Training/obedience Classes

[elizabethann]

I'm just curious...what kind of training have you and your dog completed? I'm talking about professional training. Fenway did a Puppy Obedience class and took Basic Obedience I two times (because he failed the first time). I'd like to do some more training with him but the class I took him to used the choke collar and I wasn't too crazy about it. I thought about clicker training but it seems like it would be a pain in the butt.

Are there other ways to train a dog besides clicker and choke collar?

Has anybody ever used clicker training? What about any other training? And how did the training work for you?

Also, when you clicker train a dog, do you have to use the clicker for the rest of the dogs life?

Thanks.

[slleipnir]

With Josie we did:

Beginner obedience - used prong collar
Advanced - Might have switched to flat collar for this?? (she came in first )
Agility training
And now we're seeing a professional trainer about her aggression. Doing a lot of obedience and such. Using prong collar.

Zeke:
Obedience classes..using a choker (don't like it)
flyball..I would say this doesn't count as the training you're talking about, but he has learned a lot about listening with other dogs around.

I've only clicker trained for a very short period...I didnt care much for it, so I can't really answer your question...I do, however, like training with the prong collar (I have a thread going talking about different training collars)

[aly]

Look for a training class that does Positive Reinforcement, but without clickers. It will be very similar to clicker training, but instead of the clickers, you just mark the behavior with a verbal "yes!". Ask to sit in on a class before you sign up. That will give you a chance to talk to the trainer and see him/her in action before you commit.

[cubby31682]

Gracie went through basic obedience before we got her. She failed. She was also trained in agility. She was top dog in that class. Which I will never understand but okay.

We just got done with the behavior training. Expensive but well worth every penny we spent. So now sees me and my husband as the pack leaders. Something she has never done too. She comes when called for the most part, sits, stays when told. We are still working with her as much as we can but we are getting there with her. We just learned how to walk her with out her pinch collar so I am happy. I can now walk my dog and not worry about her pulling my arms out of socket. She also now knows what heal means and stops and the right time and so on.

[elizabethann]

I saw the post about choke/prong after I created this thread.

Slleipnir, that is great Josie came in first.

Aly, I will have to look for a Positive Reinforcement class. That sounds exactly what I'm looking for!!!

Thank you everybody for the suggestions.

[ParNone]

I took a private class for Clicker Training for Gull. When he was a puppy, he was acting more like a Bloodhound then a Collie. Nose to ground. No focus or attention on me at all. A couple of days of using the Clicker and he was a different dog. Unbelievable results. Did not take long at all for the lightbulb to go off over his head that I was well worth paying attention to.

I also use Lure training, using treats. It works really good too. Anything using positive reinforcement, I think you'll be really happy and amazed with the results.

Par...

[ginagt]

Puppy class- postive reinforcement with a clicker
Basic obedience class postive reinforcement with clicker.

Before I decided on the clicker class I sat in on a class that used the choke chain as the main training tool, I didn't like the idea of having to muscle the dog into doing what I wanted. With the clicker the dogs choose to do the right behavior because it is very rewarding for them to do so.

I used to be a clicker skeptic, I thought they were to much work, something extra to keep track of and to use when training, but thoughts have changed and now I can't imagine training a dog without a clicker

I am now taking private clicker lessons. I have found that one hour of private lessons is worth more in time and what you learn than a 6 week long group class.

I love the clicker it does amazing things for training. It is very precise so the dog knows exactly what you want. Voice works but the clicker leaves no doubt in the dogs mine, it's like oh, you said sit, I sat (as soon as the butt hits the ground you click) the dogs mind says oh, that is what you wanted. And they wait for their treat. You do not use the clicker forever, it is used to teach a new behavior and once the behavior is learned you phase out the clicker for that particular behavior.

Check out http://www.clickertraining.com/home/
it is a wonderful clicker training website. I bought my clicker there the i click is a newer design easier to hold on to and fits in the hand much better.
Give clicker training a try...you won't be disappointed.

[binka_nugget]

Kai completed basic obedience with dogsmart (positive reinforcement.. no clickers though). He passed but I wasn't happy with the results so when he was older, he went through basic obedience with Absolute K9 (correct & praise). He did so well in basic the second time that I enrolled him in advance obedience with them as well. He did really well and he listened 95% of the time (with dogsmart, he rarely obeyed). However, I could tell training wasn't fun for him so I started retraining him with a clicker and made training positive for him. He really enjoys the clicker. He'll literally jump up in excitement everytime he hears it click.

Kaedyn went through basic obedience using correction & praise as well. I think it helped for his dominance issues but after we got passed that, there was no need for it. Now I train him with the clicker & treats as well.

With clicker training, I don't use the clicker once the dog masters the command. I use it for the initial training and shaping but after that, I use praise verbally/physically and give them treats randomly.

If you'd rather not use a clicker, you can do what Aly said and just mark it with "YES!" instead.

[bckrazy]

Gonzo has been through Puppy OB, Basic OB, another Basic OB, and then almost a year of advanced OB. It has to be an ongoing thing, training every day at home, for dogs to keep it up. . he's done really really well. I NEVER thought, before we went into advanced OB, that he would ever be able to do a down-stay with dogs all around him and running around, but he got to a point where he could do that for 5 minutes every class and even out of class. I still can't get him to listen to me at the dog park but oh well

I don't like chokers, or prong collars. . most people use them instead of going through the training, and most people use them incorrectly anyway. Thin chokers, like those used in shows, that are adjusted properly are ok. I tried clicker training, but that was when Gonzo was about 8 months old and at that time he was petrified of the click . . I also prefer voice/praise positive training, because you won't always have the clicker or treats with you in certain situations.

Ohh, and Gonzo has also been through 3 Flyball courses, Rally-O and will be in Agility soon ! Rally-O was *really* fun to do, it really sharpened his OB skills and also introduced him to Agility equpitment.

[elizabethann]

What's Rally - O?

P.S. Thanks for the ideas folks.

[lv4dogs]

Nanook, none
Raustyk, puppy, basic & some agility

[Dixieland Dancer]

Originally posted by elizabethann
What's Rally - O?

P.S. Thanks for the ideas folks.

Rally Obedience is the newest competitive venue the AKC has endorsed. Competing in this venue enables you to put titles on your dog for completing specific requirements. It is a lot like regular obedience competitions but you are allowed to talk to your dog and encourage them but without food in the ring. In formal obedience competitions, the handler will be disqualified if a command is given more than once and encouragement is only allowed in between exercises.

The primary reason Rally was introduced as a competitive venue with the AKC was because of the lack of dogs competing in a formal Novice, Open and Utility Obedience competition. With the onset of Agility almost 10 years or more ago, people were given a venue to compete that was more exciting that formal obedience. Their dogs could run and perform and the handler could give the dog verbal commands to accomplish a course. As Agility became the HOT ticket item, the competitions started to see more handlers running agility courses and less handlers entering obedience rings.

When I started obedience over 25 years ago, it was common to compete against 30 or more dogs in a Novice (beginning) class. Now if you have a class bigger than 15 or 20 it is unusual. Rally is the AKC's hope that more people will be drawn back into competitive obedience by making it more of a "fun" venue.

My first dog I competed with - Taffey had a UDX (highest obedience class) title.

Dixie has a CDX - intermediate title and a JH (junior hunter) and two legs towards her senior hunter. She doesn't particularly like doine formal obedience so I don't persue that with her but she loves to hunt so that's where I spend most of my time with her now.

Dusty has his CD - Beginning obedience title and is ready to start showing for his CDX. He has been clicker trained from the age of 12 weeks and he got two first places and a second with scores in the high 190's (200 is a perfect score). He has no desire to hunt so we are going to do Rally with him too. It should be a breeze since he already has his other Novice title.

[bckrazy]

LOL Dixieland gave a really good description of Rally-O! Our class taught all of the formal rally-o positions, turns, and commands and also incorporated an agility tunnel, jumps, tire jump and weave poles

[jenfer]

Gigi took puppy class, clicker class, some sort of obedience class, and now she is doing agility class. We use clicker when we learn something new, once she mastered the skill we don't use the clicker.

[sammy101]

Kodie went to beginners 3 times He's very difficult to train.lol.
We used a TRAINING COLLAR(choker,it sounds too harsh).The obediance trainer was a wonderful lady.We also used positive reinforcement.That is mostly what we used,and no treats.We only used the training collar for corrections,then said good boy!And get all excited,all that stuff.
I dont see the problem with chokers if you use them correctly,but i do have a problem when theyre not,like when people hold them really tight on ther necks
Kodie wears a prong,he's an extremely strong dog.It works well on him,and he's a happy boy and doesnt mind wearing it.