I need some advice.I enrolled my 15 mth old GSD at a training class at Petsmart. I was careful to choose an experienced paws for cause instructor and the class has only 1 other dog belonging to the petcare manager.My thoughts were to proof him with distractions in a small class setting.Well all hell breaks loose the minute I attached him to his flat collar,even though he is still wearing the prong.We are 3 weeks into the class and he pulls till he is choking,has pulled so hard I almost fell, and has body slammed himself to the hard floor all in an attempt to play with this other dog. When we leave the room I simply attach the leash to his prong and I have the best behaved dog willing to do everything asked of him without one correction.It is obvious to me my dog is not only collar smart but not trained.I have always done marker training(apparently wrong) and have most all of Ed and Micheal's DVD's.Now What? Should I throw away the 100.00 I spent on class and not return? Just continue to work with him at home? They will allow a no pull harness, but he again will just learn that while he has it on not to pull.I can't take 5 more weeks of this pulling and lunging in class.We are both seriously exhausted when we get home and I am afraid one or both of us are going to get hurt.. Axel is excerised and we work on behaviors, reinforcing and new ones everyday.What would you do?

if they allow him to wear his prong in class, but the leash attachrd to the flat-will they allow you to attach a small pull tab to the prong??

Quick answer..Find a place that has training classes that follow Ed's methods and allow proper equipment.
They will have the right training techniques to help you with the other issues you are having.
I am sure that others will chime in with specific advise.
I wouldn't take my dog to a class or trainer that didn't alow prongs. That shows that they don't agree with my training methods, and you will have conflicts.
I think all you need is to do is some proofing and desensitizing.
How do you feel about your pack structure?

Well I do that anyway because of a liability waiver you must sign, but we can not use it in class.

We still have issues at the door when someone comes over but other than that he is very respectful.He wants to know who is there and if they are safe or not. Once he sizes then up he is mindful of them but fine.

My biggest problem here is that there isn't anyone within an hours drive or more that does markers and will allow a corrective collar.

What words of wisdom did the trainer have during these fiascoes?

If the trainer isn't helping you would be better off using the prong and just walking around the store or a park without wasting your money on a useless trainer.

I went to a PetSmart class that was just like that too. They wouldn't let me use anything except a flat nylon or leather collar. I had no control with those. I started reading the ebooks and watching the streaming videos from Leerburg on this site. Then I bought Ed's training video 'power of marker training' and the Michael Ellis DVD that just came out last year 'the power of training dogs with food'. Between those educational resources I have been trained a lot better on how to train my dog. So then when I want to do distraction training - when your dog is understanding what you want - you can take them to places where there will be other dogs or distractions and know how to train in that environment. I don't believe you need a class in order to do that - especially a class that doesn't seem like it's going to help you learn how to handle your particular dog problems! This site is way more helpful than pet store classes! The DVD's saved me!

The trainer's only advice is a no pull harness. When I walk him around the store or anywhere with his prong collar on he is great.He has been really well socialized except with other dogs.He wants to play.I have Leerburg's marker training and Micheals training with food. I watch those every week as well as the basic obedience and pack structure DVD's.The last two I haven't watched in a while.I really was hoping to proof him but I feel like we have taken several steps backwards.Thanks to Ed's videos I probably know more about marker training than the instructor,but it's not working without the prong attached to the leash. which is why I question whether or not he is really trained.He listens at home and in the fenced yard on the flat collar.

Petsmart says, It's corperate policy not to allow corrective collars,I would call or e-mail corperate if I had their #'s and ask for permission. It's weird that they use slip-leads in grooming and sell prong and shock collars yet they are not allowed in training along with the marker training.The thing is as long as his leash is attached to the prong he is great. I don't need to correct him.