Looking for training classes for once my puppy has had her 2nd lot of immunisations. Just wondered if there is anything particular I should be looking for when booking on a course? In my area there is a huge price difference between some. Is it best to google classes or look at the kennel club ones?
Id want to confirm a class was using positive reinforcement. I took Alfie to the dogs trust puppy class and was just what he needed.
Hi @Clare Sexton I would audit a class. Evaluate the instruction. Emphasis should be on positive reinforcement-either clicker + treat or marker + treat. Does the instructor pay attention to all members of the class? Inside? Yes if you live in a climate with poor weather or very hot weather. Outside? The inherent distractions may be useful in proofing some of your exercises. Curious. What is the price differential in your area?
@Clare Sexton we charge A$25 for the basic course of 9 classes. We are cheap.I do understand your view "that it can't be any good if they charge so little". Consumers do tend to judge things on the basis of price when there is imperfect knowledge. But we are a non-profit club. Consequently I'm not sure one can read too much into a price.. Perhaps if you provide your locale in Great Britain, a member might be able to steer you in the direction of a good instructor.
I am based in Petersfield, Hampshire (UK). If anybody knows a good local instructor to recommend that would be great please.
Hi @Clare Sexton have you looked on the APDT or IMDT website for local instructors offering classes. Those accredited or affiliated to these organisations will be offering reward based training with no aversives. You should expect to be paying around £80 for a course of classes. There are KC instructors offering classes but from experience they are not all 'positive' or 'force free'. If you get stuck feel free to shout and I'll see if there are any trainers in your area known to me or some colleagues
@Clare Sexton I would highly recommend that you make a list of all classes near you/reachable by you, and then email and ask if you can come and watch a class without your puppy before enrolling. Any good class and instructor will let you do that, so if they don't, you can scrap them off the list immediately. When you watch the class, think about the number of puppies in the class and the amount of feedback and help/attention each person/puppy is getting on each exercise. Look at how much barking is happening in the class, and what people are doing to control that. Are they shown ways to help keep their dog quiet? Are dogs generally focussed on their owners and under control? Are there are dogs present which shouldn't really be in a class? (A dog hiding under chairs and refusing to come out.) Is anyone hitting their dog? (Yes it does happen.) Are there any squirt bottles being used? Are any leash corrections being given? There is nothing wrong with attending more than one class, so if you narrow it down to a couple, go to both and see which you prefer. It is a huge generalisation, but really you get what you pay for. A course which is £30 is likely to be a community-based organisation, without professional trainers and with people just volunteering their time to teach classes - who may not have qualifications. Of course, there can still be really good trainers doing this - but there are a whole lot more who are not good at all. A course which is £60+ is likely to be run by professional trainers with some qualifications. Again, this doesn't totally guarantee they are great trainers - which is why it's good to go and watch. There are good starting points: http://www.apdt.co.uk https://www.imdt.uk.com http://puppyschool.co.uk It is also great to work towards a recognised scheme or system which will give you goals and help motivate you in your training. The KC Good Citizen Scheme does this: https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/tr...aining-clubs/dog-training-clubs-in-hampshire/ But the actual training itself offered by all clubs who run the scheme, is not necessarily great. I'd suggest you prioritise learning how to train a dog really well and then move onto a club running the scheme once you already know how to train and are just working towards the specific criteria. You might also be interested in a Gundog Club trainer, as the Gundog Club is now force-free: https://www.thegundogclub.co.uk Good luck!
