Which method of prefessional training is best?

Hi all, I'll try and keep this short and hope someone can give advise based on knowledge of the breed

Bella is 10 weeks today! She has had her second shot and I've been and checked the two local training establishments in the area but having a hard time deciding the best to choose. I'll outline both:

The local, council affiliated, Not For Profit Dog Club: They have a yearly fee and clear class structure. They have quite a lot of dogs in a number of classes, actually dozens in the park!!! They are a Reward based training club using treats and very anti-choke collar. There is a great social vibe and it is within walking distance of our home (a couple of kms) for when Bella is older. They have a café that does breakfast before training and very friendly - its actually a great vibe (my 4 yo daughter thought it was great and she's still very reserved with dogs) but I'm worried that this approach might be a bit 'soft' for a Stafford. Also I want the dog to respond to my body language and voice over treats - is it possible that the treats are only for the beginning of the training period? The trainer I spoke to mentioned this was the case but wondering if anyone's had experience with this?

The second place was more of a private club and have a yearly Registration Fee and a per course fee - so the more expensive option. The total number of dogs in the park was a LOT smaller but the Basic Obedience Class looked about the same size as the NFP Club. The majority of dogs were bigger more aggressive looking dogs like Rottweilers and Amstaffs etc. There was less social interaction and they were spaced well apart as it seemed that these dogs may have a few problems (and no doubt the reason these people have sought professional help-these were full grown dogs in the Basic Class). They used voice for positive praise and 'telling-off' with voice and collar when needed. I have used choke collar in the past for a previous rescue dog and it worked great with her but she was over 2 when we trained her and very stubborn. Obviously we have a puppy now and may not require the same approach.

So I will be taking her hopefully this Sunday to the pricey Club for a trial and than two weeks after that to the NFP Club (the week before is an Intro session just for the grown-ups).
Gosh...I always manage an essay! Any thoughts? Cheers in advance for replies and for getting to the end!

...and I can't manage to spell correctly in the title

Hi Lisa

Just went through this same process with Chiquito .. it is daunting with all of the available options and I can sympathise with your feeling unsure of which way to go

Here is a link to the 'sticky' in training and behaviour about choosing a class that was created this week - it is great!

https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/t38473-looking-for-training-classes-behavioural-help

Like you are doing, I also choose classes/schools that I liked and went to each of them to watch a class - I did not take Chiquito though (as I wanted to watch/ask questions etc without having to deal with him at the same time )

The school I have chosen is a not for profit KC registered obedience club that uses positive reward/praise based training (I do not believe that this is too soft for a staff and disagree strongly with harsher methods that were used by some of the other classes I attended). It has a coffee and catch up session before each class which I liked, and there is a fun/relaxed atmosphere. The class size for basic obedience is a maximum of 8, though they try to keep it to 4/5 which is how many are in the class we have booked for. Sounds similar to the council club you are looking at

Hope that helps!

(PS .. We did puppy preschool at our vets - they have a trainer who comes in to do it and I liked having the opportunity to make the vet fun for Chiquito. We are moving on to the club now that he has graduated puppy preschool to start basic obedience.)

Personally, I like the sound of the councils class, seems a very positive group, and a great opportunity to socialise a pup. I also like the idea of brekkie first, this will help with his manners lol, You want "all" postive, the other class sounds more for dogs with issues.

Definitely have a look at the link Kell gave you

https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/t38473-looking-for-training-classes-behavioural-help

It'll help you sort out what you should be looking for.

I would always go for smaller classes with properly trained, positive reinforcement trainers. Anti-check chain is not a bad thing!

Kell wrote:
(PS .. We did puppy preschool at our vets - they have a trainer who comes in to do it and I liked having the opportunity to make the vet fun for Chiquito. We are moving on to the club now that he has graduated puppy preschool to start basic obedience.)

Thanks Kell and Caryll,

Yes we are taking her pre-puppy school - so much fun and sooo cute! She is already the naughty kid of the class and the trainer has labelled her the 'pocket-rocket'!!

You have helped me make up my mind and we shall be going with the reward based approach. Thanks so much for your advice and the link was great! Seems like a happy coincidence that it was recently put up. I am soooo looking forward to starting this - it can't come soon enough! We get to take Bella out this weekend (1 week after her 2nd immunisation)

However, I would still like to hear from someone who has tried the other method - I am not talking about animal cruelty here...and I assume that any reasonable suggestions would not be cut down here!

Lisa and Bella

When I was a lot younger (many years ago ) I co-ran a dog training club. We used check chains as a must & thought people were weird if they didn't want to use one! However, every new member had a full lesson in how to use the chain properly & how not to use it!

All new things were trained with force; I don't mean nastiness or cruelty of any kind, but if a dog was told to sit, it was pushed into a sit. If it was told to lie down it's front legs were pulled forward so it had no choice etc etc. But that was the way it was done in those days.

Yes, the dogs were trained & some of them went on to compete in obedience competitions (including me) and did very well. But things/ideas have changed & it has been proven that positive reinforcement has a far better success rate in training & leaves you with a dog that does what you tell it because it wants to, not because it's forced to.

Hi Caryll, thanks for the feedback!

It is interesting to hear of the historical perspective. We shall be joining the local Club that uses reward based training methods.

Lisa

Good luck & keep us up to date with how it goes!

I would go with the first one! It needs to be fun and the socialisation sounds great. I fully support rewards-based positive reinforcement training. and if your daughter likes it there even better, this will encourage her to join in