Puppy training

[Topflight]

I just sent my puppy off to school. She will be at a professional trainers house out in the country for four weeks (with about 4-5 other dogs). I am allowed one visit for about an hour after two weeks. Then I pick her back up after the four weeks are complete.

How do you guys train your puppies? Do you do it yourself? Do you go through Petsmart or Mans Best Friend? What kind of results have you had?

I was bombing trying to train her myself. I got her to sit and lay down. But I was horribly unsuccessful at getting her to walk on a loose leash, and forget off leash obedience.

There are a couple Petsmart graduates in my apartment complex. I really believe they just paid to have their dog's picture taken with a cap on it's head.

So yeah, did you train your dogs, and if so, how did you go about it?

[Boris]

I believe you should be an integral part of your puppy's training. A good way is to sign up for puppy class. Then you go with your puppy to puppy school. actually the school is more to teach the humans how to train the dogs. puppy class is also a good way to socialize your dog. You have to be diligent in doing your homework.

As far as off leash obedience, do not chase after your dog. This is exactly what they want. You will drive yourself berzerk chasing the little guys. If you stay in one place or even walk the other way they will come back to you. Also never scold your dog for being bad when they finally do come when you call them. You have to give them lots of praise. It can be very frustrating but you have to control your emotions.

[Topflight]

I read about puppy training for months. I have heard and read about everything you have just said. I think what it came down to was me actually putting in the time. After work I would hang out with my puppy, but I didn't take her outside and really spend time working on what I needed to work on.

She is very social, we have a dog park around here that she loves. The thing is, it really does take a lot of time and effort. I see a lot of people that take their dog to puppy school, where you are right the owners are being taught more than the dog, but they clearly don't use what they learned at home. So then the dogs just end up crazy.

When I go visit/pickup my dog we will go through a couple hour session on what she has learned, what I need to do to maintain her training and also let her realize that what she learned applies to me as well as the trainer.

It was just so comforting to have the trainer say "I hope you don't like her pulling on the leash like that, because it's the last time she will ever do it."

I felt like I was dropping a kid off at college. I got to see her little kennel room, unpack her blanket and toys, and meet her kennelmates.

I'm pretty sure it will be a success, I had to wait 3 months to get her in, and the lady training her is just amazing.

I really wanted to be able to brag and say that I trained her myself. But in reality, there is no way that I could have come close to what this lady will be able to do. She is a professional that has been training dogs for 25 years. I am a dude who researched on the internet. And this is my first puppy.

She will even have a "magic carpet" that she will go sit on when she is told, and stay there until she is given permission to get off.

4 weeks of personal training cost me $600. I'll let you know if I get my money's worth. If my puppy learns even half of what she is suppossed to it will be worth it.

[HDPM]

The last dog went to a professional trainer and flunked. He was an untrainable hardheaded no retrieve no hunt moron. He had no sense. His best point was on a wasp. Which he then tried to eat. He ate metal and saran wrap. Total idiot.

The current dog isn't meant for hunting. He went to the Petsmart classes with my wife. He liked it. And flunked. I went to one, and it was women with do nothing dogs and a couple of guys wishing for the days where it was OK to beat some sense into the curs. Our dog was the cutest one, but last in everything else I think.

So my wife and I are 0 for 2, probably because we suck at dog training. However, both dogs learned to sleep in the bed, sometimes using a pillow, beg for food, look sad to make you feel guilty, and go totally ape when they get to go somewhere. So I guess they are well trained either way. /images/graemlins/crazy.gif

[Thythe]

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Our dog was the cutest one, but last in everything else I think.

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Why is it that the cutest ones are always the dumbest?

[Alobar]

I've done alot of my dogs training myself, but also did the petsmart training when I first got her. I think they did an excellent job, the instuctor I had was really good and the stuff they taught worked well. You have to put in the time tho, just taking your dog to a 1 hour class at petsmart once a week wont do anything for her. Its like the instructor I had said "basically I'm here to train you how to train your dog". If you dont spend time doing it everyday, it wont work. I think alot of people that go the petsmart route tho are the kind of people that the only training their dog gets is that one hour a week when they are there