Feeling like a bad mom

[Terra and Max]

When Max was about a year old we went to obedience training at the daycare we love. Well, what I didn't love was the trainer. She was insistent that dogs should only be petted when they have done something to deserve it, that they have no places on furniture, etc. I basically felt like she didn't want me to love Max as though he was my child as he wouldn't then respect me as the alpha in our home. Well, things happened and a couple classes were cancelled and I just never took him back.

Fast forward almost 3 years and I now have a dog that clearly never went through obedience training.He is a total crazy doodle! Now granted he doesn't counter surf or jump on people but he is a real nuisance on the leash and he LOVES to bark at anyone that comes within 100 feet of our house. I have the Gentle Leader which is entertaining to see how much it irritates him to have to wear it. He is such a pain though that I tend to prefer NOT taking him with me when I walk which I know isn't the right answer.

So my question is two part. 1) How do you find a good trainer BEFORE you attend and 2) is it too late to teach my crazy boy some proper manners?

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

It's never to late to train a dog. I agree with all of the other responses here.

[Colleen, Jake & Baxter]

Please know that there is hope.  Are you using the gentle leader head collar or the easy walk halter?  If one is not working try the other. I am not a trainer but I have had experience with being a foster for doodles.  My  first foster dog was about 1 1/2  years old when I got him.  He had no clue about anything.  I used to wake up in the morning not wanting to get out of bed because I dreaded having to walk him.  He would start barking and lunging at any person or dog in sight on our walks.  I would have to walk him separately from my own doodle because he was so strong.  I knew that positive reinforcement was the way to go.   As far as the walking went I decided that I needed to find some kind of treat that would interest him more then barking and lunging at people & other dogs.  I am going to be brave and tell you what I used.......cheese in a can. 

Yes it is gross and so unhealthy.... but you know what it got his attention a little squirt at a time.  I did not even finish the can before he was so riveted on me and would respond beautifully on our walks.  He became a different dog and soon I was able to walk both doodles.  I had been using my usual healthy snacks as treats and he became bored with them.  I realize this might not work for everyone but I picked this idea up from a dog trainer that works with high strung and/or aggressive dogs.

This is the only time I've had to do that.  I feed my own dog and fosters Orijen and healthy snacks.....just in case you think cheese in a can is a staple in our house...NOT:o)  I wish you the best and keep us posted!

[Gail and Bailey]

Have you ever heard of the product called "Lickety Stick" ?  It is a lickable dog treat.  It comes in a container similar to a roll on deoderant....it is filled with liquid chicken "broth" and you use it like you described your canned cheese.  The dog licks the "roller" and it is like giving a small treat.  Very clean and easy.....not messy as you described the cheese.  I bought it from my dog trainer... it is made by "Pet Safe".....www.petsafe.com.  Give it a try.  It is even made in the USA!!!!!  Just saw that the web site is under construction but this is the number...1-800-732-2677.

[Adina P]

Never too late.  That old adage 'you can't teach an old dog new tricks' is simply UNTRUE when it comes to obedience training.  Unless the dog is crippled in some way and physically can't do what you ask it to, it's never too late.

I tend to be of the opinion that I really don't care about the personality of the trainer as long as he/she can teach me how to get the results I want from my dog.  What is that trainer's track record?  Has she titled any dogs in obedience?  Titling dogs in obedience simply means she can put her money where her mouth is and demonstrate before a few judges that in new environments her dogs can and will do as they have been trained.  It's not a 'competition' where she has to beat other people in order to do well.  It's like a test.  Other obedience letters after a name often only mean the trainer has passed a WRITTEN test---it says little about how well they do in real life with real students and real dogs.  What do past students think?  Have past students gotten their dogs WELL Trained because of the classes?  That is what I find most important.  Ask vets, ask in your local DK group on here, ask groomers...who have they heard does a great job?

[F, Calla & Luca]

For me the personality of the trainer would be important just as it is with most situations particularly involving teaching. There are good trainers who are likeable and pleasant to work with so why not seek one of them out. As I often tell people looking for a doctor, competence and being good with people are important so try to find someone with both. If you have no choice obviously competence wins out.

[Adina P]

Well yes if there's an excellent trainer who is good with people and one who is not...I'd prefer the nice one.  But I want competence above winning personality.

[Barbara B., Sasha & Oliver]

You can train a older dog but you have to be very, very persistant and consistant.  I retrained my 10 year old Shih Tzu to not jump on the couch after her being on the couch for 10 years !!!  I bought new furniture and was not going going to let her up there.  It took about 2 months of constantly putting her on the floor when she jumped up. 

 

When I first got Sasha she would pull like crazy on the leash and we were not enjoying the walks. I brought the gentle leader, she did not like it, and still does not like it but she knows that she will not go for a walk unless she has it on.  When Sasha and I walk together, we are out to get good exercise, when I was training her I would just simply walk real fast for myself to get my heart rate up for a good workout.  So there was no time to socialize, sniff, look around, say hello to other dogs, etc. etc.  Now that she is 2 1/2 she is such a pleasure to walk, she knows I mean business and we are going to walk at a really fast pace, she does not pay no mind to any people, dogs, small critters etc.  She is fully focused on me and what we are doing.  Oliver on the otherhand is a social butterfly and wants to say hello to everyone and everything, he even wants to stop and say hello to the leaf that is blowing in the street.  I am slowly getting him focused on me and what we are doing.  Ollie is 19 months old and still has that "puppy" mentality, plus he is extremely friendly and likes to socialize -LOL.  I am consistant when I walk him and only stop when he needs to pee or poop.  When we are a couple blocks from my house I slow the pace and let him sniff and do what he wants to do, this is his reward for being focused.  I tried a different method of walking Ollie and with the pulling, I would stop every single time he would pull, our walks took a really long time but it was my investment for him to become a good walker.  We are not totally there but we are working on it.  I switched him to the gentle leader and of course he did not like it but he too knows now that we will not walk without it.  He does not like it either but I ignore his fussing and keep walking. 

 

Ollie also had a bad habit of when I brought him inside from being in the back yard.... I would always give him a cookie for coming when I called him.  I would give him the cookie and he would run into the livingroom, jump on the couch and eat it = arrrrghhhh.  I knew I had to break this habit ASAP, both my dogs are allowed on the couch but when it is TV time only.  So when I would call him in, I would give him his cookie and make him sit in the kitchen and eat it.  I did this for months, now he knows that he can eat his cookie any where except for on the couch.  He forgets every once in a while and I see him headed for the couch and I just say "HEY - WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"  he immediately stops and lays down and has his cookie.  I use a firm voice, he knows I mean business. 

 

My doodles are far from perfect believe me.  Ollie has jumping issues and Sasha is a counter surfer but we work on this daily.... hopefully they will get it sooner or later.  My advise is just be persistant, consistant at all times.  Good luck and I know you can do it.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

It is never too late to train your dog.  If your guy is just a normal dog without problems, I don't see anything wrong with loving on him or letting him on the furniture if you want to, but it should be YOUR choice not his. The real secret to training your dog is to choose a method, be consistent and really put in the time and hard work.

There are a variety of training types. Here are some:

Treat training is one - I am not a fan, but it is the most popular one right now.  The down side is that if you don't wean off the treats, the dog only minds for treats. It has been successful for many people.

Clicker training - a reward based training using a clicker or verbal "yes" as the reward.

The reward training where your approval is the reward. 

This type of training varies from you determining the contact with your dog (like your trainer was suggesting no personal snuggles at all apparently forever?)  to ignoring your dog during training at the beginning (this is to train the dog to look to you for cues on what he should do. 

This last one is the training method we used and I really really loved it for our guys because it is no nonsense and direct. In this method you do ignore the dog during the first training sessions, but not during the rest of your day. Some people have accused it of being harsh but it really is teacher based - you show, show, show exactly what you want the dog to do over 120 repetitions,  then you expect the dog to do it when asked.  You correct the dog when they don't - not harshly, not with words, with proper placement.

There are advantages to group classes as well as to individual trainers.  It depends upon the trainer.  Our trainer taught classes - mostly with rescue dogs who did have 'issues' as well as individually.  Clancy is our rescue and we took him to class at age 2 1/2.  He was so eager to please that he really made huge leaps.  Ned had gone through a very poor treat based class when he was young so he had a 'base' of skills.  The rest of our class was made up of 1 small dog, like Ned who already had some basic skills, and   the rest rescues - 2 Pits, an American Bull dog, a German Shepherd, a Doberman, a terrier mix. The Doberman and one Pit moved to private training, the terrier dropped out, the rest turned out AWESOMELY.

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

And in my opinion, once they are trained it isn't doling out affection, they have "earned" it simply by being well mannered dogs. Daisy needs reminders and gets them but her basics are all in place and when they aren't we go in if were playing and we turn around and go home when we are walking. Seems like it works cause if I turn to go in when she won't drop the ball, drop it she does.

It is still frustrating to me when Daisy prefers to listen to DH and not me but I turn my back to her and she understands that I mean business and 9 times out of 10 she comes around.

She should know by now that MOMMY is the boss not DADDY! lol

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

It really doesn't help if you don't agree/like your trainer. My Dh disliked ours more than words can say, but lots of people told us how good she is/ He disagreed.

Word of mouth-pet fairs=web search all good places to start but a lot of places will let you observe a class before you join to see if it fits your needs. It's not too late! Good luck! You are not a bad mom.

[Terra and Max]

You all have been great with your advice/guidance. I really appreciate it. I have spent some time in the Training group tonight and have hope that Max and I can conquer this inability to walk on a leash. Tomorrow is a new day and we are ready to tackle it!

Thanks so much,

Terra 

[Christine & Shelby]

Not too late.... Go for it!   Ask your vet, get recommendations from friends, read some online reviews.... there ARE good trainers out there.   It will be a great experience for both of you!