Obedience class not going so well :(

[Kerri B. & Zoey]

Little upset, but I know this is the place to come and vent, cry, receive some understanding, but also receive some tough love.  So we have been going to obedience class for about 3 weeks now.  The first class Zoey did great...paid attention, was getting "sit" right off the bat, she was a little rockstar.  Week 2 we did not fare as well.  There was a week off in between the 1st & 2nd class and it actually was a blessing, because I woke up that Monday morning & threw my back out & was laid up most of the week. A blessing, because we did not have to miss a lesson, but bad in that I probably did not do enough homework with her (it was tough enough just getting myself around and she actually wound up spending a good amount of that week with my parents).  The 2nd class went ok at first.  We worked on sits again and she did well and then began downs.  This was not as successful and she struggled to pay attention, and I struggled to keep her engaged.  After the class I stayed and spoke one on one with the instructor, more about her jumping & biting issues.  We went home and have worked a little over the week, but I know not as much as I should be (this is where the tough love comes in...I know I have to do the work to get the results).  So tonight was the 3rd class.  Since I am at work all day my parents meet me at the class with her, so it's the first chance I have to see her since the am when I leave.  She goes bonkers when she sees me, then gets excited to see all the other dogs and people.  Finally get her to settle down and class begins.  The whole time she is distracted, obstinate, pulling on the leash, jumping...I swear, I felt like I was sticking out...in a bad way.  The instructor had us working on sits and downs and was coming around to us individually.  When he got to me everything fell apart and he basically told me needed to work the sit & get that under control before working on the down.  This kinda pissed me off, cause the dog knows sit...she knew this before we started the class.  Later he had us go to another area and practice walking them with a loose lead and then working on the "wait" command.  By this point Zoey was over it, but I was able to get her to work the "wait" and she actually did pretty good.  Then at the end of class he asked me to stay after.  He is suggesting to me that I need to get a prong correctional collar and bring this to the next class.  This upsets me.  I really don't want to go this route with her and am not confident in my ability to use it right (event though he is telling me he will show me).  I left the class almost in tears about this.  I am not happy of the thought of having to use a prong collar.  Just curious to know what some of you think.  Anyone have experience with these?  Anyone think with enough practice/homework I can avoid it?  I know I need to put more time in with her, so I except my responsibility in that respect.  Just wondering if there is a way to avoid going to this extreme.  Sorry to ramble & rant, but thanks for reading.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

Interesting observation... The thing is, when Lucy is off leash at the dog park or at the beach, she will walk right at my heel 85% of the time. The other 15% she's running to say hi to people and other dogs, but she always comes back to my heel. Usually, when out walking with the Canny Collar, I keep a loose lead and simply stop if Lucy gets ahead of me and puts pressure on the lead. She immediately stops, returns to my heel and sits. Then we start again with 'heel'. She knows the routine, and tries her hardest to stay at my pace. When she does put pressure on the lead its usually due to a dog ahead of us or some other thing of interest she wants to get closer to. We're working on that. What I find most helpful with the Canny Collar is the control I have, like when we go to Home Depot or other highly populated areas where control is absolutely necessary. Lucy loves people and, while we're always working on controlling those impulses, she inevitably wants to approach everyone she comes in close proximity to. Not every person appreciates that kind of attention. A flat buckle collar would be useless to me in those situations. So, while transitioning to a flat collar may be the ultimate ideal in a perfect world, until that time, the Canny Collar will give me the control I need.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I used the Canny collar on Riley too and now we go most times without it and he stays right at heel.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

I think the whole purpose of these tools is to teach the dog to eventually walk with a loose leash, regardless of the type of collar used.

[Kerri B. & Zoey]

Thanks Cathy...I love finding these things out about other "siblings" LOL.

[Kerri B. & Zoey]

MINI UPDATE: So I spent the week thinking long and hard about this.  I know I was being hyper sensitive about the trainer singling us out.  I tend to be an emotional person, so I am not surprised that I was angry & upset.  Anyways...today I took Zoey down to the petstore where this amazing sales girl has been helping me since before Zoey came home with awesome advice on toys and treats and all kinds of stuff.  She was in today and I talked to her about the prong collars.  She has used them for her dogs and had great success.  She went and got one and showed it to me.  She let me feel the prongs then tried it on my arm.  She proceeded to give "corrections" to me and asking if it was painful, and explaining that the dogs skin is even tougher than our own, and if it was not painful to me, I could be confident in the fact that I would not be "hurting" Zoey.  Then she fitted Zoey and put it on her and had me do a few corrections.  I could see how Zoey was responding (the store was quite busy with lots of customers and pet adoptions going on).  So I wound up buying a collar.  I am going to wait till class on Tuesday to use so I can make sure I am putting it on properly & correcting her properly.  I also asked my mom (who watches her all day) to get to class a little early next week and walk her a little bit before I get there.  Maybe this will help too.  Game plan in place...will let you all know how it goes.  Thanks again for all the great advice & support.

[Jess and Pippin]

Way to go Kerri!  We use a martingale and it took some practice to learn how to use it correctly. When you meet up with your mom and Zoey on Tuesday before class, try ignoring her until she calms down and then matter of factly go into class without making any fuss about seeing her again.  This really helps with Pippin (we do this when we get home every day... very hard to do  :)  That way coming home is not a huge deal, just a part of the routine.) 

[Carol Brand]

Glad it worked for you.  Keep us updated.

[Jaime and Barley Barker]

Congratulations! I'm glad that you feel better now about the situation and that you have a workable plan. I hope your next class is enjoyable for both of you. =)

[Kerri B. & Zoey]

UPDATE: It's been a busy week.  Had hoped to post an update sooner, but here I am.  Tuesday night I managed to make it home little earlier, so I was able to pick Zoey up before heading the class, so that helped eliminate the crazies of her first seeing me.  The weather was pretty crappy that night, so my parents decided to stay home instead of observing class.  I am beginning to wonder if that might have also been a distraction for Zoey too. So we get to class and I put the collar on her.  OMD...it was like she was a completely different dog!  Class went amazingly well, and by the end of it I even had her doing the "downs" without having to bend over with a treat (this has been a tough one for us).  I was very proud of her and myself for overcoming my fears and concerns about using the collar.  We still have a long way to go in training, but I feel a glimmer of hope now that she will graduate her class.  LOL.

[Carol Brand]

So glad you you got good results with the collar.  I think there is a lot of misinformation out there about the use of prong collars.   Keep us updated!