Recommendations for Practice and to Graduate from Level 1 Manners Class
Our classes are very much in demand and our class size is limited. This means that every student enrolled in class holds a valuable spot—and we want everyone to succeed!
Class time focuses on providing the skills to train your dog. It is through your regular practice at home, utilizing the skills learned in class, that your dog will learn. With regular practice, you’ll have a better behaved dog, and will successfully graduate from our program!
Practice, Practice, Practice! Even 5 minutes helps!
- Practice is critical to your success, but it doesn’t have to be time consuming.
- Plan on 5 to 10 minutes of daily practice. Twice a day will more than double your success.
- When you’re training your dog, focus on your dog. No interruptions. For your dog to focus on learning, you have to focus on teaching.
- At first, work in an area free of distractions. As your dog progresses, move to different rooms and add distractions. The goal is that your dog learns to respond in different environments no matter what is going on.
Class Materials and Pre-Class Recommendations
- When you register for a class, you’ll receive links to our short videos. Students who watch them and start their training before the first class session progress much faster than those who don’t watch them.
- The handouts in your class section on the website will help you achieve your goals.
Goals for Graduating
- Your dog will reliably respond to several verbal and/or hand signal cues:
- Sit
- Down
- Come/Here (without distractions)
- Stay (short distance and duration)
- Progress with several behaviors that take more time and practice
- Loose leash walking
- Polite greeting
- Depending on the individual class, you may have practiced other behaviors which are not required for successful completion of Level 1 but enhance your dog’s responsiveness.
Failure to Graduate: Graduation Certificates will not be given for the following:
- Missing two consecutive classes
- Missing three classes during the class session
- Inability to meet the minimum behavior requirements
- Dropping out of the class session
- If you drop out because of an illness, family emergency, or the like, please talk to us. You may be given full-credit to return to class at no charge.
Returning to or Repeating Class
- Students may repeat the entire class session for a reduced enrollment fee.
- Because our classes fill quickly, a repeating student may have to wait for a future opening, but we hope all students will ultimately be successful training their dogs.