About Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson

What it is

The Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson (KCFA) is a community dog club in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin. Its own account of its origins is published in a post about the "Puppy Serenade" statue: "Patty Beran, Rita Hasel, and Marleen LaPlant began meeting in 1991 to train their dogs together, eventually founding what is now an active non-profit all-volunteer community organization." The statue, "a bronze statue honoring the founders of the Kennel Club of Fort Atkinson," stands in Rock River Park.

Classes

Training is run in sessions announced on the club's own news page. The Session 3 announcement says "KCFA's Training Committee has announced Session 3 classes, with registration now open!" and that "Classes will be held at the Community Education Room at the Humane Society of Jefferson County, W6127 Kiesling Rd, Jefferson." Three classes are listed there with their published fees: "Puppy Kindergarten will be Monday evenings at 6:00 p.m., starting June 1st. Puppy K is six weeks in length and the fee is $90."; "Basic Skills and Everyday Manners will be Tuesday evenings at 6:00 p.m., starting June 2nd. This class is also six weeks in length and the fee is $120. Basic Skills is limited to 8 dog-handler teams, and the minimum class size is 4 teams."; and "Continuing Basic will be Tuesday evenings at 7:15 p.m., starting June 2nd. This class is six weeks in length and the fee is $120." The post adds that "Receipt of registration forms, payment and vaccination records is required to reserve a spot in class."

Beyond training

The club's published projects include a K9 Veterans Memorial and K9 Veterans Day, therapy dog visits, and the Terry Beck Protective Services Scholarship, established "in memory of Fort Atkinson's Terry Beck, a Marine Scout Dog Handler killed in action along with his K-9 partner, Seato, while serving in Vietnam." The club reported that fundraising "has exceeded the original goal of $15,000" and that it presented "a check for $20,000 to Sue Hartwick, executive director of the Fort Atkinson Community Foundation, to fund the inaugural scholarship."

Before you book

Class days and fees above are quoted from the Session 3 announcement exactly as the club wrote them; check later session dates with the club before planning around them.