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by Freda on 27 May 2011 - 13:05
I have just started taking my 24 month old GSD to a trainer hoping for some behavioral issue help. He says he is a police officer and has CPSO on his card. I am curious what that means. He also says he is a "nationally certified trainer". is there national certification? card doesnt say through what. I suppose I should have asked more before I signed up. Any insight would be appreciated.
by brynjulf on 27 May 2011 - 14:05
Dog training is currently not regulated by the government in the US or Canada. Anyone can take an online course and be certifed as a Master Trainer.
That being said he could be
certified through his police agency or a dog training school he attended.
Almost all of the papers we dog trainers have are from schools we attended.( and these are only as good as the schools attended...) All of my memberships are paid for. For example I am a member of Nadoi and CIPDT. But I pay to be certified through them. It really isnt an example of my training abilities. You could fill in the paper work, send a check and be certified as well. (not Nadoi they are tough!!!)
Pick a trainer who is actively involved in dog sport, schutzhund, AKC, herding. They may not even hold a "certificate". These trainers keep up with the latest trends in training and are always expanding their knowlege base. For example i will be working with Michael Ellis this Fall and Pat Brown John in a couple of weeks. A good trainer NEVER stops learning. Ask for references, watch him train a dog and last but not least watch him train another dog and client. If he is not willing to have you watch him train a dog, walk away. I ALWAYS have new clients watch me with another client. Hopefully this helps :)
That being said he could be
certified through his police agency or a dog training school he attended.
Almost all of the papers we dog trainers have are from schools we attended.( and these are only as good as the schools attended...) All of my memberships are paid for. For example I am a member of Nadoi and CIPDT. But I pay to be certified through them. It really isnt an example of my training abilities. You could fill in the paper work, send a check and be certified as well. (not Nadoi they are tough!!!)
Pick a trainer who is actively involved in dog sport, schutzhund, AKC, herding. They may not even hold a "certificate". These trainers keep up with the latest trends in training and are always expanding their knowlege base. For example i will be working with Michael Ellis this Fall and Pat Brown John in a couple of weeks. A good trainer NEVER stops learning. Ask for references, watch him train a dog and last but not least watch him train another dog and client. If he is not willing to have you watch him train a dog, walk away. I ALWAYS have new clients watch me with another client. Hopefully this helps :)
by beetree on 27 May 2011 - 14:05
Acronym | Definition |
---|---|
CPSO | College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario |
CPSO | Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office |
CPSO | Cataloging Policy & Support Office (Library of Congress) |
CPSO | Contractor Program Security Officer |
CPSO | Community Police Support Officers (UK) |
CPSO | Certified Patient Safety Officer |
CPSO | Cooperative Particle Swarm Optimization |
CPSO | Chaotic Particle Swarm Optimization |
CPSO | Combat Protection System Outrider |
CPSO | Caldwell Parish Sheriff's Office (Louisiana) |
Do Any of these sound like they make sense?

by Slamdunc on 27 May 2011 - 17:05
Freda,
He probably works for a Sheriff's Office. He could be a certified trainer through one of the Police K-9 certifying agencies like the NAPWDA or another similar certifying association.
He probably works for a Sheriff's Office. He could be a certified trainer through one of the Police K-9 certifying agencies like the NAPWDA or another similar certifying association.

by Doberdoodle on 28 May 2011 - 05:05
Now how is a police officer going to be the best trainer for "behavioral help," sounds like a behavior specialist/trainer would be better, or you should clarify what his experience and techinques are for behavior, not just obedience tasks. What is his company? Maybe you can look it up. Getting references is good, including from a vet, colleague, and clients.
by Vixen on 28 May 2011 - 10:05
Hello Freda, This is based on whether you are taking your dog for specific behavioural help, and therefore paying an appropriate fee for this help and advice. It maybe that you have merely changed Trainers, and hoping his credentials will improve your dog. BUT if you are paying more for behavioural input, (and sometimes this can be quite expensive as well) then I feel you have a right to know and see his 'work'. Similar to having a posh expensive gown made by a Dress-maker, you would want to see some of her creative gowns, not merely knowledge that she can sew!
With a Behaviourist, this can be awkward to see their 'work' - HOWEVER, to ascertain the extent of his knowledge and understanding of dogs, you could ask for a brief response to the following three scenarios - (You could always politely explain that you have a choice of a couple of Behaviourists, and would like to decide based on their responses to the following straight-forward situations).......
Firstly, How would they prevent a dog from following the Owner around the home. (The dog is not suffering from separation anxiety, happy to be left when needed etc) - but constantly following, and this bothers and frustrates the Owner.
Secondly, Two bitches who fight: How to deal with it? (Understanding dog behaviour, he would need to ask something, in order to discover whether there was hope or not in this situation).
Lastly, If an Owner were to say that their dog objected to being touched in just one certain place on his/her body (and health reasons were ruled out) - how would the Behaviourist explain why this was to the Owner?
Regards,
Vixen
With a Behaviourist, this can be awkward to see their 'work' - HOWEVER, to ascertain the extent of his knowledge and understanding of dogs, you could ask for a brief response to the following three scenarios - (You could always politely explain that you have a choice of a couple of Behaviourists, and would like to decide based on their responses to the following straight-forward situations).......
Firstly, How would they prevent a dog from following the Owner around the home. (The dog is not suffering from separation anxiety, happy to be left when needed etc) - but constantly following, and this bothers and frustrates the Owner.
Secondly, Two bitches who fight: How to deal with it? (Understanding dog behaviour, he would need to ask something, in order to discover whether there was hope or not in this situation).
Lastly, If an Owner were to say that their dog objected to being touched in just one certain place on his/her body (and health reasons were ruled out) - how would the Behaviourist explain why this was to the Owner?
Regards,
Vixen
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