It was his wife and her cocker spaniel, Coochie, that ultimately led to Vincent Madeiros recently becoming a qualified pet dog trainer.

"Initially, I became interested in dog training through my wife, so I joined some of the local dog training clubs, as a result of which my interest continued to grow. A few years later I got my own dog, Gabby, a German shorthaired pointer. I knew she needed obedience training, so I became interested in training her, and I also wanted to do competitive training," he says. "I attended some seminars over the years, and my interest grew from there."

With his pointers he also competed in overseas dog shows, and eventually Mr. Madeiros says he became "hooked" on serious show ring work - both showing and obedience. He also decided to concentrate on pointers, and now owns four as well as the cocker spaniel, all of whom have finished their local championship qualification, although only one dog, Babe the pointer, still "campaigns".

In fact, three-year-old Babe has her championship title, both here and in the US, and recently won "Best Locally Owned Dog in Show" over four of the six days of the Bermuda All Breed Club competition, and "Overall Best Locally Owned Dog".

"I like both obedience and confirmation," Mr. Madeiros says. "There is a great feeling of accomplishment because I show my own dogs. You have to know what to do and how to present your breed properly, and I usually get that knowledge from going to shows and watching the professional handlers and getting tips from them."

In addition, Mr. Madeiros spent three years studying and training to become a professional pet dog trainer. Recently, he received his accreditation from the Professional Testing Corporation in New York, which is the top professional testing organisation in the US. At present he owns the 'Good Dog 101' training programme, which, with the assistance of other trainers, has over 50 dogs enrolled in its agility group classes.

"I find it a lot of fun, and I enjoy what I do," he says.

Mr. Madeiros has been a member of all the dog club boards in Bermuda, is also a past president of the Bermuda Kennel Club, and recently sat as a member of the Government dog control committee.

Dog training is offered by Mr. Madeiros ( 234-7190 as well as the Dog Training Club ( 291-4230.