The class is stressing you? Stress flows down the leash and into the dog. Your psychological state has a huge effect on your dog. You can worry your dog sick. Neither one of you needs that.

Put bluntly it sounds like a cr@p class.

Absolutely

The advice given was basically very old fashioned, but is still used a lot.
It works by intimidation and can scare sensitive dogs, and cause strong minded dogs to fight back. Middle of the road dogs usually cope but may be unhappy.

It sounds as if Bentley was subdued all day because of it.

Re the barking - try to work out reasons, often fear. If so then you can find out how to help him using a good trainer, or behaviourist or even good books

Here' s stuff by a good trainer,

http://www.dog-secrets.co.uk/how-do-dogs-learn/


Wys
x

I went to a training class that was out of the ark in that it was choke-chains and forcing your dog into positions. They didn't like the fact that I used treats and a clicker. I used to go because I thought it was good for Cherry as she used to be fear agressive and had got used to the dogs in the class and was doing very well (has 2 obedience trophies now). I gave up in the end as I found it quite dispiriting seeing how the other dogs were treated and how bored and demotivated they were.

It was really mean too as I had the best dog as Parker was so motivated but when we had the tests for the advanced class trophy they gave it to an owner with a bored Lhasa Apso that was dragged round the tests on-lead whilst my dog was working happily off-lead! Says it all really doesn't it?

Before we left Parker and I were asked to do a display of heelwork to music at the Christmas party which went well.
I felt sad knowing that the owners of dogs that went there wouldn't work in partnership with their dogs but just bully them. There was a Labrador there that I was sure had hip problems and the owner used to yank its legs from under it to make it lie down. I used to wince thinking it must be really hurting it being treated like this. I said to the owner that I thought her dog had hip problems (its movement looked completely wrong and I am not an expert so it was quite obvious). She didn't bother to do anything but I met her friend a year later and the dog had been operated on for joint problems with its legs.

Have you checked whether these people are properly trained, I'd be checking up on the initials after the trainer's names if it were me, they sound very old fashioned imo, and NO, I definitely wouldn't be going back there.

I did the puppy class, but had to leave near the end due to personal circumstances, so I then signed up with another one at a much bigger club. Anyhoo, I had only been there for 4 weeks or so, when the trainer who I liked very much indeed, went to take my puppy off me to show me something I had asked. Well! All hell broke loose, she wasn't going to be taken away from mum, so the trainer really yelled at her, and pulled her to the middle of the room made her sit and take a treat and then handed her back. I found this very strange, because the trainer at the OTHER puppy class had always used my puppy to demonstrate different commands and she had always been happy to go with her, but not this new one! It went downhill from there, and although I spent the rest of the evening with her shaking and hiding under my chair, I decided to take her the following week just to see if we could get through this. She was the same, when the trainer came near her she wouldn't even take a piece of liver cake off her, so I knew she had been really upset and hadn't forgotten the previous week's incident. I decided not to go back, and I took the bull by the horns and trained her myself, and it's all worked out brilliantly, in fact, better I think, because she had no distractions with me training her, she had no other dogs to lunge at to play with, and no other dogs walking past us that she didn't like (i.e. a staffie that had attacked her!!!!).

I'm afraid if this were me, I'd go it alone. Set aside some time in the day/evening whatever, get a good book or two on the subject and away you go and you won't look back! Good luck, it really isn't worth spoiling all the effort you've put in, because at that tender age, things have a habit of "sticking" in their minds if it goes pete tong!

O wow! so many well informed replies! Thank you all so much for your advice, I have in fact started to cry just reading your posts
There is no other option for classes unfortunately as I am in Germany and the class is on the nearby base and is therefore the only English speaking option (I have got by just smiling at the Germans instead of learning the language - slaps self on wrist) We are moving at the end of this summer so I hope that I will be able to find a good class at our next posting.
I really value the class for the socialising aspect. He is dog reactive on walks but at the class he knuckles down and is fairly good. We do lots of walks with my friend's pointer and JRT, and also a Cocker Spaniel. If I stop going to class I worry that he won't get that valuable interaction that he needs and that I will be letting him down. But at the same time, I'm letting him down if I'm being told to use negative methods
I know the trainer is a big CM fan but it has never been apparent at the puppy class and perhaps why it came as such a shock to me. There is a lady at the class too (the group is big so they split it) and she is much more positive but I don't really feel that I can ask to be 'in her group' if you know what I mean. hurumph!

As someone said, in my heart of hearts I know what to do but I really wanted to hear from the lovely people of Dogsey that I am making the right decision for me and my pup

If you're concerned about socialization maybe you could put up signs on base or send out messages about forming a play group or having some play dates? Sure there must be other people with dogs there who are friendly!

But these are all dogs, and hopefully with these 3 dogs you also meet up with other dogs, and hopefully your puppy plays with one or two of these 3 dogs as well??? That's all the socialisation you need, rather than be in a class with the other dogs there, under the rule of somebody who doesn't quite know the right way to go about it nowadays!

For dog reactivity, a lot of people have recommended Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt. She has a "game" in there called "Look at that" which helps reactive dogs with looking at the source of their reaction and remaining calm about it. I've not read the book, but after hearing a couple descriptions of "Look at that" I did something along that line with my dog and now she's about 95% not reactive.

I keep meaning to pick it up to read it, but haven't gotten around it. But it might help if you want to work on his reactivity on your own.

And he's getting socialization at the moment, which is great, but you could see if there are others around for continued socialization as well.

You are right. The plonker is wrong. You know this. We know this. Find a trainer who isn`t a bully, and I hope you and your dog have a nice time learning together.