Available training classes

[FlyingCorgi]

Ein's learned lots of simple tricks. He can sit, lay down, roll over, shake, up, spin, crawl, stay...but only if he wants to. He's very much a 'what's in it for me?' dog. He was a big jumper when we got him and we're to the point where he won't jump on me at home but once we're out in public and meeting new and exciting people, all bets are off. I've checked out some local trainers and due to my very changeable schedule the only one we'll be able to try is offered through Petsmart. Does anyone have feedback on classes from a pet supply store? For some reason I'm worried about the quality of classes based on the fact that they're through a retail organization instead of someone who just offers training. I've already enrolled Ein in an evening class starting June 30th but if anyone has any feedback I'd appreciate it. I don't want to wait because he's already 9 months and we want to get him on track as soon as possible.

[DarkSephiroth]

I have both my dogs in a PetSmart class, and it's excellent for them. Only one of the three trainers at this Petsmart is good though, so you should meet the trainers and see which one is right for your class.

[FlyingCorgi]

I met the trainer for my class when we signed up and she's got some certifications posted at the store. Hopefully that means something. Also, she's got a tri-corgi puppy of her own. Bonus! Thanks for the feedback and I'll try to have a little more faith in Petsmart trainers.

[Truffled]

I've heard when it comes to the PetSmart classes it really depends on the trainer. Some are good, some aren't.

[DarkSephiroth]

It really does depend on the trainer. Everyone at this PetSmart recommended only Katie, and didn't speak as well of the other trainers. In all honesty, I think she's absolutely great. I assume she only works at PetSmart because she is young and probably needs to build some kind of clientele first before doing solely privates.. I'm not totally sure though, I should ask her.

[FlyingCorgi]

I met my trainer and she is young but obviously I can't hold that against her unless she can't do her job. Also, she has a corgi of her own so I've got some hope. I'll find out next Tuesday.

[DarkSephiroth]

All of my trainer's dogs are ridiculously well behaved.. almost like robots. Opal, her Border Collie, can do chores for her, like picking things up and putting them places, opening and closing doors, turning lights on and off, grabbing tissues for her.. and many others things that I don't know about. It's pretty amazing!

[gogogiraffes]

Originally Posted by DarkSephiroth

All of my trainer's dogs are ridiculously well behaved.. almost like robots. Opal, her Border Collie, can do chores for her, like picking things up and putting them places, opening and closing doors, turning lights on and off, grabbing tissues for her.. and many others things that I don't know about. It's pretty amazing!

Has she had that dog since she was a puppy? She might have been trained for a companion dog, like for someone in a wheelchair, and maybe they didn't pass the test for whatever reason.

[FlyingCorgi]

Originally Posted by DarkSephiroth

All of my trainer's dogs are ridiculously well behaved.. almost like robots. Opal, her Border Collie, can do chores for her, like picking things up and putting them places, opening and closing doors, turning lights on and off, grabbing tissues for her.. and many others things that I don't know about. It's pretty amazing!

Border Collies are awesome dogs and I almost got one. In the end I decided that it wouldn't be fair to the breed if I couldn't provide enough mental stimulation. I'd hate to fall short and end up with a neurotic animal.

I wonder what reason she would have trained her dog to do that other than bragging rights. *g*

[Peggy]

Originally Posted by FlyingCorgi

I wonder what reason she would have trained her dog to do that other than bragging rights. *g*

Some people enjoy training dogs. When I was a teenager I walked a neighbors dog and trained him on my own.

Some will also train to compete in obedince events. Many training instructors do this. Some will use their dogs as therapy dogs and visit nursing homes, hospitals, etc. They train them to entertain the people they visit.

Peggy

[DarkSephiroth]

She had the dog since it was a young puppy. She said she had to give it life-saving hip surgery at a young age. It's a pretty amazing dog, it's basically a robot. It just looks at her and waits for Katie to tell Opal what to do, without moving or anything, just like a robot.

[FlyingCorgi]

Originally Posted by DarkSephiroth

She had the dog since it was a young puppy. She said she had to give it life-saving hip surgery at a young age. It's a pretty amazing dog, it's basically a robot. It just looks at her and waits for Katie to tell Opal what to do, without moving or anything, just like a robot.

Maybe it's just me but why would a robot dog be amazing?

[DarkSephiroth]

Well, a dog who is obedient to your every command every second and does everything you ask it to (That's why I call it a robot) is pretty impressive. I've never seen Opal's concentration dispel from Katie when she is asking her for something. It's an amazing thing to see.

[gogogiraffes]

When I get Gizmo's attention, he then hangs on every last word I say. We just did a lot of focus training. I think he'll only get stronger at his focus as he gets older.

[Peggy]

Originally Posted by DarkSephiroth

She had the dog since it was a young puppy. She said she had to give it life-saving hip surgery at a young age. It's a pretty amazing dog, it's basically a robot. It just looks at her and waits for Katie to tell Opal what to do, without moving or anything, just like a robot.

Is this a Border Collie? If so they have a different mind set from other dogs. A great willingness to please. The looking at her and waiting for her to tell her what to do is a "what can I do for you now" thing.

Peggy