Pope student getting national attention as trick dog handler

Pope student, trick dog handler

East Cobb resident Nicole Penson is excited to pass along news about her daughter, Sophie, a student at Pope High School, who’s getting national magazine attention for her award-winning exploits as a trick dog handler.

Sophie and her dog Ducky, a rescued border collie mix, will be featured in the January-February issue of the American Kennel Club magazine.

Here’s more from Nicole about Sophie’s work with canines and school activities:

“Sophie is a junior at Pope High School and has earned numerous awards through the AKC, Universal Canine All Stars, Do More with Your Dog!, Cyber K9, International Canine Events Grand Prix Dog Shows, Sundog Sport, World Online Dog Show, and International Dog Parkour Association. She is a Certified Trick Dog Instructor, Certified Stunt Dog Competition Judge and Certified Canine Conditioning Fitness Coach with Do More With your Dog!, achieving the rank of All Star Trainer of the Year as a trick dog instructor and the rank of silver medal as a stunt dog judge.

“She is the first and only triple crown trainer in the state of Georgia with 185 titled students total and currently the youngest handler in the world to put the titles of stunt dog grand champion and triple crown champion on a dog (also the first junior handler for both). Her dog Ducky is the first mixed breed in the world to earn the triple crown champion title and so far the only one in the USA; she is also the first dog ever (worldwide) to earn the L2AAS agility title with Universal Canine All Stars. Sophie and Ducky will soon be pursuing their third grand championship upon release of Do More With Your Dog’s new title, Trick Dog Grand Champion (TDGCH).

“At Pope High School, Sophie is a board member of SGA and Sources of Strength. A member of Science Olympiad, Creative Writing Club, National Honor Society, Science National Honor Society, Social Studies National Honor Society, and Math National Honor Society. She is currently a state nominee for the Governor’s Honors Program (GHP) in Biology. She has also been a volunteer with Our Pals Place (OPP), a pet adoption facility, for six years. Sophie and Ducky are currently practicing trick routines in the hopes of performing for seniors who are confined in assisted living centers due to Covid restrictions.”

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