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Hiring A Pet Dog Trainer Why Would You Need To How Do You Select The Best Trainer For Your Dog
Why would you need to hire a dog trainer anyway? This is a question that many people ask
when the subject comes up. You often hear people claiming to have managed to train their
old dog without such help. These same well meaning folks will often go on to tell you
about the antiquated methods that grandpa handed down such as hitting “Old Trusty” on the nose with a rolled up newspaper, or hanging a dead chicken around his neck to teach him not to kill animals.
The person educated in the correct use of dog training and canine psychology when hearing these
types of tales will secretly be thinking, it was amazing that old “Trusty” survived grandpas abuse.
Maybe he did by avoiding being around grandpa at any cost. “Trusty” probably saw grandpa and ran in the opposite direction or low crawled his way to him with the anticipation of more abuse. Beating a dog into submission is not training! Training, when done properly, uses the intelligence of the human race to manipulate the dog into desired behavior, not our barbaric caveman side.
So back to the original question of “Why would you hire a pet dog trainer?” Most people do so when they run into problems that they fully understand they lack the knowledge to solve. Usually frustration has built up when the dog is constantly having house breaking issues, or he is destroying items in the home or yard. He may have a running away issue, or just be unruly in general. Dog training is often the last effort owners make in saving the dog from being delivered to a shelter. The most intelligent of owners however, will use dog training to solve these problems BEFORE they ever become issues. As a dog trainer, my favorite clients are the ones that call before they get the puppy. They know that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. They often will ask questions about the tendencies of their breed of choice BEFORE making the selection. This in and of itself can prevent them from starting off on the wrong foot or making the wrong choice for their situation. A good example of this is the 75 year old grandmother who lived in a condo who wanted to know if I thought it was a good idea for her to take on the Alaskan Malamute puppy that her grandchildren had bought and now no longer wanted to keep. The issues with the puppy were unruliness, destruction, and jumping up on people. The last of which would obviously been a problem for a 75 year old woman. We finally resolved the issue by deciding that the appropriate thing to do would be for the grandchildren (who were teenagers) to keep and train the dog. Grandma paid for it. The puppy kept his now happier home. Grandma lived a happier life than she would with the possibility of a broken hip caused by a well meaning but overly zealous puppy.
Get a Dog Trainer
Dog trainers abound the world today, all offering their own approach, personality, methods and viewpoint in training your dog. Their prices also range from $240 for three days to $775 for five days. Some offer three weeks long training, too. From the long list of dog trainers, how do you find the one that is best for you? Well, fret no more for here are some fabulous tips on finding the best dog trainer:
The Qualities of a Top dog Trainer:
The first step to finding a quality dog trainer is to look for someone you actually like. By that, I mean someone you trust enough to train your dog and someone you believe could do the job right. You are entrusting your dog to the trainer, so find someone who does not have any cruel streaks in them. Be a good judge of personality. Dog trainers should be kind to animals, remember that! They should never resort to cruelty and pain when training your dog. Beware of trainers who hit dogs to make them obey.
Four Ways to Find a Dog Trainer
Do you really need to a dog trainer? You can do a lot of dog training at home yourself. Most puppies learn quickly if you are consistent about what you teach them. You can usually teach them housetraining and some basic manners in a few weeks.
Many breeders and other experts recommend taking new puppies to puppy preschool and puppy kindergarten classes. These classes are just for puppies and they are often offered by pet stores, dog training centers, kennel clubs and even shelters. They give your puppy a good opportunity for socialization. Meeting other puppies and people in a friendly atmosphere helps your puppy get over any fears he may have of strange people or things. Classes like these help build a puppy’s confidence and help him grow into a happy, confident adult dog. The trainer teaching these classes will also teach you and your puppy some basic obedience commands such as Sit and Come.
Here are a four resources to check when trying to find a dog trainer:
1. Ask at pet supply stores and check their bulletin boards.
