Has anyone put their puppy through PetSmart or Petco Training classes?

Question

How was it? Did it work? Any Complaints? or Praises?

Answer 1

I'm currently in it. Honestly the only thing that makes it worth anything is the socialization of same size and age puppies. My puppy just loves to play with the others there.

But its $95 where I am, for 6 sessions a week, an hour long each.

We learned sit, stay, come, wait, lay down so far. We practice walking alot in the warehouse and she helped alot with crate training problems people had.

When I signed up for the class, the person told me "this class guarantees you can walk your dog off a leash or at any time in your dogs lifetime you get money back". I don't see this happening yet or at all though.

My trainer owns 10 dogs and does dog shows so I guess I got lucky to have an experienced one. Some trainers are totally new and just get a week of training I've heard. You can ask her anything and she gives a good answer. She said she can help people with agility training or dog showing if they want. Like I said though you have to be lucky to get a good trainer.

In my class, there's a golden retriever, lab, blue pit bull, corgi mix (i think), golden retriever/poodle, and I forget the other one, and then mine of course. At the beginning and end socialization periods, everyone laughs at the "puppy pile" that forms. It's fun. Different from dog parks where there's no structure and usually much larger dogs.

Answer 2

I am actually in a PetSmart class with my puppy right now. Like others have said..is a good "basics" class for a pretty good price. My dog is learning and I am learning as well. She now knows sit, down, leave it, stay. My dog has grasped all of these...and can now hold a stay for 1min. Not to mention her leash manners have improved drastically. Of course it is just the basics, but ALL dogs need to learn those, the plus of these classes is that most of the trainers can give you different options as far as training styles if one does not work. The man that is teaching my class has taken a vested interested in our dogs...he even gave us his home phone number in case we had a question or problem. In my opinion these classes are a good starting point for your puppy..and you will both have a really good time!!! I go every Saturday for about an hour...for 8 weeks.

Answer 3

My pit bull went through their basic obedience and it worked out great. However, every trainer is different and although PetSmart might train the trainer a certain way, how they act with the dogs will still vary. We decided to go there after walking through there to pick up some treats with the dog and the trainer just happened to be walking through as well and gave us some very helpful advice. Bring your dog to your local store and see if the two of you can meet the trainer before you commit.

BTW. the original advice she gave for my pit was when/if they show signs of aggresion towards other dogs put the dog on their back and growl at their neck, like they would do to another dog. Show's them you are top dog and their behavior is unacceptable.

Answer 4

Hi, I understand that you are looking for some advice or resources to help fully train your dog or fix behavior problems. If a professional dog trainer is not an option at this time, or if you want to trt training your dog on your own (a great way to bond), I'd suggest you https://bitly.im/aL68S

A friend recommened it to me a few years ago, and I was amazed how quickly it worked, which is why I recommend it to others. The dog training academy also has as an excellent home training course.

Answer 5

i have an aunt that is a trainer at petsmart....she guarantees her classes...they use positive reinforcement..its fun to watch and to learn...i think that all classes take 6-8 weeks only one day a week for an hour. and there is different levels of training..but they DO NOT train for aggression.they DO NOT even allow pinch collars in the classes...

Answer 6

for our doberman we did the petsmart puppy classes. The trainer was great and she really learned a lot. It worked for us and we loved it. Some people don't have the best of luck since the petsmart employee's arent great everywhere

Answer 7

I liked it. It was a good basic class, I got a discount cuz my dog is from a shelter, and also I could come back as many times as I wanted. The trainer I had was experienced and excellent with the dogs.

Answer 8

I personally dont care for Petsmart/Petco, but I am a huge advocate for training your dog. So wherever you go please train your dog. Ask questions and steer away from those that use aversive corrections and lean toward one that promotes positive reinforcement.

Answer 9

As a professional dog trainer for over 16 years, I have to tell you my strong opinion that you need these group classes for obedience training. http://OnlineDogTraining.enle.info/?1kgH

Other pet warehouses are there to get you to buy their products and hang around their strore. And their trainers are their employees...never forget they have an agenda. Most of the trainers have very little education--if they had actual training and skills they wouldn't be there making just over minimum wage--trust me on this. But even if they did have experience and talent...a group setting is a terrible place for learning to take place. It's distraction training and it is the LAST phase of training not the first. You wouldn't have your child try to do their homework in a toy store, would you? Of course not...the level of distraction would be too high! It's the same with dogs. Having said that, these classes can be an excellent way to socialize dogs...but not to train them. And while they appear to be cheaper than a professional trainer...you have to attend many more sessions to get the same results because of the poor learning environment--so you wind up spending MORE money for less training than you would with a professional. Save your money and go to someone who actually knows how to train dogs. OR, read books and try to train your dog yourself. There is nothing they train at a Petsmart or Petco that you can't do yourself with a couple of hours of reading.

Answer 10

The class was great. I took my German Shepherd when she was a puppy and she learned how to sit, lay, come, walk on a leash good, and how to roll over. You have to put sometime into, but i think it's worth it.