Comments on: Why Clicker Trainers Make Me Sad

By: Amy@GoPetFriendly

Amy@GoPetFriendly — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 02:55:35 +0000

Oh my – have you seen Buster and me on one of our bad days? =) This post got me thinking – I’m going to pull out my clicker again. I’ve been trying to train without it, though I have no idea why. Thanks for the post – you neighbor inspired me.

By: Staci Smith

Staci Smith — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 04:46:51 +0000

I’m used to people saying I’m a bit crazy with my stratospheric love of dogs, so finding people online who feel the same way I do is a breath of fresh air. I generally feel like I can get along with anyone if they love dogs, because in my books if you treat your dog well that trumps a lot of poor behavior. So while I’m slowly finding a gang on line, I think the mutual dog lovers card might not be a bad idea – it may be the only way I get to have brunch with a being other than my pooch!

By: Jill

Jill — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 15:49:52 +0000

I totally agree. Most people where I live say, “It’s just a dog.” I met some wonderful people at a dog camp who are like-minded in using appropriate training techniques for the individual dog. Check out http://www.pawstoconnect.net Maybe you could join this group for their once a year retreat to relax and hang out with other dog lovers! (As of Oct-19, the website has not been updated with information on the 2013 camp, but it is being planned for sometime in mid-August to mid-October. There is an email address for the planner on the website. If you email her and request more info, she will make sure you receive it when details are available.)

By: Julie

Julie — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 03:50:25 +0000

We do have some dog friends that we see every Saturday at the park, but we generally just walk and chat together about random things. All of the dogs are really well behaved but we’ve never really discussed training methods. Still – I feel much more connected to my online tribe!!

By: houndstooth

houndstooth — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 03:47:12 +0000

In our little town? Are you kidding? We don’t see too many people even walking dogs around here, much less have the chance to really connect with anyone. There’s a certain religious sect in or town and if you aren’t a member of the church, they will be polite to you on the street, but they won’t invite you to do social things.

It wasn’t until I was online that I really found people who have the same level of passion and empathy towards their pets that I feel. I’ve met a lot more kindred spirits online than I have in person. I’d love it if we had more people in our area to socialize with, but I think that is slow going.

By: Diane and Cosmo @ To Dog With Love

Diane and Cosmo @ To Dog With Love — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 01:20:27 +0000

First, loved your post. I admit, your headline got me at first! I guess I’m one of the lucky ones. I live in a neighborhood filled with dogs and folks who are active with their dogs and with local pet shelters. Through agility and other dog activities I have lots of pals I actually know in person. And though our blog and other social media I also have lots of online pals, many of who I’ve also been lucky enough to meet in person.

By: dawn

dawn — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 23:36:45 +0000

I do have online friends, but I feel lucky to have an off line group of people I can talk and practice positive training with. I belonged to a dog training club for a few years and during that time they from from prong collars to clickers. At least most of them did. We sponsored some great seminars and a group of us when to the APDT conferences together.

I’m no longer a member of the club. Mostly because while people may use positive methods with their dogs, they often forget about doing the same with people and things got crazy. I am still friends with a few though and it’s nice being able to talk dog training with someone who has the same training principles as me.

By: Toby

Toby — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 23:32:54 +0000

The One Called Donna has a lot of dog friends in our area – but they agree to disagree on the training. You see, Long Island is very correction oriented for some reason. The One Named Nick says it is because people who live here want stuff “right now” and correction training is often faster. Sad for the dogs of all those peoples, huh?

By: Jackie Bouchard

Jackie Bouchard — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 23:10:32 +0000

I generally don’t talk to the other dog owners in the neighborhood because I’m too busy focusing on Rita and trying to keep her calm. Occasionally I’ll be able to chat w/ someone because Rita (for whatever reason) is fine with their dog. (It’s so nice when that happens!) But at the off-leash park, we have lots of friends we see there all the time, although a lot of them are not necessarily employing what I would say are the best training methods. (We see it all there!) I also have a big on-line tribe through tripawds.com (our last dog had 3 legs) and cometdog.com, where we are all crazy dog ladies and post as if it was the dog talking.
It’s a good mix.

By: Mareth

Mareth — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 22:59:55 +0000

I’m glad to read that I’m not the only one whose tribe is online. I often get depressed when I’m out with my dogs. Unfortunately, it’s not because my fellow dog-walkers are too busy C/T their dogs. It’s because they are yelling at and yanking on their dogs… if they’re bothering to control them at all. And then there are all the dogs I see behind fences, their frantic running from one side of the yard to the other, the only exercise they ever get.

I moved from a metropolitan area with a great many dog training clubs, private trainers, and Animal Behaviorists from which to choose. They ran the gamut from the old school to the progressive.

Now, I live in more rural place where “crank and yank” training is still seen as the only way to go. A local veterinarian told one of my clients that she would never get her very soft GSD puppy to do anything, using treats and a clicker; instead, he advocated the method of highly P+ training he utilizes for training guard dogs.

Other trainers in the area routinely tell large breed puppy owners, “You’ll never be able to control that dog without a prong collar,” on the first day of puppy kindergarten as well as advocating the Alpha Roll, knee-to-the-chest, and other methods that make me shudder.

At a nearby Obedience Trial, a trainer (with several OTCHs under her belt) told me that my Pug would never learn to walk nicely on-leash without a prong or shock collar; too bad he wasn’t there with me that day to blow her away with his flawless heel… taught solely with R+ methods.

Establishing my own business here has been a challenge because my R+ methods aren’t what the locals are used to. Luckily, many of my students are thrilled with the “new” concept of dog training and word is starting to get out. I soldier on, making sure that my own dogs are out and about regularly, so that my neighbors can see that training without pain and fear not only works, it builds a better relationship between dog and handler.

In the meantime, I am eternally grateful for my online dog owner/trainer tribe.