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Old April 30th, 2012, 10:52 AM
Choochi Choochi is offline
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Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Toronto
Posts: 304
Your hunch is correct. You were reinforcing the bad behaviours with the treats. There is nothing wrong with using treats to combat aggression but this needs to be done properly (there goes that myth that you can't harm a dog with positive training techniques!!) otherwise yes you will be causing a bigger problem.

The key is to treat the dog for making the correct decision to not growl or for ignoring, not waiting until it's too late and inevitably reinforcing what you don't want the dog to do! I mean honestly, if you wanted to TEACH your dog how to growl at people this is exactly what you would do!

I would can this trainer and look for a new one. Ask for references, ask for referrals from other local dog people. Look for a trainer who is experienced in dealing with aggression and has a proven track record of rehabilitating those dogs, ask for references from those particular clients and check with them. Don't just hire a dog trainer because they say they can cure aggression or have done so or know how to do it. There are a lot of "trainers" out there who think they know what they're doing and have little to no successful experience. You don't want them using your dog as an experiment and a learning tool for themselves.

RE group classes, that depends. If you are dealing with a special case dog group classes can set you back if you need more hands on help from the trainer and it's not fair to the other dogs in the class if the trainer has to constantly help you. Group classes can be horrible for some dogs/people, and again can set you back if it's the wrong environment for you and your dog. So what if they're cheaper if you won't benefit from them, it's throwing money down the drain. You would be much better off taking that money for an 8wk group course and spending it on one or two privates with a good trainer if that's all your budget allows. I would prefer two with some time in between so you can work on some home work and have the trainer monitor your progress during the second session to make sure you are on the right track.
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