# How do I get started with Schutzhund Training?



## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Hello everyone!

Sorry if I sound nooby as I have never done schutzhund training myself. I use to have a german shepherd that was schutzhund II and we rehomed him. This was a few years ago. Currently, I have a 7 month old german shepherd. His name is Kaiser vom Custodio. I was curious about if he qualifies to be schutzhund (getting him evaluated I believe is the term?). His parents and his line are all schutzhund so I hope he has the traits as well.

My question is how would I get started? I live in Riverside, CA and I'm looking for schutzhund clubs near by. I came across Golden State Schutzhund Club but I'm not sure how to get involved with them? 

Also I know this training is very expensive and requires a lot of dedication. After researching it a lot, I'm a little confused as to price though? I've seen people say that training cost about $3000 a year, then I've seen people say it cost $1500, and I just saw one that said its $30 a class, so I'm not sure how this works and how much it will be. I contacted a schutzhund club near me and they were explaining that I needed to get a membership which is $15,000 for 5 years? I forgot the club as it was a few months ago but I'm really not sure how to get started with this.

If anyone can please help point me in the right direction or give me any advice or tips please 

Thanks!


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

I live near Washington DC and the prices vary quite a bit, as well as the expertise of the training director, helpers and the expectations of the club. By that I mean some clubs are very casual and some very competitive. So the first thing to do is visit clubs and chat with the members before starting anything with your dog. It might not hurt to bring your pup and let it sniff around the field a bit. Don't start any work until you find a group that has the same expectations as you. You'll be spending a lot of time with these people, even though each dog is on the field training for only 15 to 20 minutes at a time. You want to make sure the time is good for you and your pup.

In the mean time you can play tug of war games, nose work games, and focus heeling games on your own. What you won't be able to do much is sleeve work. That really needs to be done by someone who's experienced at it.

And I'd stay away from a 5 year commitment. You never know what life is going to throw at you from one year to the next.


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

oh, and that doesn't include the cost of the toys, gear and crates you may start to covet (grin)


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

Contact the club, talk to them, go out to visit. That is how you become involved.  Here is their contact information:

Golden State Schutzhund Club
Marie Weller
Riverside, CA
(951) 353-1252

You can look for other options here:

https://www.germanshepherddog.com/region-events/?cy=2017&cm=03&re=sw


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Definitely will try to check them out! I'm trying to find an address for them to see if I can come by their next training. My current pup has some bite work because my last trainer saw "potential" in him and thought we should start him now. He actually gave me a sleeve to work with him when I can because he said "I know the basics to work with him while we're not training." But yeah I see what you're saying! Will defintely look first! 

I don't want to commit neither for 5 years especially! And as much as I would love to get into this sport, I don't know how I feel about $15,000 for this. 

Thank you for the advice!!!


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Thank you for the info!! I sent them an email last night and left a voicemail earlier today to see if I can get an address so I can visit but no replies yet. Hopefully they reply soon!


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## zetti (May 11, 2014)

Richmond Custodio said:


> Thank you for the info!! I sent them an email last night and left a voicemail earlier today to see if I can get an address so I can visit but no replies yet. Hopefully they reply soon!


If you don't hear back from Marie, give Pete Medina at Golden State Training Academy a call. She uses Pete's field and he's usually pretty easy to get hold of. 
Address is 12235 El Sobrante RD, in Lake Matthews. He can also help you with training, if need be. He knows what he's doing

I can't fathom why a trainer would give you a sleeve! And I've never heard of a five year/$15K Schutzhund program. Bizarre.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Thank you! I will definitely give him a call right now!! Would it be weird if he doesn't answer if I just went over there to check it out since its 5 minutes away from where I live?

I showed him a video of me practicing his bite work at home and he told me to use this and he gives me a sleeve and I just said okay lol. But yeah $15k, I thought that was really outrageous... 

Thank you!


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## Glaicer (Aug 6, 2016)

lhczth said:


> Contact the club, talk to them, go out to visit. That is how you become involved.  Here is their contact information:
> 
> Golden State Schutzhund Club
> Marie Weller
> ...


This is my home club! Our facebook page is very active and you'll probably get a faster response. You can contact Lionel Madd, or Marie Weller(both have facebook pages, so you can PM them there) to get info about us. We train Wednesday nights and Sunday morning.


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## Richmond Custodio (Jan 28, 2017)

Glaicer said:


> This is my home club! Our facebook page is very active and you'll probably get a faster response. You can contact Lionel Madd, or Marie Weller(both have facebook pages, so you can PM them there) to get info about us. We train Wednesday nights and Sunday morning.




Do they train on Peter Medinas field?? I just finished my first training session with him and he was telling me they train there and he still plays a role in the club but I'm not really sure? 

He's charging me $900 a year for Sunday morning trainings but idk how I feel since it's only once a week and I know clubs usually train three times a week?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Glaicer (Aug 6, 2016)

Richmond Custodio said:


> Do they train on Peter Medinas field?? I just finished my first training session with him and he was telling me they train there and he still plays a role in the club but I'm not really sure?
> 
> He's charging me $900 a year for Sunday morning trainings but idk how I feel since it's only once a week and I know clubs usually train three times a week?
> 
> ...


We do train on his field, but we are two separate clubs. Pete is not a member of our club, though we do occasionally overlap on field time, if we have a short training day. As I said before we train twice a week. Our club dues are around 360 a year, paid quarterly.


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