Says Marq:

"When I started Agility back in 1995, I knew if I wanted to have a chance at being successful in the sport, that I needed to find others, who were already successful, to learn from. To my joy, Kathy Lofthouse lived just a few miles from me. I had been informed that she had even taught Stuart Mah who was practically considered an Agility 'god' at the time, so I knew she was the 'real deal'!

Kathy's enthusiasm for and knowledge of the sport is tremendous. I've been to numerous teachers and seminarists and Kathy is the only one ever to have asked me specific questions on a questionnaire about my dog's habits, likes and dislikes, and about our interaction as a team.

She really communicates the importance of the interaction and the bond between human and canine. Understanding that unique foundation for each team she is able to provide specific tips to improve and most importantly to keep it fun and rewarding along the way for our best friend!!!...and isn't that the reason we got into this sport in the first place? :)."

Says Linda:

"I met Kathy about five years ago when she was hosting an English Shepherd Club picnic and Agility demonstration. I knew nothing about Agility and was very impressed with the demo and how she handled her dogs. I decided then and there to train Millie, my English Shepherd, for Agility.

Kathy has a keen sense when it comes to understanding dogs. It is like she can read their minds!

Kathy was very instrumental in helping Millie conquer the A-frame. Millie would just stay at the top and hesitate and look around. When she decided to come down she would jump and miss the contact. Kathy could tell Millie did not like the A-frame and said instead of making her stop at the bottom contact just let her run thru. We did that a couple of times and since then Millie has never missed a contact on the A-frame. This is just one example of how much Kathy has helped us with Agility."

Says Sally:

"Kathy has a very sharp eye to watch a dog and handler workout, and help suggest a plan to enhance their performance. Kathy has many great Agility training ideas to recommend to dog and handler teams.

Rose and I are proud students of Kathy Lofthouse. She helped Rose and I gain that added confidence to achieve the AKC MACH title. Rose was only the second German Shepherd Dog to achieve this title. I am proud of Rose.

Kathy Lofthouse has a very good "eye" to advise and instruct students to get the most out of their performance. Agility is a team effort, with dog and handler working together to reach their goals. Kathy works with you very closely and provides excellent guidance to help you be the best team you can be.

I thank Kathy very much for working with Rose and I to improve our Agility performance and to help us to earn the MACH title."

Says Lynda:

"I started taking private lessons from Kathy about a year and a half after I started doing Agility. It was amazing how much we improved in such a short time.

Kathy is responsible for teaching Zuni and I all the skills we needed to get our USDAA ADCH. She is the kind of trainer that built my confidence along with my dogs'. Kathy has a natural affinity for dogs that can't be taught. She never uses a harsh word or hand to a dog and has great results. I know this because besides my own dogs, I've started 6 of my clients' dogs with her.

The most amazing thing about training with Kathy is that she thinks about you and your dog's training after you are gone. When I come back each week she has thought about what happened the week before and found solutions to any problems we might be having. She has always gone above and beyond the hour that I pay for each week. Kathy really cares about you and your dog."

Says Julia:

"I knew of Kathy from Agility shows. I knew she had been around Agility for a long time and since I was only showing in AKC at that point, I only knew Kathy and her BC Nel.

The summer of 1999 found me at my wits end, my heart broken. My first Agility girl, Belle, a Golden Retriever, had just shut down.. Oh she was trying to please me still, and would do her course perfectly, but with no speed, no heart. Everyone said it was the arrival of our new puppy Grace. Belle just would never like Agility again!

I saw Kathy run Nel that day and something clicked! I asked her if she worked with motivational issues and told her about Belle. She said yes, and gave me her card. We ran our Jumpers course, Kathy said Belle was brilliant. We started training with Kathy.. Agility needed to be fun again.

Kathy has turned my way of thinking, training and running Agility around. Kathy has given me back my Belle. For this I am forever grateful. Belle just earned her MACH in December 2001. We would not have gotten there without Kathy.

P.S.: Belle says she really goes for the Persimmons!"

Says Nancy:

"I arrived at Kathy's on a hot, August afternoon with two extremely high drive, young Border Collies. I was overwhelmed, feeling defeated in our, just recently started, Agility career.

Kathy not only helped me deal with handling technique, that was the "easy" part, but Kathy had a unique and soft way of working on my mental attitude. She taught me to have confidence in myself and my young dogs, attack the course, she worked (and continues to work on) not just my dogs and my handling, but my overall outlook towards the sport of Agility. She helped me to put the fun back and enjoy the journey, instead of standing on the start line thinking about ONLY qualifying or not.

She taught me so much of Agility and training is attitude, mine NOT the dogs!

Kathy has been wonderful for me and my dogs. I look forward to training with her for a long time."

Says Richard:

"Kathy Lofthouse is the most positive trainer in Southern California. After visiting Kathy for two months all my friends asked me how I got so good!"

Says Ginny:

"Kathy Lofthouse is my favorite Agility person. She has taught me more about helping Kelsey get past her fears and learn to trust me than I could hope to do on my own. She helped me to understand that the best confidence builders for our team would be to throw away as many runs as it took to let Kelsey see that she could never make a mistake on the Agility field - even if we never Q.

Kathy showed me how to look for the little improvements in each and every run. She taught me to understand that errors on the field were because we needed to train a little more and not that Kelsey is "blowing me off" as other people told me. She helped me to show Kelsey that being with me on the Agility field is so much more fun than going to see what Dad is doing or who might be messin' with her ex-pen.

She helped me to see that even idols (sorry Kathy) are human and screw up too, but can get over it and not let it ruin your day."

Says Neil:

"After a disappointing Standard run at a trial, a friendly competitor suggested that I contact Kathy to see if she could help our "team". We were in the midst of "blown contacts" and "what are these things called weavepoles?"

I decided to call Kathy to schedule an evaluation. Initially, things did not go well but Kathy had the interest, compassion, and understanding to stay with the regimen. Fortunately, due in large part to Kathy's keen dog sense, excellent understanding of the mechanics of dog Agility and her empathy for a beginning handler who really wanted to bond with his dog, we collectively have worked through these problems.

Mandy is a wonderful four year old Aussie with an endless desire to please me. We have a great time training with Kathy and she has been a guiding force in our team development. While I do not harbor any false delusions of National Championships, Kathy makes it challenging, competitive, and most of all, fun."

Says Penny:

"All of Foxy's titles came relatively quickly and easily, even the MX and MXJ.

However, it became clear that the MACH would be much more difficult. We barely made course times, and the re-emergence of a knocked triple jump problem made double Q's hard to come by.

I started lessons with Kathy, hoping to speed up our runs and help Foxy gain confidence jumping the dreaded triple. Foxy is very bright and thinks about her jumping. She wants to be right and often waits for me on the course.

Kathy has been working with us to help Foxy relax and jump confidently out of her stride. In fact, we are both learning to relax and just have fun on the course. Our course times are faster and the triple does not seem to be a problem anymore.

I like Kathy's positive methods, patience, and depth of knowledge."

Stroller has been a success story of a different kind. He is a rescue Border Collie, who's been given a second chance by Kathy Lofthouse.

To read Stroller's amazing story please click here.

Stroller now lives with Dan Altchuler.

Says Dan:

"Kathy did a great job on Stroller's story. Her description of when we met is perfect.

Stroller and I have bonded, love each other and he is living in his final home. At home, he is my shadow. I really respect Kathy's insight in letting him live with me. He is truely our (Kathy and Dan's) dog."

Says Gael:

"At the National Specialty Zack took FIRST PLACE in his standard run!!! Kathy's help helped me to do it!"

Says Christine:

"We call Maggie the Wonder Dog. We found Magnolia (Maggie) at the Simi Valley PetSmart adoption day. It was love at first sight under the magnolia tree. She was so energetic and interested in everything she saw, especially food.

I was always a fan of Dog Agility, so we wanted to try out Maggie. Two days after she moved in, we knew she was a natural when we saw her jump straight up onto the dinner table and chowdown a whole cube of butter and the rest of our salad.

We e-mailed Kathy, and asked her to test Maggie. She still has a lot to learn (Maggie, not Kathy), but as long as we have good treats, she is anxious to learn more Agility moves."