Should I Do Group Classes or Private Training?
Having been a dog trainer for a very long time, I can confidently say classes are the least helpful way to get dog training help. Well-trained dogs are not coming out of classes.
Here's Why Classes Don't Work Well
I prefer training in the real world and with one dog at a time.
Imagine a small training facility with 8-12 untrained dogs and at least that many people… Yeah, it's already a LOT. A lot of noise and chaos and stress.
Now remember that none of these dogs are trained, at least several are barking, some are terrified, and none of the owners know what they're doing. Half the dogs are lunging to reach each other and some of the owners can barely hold on to the leash.
Every dog is starting from a different place, has different learning styles, different drives, different motivation, different genetics, different temperament and personality, and a different lifestyle.
Every owner has different goals, different learning styles, and different levels of experience and skill handling and training dogs. How could that possibly work?
It doesn't.
Dog training, or rather GOOD dog training, is not one size fits all. A cookie cutter approach will not work well for anyone. There is no way that in a single class, one trainer can address 8+ dogs and owners in any meaningful way.
One dog may love treats while another has zero interest - those dogs will need different training. One dog may already know half the curriculum while another doesn't know its name - they're starting from very different places. One dog may have behavioral issues, like reactivity, that won’t even be addressed in the very basic curriculum - they will not get what they need out of class.
One dog may learn quickly while another may learn slower. Same for the owners.
One trainer, even with assistants, cannot give every student 1-1 attention throughout the class. If a student falls behind, they're on their own. If someone keeps messing up, they won't get personal attention to fix their mistakes. If someone is bored, class won't move at a faster speed just for them. If a dog is a slower learner or needs a different method, too bad! One approach and one speed for every dog and owner.
There are many different approaches to training, and a good trainers knows this. I work with a fearful dog differently than I do a confident dog. I work with pushy dogs differently than I work with sensitive dogs. I work with frail, elderly owners differently than I'd work with a young, active owner. Everyone is different, and to try to cram all these differences into one coherent curriculum where everyone stays caught up is not feasible.
Results will be mediocre at best.
And to be honest, this is why a lot of dog trainers don't offer classes. I actually don’t know of a single good trainer who offers classes. Yes, they bring in a lot of money... but they don't actually help the dogs. Or owners. So, as an ethical trainer, I will not teach classes because they don't help. I know that I cannot give multiple people and dogs at one time my absolute best. And that's what you and your dog deserve - the best.
I USED TO TEACH CLASSES
I speak from experience. I used to do obedience classes and puppy classes and reactive dog classes. And I always felt really unsatisfied with them.
Why?
Because I knew I could give everyone more… if they just worked with me one on one. Every single owner I could have helped significantly more outside of a class setting. Nobody was reaching their full potential doing classes. Nobody.
I would see the owner struggling. The owner who sometimes stopped coming because they just learned slower than the curriculum progressed so they felt like a failure.
I would see the owner bored because their dog already knew all of this.
I would see the owner who never should have come to class because before we worked on obedience we needed to address the dog reactivity - which isn’t part of the curriculum.
I would see the dog who I knew needed a different method. And I couldn’t do anything about any of it.
Classes had to progress. I couldn’t give 90% of my attention in a class to one struggling student. And the challenging part was that nobody ever progresses at the same speed. Some dogs were just more challenging. Some owners just struggled with their handling skills.
BUT CLASSES ARE SO MUCH CHEAPER!
Yes classes are cheaper upfront because you’re sharing your time with a dozen others.
But if they're not actually that helpful, are you really saving money? The majority of my private training clients previously have done multiple classes with other trainers, and their dogs cannot perform even basic skills like sit, down, come, or walk on leash without pulling. Why? Because cookie cutter training is not effective - and that's what classes are.
So they've spent hundreds to thousands of dollars in classes only to later have to spend hundreds to thousands more working with me privately because classes didn't actually help.
You are not saving money if it doesn't actually help you.
“I learned more from you in a session than in 8 week of class”
CASE STUDY
One client I worked with had spent years in classes with her multiple dogs. Years. Each one went from beginner classes through “advanced” classes.
And yet…
None of her dogs would come when called. None would down or sit without a food lure. All pulled on leash. They were reactive to people and dogs. They attacked each other.
Yes, they’d gone through the classes and “graduated”… but they didn’t actually learn anything. The dogs essentially had no functional training. The owner had wasted a lot of time and money going through the motions without ever getting results.
In her mind, she had “well-trained” dogs. She saw progress in class, therefore her dogs were well trained. Because she doesn’t know what she doesn’t know. She doesn’t realize how much better her dogs could and should be. And I see this in a lot of owners, the acceptance of mediocre outcomes because it’s better than it was. Don’t accept mediocre when you can have great.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
The other problem with classes? The location.
Nobody needs their dog to behave well only in a training building. You need your dog to behave at home, in your neighborhood, on walks at the park, when off leash on the trails, passing strange dogs on the sidewalk. Training in a facility does not translate to reliable behavior in the real world, which is why I START my training in the real world around real distractions... where you actually need the behavior.
Training buildings are artificial environments. Some trainers go so far as to put up barriers between dogs so they can’t see each other.
BUT ISN’T IT GOOD SOCIALIZATION?
Not really.
Being around a bunch of untrained dogs of unknown temperament on a 6’ leash while frustrated/excited/scared is not socialization. It is simply exposure to other dogs in a less than ideal environment. In fact, it can even create or exacerbate dog-reactivity for some dogs.
Good socialization is my off-leash group hikes where dogs can interact with each other and actually… socialize. They also get to actually interact with people. They can approach and get petted and loved on by people there. That’s actually good socialization. Dogs being dogs in a natural and safe way.
BUT WHAT ABOUT PUPPY CLASS?
Puppy classes are my biggest pet peeve for a few reasons.
My old puppy classes.
First, most places aren’t even doing true puppy classes - they’re doing adolescent classes. At around 18 weeks your puppy is starting to enter pre-adolescence, so allowing 5 and 6-month old “puppies” in puppy class is absurd to me. Puppy class should be for actual puppies: 8-17 weeks, but everyone is so paranoid about vaccines that most puppies don’t get socialized and we have “Puppy Classes” full of unsocialized adolescent dogs.
Second, puppy classes should be all about building play drive with the owner and meeting new people and dogs, not obedience. It actually doesn’t matter one bit if a puppy or adolescent dog can sit with a food lure if they have no play drive and/or are scared to death of the world. People focus on the wrong stuff with puppies, and it’s why I see so many problems in adult dogs.
When I did run puppy classes, I let in puppies, not adolescent dogs, and we did a lot of off-leash puppy play. But still, the best socialization happens outside of a classroom and the best training for puppies isn’t obedience.
TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION…
Private training is better. Always.
Whether you have a dog with a behavior problem, a dog who just needs help with obedience, or a puppy… private training is always the best option. It’s tailored to you and your dog, it goes at the pace you need, and you train where you need to. Classes are none of those things.
If you’re on a budget, it’s better to save up for a private lesson. With a good trainer you’ll get more out of a single session than 6 classes.
IF YOU’RE IN SPOKANE…
And you want real training help, schedule your FREE phone consult and let’s get started!