[Diamond Dog]

Please dont move this thread. The reason I am posting in this forum is becuase I want Schutzhund people to respond rather than "general people" as I believe that the actions you take in Schutzhund training are different than regular training.

If I am incorrect in any of my beleifs, please let me know. I have an open mind.

I have a 14 week old with strong lines. We would like to do Schutzhund work with him in the future. The SCHUTZHUND trainers say that I should just let him be a puppy, you really can't do obedience until he is around 6 months, just let him be a puppy as you want to build up his drive and obedience at this age will diminish it. They say keep the obedience super light and dont expect much and just make it fun (no big corrections)

But when you read the threads in the training forum and if you read books, they all say, Do not delay..get your dog into training as soon as possible. 14 weeks is a great time. Get him in classes.
My vet even says, "you need to get him into training if you havent already"

What are your thoughts on these 2 different suggestions. From the Shutzhund trainers I talked to, I beleive that you go about training differently and on different time frames than if you just had a house pet dog, but both methods will have the same end result of a great obedient pet.

We have taught him, sit and down on our own, but in a very light fun way. NO more than 5 minutes a day. He does it about 75% of the time and thats OK with us for now. We take him to the Schutzhund trainer once a week, but mostly just to bite in the puppy circle on a jute.

6 months seems like a long time to let my puppy go! I feel like I should be doing some things. Can I? Will it have a detrimental effect on his drive?

What specific things can I work on? If someone could break it down for me, I would be so appreciative.

Is there something I can do to work on getting his attention and holding it?

I realize he is a pup and I am very realistic about my expectations at this point. I just feel like I should be doing something, even at this young age!

Thanks