Poor Baron...

ghggp

ghggp

Moderator
I enrolled Baron in a beginners obedience class and I am quite concerned that he is so shut down!

I got him to try and compete but he will take a lot of time before we get there!

He seems so frightened and ultra nervous of everything. I have been walking him around the neighborhood to get him used to other sights and sounds.

Although he is five nothing was really done with him. He did not even know SIT!

It is our third class today..
A large dog try to go after him. I was walking in and I keep him on a short lead... this guy who has a very large dog had left his leash out to the full six feet and he tried to get poor Baron! He got to his backend and pulled out some fur. The instructor saw it and came running over as she was in front of me as I did not see it until Baron bolted in front of me!

To add insult to injury, that same dog was next to me when we were doing recalls! The guy is partially disabled and I know he can not stand for any length of time! He screams at his dog in a loud manner and That scares the crap out of Baron!

this guy will sit in a chair and let this huge dog place his paws around his neck and give him kisses! That tells you how big he is! For goodness sakes, this is an obedience class!

I have enrolled in another obedience class in September. I hope we will have less reactive dogs in that class!

Baron needs socialization in the worst way and I want to get him used to different environments with people and dogs! I feel bad for him but know unless I get him out he will never overcome his fear.

He did pretty well in class today. Healing was good. He did SIT each time I asked which was huge progress.

Some class members take it more seriously than others!
 
Wow I'm sure that must've sent your stress level up when that happened! I'm glad to hear that Baron is improving and hopefully your next set of classes will have better owners. I do agree with Chris but if it's not possible for you to leave that class then I'd suggest you call some other obedience trainers and ask if you can watch their class and find another better one. I've met a lot of people in the course of Piper's training and most of them were very aware of their dog and others but there were some I'd have liked to shake a few times! Hopefully Baron can get over his anxiety...I'd take a very high value treat with you to class (and none of those store bought ones either, yuck) and do lots of watch me whenever you can to help him focus on you instead of the other dogs, and get super excited when he does it...he'll get over his anxiety.

I make a treat for Piper I call liver candy (sounds yummy, I know lol) it's just a pound of puréed liver and a can of apple pie filling (puréed after opening), mix together, put on a parchment lined cookie sheet, bake at 350 for 30 minutes and then reduce the heat to about 275 and bake until they are quite a bit drier (your trying to dehydrate them). I then cut into small pieces, it's kinda like jerky when done.
I guarantee he'll love this!. Good luck to both you and Baron!
 
Agree with Chris - Even with Minnie who has no problems, I had left the place.

Gloria you have no options for take small walks where Baron can get experiences in small doses ??
 
I wish I could get a refund! The rules state that you can not get a refund if you came to the first class! We started with 9 class members and are now down to five.

We only have two classes left and I will go to the opposite end of the area where this guy and dog are. I applaud him wanting to get his dog trained but have no confidence he has the ability to follow through on training. You MUST do your home work to see progress!

As far as the treats go... I WILL make that treat... Baron would take treats from me at home. He would NOT touch them when I got to the class! I used my voice to let him know that he was doing well and that seemed to help! I try to do the watch me command exercises. Of course, he is good at home but him being frightened right off the bat made that a real challenge!

It is very disappointing as this is the same training club that I got my CD title on my first female sheltie.

Thanks all for the kind word of support and I WILL go to another training center to view classes before enrolling in any others!
I just assumed this one was as good as it used to be! My BAD!
 
I used to have the same problem with Piper accepting treats at home but not in a class that's when I started making his treats at home. Also, if you normally feed two meals per day try skipping the second meal on training day (feed him after class), it might help him to focus on you (and the treats) better if he's hungry.
Do you know if there are any competitive obedience classes (they usually have beginner classes) in your area? Most who offer competitive classes also compete (ask to make sure they do), I think you get a higher level of training from someone who competes...there are so many 'dog trainers' out there I swear some of them get their knowledge from YouTube videos. I also purchased a book on Amazon called obedience training for the small dog (meant more for toy breeds but I think it works really good for Shelties as well) and it has a lot of helpful tips in it when your just starting out and it covers novice, open and utility.
I was really fortunate to find a great knowledgeable school with a trainer who competes and she was great (taught us to use the bucket so he heels nice and close), side steps and come fronts (beginning of recall) among other things unfortunately she's retired now so I had to find another trainer.

Whatever you do don't get discouraged, just be more selective when searching for a trainer and ask more questions regarding their qualifications and if they currently compete (our first said she competed but hadn't seen the inside of a ring for over 10 years). There are a lot of mediocre trainers out there and sometimes you have to weed through them to find the good ones. Good luck and I hope Baron likes the liver candy!
 
Piper's mom said:
Wow I'm sure that must've sent your stress level up when that happened! I'm glad to hear that Baron is improving and hopefully your next set of classes will have better owners. I do agree with Chris but if it's not possible for you to leave that class then I'd suggest you call some other obedience trainers and ask if you can watch their class and find another better one. I've met a lot of people in the course of Piper's training and most of them were very aware of their dog and others but there were some I'd have liked to shake a few times! Hopefully Baron can get over his anxiety...I'd take a very high value treat with you to class (and none of those store bought ones either, yuck) and do lots of watch me whenever you can to help him focus on you instead of the other dogs, and get super excited when he does it...he'll get over his anxiety.

I make a treat for Piper I call liver candy (sounds yummy, I know lol) it's just a pound of puréed liver and a can of apple pie filling (puréed after opening), mix together, put on a parchment lined cookie sheet, bake at 350 for 30 minutes and then reduce the heat to about 275 and bake until they are quite a bit drier (your trying to dehydrate them). I then cut into small pieces, it's kinda like jerky when done.
I guarantee he'll love this!. Good luck to both you and Baron!
Click to expand...

I love that you spoil Piper with homemade treats...:)
 
It's tough when you are trying to help a sensitive dog. Angel, my brother's greyhound, was really nervous and he started obedience classes to help her and also to bond with her. The first few sessions she was shut down and would not take treats. She would start to come out of her shell and something would happen - like the roller door going down, or a dog barking - and she would completely shut down. It took time, but now she loves her class. She still has her moments. My brother was recommended to use a clicker and that has helped a lot.

Its a real shame that dog went for Baron. I think incidents can occur at most classes, how the trainers handle it would depend on whether I went back or not. Merlin had his tail grabbed by a collie in our agility class. We have been in this class with the collie for a couple of years without a problem, then suddenly the collie went for Merlin one evening. I did, however, politely mention to my trainers that I would prefer to be in another class. Then at obedience the other week a labrador and a rottweiler had an incident. It was the lab's fault. They were doing a stay and the lab decided to jump on the rottie who was not having any of it and really told him off.

The danger zone at any class is the entry and exit points, as that tends to be when the owners have the least control over their dogs and before the trainers have taken charge. I am very careful at those points. I have to be as Merlin is reactive sometimes with other dogs. I always put myself between him and another dog, especially big, male dogs, so he walks in on my far side.
 
"The danger zone at any class is the entry and exit points"

Boy, I learned that the hard way! I could not understand the yelling at his dog either. When he did that on the recall... asking his dog to sit... all it did was make him repeat it 4 more times as the dog would not listen! Baron was so frightened at the yelling that he coward behind me!

Sure glad Merlin did not get scared by the collie going after him!

Funny thing is, I did not feed him very much for breakfast in the hopes he would be hungry and take the treats.

Thanks all for the vote of moral support! We NEED it! I had such high hopes for him. All I can say is, slow and steady wins the race...
 
Forgot to mention I went on the Official Shetland Sheep Dog website to research obedience clubs/training in my area. You guessed it, the place I am going is listed there! Both trainers are competing... one has two Shelties and the other does agility.
 
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