Felix Ho
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Felix Ho (born Fei Yin Felix Ho 何斐然 June 2, 1977 in Hong Kong) is a canine behaviorist, animal trainer, writer, and international Schutzhund/IPO competitor. He is one of the most recognized dog sport competitors and behaviorists in Australasia, Asia, and Europe, and one of the few dog trainers originate from Asia that has gained international popularity. He is highly skilled in the art of dog training especially in Schutzhund/IPO.
Ho's father is the famous traditional Chinese musician Ka Chuen Ho. While his father tried to encourage him to play musical instruments, Felix was always interested in animals instead, even from a very young age of three. Eventually when Felix was seven, his parents decided to adopt a puppy from RSPCA for their only son. Due to the family's lack of experience about bringing up a dog, they had to return the German Shepherd puppy back to RSPCA after a short time. However, this event somehow planted a strong desire in Felix’s head about working with dogs in his adult life.
Recognizing their child’s talent and ability with animals, Ho’s parents decided to send him to Australia for high school when he turned 16. Felix continued his pursuit of animal studies, leading him into La Trobe University in Melbourne for his Animal Science degree. While university was educating him with concepts, he practiced a lot of his hands-on skills with a wide range of dogs and trainers including Jim Tokis and Kris Kotsopoulos. At the beginning, Ho dealt with a large number of pet dogs and problem dogs, mainly teaching them a set of basic commands so they would obey their owners. As the more he learned, the more fanatical he became, after about two years, training dogs in obedience and security simply could not satisfy his hunger for knowledge anymore. He wanted to enhance his skills and ability and to compete in the world wide sport involved with working dogs, and began training and competing in Schutzhund/ IPO. Eventually, this passion with canine learning, behaviour, and psychology has become his lifestyle and chosen career.
In 2002, with the encouragement of Tokis and Kotsopoulos, Ho started his own business CanineSquad, a dog training and behavioural consultation company based in Melbourne, Australia. The services include solving behavioural problems for dog owners, training their dogs in obedience and protection, and educating the general public the proper way to communicate with their pets. The company maintained a healthy growth and Ho became increasingly successful and popular in both sport and business.
In 2005, Felix met two times Schutzhund/IPO world champion - Haruo Masuda from Japan. Sharing the same passion, the two became friends instantly. Masuda saw the talent and desire in the youngster, and encouraged him to further his career in Europe. A few months later, Felix decided to leave behind everything in Australia, to further develop his finesse with working dogs and to pursue his dream to compete on the world stage of dog sports. He migrated to Belgium, a country renowned for its history and knowledge in animal training and breeding.
In one of Ho's interviews in 2006, he stated that his training system heavily involves a foundation based on Clicker Training, and later polished off with Aversive Stimulation. Since moving to Europe, Ho's training has evolved to a vastly meticulous structure, being strongly influenced by his current coach - Julien Steenbeke. Felix also works with few other influential individuals in the sporting dog world including Johan Weckhuyzen, Bart Bellon, and Mario Verslijpe. In the 2006 FMBB and FCI World Championships, Ho's handling style has noticeably refined and resembled the style of Verslijpe, who has been three times world champion in IPO.
Felix now resides in Belgium and continues his pursuit of canine behavior and international dogsport competitions.
Career Highlights:
Nov 2002. Bachelor Degree of Animal Science, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
3 Apr 2004. Qualifying his first BH with Schwarzhund Marko "Corvette" - Pass. Judge Paul Achten AUS.
11-13 Jun 2004 Australian Schutzhund National Championship. SchH1 participation with "Corvette", 2nd highest score in Protection - 95 Points. Judge Mike West, DPO USA
26 Sep 2004. SchH1 with "Corvette" - 84 90 90. Judge Bill Szentmiklosi USA/DPO.
31 Oct 2004. SchH2 with "Corvette" - 89 87 88. Judge Alison Kollenberg AUS.
29 Jan 2005. IPO3 with "Corvette" - 85 94 96. Judge John MacDonald AUS.
19 Mar 2005. IPO3 with "Corvette" - 93 86 90. Judge Jens Kollenberg AUS.
2-4 Sep 2005 Australian Schutzhund National Championship. IPO3 with "Corvette", 2nd Place - 90 90 91. Some world renowned dogs that entered this championship include Marko z Blatenskeho Zamku (Imp. Czech), 1st Place - 90 90 94, Zico van de Berlex-Hoeve (Imp. Belgium), 3rd Place - 90 86 94, and Bryan vom Haus Mecki (Imp. Norway) - 78 96 94. Judge Mark Przybylski USA.
Felix is the first, and currently the only person in Australia, Hong Kong, and China that has ever brought up, trained, and titled a Belgian Shepherd Malinois to SchH/IPO3 level.
19 Mar 2006. Felix's first trial in Belgium. IPO3 with "Corvette" - 99 94 88. Judge Dirk Cooreman KKUSH.
5-7 May 2006. FMBB World Championship Hungary. Representing Hong Kong. IPO3 with "Corvette" - 95 88 82. Felix is the first, and currently the only person from Australia and Hong Kong that has ever competed in any international IPO event.
7-10 Sep 2006. FCI Fédération Cynologique Internationale World Championship Slovenia. IPO3 with "Corvette" - 85 86 87.
6 Oct 2007, De Westerschelde Holland. IPO1 with Eclipse van de Duvetorre - 99 98 90. Judge Hank Gerards Holland
11 Nov 2007, OC Vlaendren Belgium. IPO2 with Eclipse van de Duvetorre - 98 91 93. Judge Louis Vandepoel Belgium
Felix is the first and currently only person from Australasia and Hong Kong that has ever competed in any international IPO event.
