We went to puppy class for the first time tonight, and Lars had a blast. At the end of the class, the puppies could all run about and play for a few minutes, and he loved playing chase with the other dogs, all of which were much larger than he was. I'm so glad they allow for this kind of socailization.
puppy class
- Thread starter Junebug
- Start date
My school has a puppy primer too. It's sure great to have all the little uns in puppy class while the older beginner dogs go to basic. We all meet up in Intermediate 1 where the older dogs can then roll their eyes at the crazy puppy energy.
Have FUN! Take pix/vid and post for laughs! Nothing funnier than puppy antics.
Have FUN! Take pix/vid and post for laughs! Nothing funnier than puppy antics.
probably a mistake
Hi y'all,
this is my 3rd sheltie in my life, Kaleigh (k-lee). I haven't had a puppy for 17 yrs-my last one departed 1/2014. With the others, there were family and friends around all the time. Now I am at the stage in life that it is just mostly me, semi-retired. So I thot going to a socialization class would be good. Hmmm, not so sure now, or maybe wrong group. Kaleigh is 11 wks, about 5 lbs, on the smaller size. The "trainer" said come to the earlier class for smaller pups. Well, I wouldn't ever consider a husky, labs, pit bull types, smaller dogs, and at 7+ mths, they were WAY bigger. It wasn't a good experience for my girl. She is friendly, but I think the size of the other pups, and mostly being male pups and wanting to do the male "thing" scared my puppy more than it helped. They were all LOUD barkers and she cowered at that, as she isn't really vocal (something I prefer),sigh. Being bigger she just got trampled, and that isn't play. When we got home, it was like she suffered regression or something. She started with the crying, whining, having accidents. None of which she did since the day I brought her home at almost 8 wks. After day one, she was going outside or using her papers everytime. She never cried or whined after the 1st night. I am wondering if the experience traumatized her or something, ugh. It has been 3 days and things are finally getting back to where they were. I won't go back there, I think I need to find a situation with puppies more her size and age...I am miffed at the "trainer" for misrepresenting what the class really consisted of. And she told me, keep coming, your puppy will learn to interact...ah NO-don't think so. Wrong situation for my girl, mom BLEW it royally, sigh. Kaleigh can sit, lay down and come on command, so I think she is interacting pretty well so far! I didn't see that those puppies could listen or respond, and at that age, that means their owners don't get "training" at all.
Hi y'all,
this is my 3rd sheltie in my life, Kaleigh (k-lee). I haven't had a puppy for 17 yrs-my last one departed 1/2014. With the others, there were family and friends around all the time. Now I am at the stage in life that it is just mostly me, semi-retired. So I thot going to a socialization class would be good. Hmmm, not so sure now, or maybe wrong group. Kaleigh is 11 wks, about 5 lbs, on the smaller size. The "trainer" said come to the earlier class for smaller pups. Well, I wouldn't ever consider a husky, labs, pit bull types, smaller dogs, and at 7+ mths, they were WAY bigger. It wasn't a good experience for my girl. She is friendly, but I think the size of the other pups, and mostly being male pups and wanting to do the male "thing" scared my puppy more than it helped. They were all LOUD barkers and she cowered at that, as she isn't really vocal (something I prefer),sigh. Being bigger she just got trampled, and that isn't play. When we got home, it was like she suffered regression or something. She started with the crying, whining, having accidents. None of which she did since the day I brought her home at almost 8 wks. After day one, she was going outside or using her papers everytime. She never cried or whined after the 1st night. I am wondering if the experience traumatized her or something, ugh. It has been 3 days and things are finally getting back to where they were. I won't go back there, I think I need to find a situation with puppies more her size and age...I am miffed at the "trainer" for misrepresenting what the class really consisted of. And she told me, keep coming, your puppy will learn to interact...ah NO-don't think so. Wrong situation for my girl, mom BLEW it royally, sigh. Kaleigh can sit, lay down and come on command, so I think she is interacting pretty well so far! I didn't see that those puppies could listen or respond, and at that age, that means their owners don't get "training" at all.
Bailey ( 4 months) just "graduated" from puppy class this week. There were 3 small puppies in the class & 2 larger breeds ( they looked like doodles, fluffy gentle pups) They all were males & all got along well except my Bailey started the wild herding chase during free play time & they all would follow. The trainer was not worried about my little Bailey, she was more concerned about the bigger pups not used to running around in circles like Bailey :-o Overall I think it helped Bailey learn how to get along with dogs of all sizes & he seems well adjusted to other dogs.
Next class is Beginner & he may face dogs of all sizes, so hope he manages tp play safely with the bigger dogs. He is really fast so not really too worried.
Next class is Beginner & he may face dogs of all sizes, so hope he manages tp play safely with the bigger dogs. He is really fast so not really too worried.
romeosangiovese
Forums Enthusiast
I wouldn't put an 11 week old with a group of larger 7 month olds for socialization! Don't beat yourself up about it! You took the advice of someone you thought knew better but didn't. At least now you're making the right decision to not bring her back. I would also recommend finding a class with smaller pups of similar age. When she's more confident around such pups then you can let her meet larger less rowdy, calmer dogs (not a bunch of adolescents!).
better experience
I have friends with collies, beautiful dogs, and very well mannered. Kaleigh met them on the weekend. At first their size intimidated her, and she cowered. I think she thought it would be a repeat of the socialization class that wasn't fun for her. But Joy and Buddy are gentle, and kept wanting to meet her, and they were SO good about it...they would back off, until she calmed down and try again...they won her over, Kaleigh decided they were friends. They are 10 and 7, so having a puppy underfoot was a different experience for them. Being so much bigger, play wasn't working, so they both decided to lay down, and then Kaleigh could interact better. It was so cute watching her bound off them both, and bounce. When she got too boisterous they would put a paw on her head, and that stopped her. It was a good experience, and that is exactly what I wanted for her, interaction that was positive. They all napped together with Kaleigh in the middle, so I would say a good bonding session. They knew my previous sheltie, and they were good friends as well. That one looked like their runt offspring when they were together, ha. Same coloring, etc. They live almost 2 hrs away, so visiting frequently is challenging with our schedules. I wish they were closer, so Kaleigh could have more access. Haven't found a class yet with her size...seems most people near me have bigger dogs, but I keep trying,
I have friends with collies, beautiful dogs, and very well mannered. Kaleigh met them on the weekend. At first their size intimidated her, and she cowered. I think she thought it would be a repeat of the socialization class that wasn't fun for her. But Joy and Buddy are gentle, and kept wanting to meet her, and they were SO good about it...they would back off, until she calmed down and try again...they won her over, Kaleigh decided they were friends. They are 10 and 7, so having a puppy underfoot was a different experience for them. Being so much bigger, play wasn't working, so they both decided to lay down, and then Kaleigh could interact better. It was so cute watching her bound off them both, and bounce. When she got too boisterous they would put a paw on her head, and that stopped her. It was a good experience, and that is exactly what I wanted for her, interaction that was positive. They all napped together with Kaleigh in the middle, so I would say a good bonding session. They knew my previous sheltie, and they were good friends as well. That one looked like their runt offspring when they were together, ha. Same coloring, etc. They live almost 2 hrs away, so visiting frequently is challenging with our schedules. I wish they were closer, so Kaleigh could have more access. Haven't found a class yet with her size...seems most people near me have bigger dogs, but I keep trying,
2GoodDogs
Forums Enthusiast
I am a Puppy K teacher and I do not let puppies play with each other in class.
If the puppy people agree, they can play outside before or after class.
We teach responsible dog ownership and beginning obedience and relationship building during our class time. The other puppies are a distraction and when they learn that their people are as fun as playing with other pups, then my job was well done.
I don't like to see puppies get over-run by bigger puppies, or bully puppies get the extra practice, as well as overly submissive puppies getting extra practice.
If the puppy people agree, they can play outside before or after class.
We teach responsible dog ownership and beginning obedience and relationship building during our class time. The other puppies are a distraction and when they learn that their people are as fun as playing with other pups, then my job was well done.
I don't like to see puppies get over-run by bigger puppies, or bully puppies get the extra practice, as well as overly submissive puppies getting extra practice.
trini
Forums Sage
I am a Puppy K teacher and I do not let puppies play with each other in class.
If the puppy people agree, they can play outside before or after class.
We teach responsible dog ownership and beginning obedience and relationship building during our class time. The other puppies are a distraction and when they learn that their people are as fun as playing with other pups, then my job was well done.
I don't like to see puppies get over-run by bigger puppies, or bully puppies get the extra practice, as well as overly submissive puppies getting extra practice.
I wish all puppy classes were handled the way you handle yours.
Over the years I, and many people I know, have had both good and bad experiences taking pups to class. A well run puppy class is a wonderful training/socialization time for a pup, but a poorly run one can do substantial emotional damage. I always advise people to ask to observe a class before signing up and to watch carefully how the instructor interacts with both the dogs and their people and what the general format is. If the instructor doesn't want to have someone observe before signing up, that in my book is a huge red flag.
Sadly, at least here in NY, there are literally no qualifications or certifications required to set up a business proclaiming that you are a "professional" dog trainer. So you get some really wonderful trainers and some who are not remotely qualified. It is truly a "customer beware" situation.
Trini
Jess041
Forums Enthusiast
My memory is a little fuzzy, but Missy started a puppy class at 13 weeks old. She was about 11 lbs, so a bit bigger. It was set up where we would work on a little bit of training for a couple minutes, then let the puppies play together or with us for a couple minutes. Our trainer only allows 6 puppies max. The first class, it was just Missy and another puppy that was a terrier about the same size, then later on a portugese water dog and another bigger puppy came in. When they were playing, Missy just walked around and socialized with the people. She had no interest in joining in their dog pile. She still does that. She's not much of a wrestler, but prefers to "herd" the other dogs or play chase. Missy had been very shy outside of the house, but the class really helped her confidence. The second class I want to say there was 4 puppies including Missy. One was this huge Lab that played way too rough. Luckily the trainer recognized this and didn't let that puppy play rough with the other puppies. After the second class, our trainer asked if we were interested in doing a "small dog" class with another Sheltie, which we did. The other Sheltie ended up being Missy's brother, and then there was a second Sheltie puppy who was a couple months older, but not much bigger. The Sheltie puppies had a grand 'ole time in puppy class together.
I don't know if it's better to keep them from playing or not. It worked out for Missy, but I can see where in some cases it's not good, especially when a smaller puppy is getting trampled.
I don't know if it's better to keep them from playing or not. It worked out for Missy, but I can see where in some cases it's not good, especially when a smaller puppy is getting trampled.