New Duplin 4-H club goes to the dogs

When you think of 4-H and animals, your thoughts probably turn to livestock like cows and pigs, or perhaps horses. But there’s a new 4-H program in Duplin County that is working to get children involved in training and showing four-legged creatures of the canine kind.

The Duplin County Dog 4-H Club was started in April 2023, and includes a handful of local children, ages 8-18 who are learning to train their dogs, beyond the basic “sit” command, and work up to showing them in dog shows like the world-famous Westminster Dog Show.

Judith Hawk, who herself has trained, bred and shown dogs for years, is the program leader. Hawk has trained and bred Russell terriers since the 1980s, and even has a grand champion by the name of Scout. Originally from the Philadelphia area, she moved to Wallace from Wilmington in December 2022.

Formerly with Azalea Dog Training in Wilmington, Hawk said her dream was to build something big enough and open enough that she could train and show dogs in agility, rally and obedience. And that’s what she did, on her property off Country Club Road in Wallace.

A group of contractors built an open-air covered arena, with plenty of room for dogs to run, and to jump over hurtles, climb an A-frame, and walk up and down a teeter-totter.

“I wanted something where you could take lessons, you could have clinics, you could practice in inclement weather, in the heat, all of it,” Hawk explained. “I left the sides open, because I also do confirmation showing, which is up in New York like Westminster.”

Now, the Duplin County Dog 4-H Club meets there every other week. “It just started in April, and it’s catching on, but it’s really not very well-known yet,” Hawk said. “I love it. I’m a teacher. I taught high school English for 28 years. I love working with the kids. I love working with the dogs. And I’m blessed to have as a co-leader Michelle Ezzell, who has been in the area for 17 years. She was a Cub Scout leader for years and years, and she is wonderful in obedience and rally, and she’s great with the kids.”

There are very few Dog 4-H clubs around, with the closest being in Orange County.

So, when they decided to form the club in Duplin County, Hawk and Ezell “read and read and read, and put together a curriculum.”

So what exactly is a 4-H Dog Club? “[It] consists of training, it consists of dog health care, and it consists of some public service, and then we also we go over every week that we meet some dog trivial pursuit,” Hawk said. “There’s actually a dog trivial pursuit competition that we can take part in. They’re working toward obedience, agility and rally.”

With basic agility and rally courses in place, Hawk has plans to add something called dog dock diving, which includes a rectangular pool and a 40-foot dock. “You go up there and throw your dog’s toy and he jumps as far as he can,” she explained. “They have been jumping 21 feet. They’re flying.”

She also plans to install lighting, but needs the help of an electrician who would hopefully donate their time to help.

There’s also something in the works called Fast Cat. “They’re basically chasing a really fast plastic bag,” she said with a laugh. “It sounds crazy but it’s a fun thing. Everybody loves it. It’s so much fun. Dogs love it.”

Community service is also part of 4-H. At Christmastime, the kids in the club collected supplies for the animal shelter, at Tractor Supply Company in Wallace and Warsaw Animal Hospital. “Michelle could hardly get it all in her car,” Hawk said. “It was wonderful. It’s pretty cool to do. It’s great for the kids, it’s great for the dogs.“

Duplin County’s Cooperative Extension 4-H Agent Bridget Huffman said she can’t wait for the club to continue to grow. “I am so excited to have this new 4-H club in our county,” she said. “Judith and Michelle bring a wealth of knowledge and I can’t wait to see how the club grows.”

For more information, contact Judith Hawk at 910-977-1590.