Inexperienced puppy owner needing advice please!!!!

[shankly]

Shankly, my 4 mth old pup is progressing well (I think) though only listens to me really well when there is food involved! He sits, stays, will recall OK most of the time (for food) but without it, I may as well be talking to a brick wall. Also, he is extremely bitey on people and clothing, and whenever I tell him to stop he looks up at me and yaps at me like a defiant teenager, or goes for it even more.

I have been following 'The perfect Puppy' and have been trying to ensure that we humans are consistently 'top dog' of the house. I have a feeling that Shankly thinks he's a little higher on the ladder than what he really is!

I am taking him to puppy classes, which he loves, but apart from the socialisation, I am not sure how beneficial they are. I feel that Shankly really enjoys the puppy class, he looks at it as an opportunity to see his mates but we seem to be learning very little. It was recommended by vet, and is the only one in my area. The method of training doesn't use food rewards, and Shankly's trainer seems very abrupt. For example, we are 'taught' to train sit & lie down by firmly pulling up/down the lead. Other things we do in the class (such as recall and teaching stay still for ear, mouth, etc inspections) make sense, but generally the approach seems to be not as positive as I feel it should be. (I live in Holland, and wonder if this may have something to do with the differences in techniques and philosophies, as I have noticed differences in other situations too!).


I am thinking about trying clicker training, and have a few questions:
Is it more likely to encourage the right behaviour out of him during training, instead of me being totally ignored?
If I am not allowed to use it in Shankly's puppy lessons, will I be confusing him by using a different method in class?

I am new to dog training, as you can probably tell, and don't know how to improve the situation. I know that training is a slow process, and he is still very young. I also know that biting, etc is normal. I just want to know that I am doing everything possible to help Shankly grow up to be the happy and well trained gorgeous boy I know he can be!

Thanks in advance for any advice offered.

 

[cazza]

I love clicker training 

Can you get hold of 'The complete idiots guide to positive dog training' by Pamela Dennison (got mine off Amazon)  really easy to understand and an easy read will show you how to charge the clicker and lots lots more 

I'm not going to say anthing about the training classes you attend, I'll leave that to some one else 

[Tracy S]

Hi Welcome to COL

Your puppy is still very young and won't do everything you ask first time. We used our training class more for the socialisation as we had already done the basics with Louie,

I would say stick to your rewards method of training, it's okay that Shankly will only perform for food, it's how they learn  The biting is also perfectly normal, you'll find lots of posts on here about it. Different people use different methods of tackling it, we used to divert Louie's attention and give him something else to chew. If he didn't stop we'd use the 'time out' method.

At 4 months I don't think your pup will think he's superior to you, most people now believe that pack mentality does not exist between animals and humans

I wouldn't pull on Shankly to get him to sit/lie down,   I would stick with your methods of rewarding him.
 I'm not sure if the trainer will let you use the clicker in you class, you could ask? If you're unhappy with their methods though, you might consider trying a different one.

Good luck

[PennyB]

Your puppy is still very young and won't do everything you ask first time. We used our training class more for the socialisation as we had already done the basics with Louie,

As Tracy says it does take time, plus we don't always get it right as trainers either (in my head I kept thinking I was doing things right but when I went to a handful of 1-2-1s with my dog trainer I realised I was getting there but not doing things quite right)

Pups also have a short concentration span and need things to be repeated quite a bit in the early months. As time goes on you'll both get the hang of things and so it will not take as long to teach new stuff

[Top Barks]

first thing i'd do is look for a new class that does not use the methods you described.
Mark

[Abby]

first thing i'd do is look for a new class that does not use the methods you described.
Mark

Absolutely agree. And clicker training is fantastic - I've been doing iwth with both mine for a while now and it really helps you get to know your dog and dewvelop a close relationship, as well as trian them. And its fun!

About the bitin thing - follow the Perfect Puppy book but be patient. It takes time for them to learn and he is very young.

Godd luck!