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While most women in their 70s are enjoying retirement, Susan Bernhart of Owatonna has been working hard to put the finishing touches on her new and fully equipped professional dog agility studio in Owatonna next to the new home of the Steele County Humane Society and the Chase Dog Park on State Avenue.

“We’re all wagging our tails with excitement,” said Bernhart, owner of Paws4Fun Dog Training LLC.

Bernhart is a CPDT-Knowledge Assessed dog trainer through ccpdt.org and has been training dogs for more than 14 years.

“Our nearly 10,000 square foot facility is three times larger than our previous location and opens up a new world of possibilities for a wide range of classes, events and special activities,” she said. “There is nothing like it in southern Minnesota or northern Iowa. It’s fully matted, heated, and we have the full slate of regulation agility equipment to lay out custom designed courses for any dog, any breed.”

She hopes her expanded location will help stimulate more local and regional interest in what has been described as one of the fastest growing recreational sports in the country. Dog agility’s increasing popularity is evidenced by its growing coverage by both cable and network television.

“People watch dog agility on TV and they’re fascinated, but they don’t think they can do it themselves,” she said. “What they don’t realize is that if their dog can sit, stay and come, they’re ready for basic agility. If you still need help with those basic obedience skills, we can get you there.”

She said her students are all ages, from young children to retirees.

When Bernhart isn’t teaching, she’s busy competing in agility trials with her poodle throughout the Upper Midwest and proudly displays many of the ribbons she has won as a top competitor. One of her dogs, Ninja, competed at the AKC national level and was ranked 11th among all dogs in the country in 2011.

“Being a competitor at that high level gave me the experience, skills and confidence I needed to become a highly effective dog training instructor,” she said. But we’re not here for the competition.

We’re here to introduce people to the ‘fun’ side of agility. Before you know it you’ll be guiding your dog through tunnels, over hurdles and across weave poles, while strengthening the loving bond you have with your pet and getting some exercise along the way. It’s a win-win.”

Bernhart’s journey as a dog training instructor began at a time when it was hard to find dog trainers in Owatonna.

“I had to go to Mankato or Rochester or the Twin Cities to find instruction, and even then it wasn’t the quality I was hoping for,” she said.

She decided to take matters into her own hands and learned to speak “dog,” gaining the experience, skills and certifications to teach her own dogs and then offering her expertise to others. Along the way she accumulated regulation dog agility equipment from the top manufacturers in the space. After years of study, testing, competition and training more than 3,000 dogs over 14 years, she is widely recognized as the go-to dog trainer in south central Minnesota with a training facility that attracts students throughout southern Minnesota and northern Iowa.

“Our dog agility courses now rival the biggest and the best agility facilities you’ll find anywhere else in Minnesota and northern Iowa,” she said.

Classes include life skills-obedience, behavior modification, agility, aggression, AKC S.T.A.R puppy classes and scent work.

PawsforFun Dog Training is at 1605 State Ave. NW, next to the new Steele County Humane Society headquarters currently under construction. Inquiries about classes can be directed to Bernhart by email at slbernhart@gmail.com or phone at 507-363-1781. More information can be found on the Paws4Fun website at paws4fun-owatonna.com.