Dog Community

Obedience has begun!

Posted : 4/13/2006 12:29:11 PM

Hi everyone,
I can barely move my left arm after the obedience class cause the lady made me correct Roo so many times.

I'll write more tomorrow if I'm not deathly sick. The lesson was outside in the freezing cold and my Dad and I were both frozen after it was over.

But first, just let me ask you this:

Ok, background: we get there and there are about 16 dogs there and they are ALL puppies!

I did NOT sign up for a puppy class so I'm assuming that I am NOT in a puppy class, right?

Anyway, so obviously Roo is the biggest dog there with the loudest bark but all the other puppies were barking too except she kept saying to me, "Carter, you have to correct with ALL YOUR STRENGTH when he barks!"

And she didn't say it to any of the other owners.

Then at the end of the lesson, she said, "Since it's so cold we'll stop now but next week, after the lesson, all the PUPPIES will get to play together."

Stink eye.

She purposely made it a point to say "puppies."
Now, honest opinion: don't you think Roo should be able to participate? I'm paying this ridiculous amount of money too and if she didn't want a grown dog, she should have told me and NOT taken my money, right?

Oh but she thinks Roo is soooo aggressive (this is what she said to me after our individual lesson in which time he did everything she asked of him and when she was talking to me, he just layed on the ground by my feet. In addition to her saying he was aggressive, she also said he was depressed because he was laying at my feet) so he can't play with the other dogs. In fact, when a two month old boxer was barking and lunging at him, he was pressing himself so hard against my legs to get away from the puppy!

Seriously, the point of obedience class is not only to learn commands but also to socialize dogs and just cause he's not a puppy doesn't mean he shouldn't be socialized as much as possible. That's what she said herself!!!

I didn't stay to talk to her because about 6 other owners were waiting to talk to her because their dogs were not doing any of the commands that we were supposed to know before tonight (which Roo did very well except for one!).

Anyway, sorry, just wanted to vent. [

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Mic

Posted : 4/13/2006 12:49:39 PM

I would call this trainer and get a refund. The list of things wrong with this class is about 30 items long. Things are not going to get better.

GET OUT NOW!

cyclefiend2000

Posted : 4/13/2006 1:05:44 PM

i feel your pain. we had amelia in an obedience class last year, and it didnt go well at all (and they wouldnt refund the money). we went and paid the first night, which was kind of a meet and great (no dogs only handlers and the trainer). they made a big point of getting everyone to pay that night and saying that there were no refunds after that night. i should have went with my gut and gotten the crap out of there, but my wife was really wanting the obedience because amelia was jumping and nipping her in the mornings before she left for work. so we paid and i went to one class. amelia hated it and so did i. the saddest part was, after that experience i was really hesitant about trying anything else after that for quite someitme. but we recently completed an 8 wk clicker training course. both the dogs and my wife and i really enjoyed the class.

mudpuppy

Posted : 4/13/2006 2:39:38 PM

there are so many better ways to train dogs than by "corrections". Get your poor dog out of there. Forfeit the money if you must.

Mic

Posted : 4/13/2006 4:22:38 PM

If you need help getting a refund out of a trainer I can explain how....

Put this money towards a better class. Do some research this time.

Carter

Posted : 4/13/2006 4:37:06 PM

Mic,
I did do research but as I mentioned many times before, I could not go to the other trainer in my area due to the kennel cough vaccinations she requires and the severe adverse reactions my dog has to pretty much anything.
Like Cyclefiend said, the trainers here are non-refundable. I don't believe there's anyway to get the money back. I'll just forfeit it.

Mic

Posted : 4/13/2006 5:55:03 PM

I would request the refund anyway, and be very honest about why you want your money back. Most good trainers like feed back...positive or negative. This trainer may not even be aware of the mistakes he or she is making. If the trainer says no I would report them to the BBB. Some trainers actually count on people signing up, paying, and dropping out.

Most people check the BBB before selecting a trainer, and anyone with much sense is going to give you your money back to resolve it. Keeping your $500(or however much) isn't worth the bad publicity.

What I meant a far as research was make sure you watch a few classes before you sign up.

Carter

Posted : 4/13/2006 6:22:18 PM

Mrgmfoster,
2 questions:
What is the BBB?
What mistakes is the trainer making? I know you said there are about 30 but seeing as how I have never had to take my other dogs to obedience, she has told me "this is how it is done in training." basically, what I got from that is that I don't know what is wrong and what is right.
She actually trains police/drug dogs as well.

Berner_girl

Posted : 4/13/2006 6:51:59 PM

How big a dog is Roo? I would say that one of the mistakes she is making is telling you to correct him with all your strength when he barks unless he is a monster dog (120 lbs+), in which case her logic might be explainable. Physically punishing a dog for barking would be like slapping somebody every time they raised their eyebrow. (Read: "What the h*** did I do?")

The biggest of her mistakes, IMO, is not communicating effectively with a client. Making you feel unwelcome in a class and like you're not getting too much out of it is not a good policy for a trainer. If you can't find a good trainer in your area (try apdt.com) then do it by the book (quite a few books, preferrably, and check out the vids on clickertrainusa.com).

BBB is the Better Business Bureau.

agilebasenji

Posted : 4/13/2006 7:19:22 PM

If you can't do a class setting can you do a few private lessons? While this may cost more, you will probably progress faster and spend less, or the same $, in a shorter amount of time. Of course you have to find a good trainer first . . .

Carter

Posted : 4/13/2006 7:40:31 PM

BBB, of course!! Whoops! I was thinking in a strictly dog sense. Sorry about that. [

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Roo is about 85 lbs. I am really short. All the other dogs are babies, of course, so their owners have to bend over to show them the treat while we're heeling but I have to hold my treat up by my shoulder. I think she thinks because Roo is big and I am short I am totally out of control which is not the case.
I agree with you though about her making me feel not wanted or as though we're a nuisance or a threat or something. [>:]