Those who attend dog training classes???

Henrys puppy classes were 6 weeks for 29 pounds. Inc socialisation and basics. Cheapish as it was outside in a securely fenced area but if it rained u got wet. Further courses same price for 3 weeks inc obidience and tricks etc, all with handouts and booklet. There were usually between 4 and 6 in a class. Agility with different trainer 5 pounds per week and very lucky as she has loads of comp experience and just won kc working trials this year. Both were fine if dogs with issues etc. First trainer also does fortnightly socialization walkies usually around 10 to 15 dogs which are great apart from my terrier is convinced he is a German shepherd, u would think he would twig he is a lot smaller when playing he gets face planted for the millionth time!
 
Sorry would also add no indoor facilities around here all outside and all have a break over Dec/Jan which is a little frustrating unless its 121 u want
 
Ours are being held in a indoor arena - It's a very nice one too, not too large and very well lit. I have used it to school the horses in previously. Makes it more pleasant not having to be out in the bad weather! Lol. I think i prefer this than being in a room with a slippery floor.

Another club actually held classes back at the Dogs Trust when i got my dog frm but I didn't think that'd be the best idea. Plus their training room is large hall with a slippery floor.

Oh, and i have a reactive dog on lead. Hopefully i won't be asked to leave though! The trainers are already aware and i hope they will give me some tips to help. They have experience with nervy breeds which mine is so i think that's a bonus.

A previous dog training club I was at with our other dogs was run by a right dragon who just seem to shout orders at everyone!! I think many people left!! Lol.
 
I haven't read all 4 pages although I paid £90 for a 10 week course when my husky was a puppy, covered basics inside a hall with about 15 dogs to the one trainer. Worth it at the time and would pay it again since I have a decent recall etc which not alot of husky owners have.
 
The adult dog beginner obedience class we did recently was £60 and included a 2hr talk about dog behaviour & training and then 5 x 1hr sessions with handouts, clicker & treat bag. There was 7 in our class and held in a indoor arena so we all had plenty of space which helped those dogs uncomfortable near others and made for a calm, relaxed environment. The trainer would also put visual barriers between neighbouring dogs if necessary so they could focus.

The course was clicker based though you could opt for a word instead of clicking, we covered from memory- sit, down, stand, wait, stay, recall, turn & follow me, leave it, watch me, heel, nose touches, leg weave and chose our own fun trick (i did bow). I felt we'd covered a lot and were all starting blocks for other things. There was also a socialisation session which showed us how best to let dogs meet or pass while on lead and avoid issues by redirecting attention. The next class on is £32 per 4 sessions which are held fortnightly, I'm happy to pay a bit more for a smaller group and felt the trainer was very good.

We did bronze KCGC a few years ago which was £50 for 10x1hr sessions, it was held in a scout hut with a shiny floor. There was 10-12 in the class pups & adults which didn't allow for much interaction from the trainer and a bit cramped, it was also hard at times to hear what was being said as dogs barked more frequently which i didn't feel the trainer did much to solve. I did feel with that trainer that it was very much just meeting the goals for GC and didn't seem offer alternate ways to teach something if that method didn't suit the dog.
 
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We've just done the puppy/ socialisation level at our group. It was 6 weeks and £60. Seems quite a lot, but it was a friendly club, sensible advice and only 6 or 7 puppies. We were a typical village hall set up. We also got detailed, printed notes each week and were encouraged to phone the trainers if we needed help during the week.

Am about to start the beginners class and will see how we go from there.

I also go to a ringcraft class. It is mainly for socialisation, though I may try the odd show in the future if Miss Whippet develops well. That is £1.50 for 2 hours and seems great value, if you have the type of dog that would be happy with that set up (loads of dogs in close proximity, handling by strangers etc.).
 
Current trainer let us take our dog along to sit in on a class before joining to see how she'd behave as she didn't have much experience around other breeds and they do offer equivalent 1-2-1 sessions if it turns out after starting the class the dog isn't suitable so you don't just get turfed out. I found that the trainer did try to solve any issues and there was a nervous GSD that came along and sat in the distance so didn't impact on our class at all, but was beneficial to them.
 
I found my trainer through my boss at the restaurant taking their new puppy to her puppy classes, I had been taking my friends dogs to agility the year before and discovered that they really weren't socialised at all and were very dog reactive on the leash.
Copying my boss, managed to teach them the basics and then went to a beginners obedience class which was £40 for 4 weeks for 1 dog and £20 for the other dog, then moved onto a longer 10 week course which involved clicker training which from memory was £110 for a 10 week course.
We have now moved the advance obedience course up to where I keep my horse and use the indoor school so I no longer pay for my classes, but this gives us much more space and a better surface and we now do some of the trial work and put a couple of jumps etc up.
1-2-1 I believe is £45 a visit (having never used this I could be wrong).
We did have 2 dogs that didn't return to class, 1 had been attending classes because of behavioural issues and had worn a muzzle initially (fear aggression), was neutered and had calmed down and was no longer wearing the muzzle, new class started and a new young dog approached him, new dogs owner not really paying attention to the other dog giving warnings to get away and there was an altercation. The dog that had attacked was removed from class that day because he had become so wound up by what had happened and wasn't going to calm down in the class situation, his owner decided made the decision to keep him away from class, the dog that was attacked (vizsla) did come back for a couple of weeks but the owners were very uptight about what had happened and the dog had become very timid, the trainer did manage to get it a bit better in the couple of weeks and tried to point out to the owners that they may be making the situation worse by tensing every time another dog approached, but they stopped coming a couple of weeks later.
Other people have also just stopped coming to class and I've not known the reasons for it, after watching puppy class a few times I don't know how the trainer copes with the owners, but then I'm not the most tolerant of people (dogs I can tolerate 99% of them)!!!
 
I used to take my older 2 to dog training. It was run by the PAT coordinator who assessed my 2. They had a puppy class, followed by a novice class on Thursdays then on Mondays, novice, intermedate then advanced. One ended up in the advanced class, but the other only made it to intermedinate. They don't do sent courses, you just turn up and start the classes. I think it works well that way as you don't have to wait for a class to start and if you can't make if for a coupe of weeks it doesn't matter. It is also good as different dogs who inprove at different rates, just move up through the casses accordingly.

I really enjoyed the classes, and so did the dogs. The only issue was the number of dogs, some weeks it did get quite busy. A couple of years ago when I left it was £2 for 45 mins. I'm starting on Monday with the new rescue staffy cross, should be entertaining as she isn't good with other dogs or people.
 
Cayla if you are toying with the idea of running classes I happen to know of a very nice little, well lit indoor arena that is available for use on weekends (term time) and whenever out of term time.

Betsy has all of her lessons in there and there is an outside group uses it (and our agility gear) to hold agility sessions.
 
Bit late, as usual :rolleyes:
I paid £40 every 4 weeks per dog for the obedience classes I used to go to. This was to be paid upfront every 4 weeks.
I've recetnly started a new one where there is a yearly membership fee of £9 and you pay per class, I think it's 3 or 4 quid per class. No upfront charges, and no waiting lists/spaces. You just turn up as and when you want to and pay for your class on the day.
 
I took Dylan to local puppy/good citizen/general dog training when he was about 6 months old. It was held in a smallish village hall, so not much room. Had to pay £3 to join & then weekly classes were £2 for half an hour & classes were up to 10 dogs (but with a trainer & a couple of assistants if needed). It was all very casual & because there was no real commitment from attendees sometimes there would be 10 other times 3 or 4, but then we had to keep repeating everything at every class.

We started too late to join the puppy class, so started at the 2nd level. After attending for 3 or 4 weeks we were asked to move up a class as some others were struggling & needed more assistance. I never really felt comfortable in the higher class. Our off lead work was good, but we struggled with some of the lead work & the 2 minute stays at a distance as we hadn't done those before. The instructor was fine & encouraging, but there was another attendee who kept talking about me & Dylan whenever we were doing something 1 2 1 & was a bit mean. In the end I didn't enjoy going, so we stopped. Shame as it was good socilising for him if nothing else.

PS To add to Toffee's comment, count me in if you're doing a boot camp!
 
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All my training classes apart from Agility has been in village halls and apart from my first class with Fred was money payed in advance. I think if you are hiring premises they will want the money up front. If you charge on the night and people fail to turn up you could be out of pocket.

My first class was with Fred and was £5 but we had to sit out the hour as everytime a dog barked he became aggressive. I didnt go back, the trainer didnt say 2 words to me apart from asking me to sit it out.

I found another trainer who had Dobes and was an ex police dog trainer and explained my problem, the classes were £4.50 per hour and you paid on the day. This trainer was a big help as if Fred was reacting to another dog barking and you checked him he would come back up the lead at you. The trainer taught me how to distract him before he kicked off and this worked well. The trainer told me Fred was very bonded to me and gave me different exercises to practice at home.

Darcy got her KC bronze good citizen award at classes that charged £7 per hour, she was very fearful of other dogs and would bark and lunge at them so this was all about the socialisation. She could already do what they had to do so I was able to concentrate on her accepting other dogs passing and sitting next to her.

Pips class was a puppy & beginner class and was £50 in advance for 6weeks, walking nicely on the lead,sitting,down & leave it. There was also tricks to learn and a test at the end. In the class there was 8 dogs 5 of whom were adult dogs. Only 2 dogs passed with distinction 1 of whom was Pip with 91% and an adult Boxer with 92% There was also instruction about crate training,house training,food,good toys,healthcare & responsibilities of dog ownership.

All of the classes wanted to see an up to date vaccination card.
 
I paid £60 in advance for a 6 week puppy course. It was held in a village hall and we made use of both the field outside and the inside hall. I think there was 10 puppies to begin with but it dropped after a few weeks as people didn't return, despite paying in advance. Classes covered all of the usual stuff for the KC puppy foundation classes.

It was a frankly loathsome experience, thanks to the trainer and a couple of her assistants (although one was really lovely). She was abrupt, rude, sarcastic, dismissive... I could go on. She spoke to us all as though we were single-celled pond life with the intelligence to match.

The first lesson included a 30 minute induction, much of which was spent telling myself and a family with a GSD pup that our dogs needed specialist handling (the insinuation being that they would turn into three-headed demons in the care of numpties like ourselves). She managed to diagnose the other GSD pup with dodgy hips (he had slightly loose hocks) and reduced both of the owner's children to tears on separate occasions. Had no practical advice to give the owner of a very hyper yellow lab puppy, upset and offended several other owners for a variety of reasons. That kind of thing really.

I stuck out the 6 weeks as it was all good socialisation, but didn't continue onto the next class, despite being really keen to do the KC awards (at least) before we started. The atmosphere was just too dire- everyone was quiet and stressed out. I finished every class with a head ache from keeping my jaw clamped shut. Another 6 weeks in her company and I'd have lost my temper and told her where to go at the very least.

She also had two of the most disgustingly obese labs I've ever seen.

Sorry for rant. Not very helpful to you but it made me feel an awful lot better :p
 
littlemisslauren said:
Cayla if you are toying with the idea of running classes I happen to know of a very nice little, well lit indoor arena that is available for use on weekends (term time) and whenever out of term time.

Betsy has all of her lessons in there and there is an outside group uses it (and our agility gear) to hold agility sessions.
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I am definately toying, after being approached 5 times in the last month and having the umpteenth person come to me after learning ziltch in training class I am now in thought between doing one and one training and using a venue or a local field and include a few home visits in with it or a training class (I have more concerns with this) re how to spread my time on individuals seen as I do alot of talking):o when I train? I am not sure if I want to do actual obedience within a class environment or stick with behaviour and deal with "behaviour" in general or help with what I deam the very (basics) that the people I am dealing with don't seem to beable to even acomplish in class like "pulling" and general manners:confused:

I will have to make the time (that I previously could not) in order to make myself available.

TODAY I have dealt with and taken in for rehoming an aggressive westi after they exhausted training class and then paid an extortionate amount to get in a "trainer" a franchised one":rolleyes: and they gave them a FREE water pistol (fecking expensive if you ask me):rolleyes: and accustomed them to the word "bah" to solve this dogs problems:confused:

I need to "magic" some time and possibly take on some help:p unless I can rope OH in (we have very differnet ways of training in some aspects) it should be fun it nothing else:D

LML......thankyou for suggesting the arena/padock thats another option I am thinking/looking into and no a million miles away.

Huge thanks for the input, it was very very helpful.
 
Pix said:
I paid £60 in advance for a 6 week puppy course. It was held in a village hall and we made use of both the field outside and the inside hall. I think there was 10 puppies to begin with but it dropped after a few weeks as people didn't return, despite paying in advance. Classes covered all of the usual stuff for the KC puppy foundation classes.

It was a frankly loathsome experience, thanks to the trainer and a couple of her assistants (although one was really lovely). She was abrupt, rude, sarcastic, dismissive... I could go on. She spoke to us all as though we were single-celled pond life with the intelligence to match.

The first lesson included a 30 minute induction, much of which was spent telling myself and a family with a GSD pup that our dogs needed specialist handling (the insinuation being that they would turn into three-headed demons in the care of numpties like ourselves). She managed to diagnose the other GSD pup with dodgy hips (he had slightly loose hocks) and reduced both of the owner's children to tears on separate occasions. Had no practical advice to give the owner of a very hyper yellow lab puppy, upset and offended several other owners for a variety of reasons. That kind of thing really.

I stuck out the 6 weeks as it was all good socialisation, but didn't continue onto the next class, despite being really keen to do the KC awards (at least) before we started. The atmosphere was just too dire- everyone was quiet and stressed out. I finished every class with a head ache from keeping my jaw clamped shut. Another 6 weeks in her company and I'd have lost my temper and told her where to go at the very least.

She also had two of the most disgustingly obese labs I've ever seen.

Sorry for rant. Not very helpful to you but it made me feel an awful lot better :p
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LMFAO....pix, u kill me.....that wife sounds like a right one!:D
 
Or you could do a training dvd, the pulling dog is a good one, all the videos on youtube teaching your dog not to pull dont actually feature a pulling dog.:eek:

Id be your first customer and if you want a volunteer I will send one brain cell Diesel up.:D
 
Dobiegirl said:
Or you could do a training dvd, the pulling dog is a good one, all the videos on youtube teaching your dog not to pull dont actually feature a pulling dog.:eek:

Id be your first customer and if you want a volunteer I will send one brain cell Diesel up.:D
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LMFAO:D.....I have a vizzy x lab coming in the next few weeks as he pulls like a bull and that may be a good idea using OH *spiffing* new camera with video/live view "I will have you know";)
 
I am being serious, using that vizzy/lab would be a good idea, so many of these training videos already feature trained dogs or very trainable dogs.

I think you could make some serious dosh. But as it was my idea I think I should get the dvd as a freebie.:D:rolleyes:
 
I pay £5 yr membership and £2 each week when we go. Spectators are charged 50p & tea, coffee etc are 20p. It's varied club from puppy to advanced obedience, agility n demos in summer. I guy is 18 n won good citizen at crufts last yr with his 2 yr old border collie which he trained himself thro the club. I took my rescue Lurcher n they were so helpful n friendly. Next week I start with my Mums 10 week old border collie puppy.
 
CAYLA said:
stick with behaviour and deal with "behaviour" in general or help with what I deam the very (basics) that the people I am dealing with don't seem to beable to even acomplish in class like "pulling" and general manners:confused:
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That's a great idea, and my only niggling doubt would be that sometimes, those that are unable to deal with the basics "just from classes" are not actually doing their damn homework! :p In a class situation you will only be able to advise the best way to deal with the problem and then demonstrate with the dog what you mean. Anything further requires patience and consistency at home, on a day to day basis, just like when you do a 121 and leave them with a plan.

The massive upside of course is that in a group there is more motivation to work and show improvement for next week. Plus the owner has a chance weekly to show their dog's problems and ask for on-the-spot help and clarification of any additional problems they have.

It's a tough one (from an outside perspective) as you have to divide attention between X number of people. Have you considered structuring it so that week X we all do recall, week y we all do walking to heel and other basics (with extra info thrown in) so that, even if week X isn't really a problem for your dog, you get to be a little smug that they're doing OK, and still have the opportunity to ask about individual problems?

I am probably talking out of my arse. :D
 
Not at all, I have thought that one through aswell (folk not repeating what they learn in class or even being capable without a hand being held):p but even the things they talk about that happens/does not happen in class is alarming me too. I think the whole focus on one "basic" at a time makes sense too.
 
We have just done the beginners course which was a 12 week course for £120, one hour a week. There was about 8 in a class, a main trainer, as well as a behaviourist and an assistant. There would be about 10 mins theory on useful subjects and they offered a lot of individual support and advice both before and after class and on telephone/ email. We mostly trained outside on grass but used a hall as well when wet - it was good to have both options.

The beginner courses covered Basic sit, down, stay, come, look, touch, heel work as well as emergency stops and good stuff for when out walking like informal recall - good practical stuff. Each week quickly covered previous lessons, particularly focus and attention exercises before moving onto that weeks new lesson. Theory covered feeding, playing, dominance, jumping up, toilet training. I have a JRT who is as a bright as a button and when we started the course at 18 weeks we had already mastered a lot of the moves so actually found it too basic but it suited a lot of the other beginners and it was clear to see the progression they made. I would have liked it if she had tried to push us a bit more because she could quite clearly see that we had got it very quickly and got a little bored, but that's just personal to us. I feel others got more attention than us just because we were doing well but I guess it's hard not to focus on the ones that were having trouble. I did get annoyed by the owners who weren't committed to the training and obviously hadn't been practicing so that their dogs mucked about and had to learn everything again every week taking up the trainers time. I suppose the next class would be taken a bit more seriously by owners.

I liked the main trainer very much and she made every one feel important. I plan to do the next course although the cost puts me off a bit. She also offers agility, obedience, good citizen schemes, fun dog shows, specialist classes.
 
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