Breed specific obedience class

AdrianneIsabel

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#1
Would you be interested in one? What benefits do you see? Cons?

A trainer at my work is looking to add a "Doberman obedience" class even though we offer several obed classes.

I have heard of a pit bull obed class geared to reaching pit bull owners in need but this is new and interesting.
 
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#2
Dobe? Nah, besides not having one, they're not so popular here.

Maybe a class for hounds and nordic dogs though. That way the owners can train at their pace without the BC or Lab next to them acting like a showoff. A beagle or husky is just going to learn at a different pace, and maybe in a different way that some of the herding and sporting dogs.
 

elegy

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#3
I can see the Pit Ed classes because you're trying to reach a specific group of owners, but otherwise, I don't see the need. But hey, if there's interest, why not?
 
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#4
Dobe? Nah, besides not having one, they're not so popular here.

Maybe a class for hounds and nordic dogs though. That way the owners can train at their pace without the BC or Lab next to them acting like a showoff. A beagle or husky is just going to learn at a different pace, and maybe in a different way that some of the herding and sporting dogs.
I like that idea a lot, they're going to learn different and slower and would be better for people's confidence if they didn't have the super lightning fast BC next to them or the class advancing to fast for them.
 
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#5
It's because those Dobermans have small skulls and ever growing brains, so they take a different approach than other dogs :)

Are they that popular there? I just don't see many any more at all. I think finding niche markets are they key to small businesses, but I wonder about the size of the niche?
 

Toller_08

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#6
I wouldn't. I mean, I guess it'd be cool to see a whole bunch of dogs of the same breed as mine in one place and maybe get to know other owners of the same breed, but part of the reason I like dog class is that it exposes my dog to other dogs of all shapes and sizes. Plus, I don't see how I would really benefit from having a breed specific class. I don't use breed specific training techniques on my dogs and don't have a need to. I change things up a bit here and there based on individual temperaments/trainability, but it has nothing to do with breed. Both of my Dobermans inparticular are night and day compared to one another, so I don't think taking a "Doberman class" would benefit them or me overall.
 

Fran101

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#7
Pros?
I guess would be that the trainer would be very familiar (I suppose) with breed specific personality traits and what drives that breed and what kind of training methods seem to work (aka: A class full of border collies might avoid very repetitive exercises, a class full of labs might use more food rewards lol etc..)

You could avoid (especially for agility and such) changing jump heights and such, all dogs will be around the same size.

All handlers will be knowledgable on the breed.. which is a good support system of understanding people. AKA: People who won't gape because your male dobe doesn't like other males or something

Cons?
A bit limiting obviously, only people with that breed can join which would mean less people in the class

The kind of drama that tends to unfold when people who love the same breed all get their dogs together to compete lol I feel like certain breed people are clannish and HOLIER THAN THOU enough (If it's not a _____, It's just a dog... kind of mentality) without giving them an exclusive training club.
I would fear for handlers in the other classes that would have to interact with these people honestly lol

not to mention the "my horse is bigger than your horse" complex that arrises around that kind of gathering..also see: My breeder is better than your breeder lol

Personally? not my cup of tea. I enjoy the socialization with all kinds of other breeds. Plus I love talking to all kinds of owners about their chosen breed and their dogs..

and I have seen things get ugly in the past with that kind of set-up. The training club in FL used to have a Border Collie only class and just.. ick.
 

PWCorgi

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#8
I would love a corgi obed class! Snarkiest class EVER! :p

Like mentioned above, I think a non herding/working beginner obedience or manners class would be awesome, and not so de-motivational for people when their dogs don't respond or catch on as quickly as the border collies or GSD in the class.
 

Saeleofu

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#9
I can see it teaching a dog to focus despite being several just like it right there. I know when Logan sees a collie (or a sheltie) he's all OH LOOOOK! A COLLIE! I MUST SAY HAI!!1!11! so it would help in that department.

(Really, he's not that bad, but you can see he reallllyyyyyy wants to go lol)


You could avoid (especially for agility and such) changing jump heights and such, all dogs will be around the same size.
Not necessarily...
 

AdrianneIsabel

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#10
I would love a corgi obed class! Snarkiest class EVER! :p
:rofl1::rofl1::rofl1::rofl1:

Um, yeah, we had a corgi named Nevile LongBottom in our puppy class once and OMG he was just a rotten brat. He had to stay on leash during play time. :p So, so cute though, by far my favorite client dog.

We do have a huge doberman community here. Like, insanely large. We have several breeders and tons of them. Prior to working here I didn't think dobes were very common here but now I see differently. Every Friday our bootcamp has at least 6-8 dobes and in every class I take I see at least 2, also I have two in my intro to agility class and I only have 4 dogs in it. So, yes, there is probably the demand but I have noticed a huge difference between the Winsar (sp?) and other local show breed dobes and the "outsider" sport/work bred dobes, both can be stubborn but holy drive, size, and intensity difference.

I have a boy in my Intro class that is just a force of nature and I feel awful for the poor owner, they'll get there because she's determined but he's a lot of dog and there are moments even I am caught off guard with his ability to go from pulling like an ox to spinning a full 360 in the air and muzzle punching my eye before I know he's even stopped pulling.
 

PWCorgi

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#11
:rofl1::rofl1::rofl1::rofl1:

Um, yeah, we had a corgi named Nevile LongBottom in our puppy class once and OMG he was just a rotten brat. He had to stay on leash during play time. :p So, so cute though, by far my favorite client dog.
Oh they're all rotten! I will forever and always be convinced that the ONLY reason they live past puppyhood is because they are farking adorable.

Let's face it, there's no way in hell you're killing one of these...



(Gah! Ryan's been torturing me with corgi puppy pictures because he's decided we should have another corgi as our next dog.)
 

Shai

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#12
I don't really see the point I guess.

Around here classes are already divided by skill level of trainers as well as dogs, and classes are often subdivided between two trainers to make sure every one gets what they need.

And agility classes are divided by jump height as well as skill level for all but the most basic (flatwork) and the most advanced (masters level dogs) courses to maximize working time for the dogs.
 

Laurelin

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#14
I like the idea of agility classes based on jump height.

(Oh my word, I almost had a really bad typo there)
 

Saeleofu

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#15
I there's a large population, I can see the benefit. It might not be a bad idea at all. Around here I don't think it would fly.
Very good point. Logan's the only smoothie around here at all, and there aren't many roughs either. If anything, there would be enough GSDs, beagles and labs to have their own classes, but that's about it.
 
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#16
I don't really see the point I guess.
Me either. Honestly I think it does more good than harm to have dogs with various personalities and learning styles in a class. I've learned a lot about expectations and picked up tips from seeing dogs who learned various skills differently than my dogs.

Also sometimes just seeing how something is supposed to look when it's really sharply done is beneficial for me even if my dog isn't as "good" at it as someone else's dog. Especially now that I'm starting to take some Rally classes.
 

Catsi

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#17
Oh they're all rotten! I will forever and always be convinced that the ONLY reason they live past puppyhood is because they are farking adorable.

Let's face it, there's no way in hell you're killing one of these...



(Gah! Ryan's been torturing me with corgi puppy pictures because he's decided we should have another corgi as our next dog.)
Umm... corgi puppies are THE cutest puppies ever. Cardigan and Pembroke. Cute, cute, cute.

I can't believe that there is a corgi named Neville Longbottom. Too funny. :p

Sorry, to answer the OP - It's not something I'm personally interested in, because I like variety. However, perhaps a Nordic or Sighthound class may be interesting for some people. Not so much breed, but breed type?
 

smeagle

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#18
Dobe? Nah, besides not having one, they're not so popular here.

Maybe a class for hounds and nordic dogs though. That way the owners can train at their pace without the BC or Lab next to them acting like a showoff. A beagle or husky is just going to learn at a different pace, and maybe in a different way that some of the herding and sporting dogs.
I don't think they learn slower than BCs etc, but the handling style and how they learn best can differ.

My beagle learns very fast and often works better than the BCs, labs etc at my club, she beats them in the ring too. I think it comes down to how each dog is trained and handled and how the handler approaches different learning styles. Not all dogs of the same breed will have the nerve and drive and temperament etc so from that perspective a breed specific class could be quite redundant.
 

AdrianneIsabel

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#19
I like the idea of agility classes based on jump height.

(Oh my word, I almost had a really bad typo there)
Yeah, not gunna lie, big dog owners at my facility hate having little dogs in class. LOL We never run the Aframe at full height.Plus it kills everyones time (how many runs we get per a class) changing the bars.

We have two EX classes on monday and the morning seems to be mostly big dogs and the evening is mostly small. They've self divided and those classes run so, so much faster than the tuesday night Adv class with a mix all the way from the doxies and papillons to the dobermans and my Sloan.

We really should have "big" and "little" with a divide around 16".

Then we should have border collies and everyone else. jk :p
 

Laurelin

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#20
We are always the only little dog in class. So it's usually I have to go last then go back to back. It's kind of annoying.
 

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