Training your dog...

I have noticed there have been a couple of threads about taking dogs to trainers, and what not. My question is: How many people train their dogs themselves? I am talking about just general training (sit, stay, laydown, etc.). What are the benifits/drawbacks of having your dog trained by a perfessional?

I ask this because my brothers room mate has a black lab that he bought from a breeder and had it trained by the breeder, and as far as i know he left the dog there a couple of weeks and then went pick it up trained. I just feel that by training your dog on your own you create a bond with the dog that cannot be broken, but also understand that if you dont know what you are doing you can injure or ruin a dog also.

What are some of yall's views on this?

 

I taught Legend all the basics and heel off leash he picked up on his own before I took him to beginner's OB class and intermediate. Now he's in advanced b/c I couldnt get him to heel on leash. But he would walk "loose leash" with the occassional pulling sometimes. I do think that if you don't know what your doing it might confuse the dog or take a long time to train the dog.

 

I think you are right in both ways- We personally train out dogs as you were saying above. Our indoor dog is trained very good and was all done by my b/f. You can point at here and she stops whatever she is doing. I think that it does create a bond. But I can see how some people think a professional trainer is better is well. I think it depends on the dog. Some dogs learn so quick and easy, where some need a little help. (I'm talking about sit, stay that type as well not any other kind if it temperment problems take it to a professional)
jmho

 

What big girl does know...sit, down...night night (go lay down) we taught her, but she is resistant to me on some things and so I was considering taking her to a trainer for her problem areas (Jumping when excited is the biggie)

 

I trained my dog 90% by myself, but we did take a class together when she was younger. When it came time for me to train for things that were outside my sphere of experience, I went to a trainer. But Loki and I train together under the guidance of the trainer. I don't just send her off to have it done. I don't see what kind of sense that makes since a dog is not necessarily going to respond the same to different people, even if they're giving the same commands.

 

Exactly! Working with a professional is great but you should always be involved. Sending a problem dog off and expecting it to come back as an angel and listen to every word is not good.

 

The point of training is to better comunicate with your pet. My dog is well trained and undertands many basic words like slow down, stop, move back, etc. My dog does not do tricks. He is a serious dog. Yet, that does not mean training is out of the question. Whenever you decide on a trainer for your dog you are choosing a trainer for yourself as well. A trainer can teach a dog any trick but without the owner learning them as well, well, you just lost what you paid for. One last thing, when you take a dog out to empty, please remember it is his time. Do not concern yourself if he pulls some, hey, it is his time outside. Let it enjoy itself.

 

for the most part I train all my dogs myself with my kids and wife. It helps so the dogs can listen to commands from me and my wife and my kids aswell.

 

I have somwhat trained my dogs by myself also. They aren't the most obediant (sp) but they do know what to do when told its just a matter of them doing it all the time. I feel that is the hardest part.

 

I taught Azul sit, down, and stay, but after a while we took classes together. Though we had someone teaching both of us, I feel we bonded. I will train my next dog myself, since I feel that I learned many things from taking the class
already.

 

The thing about "professionals" is this, you need to be careful. Make sure THEY know their stuff (and by that I mean have won some tough competitions) and make sure they understand Bulldogs and don't have a prejudice against them. The best trainers are in it for the dogs, NOT the money and can often be found at, say the UKC club or the various sport clubs. Where I live (Pittsburgh) the AKC obedience club has the best trainers.


A good trainer can train YOU on how to train your dog and make things go much faster and smoother.


Watch out of people who are in it for the money, they are often not the best trainers but charge more, thats why obedience clubs and sport clubs are great and can at least point you in the right direction.


And IMO, you should always train your dog yourself, just get someone to help you do it right if you have no experence.

 

I trained my dog on my own. The basics, sit, heel, stay, lay and come. The only problem I have is around new people and dogs he gets distracted at times and trys to do his own thing. After I correct him then he is back on track. The benefits of a training class is socialization and working around distractions and other environments. Most training classes in my area suck and are only in it for your money. They have a class with about 10-15 dogs and only work with yours for about 10 min out of an hour training block. Plus you only go to class one day a week, like every tuesday. The rest is up for you to go back home, practice what you learned and go back to class the next week. Hell you can just sit in on someone elses class, take notes and train your own dog.

 

I train my own dogs to fit my needs. There are variations to each dog as they all have their own character. In most cases the training is as benificial to the owner as to the dog. Most owners could use some training now and then. Not saying any thing negative or bad about them. Even I learn new things during training of dogs. I have observed both good and bad ways of training. If some one has an outstanding dog I like to pay close attention to how they go about training and handling dogs. A good dog is partly due to the owners training so is a ill manored dog. It goes both ways.

 

Training a dog is very easy. Training a person can be a very hard job and fails many times. The dog may know what he is supposed to do but it is the job of the owner to know what to ask their dog to do.

Sending your dog to a proffessional trainer may result in a highly trained dog. That does not mean you know how to handle your dog. When your dog learns, and they will, that you do not know how to handle him, all of the professional training will be for nothing.

Watch a few training sessions. Many times the dog will learn what is expected long before the owner learns. It pays to learn about your dog also. Some will perform just for the satisfaction it gives the owner. These dogs are a pleasure to watch. Some will learn because they are rewarded with food. These along with those taught by force are not fun to watch.

Be very suspuicious of the trainers and handelers that train by either force or food reward. To have a fully trained dog that is fun for you and a pleasure for others to see they should obey commands because they want to please you, the owner.

 

I trained Redhead myself, he knows the basics and I teach him various tricks for the mental exercise, not because I really care whether or not he can "shake hands".

Redhead is not a fast learner, but whether that is because he is slow or under motivated or whether it is because I am a dumb ass I do not know. He is very hard with regard to corrections, that much is sure.