Classes

This forum is all about training and behavior. Everything from potty training to working titles!

Postby Val » December 13th, 2012, 8:17 pm

Are you taking any classes now with your dog?

Lilly and I are about 8 months into Nosework. It is such an amazing activity for fearful/reactive dogs!

What are you doing???? :D
Handle every stressful situation like a dog.
If you can't eat it or hump it.
Pee on it and walk away.
User avatar
Val
Just Whelped
 
Posts: 70
Location: MA

Postby pitbullmamaliz » December 13th, 2012, 8:23 pm

Oooh! We did nosework and Inara is fantastic at it. I am actually planning on teaching her to do cell phone detection for in the prisons.

We were doing rally, and we just did what I fondly called "Sports for Crazy Dogs" - made for reactive dogs to learn to work offleash around other dogs. Fantastic class.
"Remember - every time your dog gets somewhere on a tight leash *a fairy dies and it's all your fault.* Think of the fairies." http://www.positivepetzine.com"

http://www.pitbullzen.com
http://inaradog.wordpress.com
User avatar
pitbullmamaliz
Working out in the buff causes chafing
 
Posts: 15438
Location: Cleveland, OH

Postby Val » December 13th, 2012, 8:36 pm

Lilly is great too! It is so much fun to actually have a class I can take her to.
She is fearful/reactive to both dogs and humans.
At the beginning of the classes the other students couldn't even look at her without her freaking out.
Now she is able to work the room with people in her space.
The most amazing thing I learned was that she wasn't using her nose before. When I would take her out she would just scan the area with her eyes only. She would do her business super quick and run back into the house.
Now when we go out her nose is up and she is sniffing away! She wags her tail and actually wants to explore outside.

Liz what kind of barriers were used in class, were the dogs actually off leash? No way we could ever do that!
Handle every stressful situation like a dog.
If you can't eat it or hump it.
Pee on it and walk away.
User avatar
Val
Just Whelped
 
Posts: 70
Location: MA

Postby pitbullmamaliz » December 13th, 2012, 8:48 pm

Oh it was VERY regulated. There were only three of us and there were double lines of tall visual barriers (gates covered with sheets) in between dogs. Very structured class. And yep, Inara worked off-leash just on the other side of the gate from other dogs. Very exciting!
"Remember - every time your dog gets somewhere on a tight leash *a fairy dies and it's all your fault.* Think of the fairies." http://www.positivepetzine.com"

http://www.pitbullzen.com
http://inaradog.wordpress.com
User avatar
pitbullmamaliz
Working out in the buff causes chafing
 
Posts: 15438
Location: Cleveland, OH

Postby Tubular Toby » December 14th, 2012, 1:02 am

I wish I lived in a bigger city and had these options! I'd have to drive an hour one way to take classes like these and unfortunately, my car (and budget and time) won't allow that. We just do as much as we can at home! I would love to learn how to start nosework, but it seems like having a mentor would help immensely.
-Kristen
Owned by Totally Tubular Toby

Buy the ticket, take the ride

http://tubular-toby.blogspot.com/
User avatar
Tubular Toby
Confident Young Bully
 
Posts: 521
Location: Stillwater, Oklahoma

Postby SisMorphine » December 15th, 2012, 7:13 pm

I haven't done any in years since I haven't had the time to drive to take classes with my friends. Maybe the next round I will drag Teeny to (Blue still can't do anything that gets him excited). I miss agility . . . which I won't be able to do again until the next dog. I also miss bitework. Lame.
"All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another." -Anatole France
SisMorphine
They're like service dogs gone wrong.
 
Posts: 9233
Location: PR

Postby TheRedQueen » December 16th, 2012, 1:50 pm

no classes lately...but always training the dogs. If classes weren't so goddamn expensive around here, I'd plug the dogs into some just for grins and giggles...but I'm not paying upwards of $150 for stuff I can teach them myself. And since I have dog-dog socialization every day, I really don't need the distractions like that.
"I don't have any idea if my dogs respect me or not, but they're greedy and I have their stuff." -- Patty Ruzzo

"Dogs don't want to control people. They want to control their own lives." --John Bradshaw
User avatar
TheRedQueen
I thought I lost my Wiener... but then I found him.
 
Posts: 7184
Location: Maryland

Postby Val » December 16th, 2012, 5:17 pm

I'm able to take classes for 1/2 off. I get credits for every training class I assist/help with at the shelter I volunteer at. I like going to class not only for my dogs but it's fun to be around dog people :dance:
Handle every stressful situation like a dog.
If you can't eat it or hump it.
Pee on it and walk away.
User avatar
Val
Just Whelped
 
Posts: 70
Location: MA

Postby call2arms » December 16th, 2012, 5:31 pm

If I wasn't so hungover today (just started eating), we would have headed to agility practice. Our classes are over for the holidays, and we'regraduating from novice to intermediate when we star tagain! Can't wait, we both love it.
“Your birth is a mistake you'll spend your whole life trying to correct.” Chuck Palahniuk


I love pus but I hate people.

I can say words like undifferentiated gonads now!
User avatar
call2arms
Boys Stink
 
Posts: 2349
Location: sunshine, lollipops and rainbows everywhere...

Postby furever_pit » December 22nd, 2012, 12:23 am

Does club count? Both Gigz and Raven recently started with a PSA club where they are working on obedience and protection.

Gigz recently started narcotics detection as well. I would love to find an agility class for Raven and myself a few nights a week.
User avatar
furever_pit
Supremely Bully
 
Posts: 1138
Location: NC

Postby FAB dogs » December 23rd, 2012, 10:35 pm

I solved the paying for classes problem by bartering. Now I spend two hours a week cleaning the building in exchange for classes. I occasionally assist with classes to take advantage of their teach one/take one option. And somehow (I’m still trying to figure out how and when) I became the webmaster for the club’s website. At this rate, I may need a fourth dog to use up all of the hours I’ve earned!

Fenway has been through a four week family dog class, an eight week family dog class, and has moved on to agility. He loves agility but I’m slightly less than thrilled with the “you must have a purebred dog and a practice course in your backyard to be worthy of training assistance” attitude, so we may take a break from agility when it starts up again in the Spring. I’m looking at getting him into a family dog plus class next month followed by CGC. I’m also considering doing some recreational weight pulling with him. Not too many places around here to compete, but I figure a weight pulling harness and a small garden cart might give him something to work towards.

Avery’s been doing agility for years but with the above mentioned attitude, we may look into something else for her too. We did a little rally a few years back and we may try that again. I’m also looking into CDSP since there seems to be some interest in it around here. I’d love to do some flyball with her but can’t justify the hour long drive to get there in a 13 year old car with 185k miles on it.

Brogan is currently in a Scent Games class and loving it. He’s such a soft, cautious dog that agility is more than he can handle at the moment. We did some rally, but it was difficult keeping his nose off the ground. So we tried the scent class and it’s more his speed. I love hearing his nose going at top speed. He’s not too interested in smelling out the tree scents, but he’s a champ at finding the hidden treats. He’s even going through tunnels on his own thanks to this class. I may have to get the other two into it in the near future.
Tina
Avery - Southpawz Elf Queen, CGC- Siberian Psycho Terrier
Brogan - Southpawz Mystery Man, CGC - Ephelis Spaniel
Fenway - Southpawz 4 Yawkey Way -Bull Collie
And the crazy cats
User avatar
FAB dogs
Just Whelped
 
Posts: 70

Postby amalie79 » December 28th, 2012, 2:49 pm

River is no longer in classes, but always in training for rally-- hopin to begin Excellent in the spring. Luna may start agility in spring...and there is always the possibility that she will go back to rally.

Next Sunday, Robin goes back to her first class in 2 years-- Therapeutic Agility (Agility for Confidence). SUUUUPER excited for her!! It may lead to VALOUR Agility. :)

Andre is new and needs basic manners, which we will do on our own for now. If I can get his impulse control in check (food monster and still a bit mouthy), I'm thinking he might make a nice therapy dog-- I just want to do that when I'll actually have time to, ya know, actually take him places to DO the therapy. I don't want to be one of those people who gets a "therapy" dog 'cos it's cool to say but doesn't actually do any work with the dog. People respond really extraordinarily to him, and he is relatively mellow, so I think it would suit him well.
"In these bodies, we will live; in these bodies we will die.
Where you invest your love, you invest your life." --Marcus Mumford

--Amalie
User avatar
amalie79
Loyally Bully
 
Posts: 633


Return to Training & Behavior

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Majestic-12 [Bot]