Are puppy classes really a must?

[LetThereBeRock]

I've just came back from our first puppy class with my American Bulldog pup. It wasn't a good experience.

He was attacked,though thankfully not bitten,as soon as he went in the door,by a large dog, that really shook him up. A number of other smaller dogs also went for him.

I have sensory issues and the class was too large,too loud and confusing,with approximately 30 dogs and handlers,it was hard to hear and take in the instructions.

I also felt that the handler who was assigned to us, was too rough with him,though pleasant enough to talk to,perhaps not overly rough, but I wasn't comfortable with it,and his eyes were bloodshot by the end of it.
He was shaking all the way home,and that isn't like him.

I don't intend to take him back,and I'm wondering if I should try to find another puppy class,or if it's fine to train him myself at home,with clicker training,and if necessary later to pay for one to one sessions with a dog trainer.

I take him into a fairly busy town centre every day and do what I can to socialise him when out.

Any thoughts/advice would be much appreciated.

Sounds like you found a bad puppy class.

The one I use is brilliant. Maximum of 15 dogs in each class. Instructor is very quick to make sure owners take hold of their dogs if they get too excited or carried away.

Each lesson, 10 minutes at the end for all of the pups to go off lead and run about the hall. Closely supervised though.

It doesnt sound like a very good puppy class to me either. What a horrible experience for both of you.

Try to find a smaller class in your area.

Where abouts are you LTBR?

Where I am there are fantastic training classes about, but I also know of some pretty rubbish ones too. Word of mouth is usually the best way.

Sounds like you went to a bad one. TBH we didnt take our Thornton to puppy class but its been a lot of hard work to train hom at home.

Sounds like a rubbish class to me. Find a clicker based class. No more than 10 "pupils" and at least more than one instructor.

They are not a must but it is a very good idea if you find the right one and you should enjoy it and meet some new really nice doggy people!

Find a new class! Puppy classes are a must IMHO but a bad one (like this) does more harm than good.
They should be fun, more about socializing and positive reinforcement rather than 'training' as such.

In the unlikely event of you being anywhere near Herts/Beds I can recommend some good ones.

I'm near Glasgow.

He's my first pup,though not my first dog,so I wasn't entirely sure what to expect,but there was very little positive reinforcement given,little praise and no treats.

There was one instructor actually training,though they did assign someone to me to help my pup and I,I'll give them points for that,but as mentioned above I felt she was rather too rough the dogs and did little to gain his trust.

The puppy class I attended had 6 pups in, variety of breeds and ages. Time off lead at start and end of session with loads of great advice in between and unlimited support between lessons too.

The dog trainer was brilliant and I am so glad we went. I think its very important for dogs to be socialising as much as possible. I needed someone experienced to interpret the dogs behaviour as I would have panicked far too much. Now, I am able to relax when my puppy is playing with another puppy, even if there is growling and barking going on.

Don't give up on finding another class. Ask around to see if someone can recommend one or ask at your vets.

Good luck

LTBR - havent lived in Scotland for many years but I have friends who are dog trainers/behaviourists; if you would like me to contact them on your behalf who are nearish to your part of Scotland, happy to do so. Just PM me.

The class that I attend has 3 little puppies and 4 bigger puppies - and we are split into 2 groups with trainers asigned to each group. So last week I was in a class of 3! It was as good as having a 1/1 session.

Find another class LTBR - do your Vets run one? or can they recommend a class?

We didn't go to one with our golden retriever BUT we go to the woods twice every day where she plays off the lead and meets other dogs of all breeds and ages, we have worked hard at home with clicker and rewards, lots of my friends have dogs and we often walk together so she is well socialised.

DS (15) and I are working hard on recall and walking to heel and its eventually paying off. Oh and we have read quite a few good dog books too as although we have had a dog before, this was our first puppy. So I would say puppy class not essential depending on personal circumstances and willingness to put in a lot of work

Find another class!

We have been going to ours for 6 weeks. It is all treat-based, with lots of positive praise etc.. There are always 2 instructors and often some other helpers. The numbers attending were getting bigger - up to 14 one night so the class was split in two and half now go on another evening. There were 7 of us on Wednesday - that was a nice number.

I think it is good for the pup to meet lots of different puppies in a controlled situation. And for us to get some pointers as to what we are doing wrong etc. We also sometimes swap dogs - good experience for the pup to be handled by someone else.

Look for some other classes - and go to a session on your own before you take the dog. When I took the pup along to his first class we were just 'watching' most of the exercises rather than taking part, and I still found the noise, constant movement etc really hard to take in, and virtually impossible to concentrate on the trainers' instructions through the midst of it all, especially whilst trying to look after my mental puppy. I can't imagine how hard that is with sensory issues. 4 weeks or so in now and I love the sessions!

Ours is run by a volunteers from the dog society, and they have lots of experienced members hanging about. They assist during class if anyone's having issues, but generally leave the owners to it otherwise, however I'm sure they would be available for some more 1-2-1 if anyone needed specific help - maybe try and find something like that?