Thank you all for the nice words! I am now convinced I am quitting this training. My DH is also convinced about this now! I am going with my gut feeling!
Good for you Anne, dump the class and the trainer immediately. You'll feel much better, and so will Finn!
You are definitely right to leave and change trainer. Anyone who makes you feel unhappy and demoralised is not teaching well. I do think that barking when frustrated is a very easy problem to solve with the right trainer. I have seen on different occasions two dogs that barked repeatedly in lessons be quieted by about 5 minutes of training. This was by two different brilliant behaviourist/trainers and the first time I thought it was a bit of a fluke, but now having seen it done twice, I realise that it is quite easy to stop with the right input. I’m not saying this to make you feel bad but you need the right observant teacher to pinpoint where you are rewarding the dog for the noise! And it will all be fixed!
Good for you Anne, I always rely on my gut feeling, it never lets me down. I hope you find a positive trainer that can help you and Finn, also that you will enjoy and have fun which is what is should be about. xx
It seems to me you've certainly made the right decision. How rude of the trainer to blame it on you and your lovely dog and not their inflexible teaching methods.
I had the same with Snowie - definitely the most excited dog in class. I can’t believe I spent 1.5 years in a school that was military style, and in some ways cruel. My husband refused to come along, hated the school, said he hadn’t spent his young adult life campaigning against military conscription to now spend Sat afternoons marching on a field. I eventually saw the light when a trainer took me by the shoulders and shook me violently for me to realize just how awful they were. She shook me while telling me that I, too, was too soft. Thankfully we found a positive-only school, just 6 dogs in a very quiet fenced area. Each trained at their own pace. Absolutely no raised voices, indeed we were to be only soft! We progressed in leaps and bounds. I’m just sorry we wasted all those formative years at the horrible school. If I were you, I’d find a 1-on-1 trainer who can work with you quietly, and at your and Finn’s pace.
