Obedience class tactics

[Kris and Sawyer]

Ok, help me out here. Sawyer just started hs classes. Second class last night. I'm really struggling because the trainer is huge on giving the dogs "pops" of the leash. Dog's not doing what he's supposed to? Pop the leash. Dog is barking? Pop the leash. Not corrective enough? Pop the leash and yell at the same time. Teach come: let the dog walk away from you on leash and call him back, if he doesn't come, yank the leash and say come. She comes very highly recommended, as won all kinds of awards, especially for training blue tick hounds (hard to train). I guess I've just aways used positive reinforcement and treats. And when I tried using the "pop" the leash to correct for heeling Sawyer became unruly on our walk, jumping, biting me, ripped my sweater!! He's never done that before! She told me that he was trying to exert his dominance for me correcting him. Are we on the right path?

[BG and Gavin]

I am not against giving corrections as a way to communicate what you want.  Purely positive can be confusing (I think) so treat to reward and correction to correct seems logical to me.  The bottom line however is that you need to do what is comfortable for you because if you are not buying into the program, chances are you won't be consistent and effective.  I would have a discussion with the trainer.  A good trainer should listen to your concerns and make you feel comfortable.  Keep us updated.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I also use a system of reward and correction with Tara. She gets rewards when she is learning a new behavior or we are reinforcing an old behavior and she does it properly. If she knows a behavior and is just refusing to do it she gets a correction. When Tara was young at one point I switched from reward only to correction only training and I got the same result you are getting with Sawyer. I think it confused and scared her because she didn't understand why she was being "punished".  She became really resistant and started trying to bite me too. And she had never done it before either. It seemed to me like I was correcting her for not doing something that she didn't know how to do yet.  So that was when I started using my current system blending both approaches and we are both doing well with it.

Also, I think certain dogs respond differently to different approaches to training and you need to find what best suits the two of you. Tara is a smart and sensitive girl and it doesn't take much for her to "get it" when we are training. Once she understands she wants to to what is asked of her (especially if treats are involved-LOL!). She's not strong willed at all and doesn't need to be strong-armed into changing her behavior.  Even though this trainer comes highly recommended, her approach may not be the best for you and Sawyer.

[Adina P]

Is it possible that the trainer is not explaining things correctly or you are misunderstanding? Corrections need to be done properly or they are confusing.  Does the dog know what you want it to do?  Is the dog taught what a command means before a correction?  Are all corrections exactly the same?  For example, when I correct for the dog not lying down on command or not sitting on command, these two corrections don't look the same.  Same for being out of heel position..each of these can't be a 'leash pop' because it doesn't help the dog know what to do.

[Kyoko]

The trianers I had for both of my dogs ( one private dog school owner / one humane society classes) were positive reinforcement only. We never used the correction, or saying "No", or anything like that. Both trainers taught me to teach the behavior I want by marking the behaviors with clicker or the marker word like "yes" and treat. I think they both learned well with only that. When they do not comply / fail to perform the behavior, I simply break them from the command which they did not complied to and give the comand again. For example; "Sit" --> dog does not sit --> "OK" to break the command, refocus and say "sit" again. So, it's not "sit, sit! " ... "SIT!" I am not very familiar with the training method using the correction since again, neother one of my trainers were using the correction...But if that is making the dog frustrated or fearful, I would have a good discussion with the trainer and discuss how you feel about it. I think if the trainer was a good ethical trainer, she should give you a name of the trainers who she recommend whom she and you may feel as a better fit for Sawyer....

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I'm really surprised that any trainer would tell you to "yell" at the dog as part of a correction.  That just creates more excitement and confusion.  You want to be calm, clear in your commands, and consistent in how you react.  I do think corrections can have a place in training....but so does reward.  I think we need to teach a dog what we want from them...and then it's up to them.  If they do what we ask they get a reward (treat, praise, affection).  If they don't there needs to be some type of reaction.  Positive only trainers withhold the reward....I personally do give a quick leash correction.  This helps the dog to be clear about expectations and consequences.  I would suggest that Sawyer was confused by this training session and that's why he exhibited those behaviors.  I think you need a private discussion with this trainer to share your concerns.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I confess that I sometimes yell at my dogs but Luca's trainer emphasized talking in a firm voice without getting emotional or yelling.

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

What would bother me here is "huge on giving the dog "pops..." and yelling. My experience has taught me that positive rewards and corrections both have their place, but the main emphasis has to be on building a foundation through focus and positive reinforcement. The pup needs to know what he's expected to do before he can understand what he's doing wrong. For example, to teach "come," the pup first had to know sit and stay.  Gradually we increased the distance for stay and then using a long line, introduced "come" with voice and a hand signal.  The pup naturally wanted to return to you for a treat or a hug, If not, you gently "reeled him in."  Everybody in the class got the idea pretty quickly. Over time, you practice in different places. And don't expect perfection from a pup. Using the above method, I think my pup would have been confused and then he would have shut down. I would talk to your trainer.  Her experience with blue tick hounds may not be the right approach for Sawyer. Good luck!