Training class booked!

I've just booked my little girl on a local training course. I can't wait, it's something I've wanted to do for a while, mainly for the recall training and to meet other dogs. When we first got her she would bark at every single dog we saw on a walk. It was really upsetting as of course that meant we got lots of disapproving looks. People didn't seem to understand she was still a pup and had never been walked before we got her. She didn't bark aggressively I fully believe she barked to ensure either she or the other dog were removed from the situation. Now thankfully those days are past and she's the exact opposite now, she wants to meet every dog she can. She pulls us whenever she sees a doggy and we would love her to learn to ignore dogs unless they come up to get etc. She does need to learn a few doggy manners as she meets dogs very well but then wants them to chase her, even though she is always on lead she still tries! I really want to get her recall up to scratch, we use a long line when we are alone in the park but I know full well she would be off if another dog entered. I'm really excited to join the classes. The first class we spoke to (when she was being barky at other dogs) wanted to send a trainer round with her two dogs to our house. I didn't think this was a particularly great idea. This new course looks great, local and in their case studies are some Staffies. Roll on the middle of August.

Emma thats great i took mia to dog training classes at three you should have seen her thankfully the dog warden was great. If you see a dog you particularly like the look of in their mannerisms and attitude to other dogs you could get talking and ask if they would mind pairing up with them. At the dog classes mia was used as a guinea pig to show others best way of walking your dog mia then rolled on her back and her paws were in the air . People go to these classes for all sorts of reasons i believe its never too late it also makes you realise perhaps what you may need to work on with misty if indeed anything

Hi Crystal, yes I completely agree with you, I don't think it can ever be too late and these classes are specifically for adult dogs. I know we have a lot of work to do with Misty, she is great with sit, good with stay but awful at walking to heel. I can't stop laughing at thinking about Mia rolling on her back

Is misty on a harness or collar and lead? I found with mia i used a short lead and collar you have more control and she was far more obedient i used a half check collar for about 4 months and saw a great improvement.

Sounds great Emma. They are never too old to learn and I think you'll be surprised at how much you will learn too

That's great Emma, I took Katy last year for similar reasons & it did us the world of good

Hope it goes well

Thanks everyone. Yes I completely agree I think it will be great for all of us to do some learning together. It will be nice to meet some doggy people aswell.

Crystal she's on a harness for walks (she wears a collar aswell) but we only clip the lead to the harness. I think she would be a terror on a lead alone and t would end up hurting her neck.

Staffies are like steam trains at the best of times . This class will definitely benefit in that the person will be able to demonstrate different techniques on both collar and harness our dogs dnt half take the mic sometimes

Well tonight's the night. I 've been counting down the days for the last month! I'm so excited but also so nervous too, I just hope she doesn't get over excited with seeing the other dogs. There is only a maximum of six to a class so hopefully she will be able to calm down once she's around them. I'm taking her for an early walk after work to try to get some of her excess energy out. Fingers crossed for later

Excited for you

Thanks Rachel!

Oh has that came around already im excited for you emma

Sooo?!

How did it go?

Hi All,

Well,,,,,,, its was (mostly) brilliant. We learned so much!!!

Going off topic- recently Misty has been a bit funny with meeting other dogs- they have a sniff of noses then she jumps up and does a sort of air snap type thing its so quick. Thinking back its only since we met a Husky that had a go at her. This looks horrible and does scare a lot of dogs. We took her to a lovely new park on Monday night and a lab came up and she had a sniff then did it and he walked away and then turned back and barked at her. I hoped maybe he was telling her dont do that but she did it again last night. I took her for a walk before the class and a lady was jogging with a little yorkie type dog- both the yorkie and Misty were pulling to say hello. So much so the lady actually stopped jogging and came over to us to say hello. They had a quick sniff then Misty did her thing- the lady was quite shocked and did a nervous laugh. I just laughed as didnt want to make a big deal of it although if she did have a go at me I wouldnt of minded as her dog was quite shocked by the jump. So we went home and I told hubby he will have to take her into the class as I want to see if its me and something Im doing when she meets dogs. He agreed so off we went- it started raining quite heavily so I thought uh oh Misty HATES the rain- this isnt going to go well!! So we get there and there are only two other dogs in the class (one more is due to join next week). The class is outdoors and there was a little French Bulldog cross that was pulling to say hello to Misty and again she wanted to meet, they were both on lead. Hubby let them say hello and again Misty did it. Luckily the trainer saw it all and wasnt too bothered but honeslty I could of burst into tears and walked out there and then- I just dont want Misty to get a bad reputation or people to think bad of her or us. I felt then that we were complete outcasts as we took Misty away from both dogs. Then, as the course invites everyone who lives with the dog (not just one owner) there were some children with the remaining dog which was a Collie. The little girl asked if Misty was friendly as her dog wanted to say hello- I said yes but she may jump. So the girl let the collie and Misty touch noses- the trainer was watching everything and said ok- now maybe pull them both away for a bit and then let them go back if they want to. She explained that face to face meeting for dogs was very intense and it can be a good idea if one is nervous etc to not let it go on too long but then to let them resume. I had never really thought of that before- so we pulled Misty back and she was fine. I felt like crying with relief!! The trainer sat with us and was stroking Misty and saying how good looking she is and was a lovely colour she is!!! The trainer was SOO nice to us. So then the class actually starts- we start with Settle command. Misty wasnt great at this but neither was the frenchie. Then the trainer asked to borrow Misty to show the class the Leave command. Well I nearly burst with pride (even though I didnt do anything) I was just so glad she was showing Misty in a good light and making a fuss of her. So Misty went to the front and she gave her some cheese and taught her the leave command. Then we practised it with her and she was great. Then it was more practise of setttle then a break. Then we resumed the class and learnt Sit but with a Release Command- it was fasciniting to learn all of this -I had never thought of learning a release command before. Then we learnt the Down command. Misty was the star - she did this one so easily- the trainer said she is so clever and she is so eager to please us and she can see when we praise her how happy Misty becomes. Me and hubby were grinning like complete morons. So at the end of the class Misty started having a bark - i tihnk she was a bit tired so I didnt mind as it was just a bark and didnt sound nasty etc. I couldnt say enough positive things about our trainer- she was really young but was so intune with the dogs. She taught us so much in only an hour- Im so glad I signed us up for it now. We have our handout sheets for homework so we will be busy practising until next week! I defintely think the trainer had a soft spot for Misty. I am really proud of Misty she did so well- shes 18 months now and had no proper training but she spent an hour last night learning and she was a star. I think the training was amazing for hubby and me too- we learnt so much! So if anyone is reading this thinking is it worth it-trust me- it really is!! Ps if anyone has any advice about this horrible jumping thing she is doing please let me know!!!

With practising the pull away i think misty will do fine thats what i love about our staffys they are very clever and very eager to please as well. I think misty will shine in this class trainer may introduce other dogs too and different breeds too pleased she done so well .

Sounds really, really good! I prefer to call the dog away, or lure her, rather than pull, but that's maybe a bit picky.

Do you mean jumping up at people? It's a pain, isn't it? Millie's awful with other people as too many have made a fuss of her ('I don't mind', yes but I do!!!). What works best with her is to use the 'off' command, which means all 4 feet on the floor, and if she doesn't then walk into her. She's fantastic with both George and me now, and I've found that with others if I ask her 'off' it doesn't work as well as if they do.

I taught it using the 'walk in to her' method, because they can't go with you and so have to get down, and then you can reward.

So pleased for you, Emma, it does sound like you've hit really lucky.

Thanks All- yes I think we have relaly struck lucky with the trainer- she is absoutely fantastic.


[quote="LizP"]Sounds really, really good! I prefer to call the dog away, or lure her, rather than pull, but that's maybe a bit picky.

Do you mean jumping up at people? quote]

Hi Liz,  No I dont think its picky at all!! -I wasnt clear in what I meant ( I think it was the excitement from the class!!) I wrote pulling her away but i meant more of us sort of backing up and calling her away, I dont actually pull her  (unless it was an emergency) as I know she wouldnt like that. She was meeting the collie and he came up to her for a face sniff  and when the trainer said maybe give them some space now before it gets a bit too much for so hubby just walked backward slightly and called her away.

Misty is just doing this thing now of when she meets other dogs she has a quick sniff of noses then does a very very quick jump and maybe an air snap- its only started recently (after a husky came up to her twice for a bit of a go- he was off lead she was on) but when she does it she does scare the other dogs and Im terrified of her doing that to a dog that will react, She has been lucky as the dogs shes done it to havent reacted but I think she is in the wrong as it does shock a lot of the dogs and they dont like it- also I feel terrible for the other owners as its not nice to see your dog scared after just saying hello and I really dont want people to think bad of her. I think maybe thats how we have to do it now on as I will be 100% honest and say Im now a bit concerned about her meeting other dogs just about how she will react and I know that any anxiety I have will travel down the lead to her so Im trying to not worry about it. Hubby took her to a park yesterday and said he met an off lead greyhound type dog. He was very bouncy and came up to her so he let them have a quick sniff of noses then called her back a step or two so they could see each other then he let them meet again and that was it- best friends they just wanted to play chase- he said he was caught up in the lead but it was nice to see her have another friend!!!

Its hard emma but its vital to not be anxious and relax your body and hands its amazing what they pick up on. Took mia months as i had issues with mia with motorbikes she used to go absolutely crazy when she heard or seen one. I think mistys toung enough emma and if you keep practising your training you'll both benefit massively. I met a wee dog mia knew from years ago i stiffened without realising but mia remembered and liked the wee dog she had a sniff and moved on you'll both get there . Sounds daft but if i see a big dog and cant turn back i hum a cheery song to myself it relaxes me.

This is great news Emma, it's amazing what you learn especially if you can think like Misty and ask why she does certain things and correct accordingly. That's not an easy thing to get your mind around but once it clicks you be far more relaxed. It's also about being trained yourself.

As you get more confident with Misty you'll be able to start to read her body language too which is really the only way I can tell if my Flo is being stroppy or wanting to play

Wow six weeks has gone so quickly. We had our last lesson last night. We have all enjoyed it so much. I have really learnt so much. We still don't have everything perfect. Our walks take such a long time as we stop loads to get the heel right but I think it's definitely worth it. I've actually signed us up for the advanced courses so we start them this Saturday. Misty is amazing in recall in the class but I don't think this would transfer just yet to recall in parks etc! She is so quick even the trainer calls her a little bullet. She was first up last night to demonstrate recall while having to ignore two other dogs either side of the poles. The trainer said, watch Misty as we know she's going to go fast! I'm really tempted to sign her up for a flyball course, it's not the same place sadly but it's only half hour away. I think I might see how she goes on Saturday meeting the new dogs and if she's good then I'll ring up the other course. She can still be a bit rude when meeting dogs, I took her to the park at the weekend and there was a spaniel there and Misty and him met briefly and his owner came to talk to us, she was a lovely lady but then Misty started to lunge and bark at him until he eventually told her off. The women was lovely and I'm hoping her meeting more dogs will teach her how to act around them. Its all because she wasn't socialised as a pup but she had come so far, it's just learning some doggy manners and I'm sure that will come. Does anyone else do flyball here?

Aw emma thats fab it all takes time hen https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/f68-agility-and-flyball look through these theres plenty have done agility and flyball.