NePoPo ... Really?? - Page 1

Is this really new and revolutionary??  I have trouble delivering a reward fast enough and I am fast .. so now I am supposed to handle an electric collar and then deliver a reward following the collar stim??  My experience with electric collars is that they are useful in correcting some things but not others and the use of an electric collar can create problems just as easily as correcting them.  I have never heard of this supposed guru of dog training and now he claims to be father of modern dog training .. Really????  Sounds like another "Dog Whisperer" that is selling "sham wows" to me.  Links below and his claim to fame.

This is a one stop resource for Bart Bellon®'s dog seminars and information about Bart Bellon®'s NePoPo® Dog Training System. Bart Bellon® is the father (or now grandfather) of modern dog training. His NePoPo® system is revolutionary. Bart gives seminars and workshops around the world. The Bart Bellon® NePoPo® Training School is open in January of 2015.

http://www.bartbellonseminars.com/

 

 

I'm not saying I agree with the thing at all or am going to rush out and buy one, but if you've never heard of Bart Bellon you've been under a rock for a little while. 

Perhaps .. now I see Bart who has registered his name (what a laugh .. Bart Simpson is in trouble) has invented and patented flyball without a ball .. If this guy is the grandfather of modern dog training then I like staying under my rock .. much warmer than outside at the moment.  It seems to me that what he claims he has done falls very short of reality and his methods are all borrowed from others which is what all dog trainers do and have always done.  These gurus come and go .. I don't see anything new or revolutionary in his methods .. more of what everyone has done for the last 50 years.  It seems to me it is mastery of the methods and understanding of the dogs and what method they need is what makes a great trainer.  On top of that mastery of the method you need a great trainer who is a great teacher and that is much more difficult.  Winning a couple of National Championships in Belgian Ring does not make him a good teacher however and it does not mean that his methods are sound for all dogs or disciplines .. there is more to dog training than biting sports.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbeu8mZxWkM

The handler in the video above is using a clicker in addition to the klank-klank touch pad.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xArLA8wyFFg

I am going back under my rock until spring but for those who don't know better NePoPo is nothing new and Bart is not the father, grandfather, uncle or aunt of modern dog training.

 

 

bubba, Bellon's is only 'new' if your definition of the word means within a quarter century or more.  But let's face it---there's really nothing 'new' in dog training; everything that's touted as such is just repackaged, tarted up with a few catchy buzz-words, and then tied in with 'revolutionary' training tools allegedly invented by the latest huckster of the genre. That's not to say that these folks don't have any real dog training talents--be it Bellon or anyone else; some of them are just better at marketing themselves, and/or are more driven to do so, than others with equal skills.

 

Bubba, not that I don't agree with your general drift ...

there IS far more to dog training than bite sports,  etc;

nothing new under the sun !   But Jenni was right about

your rock :  I've been using this board for 4 or 5 years

and the number of times the WL members have mentioned

or recommended Bart B  as a notable trainer is legion.

I don't know how 'his' methodology squares up in the great

scheme of things - I never needed to investigate and use it.

But I honestly do not see how any one could have missed

all references to him ... 

I had the honor of going to Bart belon's facility about 15 years ago and his training ''wowed'' me. I was not a novice back then. he is worth learning from even if you only get one more tool. A wise man learns from everybody.

My personal problem with these "seminar" guys is different. I don´t question their knowledge ( they already proofed that they are able to train successfully ) - but I question the necessity for seminars like this. It´s about "perfection" and "points", "normal" people having fun for years with their "normal" dogs suddenly try to think like professional dog trainers, but their own dogs don´t change mentally. They pay a lot of money, and at the end they are frustrated, because they don´t own a dog able to participate nationally, no matter which training ( and a lot of good dogs are not made for the podium ). It´s about sport only, and I personally met several handlers, who ( after a seminar ) sold their dog, looking for the next ( better ) piece of sports equipment.
That said as long as people train to the highest level they are able to achieve with their own dog, I´m fine. They are able to learn a lot from these seminars, but they shouldn´t forget about the reason, why they bought a dog in the first place.

Interesting point, Susie. I hadn't thought of it quite like that, but along similar lines. It seems like people think because they watch all the DVDs, that they can train like such and such trainer, when in fact, they cannot, they haven't the experience or outright talent more often than not, but they think they're doing everything in the video or what the seminar taught them, and then they blame the dog when it doesn't turn out like Bernhard's or Bart's or Michael's dog. Well....I don't care how good a teacher someone is, there are things a skiller trainer/handler does that are sooo subtle and even subconscious and they all contribute to the success of the team. A novice "trying this at home" is not going  even see the subtleties, let alone be able to mimic them well enough to be of benefit to their dog. Then, the dog is having some behavioral problems perhaps or is challenging them, whatever, and they are in denial that they are creating the problem because "I train exactly like <insert famous name here>". Uh, no. No, you don't. It leads to a lot of unnecessary frustration, imo, when a good, practical, experienced trainer working with them regularly can do more good because they can see the handler's errors, which a DVD player cannot. 

Susie's post: "My personal problem with these "seminar" guys is different. I don´t question their knowledge ( they already proofed that they are able to train successfully ) - but I question the necessity for seminars like this. It´s about "perfection" and "points", "normal" people having fun for years with their "normal" dogs suddenly try to think like professional dog trainers, but their own dogs don´t change mentally. They pay a lot of money, and at the end they are frustrated, because they don´t own a dog able to participate nationally, no matter which training ( and a lot of good dogs are not made for the podium ). It´s about sport only, and I personally met several handlers, who ( after a seminar ) sold their dog, looking for the next ( better ) piece of sports equipment.
That said as long as people train to the highest level they are able to achieve with their own dog, I´m fine. They are able to learn a lot from these seminars, but they shouldn´t forget about the reason, why they bought a dog in the first place."

Susie, that is the very best composed statement regarding the topic of training I have ever come across. You outline the very reasons I am reluctant, and more often than not, decline letting my pups go to people who want to do sport. It takes a person who wants the dog first, and high achievement last. Not that I don't have pups capable, WITH THE GOOD TRAINERS, to achieve high scores, but most people are not as good as the dog.....tghen the dog is blamed, dumped, and on to the next one...over and over again. One of my dogs just made ipo1 with their trainer/handler a couple weeks ago making high score in trial and 100 points in tracking at an unfamiliar club in horrible weather. This is only his second sch dog he raised and trained himself, his first also one of my puppies. But, he is not the person with unrealistic expectation who goes to one seminar after another seeking the magic bullet. He accomplished the work by training the two gsd the way the individual dogs required, as they are completely different in personality and drives. Dog first!

A DVD or a seminar is not supposed to make you a wiz, it is supposed to open your mind and maybe even teach a couple of things, not replace solid training. Bart did not invent E collars or marker training, he simply put it together in a way that can be applied by those who study and understand the method. His seminars are a great learning experience and no one can deny that he is one, if not the top trainer on the planet today. As far as the quality of dogs, he has no control over any of that, if you are a serious competitor, you already know what type of dog you need, if you are a club level, lets have fun kind of person who may be learning and some day move up, you should know what kind of dog you need for that too.

Jenni is right, very few people have the natural talent and especially the time to dedicate to train a dog to the level that Bart is able to train a dog at.