Picking A Dog Trainer
With so many options out there and more popping out everyday how to do you know you are spending your money with a good trainer? We all believe the hunt for a good trainer would be a straight shot, however with no standard that you have to meet to call yourself a dog trainer there are some dangers ahead! Here are some key things when you are on the hunt for a good trainer for your dog!
What you need to understand before hunting for a dog trainer!
Dog training is an unregulated industry. This means that ANYONE can open a dog training business and call themselves a dog trainer.
There is no requirement for your dog trainer to be insured in most states
Not all certifications are created equal
Not all methods used are created equal (more on this in another blog)
What you should look for when hiring a dog trainer
Are they a real business? Are they registered as a business and are they insured for DOG related issues. Believe it or not dog trainers could just carry insurance for damage to their facility and not anything that might happen to you or your dog.
Are they certified through a real organization or did they just take a 10 hour course?
Are they required by their certifications to doing continuing education to make sure you are getting the best training available for your dog as well as to maintain their certifications.
Do they offer a guarantee? Believe it or not this is a BIG red flag. Do gyms offer a guarantee that you will lose weight by buying a membership? No just like buying a gym membership does not mean that you are going to change your behavior (eating healthy and actually working out) a dog trainer can not guarantee any “perfect” behavior outcome for your dog. Think about it, they are not only working on your dog’s behavior they are also working on yours. That is a minimum of 2 different living beings to try to work with not to mention adding in any other family members or animals that can effect behavior.
What methods do they use when training your dog? LIMA (Least Intrusive Minimally Aversive) is a cross the board the recommended method of training by the major dog training organizations. This means that when they are working with your dog they will focus on teaching the dog what TO DO vs what NOT to do. So if your dog is jumping they will teach the dog to sit vs kneeing them in the chest for jumping.
Finally you should look at price.
Questions you should ask and they SHOULD answer!
What happens if my dog makes a mistake in training?
Good answers would be more focused on the trainer adjusting their set up vs correcting or punishing your dog. A trainer should have the skill to set your dog up to get it right more then they get it wrong and should know how to correct their set up if the dog is getting the wrong answer.
What kind of certifications do you have to call yourself a dog trainer?
Hearing your trainer has trained dogs their whole life isn’t a good enough answer. There is so much new science out there about how dogs brains work, how they learn best, the best ways to work with them it is important your dog trainer keeps up with the latest information. Great great organizations to hear are the CCPDT and IAABC both of these require a lot of continuing education to maintain each year.
What tools do you use to train dogs?
While I am not one to hate on anyone who uses any type of tools for dogs because I honestly believe owners who are searching for dog trainers love their dogs and never want to hurt them, a dog trainer should not be reaching for prong collars, e- collars, or choke chains immediately. These tools in a lot of professional dog training organizations (and more countries every year) are banned based on science proving they are not the best way to train. Some of organizations they are NOT banned from actually require the dog trainer to submit a case study on the dog, with a complete outline of everything they have done and tried first and get approval from a board of highly trained and experienced trainers and Veterinarian Behaviorists before being allowed to use them.