Dog training
A class for the Boy Scout dog care merit
badge
Adults: please read these and share them with your child.
1) No choke collars, pinch collars, prong collars, or shock boxes allowed. Limited slip nylon martingale style collars are okay, as are buckle collars, gentle leaders, harnesses, and haltis. A clicker will be needed for the last class. (PetSmart has them available for a buck or two)
2) No aggressive dogs. A dog that is aggressive towards other dogs or towards people needs very serious professional help ASAP. This class is NOT appropriate for that. If your dog is aggressive towards people or other dogs and you bring him/her your child will be asked to leave immediately, and no merit badge will be awarded. If you have an aggressive dog and bring him/her to an approved instructor I will award the merit badge.
3) Dogs should be at least 5 months old. This is not a puppy class.
4) If you have a bitch in heat do NOT bring her to class. Your child should still attend class, and still train her at home. Your child will still get a merit badge.
5) If your dog is ill your child can come to class without her/him. If you child is ill do not come to class, we will schedule a make-up.
6) Under NO conditions should your dog be hit (unless it is attacking someone). Anyone who hits, whips, kicks, or otherwise physically punishes a dog during class will be asked to leave immediately and no merit badge will be awarded.
7) Your child will be expected to practice with your dog at home at least once a day for three days for at least 10 minutes each week for a total of 30 minutes per week. This is a bare minimum; ideally, your child should practice with your dog every day you are not in class for 20 minutes. Several short training sessions are far preferable to one long one.
8) At least one parent per class (not one parent per student) MUST stay and observe the class to be in compliance with the 2-deep leadership rule. If your household has more than one dog a parent or other family member may bring them for training IF they agree to do the homework!
9) My goal is to teach your child how to train your dog; the merit badge is peripheral.
10) Please do not allow your dog to be trained off leash unless you are in an enclosed area.
11) Please bring a record FROM YOUR VET of your dog's current vaccinations prior to the first training class and give the record to Dr. Debbie Link. If you forget the note from your vet you will not be allowed to continue. Debbie Link must approve the vaccination record of every dog coming to class. NO EXCEPTIONS
12) I need to have telephone numbers for everyone planning on attending prior to the first class so that I can call up if the weather requires a cancellation.
13) Please be certain your child dresses warmly. 30 minutes of class work outside can get surprisingly cold in April.
1) Equipment: You are free to purchase equipment and treat anywhere you want. I recommend www.moongazer.com. This site is owned by one of my mentors, Lisa McKulsky.
2) Trainers: My favorite trainer in the area is Pat Rattray, 630 554 6028 boxermom@megsinet.net. She is another one of my mentors. She is rather far west (a bit west of route 59) but she is worth the drive. She teaches at various park districts, and is available both for private lessons and, when weather allows, runs classes in her ample fenced-in back yard.
3) Schools: There are 2 schools I am familiar with in the area, SmackDabs and Narnia. SmackDabs seems a bit more focused on doggie competition (rather than companion animal) than Narnia. I have been to both; I personally prefer Narnia. You can reach Narnia at 630 904 0896, or www.narniapets.com. Both Lisa and Pat taught at Narnia. I have heard mixed things about PetSmart training.
4) Getting a dog: Gosh, there are a lot of rescues. There are breed specific rescues and non-breed specific rescues. If your family is thinking of getting a(nother) dog, please consider a rescue. Three of my four collies have been rescues. Dee Olsen's rescued collie was the national agility champion 3 or 4 years ago. If you want to get a puppy from a breeder please verify the breeder is not an idiot. NEVER PURCHASE A DOG FROM A PET STORE!!! And please neuter your animal. An initial single breeding pair of collies can produce enough progeny in 25 years to outweigh the earth.
5) Miscellaneous: I have lots of comments about dog training on my home site, http://gghf.home.comcast.net. Cathy Toft has a wonderful site explaining dog training theory (operant behavior), see http://members.dcn.org/catoft/. If you have issues with multiple animals I recommend you contact Michelle Karras, politeparrot@sbcglobal.net. She is a nationally recognized bird trainer. She also trains dogs, rabbits, lizards, and kids. Like Pat and Lisa, she also came out of Narnia.
I hope you have fun in this class. But training a dog is hard work! You will be expected to practice with your dog for about 10 minutes per day as near to every day as you can. Your dog will appreciate the time you spend with it training.
Your dog is probably already pretty expert at being a dog. You, on the other hand, are not expert at training. The aim of the class is not to produce a trained dog; it is to produce a good novice dog trainer. If you already have a trained dog that someone else trained, that dog will make an even more effective instructor for you. We will learn how to train a dog using only positive reinforcement techniques – we will never punish your dog. There are other ways to train dogs, but the way I will be showing is fairly new, and has been used successfully to train dogs to win national competitions.
The most important two things to remember while training your dog are to keep training safe, and keep training fun (for both you and the dog). If you get everything else wrong but get those two things right, you’ll still end up with a great dog.
Dates to be announced.
Lectures (at 6:30, beginning 27 Feb 2006 before meeting at the church. Presented by Debbie Link, D.V.M.)
Lecture 1: Dog physiology (Dogs are not people)
Lecture 2: Doggie First aid
We may not have access to bathrooms. Classes begin 1 April 2006. If your dog poops during class you (YOU) will be expected to clean up after it.
Week 1: (Bring your dog) 30-45 minutes:
Week 2: (Bring your dog) 30-45 minutes:
Week 3: (Bring your dog) 30-45 minutes:
Week 4: (Bring your dog) 30-45 minutes
Week 5 & 6 are reserved for makeups only (due to illnesses or bad weather)