Liam 1st class: Graduation at AKC STAR Puppy Class!

ghggp said:
They won’t allow food rewards in this CGC class. Not sure how that will work out as he is only a puppy.
Anyone else experienced this?
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I agree with Cara that that’s really odd. I know in the actual CGC test you can’t treat your dog, but that’s not an acceptable approach to training the elements. That’s something to work towards after each element has been learned.

Are other dogs more advanced? I’d let the instructors know that you aren’t ready for that yet, and if they balk at that I’d find another class.
 
corbinam said:
I agree with Cara that that’s really odd. I know in the actual CGC test you can’t treat your dog, but that’s not an acceptable approach to training the elements. That’s something to work towards after each element has been learned.

Are other dogs more advanced? I’d let the instructors know that you aren’t ready for that yet, and if they balk at that I’d find another class.
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I agree. we didn't take a real CGC class but you need to learn the elements before removing rewards in class.......
 
Cara Sandler said:
Why would they not allow food rewards? I would run the other way if I wasn't allowed to reward my dog with what she finds rewarding. Training 101. Unless they are practicing for the actual test where you are not allowed to use food rewards? I would be careful about trying to train new behaviors without food if that's what your dog likes. You both could just end up being frustrated. There's a way to go about decreasing reward frequency, or transferring the value of other rewards, but I wouldn't just stop. Especially since Liam is hesitant right now.
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I agree with the food rewards especially since he is so young. I will discuss with the trainer. They have a no refund policy after you attend the first class. I will call them today to discuss. He is so timid and I want positive training methods. He seems to be a big proponent of using your voice and praise to get the desired results. The CGC class I took with Baron allowed food rewards during training but not the test.
 
I just contacted the facility to alert them how disappointed I was with not being able to use positive treat training for Liam. I asked if the trainer would allow treats. The answer was NO. So I have pulled him from the class. Oh well, I would rather go slow with him. Oh well, another class will come in time. Thanks for the feedback.
 
Sharon7 said:
Ridiculous! You did the right thing, Gloria. Good grief especially with a timid puppy. :rolleyes2:
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Thanks, I feel much better now since I found a CGC class starting next Monday. It is for 5-weeks and it is the same place where I got Baron's CGC title. Another plus is a woman teaches the class! Best of all it is $100 cheaper. Have to drive further... but, worth it now!
 
ghggp said:
Thanks, I feel much better now since I found a CGC class starting next Monday. It is for 5-weeks and it is the same place where I got Baron's CGC title. Another plus is a woman teaches the class! Best of all it is $100 cheaper. Have to drive further... but, worth it now!
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I'm glad you were able to find another class Gloria. I hate to say it but this is a perfect example of why you should ask if you can watch a class.
Seems like anyone can call themselves a 'dog trainer' and yet have either no qualifications or poor teachers.
 
Piper's mom said:
I'm glad you were able to find another class Gloria. I hate to say it but this is a perfect example of why you should ask if you can watch a class.
Seems like anyone can call themselves a 'dog trainer' and yet have either no qualifications or poor teachers.
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What is so weird is their level one class for dogs 6 months and younger, they allow food. I assumed it would also be OK for level 2 class. Not the case. I even went back to their website and said minimal treatments. I brought this to their attention and told them it should be listed on the site ... Level 2 will not allow treats! They apologized for the confusion and did give me a full refund. Funny thing was, I did not sign up for Level 1 unless they allowed me to sit in and monitor the class before attending. I did like the class ... however, not the level 2 class w/o treats!
 
I think you did the right thing! It's funny, just yesterday someone I know posted a really great comment on facebook and I thought of you immediately:

"...dogs are creatures of opportunity. If you find the thing they want the most, and set up the environment to encourage the choice you want, most dogs will make that choice to get the reward they seek. It's all about finding the thing that motivates them"

The key, of course, is finding what motivates them. So if food is what motivates Liam, I think that is the absolute best training tool you can use right now.
 
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