New dog trainer, about to meet my very first dog client. Where & how should we meet?

[joeychris]

@erics I'd like to hear your reasoning. What do you expect to happen with a home visit?

 

[melissac]

@joeychris Whose opinion? My opinion? Lol I'm bad at Reddit.

 

[atm23]

@melissac Just sounds like you need real life experience before you take on solo trainings. Questions like this are stuff dog owners pay trainers for to know, not for them to ask reddit. Work with other dog trainers/intern for them first.

 

[melissac]

@atm23 I updated my experience level and the role at intro of post. Maybe that will help clarify. Thank you!

 

[stephenomalley]

@melissac Warning: I’m not a professional!

I dabble in dog behavior training because I have a lot of time spent observing/studying animals & have some natural proclivity for interaction with them…if I’m helping anyone with their animals, I always go to their space…maybe that is “wrong” per professionals creed
I find that animals will act most like they normally do in their own space…i will usually go to the person’s house & basically ignore the animal while visiting with the humans & get a feel (inconspicuously observing the animal, the people, the space & “feeling” it out) I probably seem super weird to the humans as they’ve invited me to help them with their pet, but animals communicate with a nuance that humans frequently miss…
I find that I learn the most about the factors involved in the situation when I interact the least at the beginning …I NEVER let an animal disrespect me/my personal boundaries, & those (usually) small corrections also reveal a lot about the animal & the humans it lives with…it is sooo exciting to be invited in & trusted to make judgement calls for people!! I hope you love it & get as much out of it as you can, b/c every interaction with another life form has something to teach us! About them, about us, both, or some variation what a gift to be trusted with folks’ dearly loved creatures!!

Bottom line: I recommend going to the client’s space to observe the animal(s), but really focus on observing for the first visit…ask the people what problems they’re having & see if they can replicate/provoke the behavior while you’re present w/out interference from you.

 

[melissac]

@stephenomalley Thank you ao much for taking the time to write this! All input is valuable input.

 

[girlonfire89]

@melissac So the owner already knows about their dogs "problems" and probably told you on a phone call? So maybe you could ask them in which situations this behavior is strong, and in which ones the dog is calm? Maybe after a long exhausting walk relaxing in a quiet place? Or maybe when the dog is still energetic and you bring a toy and the dog gets to know you in a game of fetch? But in the end, the owners know their dog best, and it's up to you to find a good situation together with them. Dog training is actually a lot of human training.

 

[melissac]

@girlonfire89 Definitely agree. Sending them a client history form today so that should help clarify all of the issues that need tackling.

Thank you!