Sending your dog away for training??
 

I have a new German shepherd puppy (about 10 weeks) and I'm researching training opportunities in Richmond, VA. A lot of the trainers with excellent reviews have you send your dog away to doggy boot camp for 2 weeks or more. Has anyone done this?? Im interested in the pros and cons to this method! It seems strange to me to give my puppy away to someone for that long! I was also under the impression it's better to do training WITH your dog. My pup is extremely smart but I've never trained a dog. I just want him to be well mannered. Thanks for any input!


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I rather train with my pup, create bond. I would not send away unless we had serious problems. Zeus is 10 weeks as well, no previous experience for me in training dogs, my first dog actually and we have all basic commands covered with ease. Puppy school for us next week just for fun and to socialize. =)

Most people will not agree with this method. To many of us, training is a journey not a destination. You'll meet plenty of people that train their dogs in obedience all the way through their lives and take them to training class every week.

Sending your dog away gets results...but who knows how? No one knows what those trainers do to your dog to get them to listen. Then there is a period of your dog learned to listen to someone else, now why would they listen to you?

This is something that is done when people don't have the time to deal with a growing dog. Or they're too busy with something else to concentrate on their new puppy. It's why HOT (handler, owner, trained) is becoming a much more popular thing to put after your dog's name. It says a lot about a person that has trained their own dog and been able to get through the ups and downs of dog training themselves.

Find a club, Schutzhund, obedience, GSD, anything...that trains. There are kennel clubs all over the place that will teach YOU how to train a dog and usually for a very low fee and some volunteer hours.

I would wait until the dog is at least a year old before even considering a board and train. The basic training has to be done by you, I think a board and train would be good for refining what you have already started.
In addition I would be very careful regarding where you send your dog. You don't want to send him somewhere where he would be ruined by a less than honest or capable trainer.

Sending your dog away for training??
 

Thank you all!!


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Probably as others have suggested, would not send a puppy away for training. If you were going to spend money on training, then by all means find a good trainer or club and learn how to do all the basics and create that bond! You will possibly struggle a little as you learn but a good trainer will help to give you the basic skills that you will be able to build on.

I would never, ever send my dog away for training, I just don't trust people. Here is a story that will make you think twice.

Man Running Dog Training Operation Faces 70 Animal Abuse Charges | WBNS-10TV Columbus, Ohio

Poor Teddy is still missing, he was sent to this so called trainer :( https://www.facebook.com/pages/Urgen...78043778951548

As with local trainers, board and train trainers, IPO clubs, etc - do your research. Just because someone claims they have done "x", does not mean it is true.

There is so much BS marketing and claims of experience. Do your due diligence and verify.

Personally, I would NEVER send my dog away.

First reason is... I love the bond. Training is one of the best ways to get that strong bond with your dog. Especially puppies... that young stage is where it's all developed. Why have them bond with someone else?

Second.... Just because your dog is "trained", doesn't mean they will listen and respect YOU. For example: I have 3 GSDs and I am their trainer.... my SO loves them and plays with them, feeds them when I'm not home, etc... But he does not train with them, he doesn't work them, he doesn't really ask them to do much of anything, he's not the big dog person here. My dogs listen to me very very well, I have a lot of respect from them..... my SO... Not at all. They turn their tails up at him. They are all well trained... but they wont listen to him. You have to earn that respect, it just doesn't go from one person to the next in an instant.

Third.... You never know what that "trainer" is doing with them. Unless you know the trainer very very very well and have been involved with their program for a while and witnessed their dogs work and them train others to the levels they wanted them at..... I wouldn't. I've heard a lot of stories of dogs being killed, harmed, or just left to rot while in a "trainers" program. We recently had a show dog owner come to our training class (she's an old friend of my trainers)... she had to drive up to get her dog that she left for training at this guys place in GA after he would not take her calls, or call her back, or respond to her emails and texts about her dogs progress. No pictures, no updates... nothing. She went up to get him, the trainer wouldn't get him for her. She had to get police involved. The dog was skin and bones, hair was matted, he was sick, and he had a few sores on him... The dog was terribly mannered too. He got into some bad habits. Absolutely terrible sight.

And lastly.... why would you want to get a dog, just to hand it over to a trainer? The fun in owning a dog, is bonding, training, going through all those puppy days and learning about your dog. Train at home, or at a nearby club or personal training, enjoy the dog and gain that bond. Then the dog will want to work with you, want to protect you, want to be around you and love you. That's the true dog ownership. Most often, dogs that are sent to be trained come back with fake titles and half done training anyways. It's not worth the money. If you REALLY don't want to do the training, or just don't want to go through the puppy stage.... buy an adult from a reputable breeder. They've done the training up to that point, and the dog is older. It'll be a healthy dog, and a properly trained dog. Win win situation.

"Doggy Boot Camp" is a phrase that scares me. I'd never send my dog out for someone else to train. At best, you have a well trained dog who you have to retrain to listen to you. At worst, you could bring home a horribly abused dog that a "trainer" beat into listening to them. Training is such a treat; it builds the relationship between you and your dog. The small victories you have such as the pup sitting for the first time on command with no lure overshadows the last month of trial and error. It is something that I wouldn't trade for anything on the planet.