Recallers - worthwhile?

[Guardyan]

Hey guys,

Has anyone taken Susan Garrett's Recallers course? What material was covered? Was the information useful? New? Worthwhile?

Thanks!

[wildo]

Yes, I've taken the course in the past. However, we didn't make it all the way through on account of an injury. Here's the thing:

• If you're looking for structured training, with basic behaviors broken down into small, manageable components
• If you're looking for directed guidance on implementing a training plan to accomplish a goal (in this case, a trained recall; but most certainly the knowledge gained will help you create other plans)
• If you are looking to better understand positive reinforcement training (at least from the perspective of Susan Garrett)
• If you are looking for a small to medium sized community of people to bounce ideas off of who are doing the exact same training, and having the exact same problems
• If you are interested in direct (well, nearly direct) communication with Susan Garrett and Lynda Orton-Hill via live webinars
• If you just generally want to have fun training your dog in a slightly more structured environment...

Then it might be for you. It won't be cheap, but I do think you'll get your money's worth- if even just to see another person's interpretation of a +R training system.

I will note- Susan will definitely refer to IYC and Crate Games pretty regularly. She will definitely tell people that solutions to their problems are "more crate games" or "more IYC." I don't necessarily think she's wrong- I mean, people are buying into her program after all- certainly fair of her to tell them to do more of it. But if you don't want to hear her promote her own stuff, the program may not be for you. And be sure- IYC and Crate Games are foundational to the program.

I'm signed up. Full disclosure: I'm grandfathered in thanks to her generosity. Former members usually get to take the course for free if they make a video about their experience. That said- I may still upgrade to a more expensive option. I've been eying her "Inner Circle" for quite a while, and now I have a dog that could actually benefit from it.

[wildo]

There's another forum member here YukonGal who I believe is taking it this round. And I'm pretty sure TaraM1285 has taken the course in the past.

[wildo]

Oh- I'll also add:

There were three levels when I signed up. I signed up for the middle level (which I believe was $100 more than the lowest level). Susan gave us another free course she was trying out "Shaping a Difference" which regrettably I never really found time to do. But the point is, she often gives away plenty of stuff to make you feel like you're getting your money's worth. But she's also a brilliant salesman. (Remember- that's what she did in a previous life.)

[wildo]

LOL- Sure, I'll keep sayin' stuff as I remember...

I've seen (but never taken a class) Silvia Trkman's webpage for her students.
I've seen (and taken a class) Daisy Peel's webpage for her students.
And I've obviously seen many webpages for Susan Garrett's students (PuppyPeaks, Recallers, Shaping a Difference, and Contacts)

Of all three, SG's web area is by far the most comprehensive, data driven, and easily navigated. From a technical standpoint- I've been disappointed in DP's web portal, and Silvia's looked much like her normal website (which I find hard to navigate). No I'm not saying that DP or ST don't give you enough info- hardly true! I'm just saying that from reading up and doing your own "homework" the SG webpages are far and above. (The contacts course was an exception: crazy amounts of info, with poor navigation to find it all.)

[TaraM1285]

Yes, I was in the original Recallers class and was given a spot in the second and third classes as well. I'll try to pop back on later to give a more comprehensive review.

Short story - I am glad I did it the first time and feel it is worth the time and money if you put the effort into it. More than a course on recalls, I felt it is a course on building a relationship with your dog.

[TaraM1285]

I agree with most of what Willy has mentioned, though I cannot comment on the user interface of the website as I have no comparisons.

During the first round of Recallers, I had enough time to watch comments and questions on the website and keep up with the classes. It felt like a great small community of people who were all quite helpful and active. The second and third, I had a much more difficult time keeping up with the "community" aspect of Recallers. I think it was a combination of not being able to devote much time to the message boards every day and that the community was a lot larger than the first time. I honestly felt like I got lost in the shuffle. All that said, the benefit of the written and video games instructions far outweighed any negative aspects of the large size class. I do think that if you make a real effort to be involved and active you will get even more out of the class, but if you can't, it's still worth it.

The only other thing I will mention is to reiterate that Susan is an absolutely brilliant salesperson. It is very difficult to resist the temptation of the upgrades she offers! She is also incredibly generous. I love the DVD I have of the games, the foundations articles and all the nice ebooks that she's put together for the Recallers community.

I don't know how much she's charging this time around, but it was worth what I paid. I have a dog with a phenomenal recall that I rarely have to use because of the relationship-building games we have done (and continue to do) that I learned from the class.

[Guardyan]

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences. I am always searching for new tools for my toolbox and found several of the Crate Games to be useful. With that said, I don't know if I could justify taking a course that is only about recalls. If there are other games, flatwork, etc. I might find something useful. I just wish I could find a specific curriculum so I could determine if this course is right for me . . .

Thanks again!

[wildo]

Well, yeah- it is about the recalls. But watch her promotional material once it comes out. In nearly every SG course I've taken (or perhaps EVERY one) she has had LOTS of info on body awareness. Her body awareness games have always been fascinating.

[Guardyan]

That does sound interesting!