Hi all has anyone heard of the training program listed on http://www.wonderdogs.bc.ca ??
What do you think of this course????

Ok I'll bite. It looks pretty bad to me. Maybe he just did't go into detail on his site but his Praise/Play training method sounded to me like simply a learning phase and didn't mention anything about a correction phase or a proofing phase. There's a big difference between TEACHING a dog to sit/stay for treats, and TRAINING a dog to do it on command, with reliability. He then states that he's going to teach your dog to make a show of aggression (without altering your dogs temperment) while staying by your side. Put these two things together and it's a recipe for disaster. What happens when the dog decides that he'd rather bite some dude rather than get praise or a treat for obeying? No, I need more consistancy from my dogs than that type of (incomplete) training will produce. For the general safety of others, among other things, like the general safety of my dogs. A lot of softer trainers will say that its my thirst for domination or my ego that has me make a statement like that. My feeling is, in their good intended efforts to always use "purely positive" techniques, they are simply not accepting the complete responsibility that comes with keeping and training dogs.
I feel that EVERY dog needs to have a correction phase and a proofing phase in their obedience training. The consistancy that these phases produce could save your dogs life one day. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Differing thoughts?

Praise is a good thing, BUT you also have to discipline the dog when it misbehaves.

Thank you Kelly. Your statement was very simple and very true. Not really what I would call a differing thought though.

what exactly i would like to know is what you think of the professional trainers course and weather you have done the course or know someone who has done the course...

It depends on what you are looking for in a trainers course. If you are interested in Schutzhund or Protection work... that didn't appear to be his specialty.

I also noticed that none of his background emphasizes precision or control. Further, anybody who thinks that training Border Collies is the same as training a dominant working Shutzhund is mistaken. (Yes they are both dogs... but training a house cat is not the same as training a leopard).

However, if you want to learn how to play frisbee and have lots of fun with your dog... the course should be excellent. Based on the info on the website, it looks like a really enjoyable program.

Ozzie,

The problem with a dog training school is that so much is dependant on experience. You can teach some basic principles, but it is a huge leap between theory and practice. Most successful trainers I know started by working around a good trainer training their own dogs, and then progressed to training other peoples dogs, and then out on their own. I can tell you the perfect method to train a dog, unless you can actually perform it you are not ahead at all. The other thing is that so much of dog training is problem solving and that comes from experience. Basic training is fairly similar, problem solving varies much more between dogs based on the temperament of the dog, the abilities and temperament of the owner, and the cause of the problem. This is not going to be taught from a book. An accredited program means that someone looked at the ciriculum and passed off on it, that doesn't mean that you can do the job once you graduate.

Jason:

“I feel that EVERY dog needs to have a correction phase and a proofing phase in their obedience training.”

While for 999 out of a 1000 dogs this is a correct statement. There are a small percentage of high drive dogs that do not need a correction phase. Could you use compulsion with them? Sure. The higher the drive the more compulsion you can use. But you can have the same or even greater reliability using drive alone. Remember every SchH handler says “My dog has super ball drive or super food drive.” I’m talking drive where it hurts inside when they see a ball or food. There need to satisfy their drive is greater than the fear of compulsion.

PS. This is not a post for beginners. Follow Ed’s three phase approach like the bible. Trust me you do not have one of these dogs.

Vince: First of all I'd like to thank you for those great odds! Now, forgive me as I try to answer your statement with a question. What do you do when this dog is hurting inside to go after, or do something that can get him killed? What do you use to stop him? Don't get me wrong I'm not a fan of extinguishing drive for the sake of perfect obedience. However,I want obedience that I can count on like the sun coming up tomorrow and I'll have it at all cost. I have yet to see the dog that was geneticly predisposed to sitting and staying when he REALLY wants to do something else. I really don't think that I can train obedience any other way than the "3phase", but maybe someone else can.