# How did you find your trainer?



## Vinnie (Sep 4, 2001)

This is a fitting follow up to last week's topic suggested by of my fellow Admins.

How did you find your trainer or training club? (Also feel free to share with us how much you like your trainer/club.)


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

Well I don't have one specific trainer. I've been to quite a few trainers, some I liked more than others. With my first dog I joined a local training club, and I stayed with them a few years until they lost their training space. They eventually found a new location but it was too far for me. Since then I've been to quite a few different trainers/classes. Generally I just chose a trainer by looking them up online. If a trainer had a class that sounded like what I wanted, I would read their bio to learn what methods they used and if it was a good fit for me I'd take the class. I've had Bianca 2 years but I've done classes with her with 5 different trainers. Each time I looked up all the trainers in the area and then read about their qualifications and methods and checked if they had any good classes.
The first trainer I chose because she had a reactive dog class, and was nearby. I only went to their reactive dog classes though because they did not offer advanced obedience class. 
The next class I took was called Outward Hound, at the time it was the only class of its type in the area. They go to different locations around the city and practiced obedience in parks, near dog parks/dog beach, and in a bar! I wanted to work with Bianca outside in 'real world' situations so I chose that class. I liked that trainer a lot and I may go back to her sometime but when I wanted to take another class, she did not have what I was looking for so I looked elsewhere. I wanted to work on obedience to prepare for the CGC and therapy dog testing, so I took an advanced obedience class. I went with an instructor I had taken a class with previously with a past dog so I knew I liked her. I liked the class so the next class we took was a therapy dog class she was offering. 
I am now enrolled in a different therapy dog class at a different place. The class I'm taking now is offered by an animal-assisted therapy org. I am taking it because the org. requires everyone to take this class if they want to join their organization.
Oh, we also took an agility class so that is another instructor.


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## Sigurd's Mom (May 12, 2009)

I found my trainer through my Vet. She is a behaviour tech and has been working in the vet field for 12 years - she's really experienced. I absolutely love her!! She's been so wonderful to Sigurd and I and has helped some of his issues (barking and his recall was off). She has taught me so much. Her husband is a police officer and has a German Shepherd K9 as a partner, so I think that is extra cool - she has experience with a high-prey drive/energy dog like Sigurd. She is always open to e-mail conversations, so I've got a lot of great training information via email. I like that she works at my Vet clinic too, Sigurd really seems to enjoy her.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

My all-breed type trainer (for puppy class, obedience, CGC, rally) I found just by Googling local places. I took a class at the Humane Society before I even got my first dog, and I liked it but they didn't re-hire that person to teach their classes. So, I went shopping for a new trainer and have been with the same person/club ever since. "P" will be my fourth dog with her.

My Schutzhund trainer/helper I found back when I was just doing general training with a group. This guy e-mailed us and said he'd like to come out and bring a friend. His friend has been my Schutzhund trainer and Nikon's helper ever since and we've gone through several iterations of clubs/training groups.

I have a new agility trainer as if this past summer. The club I was doing all the training but SchH with added an agility trainer and I really liked her first class (did beginners with Nikon). She's always had Dobes and other German dogs and she is very into a fast, high drive dog whereas the other trainer is more about control and precision. Both are great people and great trainers, I just like the newer one better for my dogs so I chose to stick with her class when the classes split in two.

For everything but SchH I don't really need a trainer, but I like to enter my dogs in many classes to proof their focus and self-control. I train all the behaviors on my own, even agility, but I still like to have trainers that use similar tools and methods.


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## King&Skylar (Jun 3, 2010)

I just googled dog trainer (where i live), only 2 places came up, one of them doesn't do it anymore (and he specialized in GSD's, especially search and rescue )
So, we went with the only available one. The instructor is really good, and there's only 6 dogs in one class. We're in foundation 1 now, and will definetly be going to foundation 2 with the same trainer. Had the other guy still been in business, i would have picked him instead.
Luckily Skylar is ridiculously smart, or else i would've been in trouble. I'm a slow learner :crazy:


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## k950ECHO (Oct 15, 2009)

ANGEL K9 Training
Ellicott City, MD 

I purchased a puppy from Haus Juris in Nokesville , VA. part of contract terms of health Guarantee was diet, K9 Kraving. I looked it over and was interested. I didn't want to purchase the food through the breeder due to pricing, distance and personal reasons. 
I got K9 Kravings website and began to call around. One was ANGEL K9. Tecla didn't have a freezer to sell it and she recommended purchasing direct from K9 Kraving cause he was a personal friend. Tecla inquired where I obtained my puppy from and she also knew the breeder. I asked if she did Schutzhund training and she said yes. She described her training methods, beliefs and then went into her basic resume. I set up a meeting with her and describe my concerns because past training experience really left a bad taste ( too aggressive in corrections and training, believing dogs are beasts and are meant to be broken).
I have been with her for over a year now, have our BH and KKL going forward to SCHH1.
She is the DOG WHISPER of the area. Shes really consumed and busy. I take every minute is precious and never enough. Its really worth it. I have been to other trainers and they don't do Private lessons/Private Schutzhund lessons or even Schutzhund for that matter. I pray she doesn't stop teaching. especially since everyone in the area seems to have a GSD and don't know what to do with them. She is very knowledgeable of the GSD and Belgian Malinois breed working with John Henkel and Michael Ellis...


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I have been training with an experienced Schh competitor. I knew about her and her dog thru searching out SchH training a few yrs back.
But never started w/ her until a yr ago. We were members of the same SchH club and I was so impressed w/ her mentoring the newb's.
I love the techniques she uses, mostly based on Michaeal Ellis(she has worked with him many times) and her own methods. Unfortunately she is very busy with life and her other business so my private training has been on hold for a month! 

I am working now with a SchH training group and we are making much progress in the past few months. 
I trained with these teams during my dogs puppy very early foundation months, but changed clubs and now just getting back on the "program" so we are basically beginners once again. 

A few years ago, I heard of this group(new club starting up) thru a trainer I took Onyx to for her behavior issues, thought it would be good to get her w/ GSD people vs the AKC type classes. 
It has evolved over the last 3 yrs to a great group of determined teams who have goals!! 
I'm fortunate to have found my way back


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

I googled obedience training and there weren't too many options out in the ginky weeds where I live, but I found a fabulous club! Tyler Obedience Training Club- AKC affiliated so my pups have STAR Puppy and CGC certificates already, it's non-profit so the trainers volunteer their time and are experienced in many fields- rally, agility, obedience. The fees are very minimal and the club is very active in the community with training, shows, fund raising for canine cancer research, PAWS for Patriots and many other programs. At each monthly meeting we vote on a donation we make for that month, to a shelter, fire dept, SAR, etc. They've been so encouraging and helpful, very positive and successful. Stosh and I went into basic obedience when he was 4 mos old, there were 25 dogs in the class with 100% retention- 10 of us took the CGC and 9 passed, Stosh was just 5 mos old. 

I also have had private in-home training from a trainer the vet recommended because of the dogs he had seen her train. She helped with specific issues I have having at home and started us on clicker training when the pups were getting disinterested- she teaches a tricks class which my two loved, were really good at and they just adore her. It was a great way to keep training during the intense heat we had this summer, we could do all of it in the kitchen. I love the classes for the socialization and support but the in-home training has been great to individualize the training.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

Newspaper. 

That was before I even considered titling any of them. 

Arwen's trainer (who I found through and ad in the paper) was run over by a care and dead. 

Jenna's trainer (a basket case who I found through and ad in the paper) was busily messing up me and Jenna.

Babs needed to be trained. So I took her to my current trainer (who I found through and ad in the paper) when she was four months old. She is now five years and two months old, so nearly five years ago. 

Classes took six or eight weeks. I took Babsy, then Arwen, then Jenna. When Babs was 8 months old, I got Rushie, and was training four nights a week over there. 

Eventually, I was noticed by other more focussed people, and somehow they managed to encourage me to join the shepherd club and start going to shows with the dogs. 

I had tons of success and ribbons with Babs and Arwen and Rush, and even Jenna managed to place. My trainer was there cheering me and some of the others on. 
Jenna's X was there too. We placed. She did not. Does that sound a little vindictive????

Why I like my current trainer? She makes an awesome apple cake. She is flexible, dependable, and available. She is not afraid of training collars, but is not insistant upon them. She deals with the bottom of the barrel, as well as people who are training for shows. Her students have gotten obedience titles and REs. But she also deals with pet people overmatched by their shelter dogs. (Sorry rescue people, but some inactive elderly people should not be able to walk into a pound and take out a high energy American Bulldog mix with the title of lab mix on the card.)

She sends serious behavior issues to people doing just that. 

She breaks the classes up and does not belabor one thing. She has various approaches to obstacles. 

Somehow she has not managed to strangle ME yet.


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## koda00 (Apr 27, 2009)

I also google mine. Completed puppy obed. 3-6 months old, then just completed Obed. 101. 7 months & up, now onto the next set, also looking into Rally. They also have that.


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## vomlittlehaus (Aug 24, 2010)

Trying to remember exactly how I found the person that told me about my trainer. I looked for several months for a breeder to buy my puppy from. I think in that search, I found Debbie Zappia's website. She is close to me. When I emailed about getting my pup and wanting a trainer, she gave me a couple of recommendations. I was actually living an hour away from my trainer when I first started with her. Now, only 20 mins. She has been training for at least 20 yrs. Trains for AKC obedience and Schh. And she is a GSD person. Makes a huge difference (I think) if your trainer is more familiar with your breed of dog and how they think. She uses shaping and positive motivation training technique.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

I agree about finding a trainer who is familiar with your breed. Mine has a GSD. But she has owned many different types of dogs, raised several types, and has a ton of experience. 

Jenna's X, was AFRAID of her at ten weeks old!!! That was awful, having a trainer with breed prejudice. 

My current trainer works with boxers, dalmations, brittainys, German Shorthaired Pointers, Great Pyranees, lots of GSDs, pits, rotties, Rodesian Ridgebacks, dachsunds, Jack Russels, mixes of all shapes and sizes, and many others. Being familiar with a lot of breeds gives her a lot more tools to work with.


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## JessWelsch (Oct 2, 2010)

We were using Petsmart to begin with but Jordan knew too much for beginner obedience and for intermediate there were a lot of people in the class. I am disabled and Jordan is being trained to be my SD so it was important to me to have all my questions answered, and have a trainer that didnt mind us changing things (hand signals that are tough for me to remember etc) also I dont have the highest of confidence yet and I really look to the trainer (Almost in the same way that Jordan looks to me) for reassurance and "praise". 

Anyway, Jordan, hubby and I felt that the intermediate just wasnt the right fit for us. We got a refund and I started looking at private trainers. Well we went to petsmart for a vet appt (we use banfield) and a lady came in behind us with a service dog!! Jordan was wearing her in training vest because we were working on waiting in aisles and by narrow passages and then coming when I got past them and called her. Anyway the lady ended up being a trainer. She did an eval on Jordan and said she had a intermediate class that Jordan could join... so we decided top give it a try (Worse case scenario we get another refund). 

She has trained both her service dogs, and the class consists of 4 dogs including Jordan; 3 of which are SDIT! 

I am very pleased with this trainer; she gave me her home number and told me to call anytime, that it's ok to get frustrated and to not give up. She also said that she was impressed with how well Jordan behaves for being so young. 

The trainer is great, and spends lots of time 1 on 1 critiquing and helping in class! She gives positive feed back but is strict in her training! 

She is the perfect fit for us.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

The first trainer I had was from a card in a vet's office. She is now a very good friend. However, her training technique's were not what I needed as I slowly discovered. So, after alot of thought, I contacted a local SchH club and they directed me to Rebecca. So far...So very, very good! Very happy with her methods and how Jax is learning. I asked alot of questions such as if her training was positive based, motivational rather than correction based.


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## kiya (May 3, 2010)

A friend recommended my trainer. I started with her 8 years ago, she loves and has her own GSD's. Before I brought Lakota home this spring I took my 2 older dogs for a visit. Both of them were so happy to go into the classroom. So I feel that since they have such a positive reaction to the trainer and the classroom it kind of speaks for itself.


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## just another truck (Jun 7, 2010)

I wanted to Schutzhund originally, so I started by contacting a K-9 Police officer to point me to someone who may know something about it. He pointed me to another K-9, who put me in contact with a guy he had trained with.

From there I got referred to two people, from this forum, I was reffered to 1 of the same two places. When my wife had convinced me agianst the Schutzhund, that secured where I was going.

When I went to the vet with HUnter, and they asked about training, I mentioned the name, they came with HIGH recomendation from my Vet.

As far as knowing the breed, I believe the Owner does, but that might be because I like the comments she makes about Hunter...The rest of the trainers are into obediance, agility, it seems all of it. They all have different breeds, and are quick to bring out there dogs for Demos in what they are teaching us.

I like this place I am going though..


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

Ours was a recommendation from our breeder.


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