Frequently Asked Questions about The Academy:
What kinds of memberships do you offer?
We offer Premium and Basic (free) memberships. Premium memberships will give you access to everything on the Academy. Please see our Membership Options.
Is a Basic membership really free?
Absolutely. Many of the articles and videos, and the podcasts too, are available to Basic members of the MacRae Academy.
Is my payment information safe?
Absolutely, we use the PayPal gateway to process your payment. This is a best-in-class payment solution, and we store NO personal or financial information on our site, beyond your name and email address.
What type of internet connection do I need to watch?
The Academy videos are in High Definition to enhance your training experience and make every nuance easily visible. You can access them with a consistent speed of at 15 mbps or greater. Our Courses can be viewed at 4 mpbs or greater. Please keep in mind, satellite services can be inconsistent, providing a high speed such as 15 mpbs one minute and then, dropping to 2 mpbs the next. You can check to determine your speed and a reliable test for your connection can be found HERE
Are the videos available on an iPad and/or tablet?
YES! All courses are delivered via streaming video and viewable 24/7. In addition to viewing on your computer our product does support playback on mobile operating systems such as iOS (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch) and Android.
How do I upgrade my membership?
If you want to change your membership, go to your Account page and select Subscriptions. Then click Change Plan and select the Premium plan you’d like.
How am I billed?
It depends on which membership you select. All memberships are recurring and you are billed based on the terms of the type you select. We have a billing membership to meet every need, Premium Membership Plans
How do I cancel?
To cancel your Premium RECURRING membership (ALL memberships automatically renew), go to My Account -> Subscriptions, and select Cancel. Your Premium membership will not be renewed on the next payment date, while you will remain Premium for the remainder of the period for which you have already paid.
Can I ask you questions about Academy content?
We try to answer all general questions and are happy to help! We’ve created a Forum for Premium members for that very reason and you can find that here, FORUM. If we can’t direct you to a video or article that address your question or need, we’ll do our best to create one for you.
If you’re looking to find content, we’ve created a tutorial below, to show you how to access your favorites, in just 2 clicks.
As it relates to very specific questions, we take the responsibility of advising handlers with their dogs very seriously, as helping the dogs and handlers is our priority. To that end we advise specifics when we can see your dog and we have that visual as a basis for one on one discussion We’ll do our best to answer any general questions and if you would like a very detailed response, we also do virtual lessons; details for those can be found here, Virtual Remote Lessons
Why?
If you ask a question based on a description of what your dog is doing, that is your impression of the circumstance, subject to our interpretation, which may not accurately represent what is happening. If you or we are incorrect, the recommendation provided may actually cause more harm than good.
For example, if your dog had a great deal of eye and we (and you) did not know this, and it was not evident in assessment and we advised that you stopped your dog more frequently, that advice may actually exacerbate the eye in your dog, making for a greater problem. Yet, for the dog without a great deal of eye it might be very sound advice. This applies not just to eye, but to all different types of problems and different types of dogs. Dogs that are very flanky require a different approach than the line dog, the excitable dog versus the cautious dog, the confident dog compared to the dog that needs confidence built, etc. Additionally, many words have different meaning to different people. The definition is vast for: forward, square flanks, straight lines, tight turns, feel, power, honest attempt and the list continues.
You can see the inherent risk without absolutely seeing your dog, the situation and having that specific example as a point of reference in a one on one discussion. If we have a video we can reference, we can absolutely set up a lesson!
What should I do if I’m having a problem with accessing content?
Please contact us with any problems at macraesheepdogs@gmail.com
Frequently Asked Questions about our Courses:
Platinum members get ALL Courses FREE! Annual and 6 month Academy members SAVE 60% on ALL individual Courses
Can I watch a Preview before I purchase?
Absolutely. These Courses are designed to share our ‘training system’ in a la carte format so you may view the start our training through every phase or just certain aspects that are of particular interest. Here are details and Course previews also VISIT OUR STORE
When do the Courses Start ?
Courses are available all the time!
- Starting Young Dogs
- The Outrun
- The Shed
- The Drive
- The Pen
- The Turnback
- Foundation Bundle-BEST VALUE
- What type of internet connection do I need to watch?The Course videos are in Variable Bit Rate to adjust to your connection speed. We recommend a consistent speed of at 4 mbps or greater.
Are the videos available on an iPad and/or tablet?
YES! All courses are delivered via streaming video and viewable 24/7 for the duration of the subscription. In addition to viewing on your computer our product does support HTML 5 playback on mobile operating systems such as iOS (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch), Android, and Windows Phone.
Can I sign up for a class any time?
Absolutely. Courses are designed to be viewed at your convenience. When you sign up for one of the MacRae Way courses, you will immediately have access and it is available via live stream video 24/7 for the duration of your subscription.
With the options in classes, does it matter where I start?
Starting Young Dogs is our flagship offering and details our systematic train-ing system. Because our foundation training makes complex training intuitive for the dogs, we reference our training system in all the courses; however, the courses are valuable independent of one another and are designed in a shopping cart format to be satisfy the needs of the individual.
What if I have questions about the course?
We try to answer all general questions and are happy to help! If you’re looking to find content, we’ve created a tutorial below, to show you how to access your favorites, in just 2 clicks. you have questions about the course or would like to make a video of your own dog for discussion we do offer ‘remote lessons’ and those details can be found on our website,
http://www.macraesheepdogs.com/clinics-and-lessons/
Can I purchase the course for a friend?
Absolutely. You can find gift cards here:
How do I access the course I purchased?
Your login information will be sent to the email associated with your PayPal account. If you do not receive your login information immediately upon purchase, please check your spam folder. Here’s a tutorial to show you how to access after login in 2 clicks!
WINDOWS USERS: Due to compatibility issues with video streaming , Internet Explorer is not recommended as a browser for viewing this online material. Please download one of the following free browsers:
To ensure a satisfactory viewing experience, you will need to have high-speed internet, 6 mpbs or greater. You can view these courses on iPhones, iPads, and similar, provided you have a high-speed internet connection to your device.
What should I do if my video isn’t showing up?
Please contact us with any problems at macraesheepdogs@gmail.com