I think I need a new training facility

[xhale1987]

I have an 11 month old MAS. We’ve done group training at one facility since he was 5 mo old. He’s currently in agility classes and no longer doing obedience (my choice, he’s got a solid foundation) since he got his CGC. I very much enjoy it there but feel like my dog isn’t getting any better agility wise. He used to be able to be off leash and would listen but now we have to do everything on leash due to just going off and doing his own thing. Yesterday was just kinda the straw that broke the camels back. I was luring my dog off the A frame because he has a habit of jumping off & he got nippy w my hands (no marks or punctures). One of the doodle owners in the class raised her voice saying that wasn’t okay (this is also the doodle owner that made me redo the A frame bc of him jumping off). The trainer then got on me & the owner of the training facility got on me about luring him. This doodle owner is constantly correcting me and my dog. I cried after class this time it was so bad. Our trainer texted me last night asking if I wanted to switch trainers to see if we’d have more success. I’m only signed up for one more class & honestly just want to switch facilities. That doodle owner has been in EVERY class I’ve signed up for (w the exception of puppy class bc her dog is older). He knows not to nip at hands & I even showed them before they corrected him. I love the facility and trainers & I’ve sent a lot of people their way since I also work in the pet industry but I’ve done everything they’ve told me to do & all I’m getting is regression.

 

[lemonville]

@xhale1987 It seems like you’ve got a few issues going on here. The first is the regression in training. This is completely normal for an 11 month old puppy. He is a teenager and his brain is filled with hormonal changes and he’ll struggle to focus. They have poor decision making skills and tend to be a bit all over the show. Adolescence can start at 6 months for some dogs, but may come later for the bigger breeds.

10 months old is the most common age that dogs are given up to rescues, because adolescence can bring out challenging behaviour. The nippiness and the return of some puppy behaviour can occur during adolescence.

I did a trick demo with my 10 month old puppy. I’ve been working on obedience and trick training since a she was 9 weeks old and I thought things were going well.

I take her off lead (we’re outside) and a few minutes into the demo she sees a crow and runs off after it. She then ran around like a lunatic, did a poo and generally caused chaos for about 5 minutes. It was so embarrassing!

It actually took a month or so for me to be able to let her off lead to do the demo again. I found that she wasn’t listening to me and was pretty unfocused. It was all to do with her developmental stage and it changed drastically by the time she was about 13 months. I can now do the demo with no problem and she is doing well. She’s 16 months now and is mostly sensible, although she has her moments!

Don’t give up on the facility because you feel that your dog is failing. Your dog is being a teen and that’s ok.

It can feel very personal when someone is correcting you, particular when you know that your dog isn’t performing at their best. It’s worth speaking to your trainer if you’re uncomfortable with someone in your class correcting you and singling you out. They should be managing that.

Maybe switching classes from that particular owner could be worth a try, but I also understand if you no longer feel you want to be there.

I realise that this might sound a bit odd, but I would drop the expectations you have for your a little bit. If you accept that he’s going through a phase, you can be more accepting of the regression. Don’t stop training at all, but if he’s struggling to focus then go back to earlier training where he can succeed.

If my dog had been a human teenager, I think she would have constantly shouted “you’re not my real mum” at me and then have gone off to hang out with her friends and smoke!

 

[xhale1987]

@lemonville Thank you for this comment! I know there’s gonna be ups and downs it’s definitely tough to watch because I know he’s better than how he’s acting. I do forget he’s still a teenager at times.

 

[kalebsanders007]

@xhale1987 Re. Other classmates, that’s something you should address with the trainer and/or just ignore; they aren’t the one teaching. Try to ignore them. And perhaps the other trainer’s class doesn’t include that person, or their training style is more suited to you, and that’s why they’re suggesting it. Or maybe you’re right and there’s a better facility for you guys.

But re continuing agility I think your dog is possibly hitting a developmental stage, he’s a nearly year old, he may look like an adult but he’s not. He still has a lot maturity and impulse control to work through. He also is likely to become more willful and with that comes a temporarily bumpy road.

My dog is 16 months (Malinois/English Setter), we just started agility 2 months ago, and we are barely able to do sequences of more than 2 obstacles without him boiling over and tearing ass all over the ring.

My trainer is helping us through this by slowing him down, pausing more between obstacles, and releasing him to a tug toy immediately.

We’re also spending a lot of time doing drills and then going back to a calm state - either heeling or in place. She made the point that if he’s getting overexcited and grabbing the leash when excited, he may escalate to biting us. So we have to work through the excitement and keep him from bubbling over. We’re working on the same thing at home, by rewarding him for not grabbing the leash (this has taken months to see improvement but it’s way better) we also do a lot of down with play (you play tug and then ask for a down, then free/release back to play) he still needs a lot of work but he has improved a lot.

All that to say you should be patient with your dog, progress isn’t linear. Especially not with young dogs! but also feel things out with the trainers available and see if they are a good fit. there’s a lot of trainers out there, it’s important to find one you can trust and learn from. You shouldn’t feel bullied or stressed , it should be fun for you and your dog.