KC Good Citizen Courses

Louilou · KC Good Citizen Courses

Do you have to follow a course? I can't find local courses in my town that follow the training method I was looking for: clicker and positive reinforcement only. I then went to a neighbouring town to a clicker course. There was in incident in class where grey jumped up at the trainer and was swiftly kneed hard in the chest. I know some may advocate that, but it isn't what I thought I would get at this class (tiny entry level pups, and when it happened Grey was about 20 weeks old). I took him out of the class.

But I would like to go through the KC GC award system. SO wondering how to find a school I can go to to do it.

Lou

josie

Lou, the only places I know of are on the links I gave you in the past (I think):

www.apdt.co.uk

www.obedienceuk.com

Even on those, not everyone does the KCGC scheme, and a lot of places only do the Puppy and Bronze courses (which tend to be the most popular).

It is (IMO) admirable that you are looking so hard for a positive reinforcement class (and also gundog training, seeing your other post here), but I do think you're going to have trouble finding something as aversive-free as you'd like.

I'd encourage you to perhaps go to classes where trainers or other handlers maybe do use methods you disapprove of, but where they are willing for you to do what you want to do, and not to force their methods on you. For example, a lot of gundog classes are run along traditional lines, but Adam and I go along with treats and clicker. We don't make a big deal out of doing things differently, we try to do it quietly and in a way that people don't notice much, and to fit in with the class if we can. But at the same time, we'll refuse to do anything which we don't want to do. (That doesn't include just punishments, it includes things like being asked to do an exercise which is too hard for the dog and which the dog will fail at.)

In other words, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater - just because other people aren't using clickers and treats, doesn't mean you definitely can't. At the end of the day, the most valuable part of a class for me has always been training against distractions.

It is also well worth going to Learning About Dogs and doing one of their courses, which will equip you with training skills that you can then apply in many different contexts and enable you to use the classes near you for distraction-training rather than be reliant on the methods of their trainers, which might be dubious. ( www.learningaboutdogs.co.uk )

Lisa

Here is the bronze award specifics, you can also train grey on your own and then find places where you can have the assessment. Many Champ, Open and even Companion shows run them for you to just do the test.

Bronze Award

josie

Lisa is right that you can do the Bronze award at shows. However...you might find it hard to get into a show with a Slovak, as they're not able to be shown, so you can't enter them. I guess you might be able to get into an open or companion show with them.

Oh, the other thing which you can do is phone up a dog training club and explain that you'd like to come along and take the test there, even though you haven't trained with them. (You can just say that you live outside of the area and it's too far to come regularly or something.) Slate did her Silver at a club in this way. It can be tricky because the dog is then in an unfamiliar hall/location and surrounded by unfamiliar dogs and hasn't had the process of the training course to get used to that, but it's another idea.

BritAnnie

Haven't you both missed something here? If anyone had kneed my dog in the chest they'd have been reported to the KC and I'd have written to the local paper. Nobody does that to my dogs. I walked out of our local training class for a similar incident on someone else's dog not mine(yanking the lead and choking the dog - just for pulling on the lead to speak to another dog - no agression involved either)
That is the problem - anyone can set themselves up as a trainer, self-accredited they call it! Is there not some way of constructing a list of GOOD trainers? Maybe we could all contribute?
BA

josie

Well, that's what the APDT is supposed to be. They now have a system whereby new trainers applying to be members have to go and teach a class of unfamiliar mixed ability dogs, in front of a panel. Then they're interviewed. So the application procedure is a lot more rigorous now. It used to be a lot less rigorous - I think your nearest member used to have to go and watch you taking one of your own classes. However, there are still many members who joined under the old scheme.

BritAnnie

Ah, I didn't know it had changed. About time too. I used to take pet obedience classes yonks ago but I wouldn't do it now unless I did a re-training course myself. Methods are changing all the time, but kindness and respect doesn't!
BA

Greyghost

Some of the fun days have an accredited assessor at them for KC tests. I know our trainer on a WA nosework weekend did some assessments once. There is another nosework day coming up in April in the midlands. I could check to see if she will assess for those who want it.

On these kind of events WA members get first priority and you don't have to have a Weim to be a member, so it could be another way to do it Lou and April gives you enough time to 'get your act together'. Very Happy

Louilou

Thanks for the tip! I'll bear it in mind if I don't go back to a course soon.

BritAnnie

The Bronze award can be trained for and tested on at one session - Liz does it at our Club Weekends. We usually have about half a dozen Brittanys at each, and very few fail it. Classes are neded for the Silver and gold.