Clemson University is home to newest USDAA Intercollegiate Dog Agility Club
News Release
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Media Contact: Maddie Suvak
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Clemson University is home to newest USDAA Intercollegiate Dog Agility Club
PLANO, TEXAS – October 28, 2019 – Danielle “Dani” McLaughlin, a senior pre-veterinary student at Clemson University in South Carolina, is the newest president of a United States Dog Agility Assn. (USDAA) Intercollegiate Dog Agility (IDA) club – Clemson Dog Agility Club.
Dani has two beautiful German Shepherds and is originally from Rock Hill, South Carolina. “Animals are my passion and my future. I want to work with dairy cattle and do research to make the dairy industry better,” said the future veterinarian.
When walking at a local dog park earlier this year, she saw a flyer looking for people interested in helping start a new intercollegiate dog agility club. The sign was posted by Katrina Scott, a local dog trainer, so Dani responded. “She asked me if I wanted to help get a club started and we met weekly over the summer to develop a constitution, officers, and do recruitment,” Dani explained of the Clemson criteria to start an independent club. “We couldn’t register until October and the last step was to find an advisor from Clemson. We met with the club administration board and got approval. After that, the USDAA process of completing the application was easy.”
While Dani will serve as president, it is her last year before she leaves for vet school. Luckily freshman Karr Hersh is the vice president and will carry on the leadership. “Our club is structured with two levels: club members volunteer and help at events and attend monthly information meetings. The second level is team members who tryout in agility. Outside of Clemson, Katrina is our teacher,” Dani said.
Katrina Scott operates VIP Dog Sports in Central, South Carolina, and has been the catalyst to getting the USDAA Intercollegiate (IDA) Clemson Dog Agility Club off the ground. She relocated to the area from Peyton, Colorado and went right to work building the local agility community.
“I have offered the kids my facility for practice and training. We are currently running a group class for them, most of them first time agility people and they are having a great time. I also let them join any of my other classes (non-agility) related if I have openings at no charge,” she explained.
They are really excited about this club and happy to have this opportunity. I am excited that I was in a position to be able to bring this club in. When it all started, I had no idea how to get it done, I had many people along the way helping me get to the next step until I finally found Dani and Karr. They took the start up and ran with it. Dani was nominated club president and she is responsible for pushing through all the registrations and applications with USDAA and the college. Now, we sit back and watch it take shape,” said Katrina who encourages other trainers to consider helping get IDA clubs started in their area.
By promoting a culture of partnership, volunteerism, and competitive excellence, USDAA’s Intercollegiate Dog Agility League charter schools seek to represent the highest level of sportsmanship and canine care in both their personal and club activities.
The United States Dog Agility Association is the world’s largest, independent canine sports authority, dedicated to promoting the sport of dog agility as a recreational, family sport that fosters responsible pet ownership. For more information visit USDAA.com.
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