Training class

[PeppersMom]

We obedience Cairn owners sometimes have to put up with a lot of preconceived ideas and prejudices in a field full of golden retrievers, border collies and other doggie over achievers. My rescue Cairn Brodie and I are in the middle of our first Competition Novice class. Up to this point we have been staying a more pet oriented novice class and my other dog is in utility. This dog continues to struggle with confidence issues, and it is clear this dog will teach me a LOT and change the way I approach training since he is a completely different than my other Cairn. However he tries and tries very hard! We were in class on Thursday night and I asked my instructor a question about a certain training issue and she responded by telling me Brodie should just be a house pet/couch potato. This for a dog who worked beautifully for me for 30 minutes in class with his tail up the whole time...what was his supposed house pet moment? For the last 10 minutes of class we worked figure 8's and he decided he didn't want to work anymore and sat downl . Very terrier like I would say but not enough to relegate him to the couch forever. But this is the stuff we terrier owners put up with...our dogs are intelligent enough to tell us when they are bored and have had enough, but obedience instructors who have this love affair with labs, goldens etc seem to think that they are the only ones who can excel in this sport and are too lazy to come up innovative ways to keep our terriers interested in regular obedience. I will get off my soapbox now but this episode has left me very frustrated and more determined than ever to keep working with Brodie at his own pace and to see what he can teach me.

[PeppersMom]

This is Brodie and me at our first earthdog trial last September,,,where he earned his JE

[bradl]

I admit to being impressed sometimes by the robotic perfection of some dogs, but watching a dog work happily is what makes me smile and almost tear up. I don't mind a point off here or there for a crooked sit or a bit of forging or lagging, I think they should get a point or two added back for happy working.

[shergry]

KUDDOS to you and Brodie. You have a lot of patience! I agree with bradl...that when I too see a dog working happy it just brings a smile to my face.

DH tried the agility with our oldest and she was bored, hot, really thought that we should jump and not her. But going through the classes and then going onto Earth Dog...WOW...really love the Earth Dog. When in the classes you are almost pointed right away as the one that is going to have the most difficult dog. And yet, you have not even started your first lesson...quite unfair.

SO HATS OFF TO YOU AND BRODIE!! You keep up the good work and try everything you hear about or read...we found that if we just try something new...something always happens- good or bad.

[Greg P]

I would also add, DUMP your instructor! She exhibits insensitive behavior to both human and canine, and I think that behavior is shameful! A good instructor is there to help the human through the training issues. Yes, terriers have training issues, but have proven over and over that they are capable. I think it takes a better trainer to work through the mind and attitude of a terrier, and when they do perform, a terrier struts like there is no tomorrow.

Why would you pay a person who makes you feel bad? A major part of the success is feeling good toward progress. I believe every city/ town has good caring and competent canine instructors. There has to be.

(And besides, Brodie may be picking up on the vibes from the environment she has created. He's problably the smartest dude in the class!)

[boats85]

I am going through pretty much the same thing with Skipper, we are second time around in beginner advanced and Skipp is doing very well despite being the smallest dog in class. Gives a lot of satisfaction to see Skipper doing a good sit stay bookended by a Rottweiler and a Lab, there is also a Great Dane, Boxers etc.. If nothing else Skipper does the best recall, full speed screething to a sit. but just like Brodie the last 20 minutes tries Skippers patience and he does act up some. The instructer gives me and Skipper a time out, she says Skipper cracks her up with his antics. Skipper teachers pet?

Skipper does his debute this weekend into Earthdog.

[eastofeden]

I'm with Greg....DUMP this instructor......give your money to someone willing to believe in you and your dog and to help you find the BEST approach for you and Brodie!

Smart dog....not wanting to drill the same thing over and over again. 10 minutes on figure 8's is way too much...I would have sat down with Brodie too!

I read elsewhere about a trainer who decided to get a terrier (Norwich I believe). Well from her Obediecence friends she got attitude about how difficult terriers were to train etc. Well she also does TV work...and from the dog trainers in the entertainment field she got teased that she was finally getting old and had to get an easy dog. There is a reason why terriers are pre-dominant in T.V & Movies (Think...Asta, Toto, Eddie, Wishbone, etc).

Dump this instructor...and get a bumper sticker that says "My Cairn Terrier is smarter than your Honor Student and Border Collie combined"

[cairnsby3]

I think I got lucky, my first obedience class was with instructors that have Whippets, who do obedience, tracking, flyball and lure coursing. While they had never had terriers, they figure you can train any dog. I never went to the class taught by the sheltie owner, the strictest member of our club, who thought every sit had to be perfect. I suppose no one thought I would suceed since there was another Cairn owner member of the club, who thought her cairns were untrainable (and still does!). Now that people have seen how well mine have done, when they get a new cairn in beginner class they just point to the pictures of Spring on the wall and try to help them.

[kjwarnold]

Dump this instructor...and get a bumper sticker that says "My Cairn Terrier is smarter than your Honor Student and Border Collie combined"

Too funny! And just for the record, Packy was valedictorian in his Advanced Obedience class. No other terriers in the class, but it was sure full of Labs, Goldens, a Newfie, and some mixed Lab breeds.

[Greg P]

Here's a theory on training and performing. This is something that just came to mind.....

Perhaps the cairn terrier "demands" a better relationship with it's owner/handler than other breeds. I've seen brilliant cairn performances and it looks to me that the dog is really working for the handler. It could be that some of the other breeds aren't so discriminating and will work for less than a cairn.

Once that relationship (between cairn and handler) is formed......watch out! I think a cairn can do anything, just as well as any other breed (and regularly proves it!)

[PeppersMom]

I'm afraid I'm on my own here..there aren't a lot of options around here. Interesting enough we were at our first earthdog practice last weekend and both dogs worked the senior tunnel for the first time. Brodie recalled out of the tunnel on the second command! He did it in under 60 seconds...it took Pepper a lot longer, but it did too. Actually Brodie was gave what would have been a qualifying run..he wasn't put off by the tunnel restriction because of his smaller size. I had always wondered if I get those guys to come out of there on their own.

[nancy rink]

I so feel the pain; Rocky & I went through that same predjudice in our first agility classes. The good news was, Rocky is such a great little guy, before long he had everyone eating out of his paws. I feel he actually became one of the trainer's favorites.

My first inclination on reading this was to agree with everyone else & dump the trainer, but if that's not an easy option, you may want to sit down & have a good chat with this trainer. Cairns are different than other breeds, & require a different handling style. They will give you their heart & soul but it requires a special bond & trust; they certainly catch on when other people don't believe in them too.

I would throw the gauntlet in the trainer's corner. If that person feels qualified to teach a class, she should be versatile with any breed, or willing to learn. I'm sure she doesn't have a limitless pool of dedicated clients who want to succeed as much as you - seems like just plain good business on her part to work it out with you.

[PeppersMom]

Brodie, the subject of my first post in this thread got his first RA leg today and his first Novice B leg! A total handler error laden 76 for the Rally and 183 for Novice B!

[bradl]

Cool! Congrats to you both.

[Dirtdogs]

You go girl!!!! I was at a trial and a golden handler was putting her crateu p beside mine- kinda snickered, and said "you are not seriously going to compete with THAT are you?"

talk about shocked- I couldn't beleive someone to be so rude! We may not get 100's in rally (yet) but we have a lot of fun doing it!!..

As far as your instructor... move on! There are many of the larger breed poeple that do not understand a smaller dog, and really don't unerstand the terrier. I have found that I need to keep mine engaged in class by having a little fun between exercises. We high five, learn tricks.... mean while I am listening to the instructor (and actually I have recently gone through classes to instruct my self). My suggestion is to find an all breed obed. club. The members are usually from all backgrounds and offer tons of experiance with various breeds.

I LOVE the spunky happy little terriers. It just takes a person teaching to realize it is often like working with a 2yr!

With my Cairns, if they are not having fun... they won't want to do it!

[bradl]

Peggy entered the ring with Barley one time and the ancient judge said, "Oh, you've trained a Cairn Terrier have you? That should be extra points." We never knew for sure ... extra points *added* or extra points *deducted*? Probably, it was extra points added One judge was so obviously smitten with Stella's jolly work he audibly groaned when she broke her stay. I say, we need more Cairn in obedience. Live it up - perfection is over-rated, and the joys (and exasperations) of working with your Cairn under-rated.