@nadinepeony Hi! Maybe I used the wrong term with R+, but we've only used positive reinforcement trainers that came highly recommended.
Mostly reactivity is what we've worked on, with limited to zero success/progress. The exception being figuring out the best med combo from her behaviorist, but we don't do training with her... It's like $200-150 per consultation, so she gives us advice, but we keep our focus on the meds.
For me, I feel like I haven't found anyone that speaks to me in a way that clicks. They kinda go too fast and any clarification questions I ask don't seem to work as intended. I'm highly educated and hold several advanced degrees. I also love to learn, so I can't figure out what it is. I literally feel like these trainers are really good at their job (with some people/for some dogs), but they are from a different planet vs. the one I'm from.
Generally, the advice is positive and seemingly logical, but often too general/not specific enough. Like they've done it so many times it's too natural for them and they aren't able to put themselves in my shoes. It's seems like suggestions are always over explained in extreme, but not helpful, detail. OR, important, tiny things they know or do naturally or instinctively are not thought about or within their capacity to teach because it's so ingrained in them.
As for how my dog is treated, I feel like her reactvity... I don't know, is seen as kinda annoying by trainers or (on the other extreme) they are sorta dismissive. I also wonder if we have ran into some small dog bias... She's small and therefore training her isn't as big of a deal.
I don't know. Maybe my expectations are just way off. I feel like I try so hard and at the end of the day I feel so alone and unsupported when it comes to her training and training progress. I wish I had a trainer that just sorta 'got me' and my dog a little better. But, even as I type that, I realize how hard that is ... In any aspect of life.
Mostly reactivity is what we've worked on, with limited to zero success/progress. The exception being figuring out the best med combo from her behaviorist, but we don't do training with her... It's like $200-150 per consultation, so she gives us advice, but we keep our focus on the meds.
For me, I feel like I haven't found anyone that speaks to me in a way that clicks. They kinda go too fast and any clarification questions I ask don't seem to work as intended. I'm highly educated and hold several advanced degrees. I also love to learn, so I can't figure out what it is. I literally feel like these trainers are really good at their job (with some people/for some dogs), but they are from a different planet vs. the one I'm from.
Generally, the advice is positive and seemingly logical, but often too general/not specific enough. Like they've done it so many times it's too natural for them and they aren't able to put themselves in my shoes. It's seems like suggestions are always over explained in extreme, but not helpful, detail. OR, important, tiny things they know or do naturally or instinctively are not thought about or within their capacity to teach because it's so ingrained in them.
As for how my dog is treated, I feel like her reactvity... I don't know, is seen as kinda annoying by trainers or (on the other extreme) they are sorta dismissive. I also wonder if we have ran into some small dog bias... She's small and therefore training her isn't as big of a deal.
I don't know. Maybe my expectations are just way off. I feel like I try so hard and at the end of the day I feel so alone and unsupported when it comes to her training and training progress. I wish I had a trainer that just sorta 'got me' and my dog a little better. But, even as I type that, I realize how hard that is ... In any aspect of life.