Post by Kona on Dec 7, 2004 4:55:03 GMT -5
I'm a professional dog trainer with thirteen years of experience in the field. I apprenticed for three years with an amazing trainer and worked as a guide dog instructor at a great school. After that I was the head trainer at a large kennel, I did a bit of private training in Hollywood, and then for two years I managed a canine day care and boarding facility that I designed myself.
I've worked for large and small facilities, trained dogs for celebrities and for those who couldn't afford my services had I chosen to charge them (I didn't; I just let the next rich guy pay extra), and I've done demonstrations in front of thousands of people and for classrooms of 12-year-olds.
My most memorable student was a blind zen buddhist monk. I spent six months training a guide dog for him, and then he stayed at my school for one month while we trained him how to work with his new partner. By the end of the month he was one half of a wonderful new team, and I was a brand new buddhist.
As part of my apprenticeship I wore a blindfold for ten days straight, 24 hours a day with no break until the end. During that time I lived and worked with a guide dog that had been rejected from the program for her inability to learn the work. What a tremendous experience that was.
I was interviewed for a program that airs on Animal Planet here in the states, and every once in a while it repeats on TV. Usually soon after I'll hear from a friend or family member "I saw you on TV again!"
I'm also a vegetarian, which dovetails quite nicely with both my work with animals and my religious convictions.
I'm currently waiting to hear from an organization that has asked me to raise a puppy for them that will be trained as an assistance dog. Assuming that all goes well that will be a 16-month commitment. I've recently become interested in the BARF diet but I won't be able to try it until after the new puppy goes to its partner, so that gives me a lot of time to do some more research.
Through it all I've been accompanied by a wonderful random-bred dog. I rescued her from the streets when she was about eight weeks old, and she just had her thirteenth birthday. She's looking at me right now thinking "Are we going outside now?" Or maybe it's "Do you have any more of those lamb-flavored treats?" It's hard to tell sometimes.
I don't believe that there is one method of training that is better than another any more than there is one breed of dog that is better than any other. The same goes for training equipment. A tool is just a tool, and any tool can be used to help or to hurt. Some people talk about dogs as if they were toaster ovens, one just like the next. In my experience that’s just as bad as thinking of dogs in human terms. One of the challenges of training dogs is getting to know each one as an individual and discovering what will motivate each one to learn. The biggest mistakes I’ve made while training were when I snapped a leash on a dog and treated it just like the last dog I’d been working with.
I collect books on training so I’ll probably be adding to the section of the forum devoted to books, as soon as I can find the time to sit and write anything worthwhile on the subject.
I've worked for large and small facilities, trained dogs for celebrities and for those who couldn't afford my services had I chosen to charge them (I didn't; I just let the next rich guy pay extra), and I've done demonstrations in front of thousands of people and for classrooms of 12-year-olds.
My most memorable student was a blind zen buddhist monk. I spent six months training a guide dog for him, and then he stayed at my school for one month while we trained him how to work with his new partner. By the end of the month he was one half of a wonderful new team, and I was a brand new buddhist.
As part of my apprenticeship I wore a blindfold for ten days straight, 24 hours a day with no break until the end. During that time I lived and worked with a guide dog that had been rejected from the program for her inability to learn the work. What a tremendous experience that was.
I was interviewed for a program that airs on Animal Planet here in the states, and every once in a while it repeats on TV. Usually soon after I'll hear from a friend or family member "I saw you on TV again!"
I'm also a vegetarian, which dovetails quite nicely with both my work with animals and my religious convictions.
I'm currently waiting to hear from an organization that has asked me to raise a puppy for them that will be trained as an assistance dog. Assuming that all goes well that will be a 16-month commitment. I've recently become interested in the BARF diet but I won't be able to try it until after the new puppy goes to its partner, so that gives me a lot of time to do some more research.
Through it all I've been accompanied by a wonderful random-bred dog. I rescued her from the streets when she was about eight weeks old, and she just had her thirteenth birthday. She's looking at me right now thinking "Are we going outside now?" Or maybe it's "Do you have any more of those lamb-flavored treats?" It's hard to tell sometimes.
I don't believe that there is one method of training that is better than another any more than there is one breed of dog that is better than any other. The same goes for training equipment. A tool is just a tool, and any tool can be used to help or to hurt. Some people talk about dogs as if they were toaster ovens, one just like the next. In my experience that’s just as bad as thinking of dogs in human terms. One of the challenges of training dogs is getting to know each one as an individual and discovering what will motivate each one to learn. The biggest mistakes I’ve made while training were when I snapped a leash on a dog and treated it just like the last dog I’d been working with.
I collect books on training so I’ll probably be adding to the section of the forum devoted to books, as soon as I can find the time to sit and write anything worthwhile on the subject.