherry read extensively and attend seminars given by the top 
trainers around the world, bringing the latest and best training methods home to their
 students.