That cute puppy can become an obnoxious adolescent.Many of the behaviors humans considered cute in puppies wear thin as puppy-hood transitions into full-grown.Behaviors like begging at the table, jumping up and chewing on fingers and toes begin to detract from the enjoyable relationship once shared by canine and “master.”However, there is help, and dog owners in the Falcon area have several options for professional dog training.Obedience TrainingKatrina Scott, owner of Friendship Academy Agility Dogs, has 23 years of experience training dogs. She received her first puppy as a gift when she was 2 years old and, at age 12, began formal obedience training.Scott said most veterinarians recommend dog owners begin obedience training their puppies after their second series of shots – around 10 weeks old. She agrees but said dogs of all ages are trainable. Dogs are particularly easy to train up to 6 years old. “Even dogs that have been chained up in the backyard for years can be trained,” she said.Scott said most dogs want to be trained. As pack animals, they see their owner as the pack leader and instinctively want to please. Training the animal enhances the relationship between master and dog and gives the dog the tools it needs to please its master. Even dogs that are considered aggressive, she said, are often just untrained. They’re engaging in aggressive behavior because no one ever taught them that they shouldn’t.Some dogs, Scott said, are tougher to train. Of one particular dog that Scott was having trouble training, she said, “I thought she was the dumbest dog. She turned out to be the smartest dog I know.”Scott said most canine behavior problems can be fixed with training, but the owner must be willing to put in the time to retrain the dog. The longer the dog has been allowed to practice a bad habit, the longer it will take to break the dog of the behavior.Scott’s recommendations for dog trainingOwners need to find a trainer they can work with. “Everybody has a different style,” she said. “It’s not necessarily good trainer verses bad trainer. It’s more a case of style. Find a trainer that fits your personality.”Scott said she believes the hardest thing to overcome is inconsistency in the dog owner. “Dogs are always learning, whether you’re intentionally teaching them or not,” she said. “Sometimes we accidentally teach them things we don’t want them to do.”The dogs’ thinking is all black and white; if something is allowed once, it must be allowed all the time. It’s important that the dog owner be consistent in what is allowed and what is prohibited, she said. “Dogs are the easy part. People are harder to train.”Dogs don’t see the pecking order the way we do, either, Scott said. Dogs think they’re in charge of the kids, so they must be trained otherwise. The more family members can be involved in the dog’s training, the easier it will be for the dog to understand its place in the family.Keep working with your dog, she said. The more you can communicate with the dog, the better the relationship. Continue training even if formal classes are over. Don’t assume your dog will remember everything it has learned; reinforce the training in daily activities.The Friendship Academy facility includes a large indoor training area and an outdoor agility training area. Construction will begin soon on an indoor agility facility. The academy offers nine classes per week, from basic obedience to advanced agility.Agility trainingScott has been operating the Friendship Academy Agility Dogs in Peyton for five years, and has seven years of experience teaching agility classes.She offers advanced agility training, and said it works best if only one handler attends, as the training requires a more intensive, more deeply bonded relationship. She said agility training is perfect for people who want to be active with their dog.Scott described agility training as a natural extension of obedience training, or “obedience put to work.” In obedience training, the dog owner trains the dog to obey such basic commands as sit, stay, come, and heel.In agility training, the dog owner teaches the dog to jump hurdles, run through tunnels and maneuver over, around and through various pieces of equipment on command.Agility competitions are often held outdoors, the dogs are not on leashes and there are many distractions. The dogs are well trained, Scott said. Many of Scott’s students and their dogs have won or are working towards top awards from national organizations.Yzerman is trainedShana Fongemie has been training her 3-year-old Golden Retriever, Yzerman, at Friendship Academy since he was six months old. She said Scott’s reward-based, humane way of training dogs works for her. Fongemie and Yzerman enjoy a close, trusting relationship that works, she said.When they began training, she said Yzerman was afraid of the seesaw (a piece of agility equipment). “The first time he went over it in practice was absolutely amazing,” Fongemie said. “The trust he had in me to finally do it was phenomenal.”Fongemie said the reward-based system builds trust and makes sense. “You would never go to work without getting a paycheck, so why should my dog do all this for nothing?”Other training optionsBark BustersRyan and Erin Brown own Colorado Springs Bark Busters, a national franchise, training operation. Their trainers go to the dogs’ territory.”If you think about it, that makes sense, because that’s where the dog’s life happens,” said Gary Brown, a trainer with Bark Buster. With onsite training, the specific behavior problems the dog has can be addressed. All family members, including other pets, are invited to participate.The trainer asks the dog owner to make a “wish list” of about 15 items that need addressed regarding the dog’s behavior. Puppies get three lessons. Brown said grown dogs generally need one lesson only. The training incorporates body language and voice tone for communication between the dog and the owner.Bark Busters offers a lifetime guarantee. Brown said 75 percent of owners never need the trainer to return.PetsmartDanielle Mattie of the Center Point Petsmart on Powers said Petsmart stores offer puppy kindergarten, a basic obedience course that lasts eight weeks.Petsmart stores also offer advanced obedience, a potty training class and a fun class called quick-a-trick. Classes are offered at various times during the day, evenings and weekends and are taught by two trainers that have been trained and certified by Petsmart.Next month: Cathy Griffen’s own personal experience training her new dog at Friendship Academy.
