Different people have varying ways of enjoying their leisure time in life. There are growing numbers of people who have taken their spare time to help dog owners become more responsible with the care and training of their own animals.
These dedicated band of responsible dog enthusiasts are now working hard to instill that same sense of responsibility into other pet owners and to prove, by example, that a ‘trained’ dog is not only a ‘happy’ dog, but is unlikely to prove a menace to others.
There are thousands of dog training clubs located all over the world, especially throughout the United States and Great Britain, and new ones are continually being established. Owners attend one or two evenings each week and take part in elementary, intermediate, or senior grades. The classes usually begin at specific times, although dog owners often like to sit and watch their less experienced (or more advanced) colleagues go through their paces.
Beginners learn to teach their dog how to walk at ‘heel’, to ‘sit’, ‘come’, and to ‘stay’. Seniors aspire to more ambitious exercises such as scent discrimination and dumbbell carrying, then go on to competitive obedience trials on weekends : and perhaps finally, the honor of competing in annual obedience championship contests.
People of all ages attend dog training classes, and for a variety of reasons; some consider their dog training evenings to be a pleasant night out for all the family, and of course, it can be a great way to meet someone special! But without exception, everyone joins because they are proud of their dog and want to do their best for their pet and get the maximum pleasure from pet ownership.
Who Instructs?
You may wonder who instructs at these types of training clubs and where the instructors obtain their qualifications in the first place. Obviously, there are clubs whose instructors have worked up through the ranks, developing their own training skill while gaining experience at the club. However, more and more clubs are becoming affiliated to non-profit organizations, such as the National Dog Owner’s Association which was founded back in 1953.
Among its activities are the holding of annual residential holiday courses for pet owners, and intensive obedience instructor’s courses, where candidates, with their dog, or dogs (often sponsored by their local dog training club), are given the chance to qualify in the various instructional grades.
The pet courses are helpful ‘fun’ courses : a holiday in which the family dog learns his manners and the owner learns a lot about the dog’s welfare. But to enroll for the instructor’s course is to let oneself in for a hard working week. You will learn how to train your dog in addition to learning to to train people to train their dogs.
