Is it worth the cost?
Top 6 Dog Training Mistakes - Are You Making These Mistakes When Dog Training?
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I went to school elsewhere to be a trainer and have been training for over 10 yrs. We got a PetSmart in and I work for them now something to do part time. You REALLY need to go and meet the trainers. You will know if you have a good one or not. The training is good and I do not approve of classes that have play time for the dogs. They don't need to play to get socialization. Some of the owners have no clue. Like when the pups are playing and biting each other. They are yelling at their dogs to stop. They don't understand it's puppy play even after you explain it to them over and over. So what if a fight would break out. I don't need some owners freezing up on me.
Socialization is getting them out of the home and exposed to different enviroments. Just being inside the store and around other dogs is socialization.
Yes the trainers are taught to teach the classes a certain way. We are to teach certain things during that week. There are some robot trainers who follow the book to a tee.
I don't.
We have fun and joke around during class. It is a good time for all. I go above and beyond what I am supposed to do.
PetSmart is not bad place to go you just have to find the right trainer. It is all about Positive Reinforcement and that is great.
We have a new manager so I will not be at PetSmart much longer She does not like me cause I speak my mind and I am not afraid of her like everyone else and she does not like my demo dogs. She is not a personable person, she is rude and uncaring even towards the customers.
So what am I getting at.... check out the enviroment and attitudes of the employees. Customers can feel the difference in the enviroment at our store now and comment on it.
What You Need to Know About Dog Training
- Pet Smart dog trainers are all trained to give the same classes the exact same way.
Each individual trainer may be different personality wise and may or may not like their job, just like anything else, you can find a bad one or you can find an excellent one.
One thing you should be aware of - if your Pet Smart has a Vet's Office within the store, you could put your puppy at risk for Parvo and other possible contagious viruses. Most sick animals will have to walk the entire store to get to the Vet's Office. If they have an accident along the way and it's not cleaned correctly - your puppy can pick up that virus.
I loved going to the dog club/kennel club for my dogs training - you don't have to be a member, and the dog will have to be at least 5 months old and have rabies and kennel cough vaccines before being allowed into the class. What was nice for me was the club had some property in the back of the building that was fenced in and the puppies could play together before class and rid themselves of their extra energy so class goes a bit smoother for you and your puppy.
Also the dog club/kennel club has classes that not only are for puppies, but once you have passed through one class you can advance to another clear through agility training. I loved that idea. Gives the puppies alot more confidence and stability.
I don't have anything against training at Pet Smart just use caution when you take your pets to one that has a Vet's office in the rear of the store.
Training is always worth the money invested - you get not only some good tips but you also socialized you puppy at the same time - and the plus is the stronger bond and respect you get from your dog.
Everyone will have a good and bad opinion of any training class, use your own judgement, you can talk to the trainer before you sign up and some places will even let you observe a/or several training sessions before you commit to one or another.
Best of Luck with your Decision - hi, I'm a dog trainer by profession. i also was a manager at pet smart for a while here in north Carolina. while i was there, i started pet training classes(not from pet smart), once finished i became a pro trainer. to answer your question, no. not in my opion. the trainers there have had very little or no professional training. i had customers come to me all the time and tell me it did not work for there dog, and want there money back. i recommend looking on the Internet of phone book for a good trainer. the only thing to know is to ask for credentials. well hope this helps, brad
- YOU have to find that out. every petsmart has individual trainers, and your particular petsmart may have terrible trainers, or incredible ones.
the class we took was pretty good. i disagreed with the trainer on a few very minor points, but she used positive methods and was intelligent.
i do prefer classes that encourage more socialization, though -- like ones that start with a few minutes of play. (hard to find those..) - NO!!! I watched a couple of their classes, they are a joke. Find a real trainer and take a class somewhere else. Ask around at your parks department, breeders, 4H groups, at a local dog show with obedience competitions, ask those people. The petsmart people that I saw were no good.
- maybe you should get some early readings. and try to know other training centers that can offer you the same services.
check out this link:
http://dogtime.com/training-center.html
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