Crappy puppy class and a clicker chat please!!

[Inthepotty]

So....

Today was week 4 of puppy class. All the things pup is fab at h

Sorry!!

All the things we do, and manage well at home (just sit, down, heel, loose lead, stay, twirl) went completely tits up! Pup didn't pay me any attention at all, just wanted to sniff the ground and the other dogs. It's in an open field so very distracting! All the time the other dogs were trotting obediently past, and generally seemed to be really getting it. Don't know what went on. Do I just chalk it up to a bad day?? I'm clicker training at home and he's thriving on it generally, we don't use the clicker in class though. I think the clicker helps him concentrate?

So do I just not bother with clicking through the week or keep doing it through the week and not on Sunday mornings?!

Feeling a bit down in the dumps about it. Like I'm the mum of the screaming toddler in the playground. Which I usually am, too!

My pup is like this. I am quite philosophical about it - I treat puppy class more as an opportunity to work her in a more distracting environment, but do my own training at home and I judge her by how well behaved she is in our day to day life, rather than in puppy class.

Secondly, I had the trainer all to myself last week, and she did a lot of work on me and my posture. It was AMAZING the difference it made and I had no idea how sloppily I was communicating to my dog even when I thought I was being mega strong and enthusiastic! When the trainer gave me a kick up the arse and got me to walk a LOT more purposefully and upright, suddenly my dog started focusing on me a lot better.

Oh and I have also upped my game as far as treats go and started baking off some dried liver - this seems to have helped as well.

She is getting better in class actually, but I think only because she is habituating to it - put her into a brand new exciting situation and I'm sure it would all go t*ts up again!

PS I would keep using the clicker if I were you. It's OK not to use it sometimes anyway, Why don't you take it to class anyway and say to the trainer that it's how you prefer to work - she should be able to work with that.

Thanks feesh.

Think you're right on posture/attitude thing, had about 2 hours sleep last night (poorly DD) so probably wasn't my usually exciting self! Well, pup thinks I'm a right laugh, at least!

That's exactly why the class wasn't as positive as usual!

You were tired and probably not full of beans - your puppy has picked up on it and you had a very difficult class.

They do pick up on every little teeny bit of our attitude and behaviour and react accordingly. They are more perceptive than we give them credit for.

Chalk it up to experience - move on and keep going as you were. It'll come good in no time. And for what its's worth, if I am off the mark for any reason I don't do masses of training because I just know it'll go tits up. And I hate setting my dogs up for a fall.