Amanda Jones
Amanda acquired her first Australian Shepherd, Annie, in 1992. That one little red dog started Amanda's fascination with dog training that continues to this day. Amanda started competing in flyball in 1998 with her Aussie, Crash. Crash ran in the first NAFA flyball tournaments ever held in Florida. Two of Amanda’s Aussies, Crash and Keeper, earned their FMCH and Onyx titles, respectively. Amanda and Crash started competing in agility in 1999. Four of her Aussies earned multiple championship titles in AKC, USDAA, CPE, and UKI agility venues.
Amanda currently competes in USDAA and UKI agility, flyball, Barn Hunt, and UpDog disc with her BC/JRT mix, Punk and her young BC, Shout! Shout! also competes in NADD Dock Diving.
Amanda started training tricks when Punk was a puppy. As Amanda puts it, “It had been almost 10 years since I had a puppy, and Punk was the busiest and smartest puppy ever! I discovered that training tricks with Punk helped create an engaged and happy puppy who is willing to try just about anything.” Punk now has his Trick Dog Grand Championship (TDGCH) through DoMoreWithYourDog. Shout! earned her first two trick titles (Novice and Novice Masters) as 11.5 weeks old, and now has eight trick titles including her Expert Masters title. Amanda LOVES training tricks and incorporates trick training into her Super Puppy! class.
Amanda teaches agility coursework, handling, and Super Puppy! foundation classes, plus private dock diving and puppy swimming lessons at Keegan’s Magic in Zephyrhills, Florida. Amanda also teaches Puppy and Basic Obedience classes at The Dog Training Club of Tampa. Amanda finds it especially rewarding to introduce dog training to people with a brand new puppy and absolutely no dog training experience.
Amanda lives in Tampa, FL with her husband, Jim, along with Punk, Shout!, and the occasional puppy camper. Amanda makes fleece bunny tug and leashes in her spare time and enjoys listening to books while driving the endless miles each week to teach, train, and compete with her pups.