Orleans County Cornell Cooperative Extension volunteer Sandy Sucy has made the drive from Hamlin to Albion every week for the past 12 years.

As the 4-H Dog Club leader, she has helped area youth develop a strong, lasting bond with their furry companions.

The rewards for her have been two-fold, she says. The time volunteering with Extension has also allowed her quality time with her three daughters who participated in the club: Joli, now 24, Kayla, 20, and Tessa, 15. Her son, Wes, is 26.

As each child became old enough to participate in the 4-H Dog Club, the Sucy family added another pet to the family, she said. They now own two Shelties named Denver and Sydney and an American Eskimo named Cubby.

While she is not an official dog trainer or behaviorist, Sucy’s experience makes her more than qualified to help children become comfortable with their dogs, she said. They work on basic obedience and talk about the importance of keeping their pets healthy.

A nurse by day, Sucy has always made time once a week — Thursday evenings from 6:45 to 8:15 p.m. — for the club’s activities.

To find out more, The Journal-Register caught up with Sucy for a few quick questions:



Q: What is the focus of the 4-H Dog Club?

A: We focus on the relationship between the child and the dog. If the dog gets trained a little bit in the process, that’s great. We (also) talk about all aspects of dog health.



Q: How many youth participate? What are their ages?

A: I think my club has about 20. (They are) anywhere from 8 to 18 years old.



Q: How often does the club meet?

A: Orleans County actually has two dog clubs; I just have one of them. We meet weekly, pretty much all year round. We take a little bit of a break during the winter and meet every other week.



Q: What types of dogs participate?

A: We have pure breeds, we have mixed breeds. We have little tiny things to the rather large.



Q: What kinds of activities are there?

A: Probably the most exciting time is the first couple of weeks every fall. In my club, I only take new members each fall. I make them start out with basic obedience training. The first couple of weeks are usually challenging. You have some issues sometimes with the dog outweighing the child. We help the kids get control of their dog.

I try to teach the kids that they need to be the caregiver of the dog. They need to be bonding with the dog before they even try obedience. They need to be the one to feed the dog, the one that takes the dog out. The dog always prefers the person who feeds them.

(Throughout the year) we just use a lot of praise; we do use some treats. I try to get the kids to focus on positive reinforcement and not being hard with the dogs. Later on in the year, after the kids have some basic obedience under their belt, we do some more fun stuff. We do Agility, we do Rally, and we do Grooming and Handling, or showmanship. It’s just all different kinds of fun things they can do with their dog. Sometimes the 4-Her doesn’t really enjoy one sport, but (they) enjoy another one.



Q: What is agility?

A: Dog Agility is the obstacle course. The dog goes through, over and under a bunch of obstacles. There’s tunnels, there’s jumps, (and an) elevated platform called a dog walk. (It) is always a favorite because the dogs love it and the kids love it. Almost everybody loves doing that.



Q: What is rally?

A: Rally is where the course is set up with signs and the dog and their handler work their way through the course completing the signs. It’s a matter of completing each sign correctly; it’s also a timed event.



Q: How did you become leader of the 4-H Dog Club?

A: I sort of inherited the club. My daughter, Joli, joined when she was about 8 years old. A few years after that, the leader left. I basically inherited the club at that time. I took some classes through some various training clubs in the area. I learned along with (the 4-Hers). I really enjoy it because I am a dog lover. I (also) just love working with the kids, they’re just so much fun. They really enjoy their dogs.



Q: Have you always been a dog lover?

A: I have always had a dog growing up. We were never multiple dog owners until we got involved with 4-H. My oldest daughter, Joli, started going to dog shows with my mother. She started pestering me for a dog of her own. Finally, when she was old enough for 4-H, we did get her a dog and she trained him. Now we have three (dogs).



Q: You live in Hamlin. Why didn’t you join the 4-H Dog Club in Monroe County?

A: It turned out the Orleans County Dog Club really had much more to offer. That’s why we went in that direction. The Orleans County Cornell Cooperative Extension is very supportive of all the 4-H Clubs.



Q: Is there a lot of barking and general mayhem when the club meets?

A: Some dogs just tend to be barkers. We have a couple beagles in the club; one is very quiet, the other barks during Agility.



Q: Are the dogs always well behaved?

A: We have some dog on dog issues; we have a few dogs that we keep separated. If the dog tries to bite (myself or a child) I won’t allow the dog back in the club. I have loaned my dogs out a number of times when they had dogs they could not control. I have to think of safety first.

Each one of the dogs wants to claim that territory as their “house.” They’re all kind of competing to be the top dog. Eventually, they learn I’m the top dog — they don’t get to be.



Q: You have volunteered a great deal of time in the 4-H Dog Club over the past 12 years. You must really love it. What keeps you coming back?

A: Oh I do. Either that or I’m crazy right? I really do enjoy it. What’s the best part? That’s so hard. … (I) really have a fantastic group of kids. I have always had a good group of kids. They love their dogs. They like what they’re doing. I have had some very supportive families, some very supportive parents.

I think the best part is probably when I see the kids work so hard — and then their dog finally does what they have been trying to do. (It is all about) the general joy they get out of their dog at that point.

Contact reporter Nicole Colemanat 798-1400, ext. 8227.