The key to creating great classes is focusing less on dog behavior outcomes and more on human decision-making and real-life impact . No matter how much fun students are having , no matter how much they like you as an instructor , no matter how brilliantly their dog behaved in class , if they don ’ t see useful change in their own lives with their dogs they ’ re less likely to return .
The key to creating great classes is focusing less on dog behavior outcomes and more on human decision-making and real-life impact . No matter how much fun students are having , no matter how much they like you as an instructor , no matter how brilliantly their dog behaved in class , if they don ’ t see useful change in their own lives with their dogs they ’ re less likely to return .
A successful learning experience will mean the student with the bouncy adolescent no longer needs to be reminded about creating distance — they ’ ll know exactly how far their ‘ optimal cafe seat ’ should be to other dogs .
Help clients define their own success One of the major challenges when running dog training classes is managing the different skill levels of the students . Do you target the average ? How do you prevent the more advanced students from getting bored ? And what about those who are struggling and need more of your attention ? A well-designed curriculum will mean you no longer have to grapple with this dilemma . Successful classes are designed to allow everyone to succeed and improve , regardless of their current level . The trick is moving beyond inflexible measures of success such as a ‘ 5-minute down stay .’
For example , an alternative lesson for ‘ stay ’ or ‘ settle ’ behavior may involve gradually adding real-world distractions , such as a dog walking past , a bouncing tennis ball , or a recording of dogs barking . Rather than focusing on how long students can get their dog to stay for , or in what position , the challenge may be where in the room they choose to practice . This encourages creative thinking and problem-solving — they have to read their dog ’ s body language , assess the strength of the distraction and their dog ’ s current abilities , and make some quick decisions . Those advanced students may challenge themselves by getting up close for short durations . A student with a tennis ball-obsessed dog may choose to work in the farthest corner , or even in the hallway , just working with audible distractions to start with . If they haven ’ t quite nailed the distance , they ’ ll soon know .
At the beginning you may need to do some prompting : “ Barking seems to be a big distraction for Rover . What might make this easier
for him ?” Telling the student what to do , such as “ move further away from the ball ,” tends to rob them of their own learning . Curriculum should always be designed to cultivate curiosity and problemsolving - it ’ s the only way to succeed in the real world ! If success is defined individually , everyone can participate in a way that works for them . This means more opportunities for reinforcement , which strengthens the behavior over time .
Say goodbye to that list of behaviors ! It ’ s often said that dog training is more about teaching humans , not dogs . Yet too often class curriculum is treated as merely a list of behaviors to teach , which keeps the focus on dog performance , not human learning . It ’ s also not a curriculum - it ’ s a list of behaviors . Curriculum focused on human learners is built around problemsolving and decision-making in real-life .
We tend to judge the success of our classes based on whether people enjoyed themselves and whether the dogs were able to perform the prescribed behaviors . A better yardstick would be how our classes make people ’ s lives with their dogs better . That ’ s what will keep them coming back . And that ’ s good for them , their dogs , and your business .
Veronica Boutelle , M . A ., CTC , is author of “ How To Run a Dog Business : Putting Your Career Where Your Heart Is ,” and co-founder of dogbiz , whose business is to help yours succeed . Harriet Alexander is content curator for dogbiz . Learn all the ways dogbiz can support your success at dogbizsuccess . com . While there , find out more about our newsletter service at dogbizsuccess . com / newsletter-service .
Photo : Adobe Stock The APDT Chronicle of the Dog | Spring 2024 21