Skipping an obedience level?

[Wookie'sMom]

So Wook and I started a obedience 2 class about 3 weeks ago and I couldn't stand the instructor. She wasted more than half of each class with little anecdotes about the command she was about to teach and during each of these, Wookie would loose all focus and want to play with her neighbors (BTW 15 dogs in a 50' by 50' ish space and the instructor thought it was nessecary to bring her dog too, off leash the whole time, and make it 16 ). So I talked to the school to see if I could get my money back for the remainder of the class and just start again later with another instructor. They told me they couldn't give me a refund, but I could talk to the current level 3 instructor and see if we could just kind of skip a level.

So tomorrow we talk to the instructor of the level 3 class and see if she'll let us join her class. I hope so, because otherwise I have to wait till Jan. to start level 2 again due to MY schooling. Does this sound like a horrible idea to anyone and if so, why?

[Miabella]

If your dog is ready to perform at the skill level of that class, why not? My current dog, Ilsa never took any Basic classes. I worked with her at home for a couple months, and when I had her evaluated at my club, they placed her right into the competition classes.

[Sharon Marples]

You might also want to post this under the Training forum, might get a few more responses from those who do lots of training.

I think I would only do it if you are sure that you can play "catch up" for the series of classes that he will miss by jumping up one level. What you may think is wasted time may be something he really needs in the long run. But if you feel confident from past experiences in training that you can get him up to par without rushing the training process, then go for it!

[Wookie'sMom]

I don't know how much "catch up" there would even be. The three classes of level 2 that I attended introduced a lot of the stuff I did in level 1 as "new" (automatic sits when heeling, retrieving, etc.), but I don't know whether that was the...um, crappy...teacher or the intended class structure. If it was just the teacher, I would have been in this position when I started level 3 anyway...

[Rott-Wiley]

Your instructor is really the only one that can tell you if your dog is ready for what they are going to teach in the class. Most of the more advanced classes don't really teach that much new stuff. They spend most of the time refining the basics and start introducing more advanced things.

[SABELLESMOM]

We were fortunate to have the same wonderful instructor for all obedience our classes. She did different levels on different nights of the week. She had us move our dog up once, at her suggestion.

So it's not all that far fetched that your dog could/would "keep up" with the new class. Just see what he/she has to say, and do your practices.