Diesel Obedience classes??

Hi all, as you all know weve had diesel about 3 1/2 weeks now & all is going great except his lack of recall when out and about.

i wanted to get him enrolled in an obedience class as i want a dog i know is obedient & well behaved not only for his safety (roads etc) but also for other peoples peace of mind nothing is worse for someone whi is maybe weary of dogs etc having a dog running at them and there owner not being able to shout them back.

ive emailed a obedience class local to me explained that he is gtreat indoors no chewing or anything, ok with my mums dogs & also seems fine with strange dogs pulls slightly to get to them but plays when gets to them no aggression that we have seen, she has emailed me back and said due to his age i wiould need a one on one session with the trainer?? he is 1 so a teenager i soppose, im trying to do the resposible thing & get him well socialised how is this going to happen at home? any ideas why she has said this? is it because he's a staffy?i am wanting to do the KC good citizenship with him eventually so wanted an initial 6 weeks obedience course to see how willing he is to learn & get the foundations in place.

At a bit of a loss as to what to do next.

Sounds like they just want to make a bit more money to me , I did a 1 to 1 with Tommy before I started but only at my suggestion as he was 1 class late starting and I though he was naughty and wanted approval rather than barging in with a thug of a dog, why don't you suggest starting and see if she still thinks a 1 to 1 is required after , see the response

hiya dave, she said that he cannot start without a home assesment and one 2 one, if he was aggressive i wouldnt take him i would have the ones to ones ive spent years doing my research before getting diesel (weve been talking bout getting a dog for about 3 years). absolutly no warning signs hes been running with my mums staffys today no problem at all with that and when weve been out and some people have stopped us wioth there dogs hes sniffed then started playing ive explained all this. i think the pulling is just excitment and he hasnt yet grasped the idea that not every one loves him although i cant think why not

Well my gut reaction and all I can think if this is the case and you have not gave her any cause for concern is find another class as it sounds like she is staffy wary to me and that won't make for good fun.

My trainer Karen has been really great , only trained a few staffs is very breed aware and very supportive. Tommy has been a bit growly sometimes in indoor classes and although she does separate she is always looking for the good in him and praising him to everyone else as if she is trying to put all their minds at rest but I think generally we have a good group and they are all fine. It seems Tommy doesn't like the small spaces , as soon as he's outside he doesn't look twice

I agree with Dave. Are there any other trainers near you?

that was my thought that if i hadn't mentioned he was a staffy then all would have been fine! shes really got my back up, try to be a responsible owner.... There are no more classes locally to me, cant really go to any too far as hes a really bad traveller so dont want to drive for 45 mins then do the class then drive back he would be too stressed out. im thinking about getting my head into some books and trying to do the obedience training myself.

Not impossible. Try "When Pigs Fly" - really good book!

you can train them yourself we trained miley on an extender lead and some treats. She will come back every time i stop walking. As for off the lead that remains to be seen

The only reason I opted for classes really was as a refresher to me (did it may years ago with my old BC) and to involve my daughter , it's not really that difficult for the average dog and handler , I just picked up some fresh tips and some stuff that I wasn't aware of. As far as this trainer is concerned then put the following words together

barge pole wouldn't her i touch with a

It's not impossible to train him yourself, particularly with the recall. Buy one of those really long training lines, equip yourself with some meaty treats, call him to you, and if he doesn't come back, reel him in like a fish then praise him and give him a treat. He'll get the hang of it eventually.

Have been in 2 minds as to answering this thread or not... but I will, that trainer is talking rubbish. I have run classes for over 8 years. I take any dog, any age any problem. They are mixed classes. I can be employed privately but that's up to the owner. If i were you I would look up on the Kennel club website their list of accredited trainers etc and see if there are others near to you. You should be able to get on to the Good citizen scheme easily, The KC will have details of who's in your area. Alternatively you could approach your local dog warden and Vet.. they should have lists or all trainers in your area. Anyone who is breed selective when it comes to training concerns me. My now partner had it a few years ago with a white Boxer he owned... They said it was not good enough to go to their class... I get so mad with some trainers, they do it for the money and not the good of the dog and family. Good luck, also if you do training yourself I recommend a book by Jan Fennel, the Dog Listener, it's a great place to start Good luck.

kelpie wrote:Have been in 2 minds as to answering this thread or not... but I will, that trainer is talking rubbish.

Kelpie we appreciate your restraint but as an experienced trainer please don't hold back on your opinions and your contribution , people can choose to listen to it or not

Thanks Dave, If I'm around I will normally offer advice if i can. I work with so many dogs from all sorts of backgrounds and I've learnt so much. By day I walk them and by night I train, If i can help and add something that hasn't been covered I always will There are so many helpful people on here it's a fantastic site, ssh but it's probably my favourite

kelpie wrote:Thanks Dave, If I'm around I will normally offer advice if i can. I work with so many dogs from all sorts of backgrounds and I've learnt so much. By day I walk them and by night I train, If i can help and add something that hasn't been covered I always will There are so many helpful people on here it's a fantastic site, ssh but it's probably my favourite

Ledger was about 2 when I rescued him and went straight into bronze good citizen class (more as I was a first time solo owner) but the classes we did the first one was no dogs to have all the owner introductions hand out the training plans etc but no mention of a 1.2.1 first. I felt at a disadvantage as 90% of the class had just stepped up from puppy classes and it tended to work to their pace. I asked about moving onto agility but that training club wanted 10 weeks money upfront and felt really quite cliquey I later found a dog display team that focus on the group heel work but did agility for fun before hand, much less formal, pay as you go and it was much better for both of us but the weather conspired against alot of that this year. There are still a few niggly issues that we are working on but I get a number of compliments from other owners to Ledgers behaviour so must be doing something right