# Training class before adoption



## oregongsdr111 (Nov 20, 2005)

I have been considering the following, and I am wondering if anyone else does this, or if you think it would be a good idea.

I know a police canine trainer that works with the public sector as well. I have a half acre lot, and I have been thinking about having him come over and start training at my home for all of our rescue dogs.

I would have volunteers help so each dog has a person. (for those that have multiple fosters) This way we can market the dogs with some training behind them. I would increase the adoption fee to incorp. the fee for the class. I think I can get a set fee instead of a per dog fee. 

I would require the adopter to attend one class with us on the day of pick up. 

What do you think?
My ultimate goal is to offer training to the public and our adopters on the weekends. Bad Rap the Pitbull group in CA, has a wonderful program for the public and I would love to copy it here. I need to get my feet wet, and I am thinking this might be it.

With the BAD RAP program, the public is charges for the beginner class. At the same time they also have and an advanced class, and a CGC class. The classes are free for the adopters. Trained volunteers assist the classes. They have them every Saturday in a big gated parking lot. It is a drop in program. 

Advice very welcome.


----------



## mychance (Oct 22, 2007)

What do I think? I think I'd be tempted to move to to Oregon (not that I haven't been tempted for other reasons!). 

We have (from time to time) been able to do some formal training work with our dogs while they are in a foster home, but only if the foster home is near our volunteer who is a skilled instructor. Otherwise, it would mean signing up for a series of classes at $90 or more per dog. Generally we all rely on our own experiences with our personal dogs and work informally. 

Our biggest challenge is simple geography. The trainer is at Point A. Our foster homes are 20, 40, 100 miles from Point A. Some fosters are willing to make the drive, but that's a HUGE commitment on top of the GIGANTIC commitment of fostering. Our adopters are 20, 30, 500 miles from Point A so that would also be a limited benefit. I still think it is worth offering though! 

I love the drop-in option. Having knowledgeable assistants also seems like a big plus. It's an extra set of eyes for observing, an extra set of hands , and just general support and cheer leading for the participants.


----------



## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

We used to have a pretty decent trainer at our local Petsmart and he let us take our foster dogs for free. It was a good socialization opportunity. He eventually left, so we don't do it anymore. I've been talking about starting a group class for our folks (I used to be a trainer when we lived in NC) but haven't done it yet. Some of our fosters aren't really experienced with dog training, so I think it would be very helpful for them and, of course, more socialization. 

Honestly though, when it comes to marketing dogs as having training, I don't think I will. So many people put all the responsibility on the dog to be fully trained, fully housebroken etc. I find the more I stress the dogs' training in my write ups, the more I seem to get the applicants who want the dog to do all the work. My best adopters are the ones who feel pefectly okay doing some training with their new dog, they just want to save a life and get a great dog. They don't care if it needs a little work. 

For adoption-promotion and acclimation to a new home purposes, I think my preference would be to have a group class that's for the adopters and their dogs after they adopt. I work with a group in MN that requires that and they say it's been working well for them.


----------



## sitstay (Jan 20, 2003)

Hi Paula,
I have had better luck with requiring adopters to attend classes after the placement. I give the adopter a list of pre-approved trainers that I know and have worked with in the past and they are able to choose the one they want from that list. Attending is a stipulation of adoption and must be done.
I work on basic obedience while the dog is still in my home, along with house manners. I figure that is a commitment that I am making to the dog. The training after placement is geared towards not only increasing obedience skills, but (most important to me) also providing a place for the new owner and dog to bond. I don't care how well trained the dog is to begin with, the new owner needs to spend some time focused on the dog and an obedience class is a great way to do that initially. 
I agree with you, Bad Rap has an outstanding program! And when you consider they accomplish all that with a breed that "nobody wants" is incredible. 
Sheilah


----------



## RebelGSD (Mar 20, 2008)

I agree with pupresq. We train all foster dogs, however, we do not advertise the training the dog has in the description. Our target adoptive homes are those that are willing to work with the dogs. We will not place dogs with people who feel entitled to a fully trained dog. We are going to start offering obedience classes ourseves as we had difficulties finding suitable training classes in the area (non-abusive but still capable of handling a GSD).


----------



## BlackGSD (Jan 4, 2005)

Seems to me that advertising a dog as being trained or even "in training" might be a bad thing.
People are SO into "instant gratification" that if they were to get said dog and the dog doesn't perform for THEM the way it does for the trainer, they will be upset. Often people don't realise that the dog needs to bond to THEM and just because the dog listens to the trainer, does NOT necessarily mean that it will obey them right away.


----------



## AndreaG (Mar 3, 2006)

Ezactly; training is good for the obvious reason (better behaved dog), but what it also does well is bonding! I am not even sure which is the better part of it. Probably the bonding.







Also, I think training is mainly training the HUMAN, not just the dog. Tons of people don't know how to get to dog to do sg, and they are the ones who need to be thought (sit! Sitsitsitsit!! etc...)


----------



## AndreaG (Mar 3, 2006)

OK another thought about this... It actually happened to me a while ago that an older couple adopted a high-energy dog from the rescue. They were great people but were terrified of the young one's antics. They really were affraid of him in the end and had to give him up. I went there to try to see what;s going on and the dog did barely anything with me. OK, but how this this help THEM? Nothing at all. They would have needed to learn how to deal with the dog. So this pup could have been advertised to be well-behaved, as he was with certain people, but it really depends on the humans; and some humans need training.







(Sorry for the rambling).


----------



## Kayos and Havoc (Oct 17, 2002)

Tough call. While training makes dogs more adoptable I can see where it may send the wrong message as "in training" means "bad dog". 

Our training club offers a discount to rescues for CGC classes. I would be inclined to offer training after the adoption I think.


----------

