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by hodie on 04 March 2010 - 21:03
Rexy,
Different clubs do things in different ways. And I must say that in some cases, I have wasted a lot of personal time and club time trying to help someone who was not serious about the sport. There are a lot of reasons why a given dog may be inappropriate around other dogs. And most can be improved dramatically in my opinion and my experience. But there are some that cannot be helped. How to know the difference is the trick and one, even experienced, can't always be absolutely 100% sure that all the time spent will be productive.
What I can say is this: no dog learns to quiet down in an intimidating situation or a busy or noisy situation. So starting first in a quiet environment is important.
Secondly, what I always have told people is this: Your dog does not need to like other people, or like other dogs, BUT it must be obedient and under control at all times. Sometimes people need to work on obedience, again alone with a good instructor/trainer, for a while before taking a dog out on a crazy field. I know clubs here who have many more people out on the field than I would allow, and they do ok. BUT, in general, most of those people are very experienced and the dogs have a lot of training too.
My bent is making the situation safe for everyone and every dog. That being said, at any given time, it is just possible that a dog will get loose or something will happen where two dogs are closer than perhaps one would like. Again, being a strong handler, always alert, careful and conscientious is very important for ALL club members. Having club leadership that makes safety a priority is critical. We rarely had young children around, but when we did, they too were carefully supervised so that they were also under control at all times.
The old saying that a ounce of prevention .......... is my motto. If your dog is having trouble, I suggest that you ask one of the club leaders for help. Secondly, ask for some private time. In my club, we could meet ahead of or after or on another day. And we would accommodate a person with a dog who was bothered by commotion by moving off the field, both humans and dogs. We wanted everyone to be successful, and that means there must be some room for flexibility. But there can be and should be no compromise about safety of all concerned in my opinion.
Another suggestion is for you to work alone with the dog. If you want to PM me here, feel free, and I will be glad to talk more to you about what your dogs does and does not do and how you might address it.
In the end, some clubs give rookies a hard time. It can be difficult to be new in a club, for a lot of reasons. Some are valid, most not. So if you are not comfortable in the club you are attending the other choice is to call other clubs and see if you can visit. Be sure to ask whether you may bring the dog or not. Tell them that you are looking for some help with your dog, first and foremost, so that it is not so upset when other dogs are close by. Then ask if they can work with you in some graduated fashion to help you resolve the issue. If they say "no", then you can cross them off the list. If you let me know where you live, I may also be able to give you some suggestions of someone who could help you privately.
Done in a good, safe and mentoring environment, SchH is really fun, for both the handler and the dog. Everyone, handler and clubs, has the responsibility to try to make it so. Some are more successful than others. As I said, many would disagree with me about how I conducted my club, suggesting that it was about "control". Call it what you will. We trained on my own property so it also made it easier to control the situation. We had many successful events, people made progress and achieved and we never had anyone injured by a dog or a dog injured in a fight. I count
Different clubs do things in different ways. And I must say that in some cases, I have wasted a lot of personal time and club time trying to help someone who was not serious about the sport. There are a lot of reasons why a given dog may be inappropriate around other dogs. And most can be improved dramatically in my opinion and my experience. But there are some that cannot be helped. How to know the difference is the trick and one, even experienced, can't always be absolutely 100% sure that all the time spent will be productive.
What I can say is this: no dog learns to quiet down in an intimidating situation or a busy or noisy situation. So starting first in a quiet environment is important.
Secondly, what I always have told people is this: Your dog does not need to like other people, or like other dogs, BUT it must be obedient and under control at all times. Sometimes people need to work on obedience, again alone with a good instructor/trainer, for a while before taking a dog out on a crazy field. I know clubs here who have many more people out on the field than I would allow, and they do ok. BUT, in general, most of those people are very experienced and the dogs have a lot of training too.
My bent is making the situation safe for everyone and every dog. That being said, at any given time, it is just possible that a dog will get loose or something will happen where two dogs are closer than perhaps one would like. Again, being a strong handler, always alert, careful and conscientious is very important for ALL club members. Having club leadership that makes safety a priority is critical. We rarely had young children around, but when we did, they too were carefully supervised so that they were also under control at all times.
The old saying that a ounce of prevention .......... is my motto. If your dog is having trouble, I suggest that you ask one of the club leaders for help. Secondly, ask for some private time. In my club, we could meet ahead of or after or on another day. And we would accommodate a person with a dog who was bothered by commotion by moving off the field, both humans and dogs. We wanted everyone to be successful, and that means there must be some room for flexibility. But there can be and should be no compromise about safety of all concerned in my opinion.
Another suggestion is for you to work alone with the dog. If you want to PM me here, feel free, and I will be glad to talk more to you about what your dogs does and does not do and how you might address it.
In the end, some clubs give rookies a hard time. It can be difficult to be new in a club, for a lot of reasons. Some are valid, most not. So if you are not comfortable in the club you are attending the other choice is to call other clubs and see if you can visit. Be sure to ask whether you may bring the dog or not. Tell them that you are looking for some help with your dog, first and foremost, so that it is not so upset when other dogs are close by. Then ask if they can work with you in some graduated fashion to help you resolve the issue. If they say "no", then you can cross them off the list. If you let me know where you live, I may also be able to give you some suggestions of someone who could help you privately.
Done in a good, safe and mentoring environment, SchH is really fun, for both the handler and the dog. Everyone, handler and clubs, has the responsibility to try to make it so. Some are more successful than others. As I said, many would disagree with me about how I conducted my club, suggesting that it was about "control". Call it what you will. We trained on my own property so it also made it easier to control the situation. We had many successful events, people made progress and achieved and we never had anyone injured by a dog or a dog injured in a fight. I count
by hodie on 05 March 2010 - 00:03
Continued from above....:
that as success!
Good luck.
that as success!
Good luck.
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