Obedience

[Shilo]

I have a 6 month old female Rott who is very good natured so far, is a bit stubborn sometimes, but listens to the basic training I have done with her. She greets friends with friendliness and so far I have not seen any agression. I notice that it is mentioned in the forum about obedience training for these Rotts. Do I still need to take Shilo to obedience classes? Am I not forseeing possible problems down the road? I have 4 chihuahuas and 1 5 year old German shepherd that she gets along with quite well.

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my1stRott

[MEDIC]

Keep her in school they need all the training they can get. They like to learn!

[Carol Burke]

Obedience classes are not just for problem dogs. By taking your girl to obedience classes you will bond even more closely with her, she will love it and so will you.

[Shilo]

Thank you for your answers. Do you know on an average the $$ for obedience classes? What type of obedience class? I hear that you have to be careful with the type of instruction you get.

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my1stRott

[Carol Burke]

You want to find an obedience class where the instructor uses motivational methods to train. If you have a Pets Mart near you they offer obedience classes. You should call your town recreation department and see if they offer obedience training, also your local humane society would know of classes being offered. Cost is generally anywhere from $30 to $50 or $60 for 8 to 10 weeks of training. Once you find a class, go watch a class and see if you are comfortable with the instructor, make sure the instructor is Rottweiler friendly.

[AngelBunny]

Shilo:

Obedience classes or lessons should be mandatory for all dogs. They forge a bond between dog and handler, and an mindful, obedient dog is a joy to behold. How many times have I been in my vet, watching other dog owners who have almost no control over their dogs, nagging "Sit down, Fido! Sit, Fido!! Sit, sit stit!! while Fido could be deaf for all the attention Fido is paying.

You can take your obedience trained dog in public without worrying that Fido will do something you can't control.

Be sure you practice between classes. You can't learn to play the piano well if the only time you sit down to the piano is once a week at lesson time.

[Mick Trainer]

Shilo,

If obedience classes are done correctly nothing bad can come from them and the positives are plentiful. As I live far away I have no idea of costs over there. In terms of finding a school ask around and then go and watch classes. Look to see are the dogs truly well trained (do they hold their obedience on the way to the car etc), do the people and dogs seem like they are enjoying the classes, ask if they take all dogs no matter what behavioral problems they have (gives you some idea as to their level of knowledge), ask what type of training do their instructors under go before commencing running training classes etc.

Mick.

PS. 15 year old shepard, youmust be doing something right! http://www.rottweiler.net/rottie/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by Mick Trainer (edited December 15, 1999).]

[snakesNxD]

I have been looking into classes for gwen, and this is what i have found out. The cheapest class is run by the local community college, and costs 50 for 5, 2 hour sessions. The ones at Petco are 70 for 6 sessions. I have chosen one that is 85, for 7 1hour sessions. I went to watch one class, and It was great! (met another rottie owner, and we are going to play together!!)

I am training gwen myself, and it has been going very well...as long as there are no distractions. the other dogs in the class will be good for her learning. i think it is a good time to practice, if you already know what you are doing, and will help you bond more with your rottie http://www.rottweiler.net/rottie/smile.gif

good luck.

[Mick Trainer]

I know that this is a little off the track but it is something to think about. The class time is something that one should consider which class they pick. I have recently been playing around with dogs and their peak learning times and I will say that a lot of class times are to long. Mentioned above is a class that lasts two hours. This is extoadinarally long. Even one hour is two long. I have recently cut my class sizes for this reason and have plenty of breaks in them.

Just something to think about.

Mick.

[kjs kids]

I will be enrolling Maggie in Beginner Obedience at the local recreation center by our house in January. The classes are run by a local obedience/training club and cost $65.00 for 10 sessions at 1 and 1/2 hours each. I think the classes are very good, Sasha graduated #5 in her class last year at the same school. Maggie definitely needs to go to class--at 8 months she has way too much puppy in her (ha ha ha)! I can't wait for her to actually "walk" on a leash! The only draw back is that I can't work her outside due to the cold weather here. I guess we'll be doing laps around the basement.

Good Luck!!
kjs kids

[AngelBunny]

I agree with Mick on the 2 hour class sessions being way too long; classes this long must be broken up frequently to give the dogs a physical and mental rest.

[Shilo]

First of all I wanted to let you all know that my German Shepherd is only 5 years old. I made a typo error and my first message states 15. *S* Sorry, about that.

Secondly: Thank you all for the information about training. I read all and really appreciate the input.

One more question though. I was told you need to keep good eye contact with your dog and hold the eye contact awhile. Is this true? The reason I ask is with Shilo I am lucky if I can hold eye contact with her for 20 seconds! Is this important? She listens well with me, but my son can hold eye contact with her for a long time and yet she won't listen to him. Thanks!

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my1stRott

[Carol Burke]

As far as eye contact, you want your dog to pay attention to you. You can use bait and a command such as 'watch me' hold the bait up at your mouth level or in your mouth. After she looks at you for a few seconds give her a small piece, continue with this until she will look for longer periods of time. It is important that you have her attention to keep her from being distracted. Mick is right about length of time in class, they tend to get bored so you need to make the class time as happy as possible, keep talking to her.

[LisaS]

20 seconds <strong> is </strong> a long time - one one-thousand, two one-thousand, three one-thousand ...



[This message has been edited by LisaS (edited December 16, 1999).]

[Stu]

I put small pieces of treats in my mouth, call my dog, and when he looks me in the eye I spit one out at him. As he caught on I lenghtened the time before I spit the treat to him. I really like this exercise, it is something you can do at various times just around the house.
As for obedience classes, I like them for the socialization, and if you have a good instructor he can point out any possible handling erroes. However, I would not expect too much from a young dog while at the class. I look at the class as a means to teach YOU how to teach your dog. There is too much going on and too many distractions for young dogs to really get down to the business of training. Away from the class is the time to really train a young dog. Now once your dog is older and really knows the commands classes can be great for the distractions they can provide.