Dog Training Class
A dog should be handled by one person only. The welfare of a multi-handled dog is always in jeopardy, for no personal interest is taken in a dog that is shared by two or more people, and if the dog is sick, the last person to handle the animal is bound to say, ‘Well, the dog was all right when I saw him last’, and all the more emphatically if the animal is nearly dead. A dog is quite unable to work for or obey more than one handler, hence a multi-handled dog can be a danger to all. Even the family pet has genuine affection for only one person in a household, and obeys implicity only that one.
The ideal training class comprises four dogs and four handlers. They should, if possibly, begin and end the training course together. A class of this size is easy to manage and its members work well one with another. They are able to pair off each day for ’seeks’, ‘tracks’, etc., without becoming too familiar with the dogs, and in obedience training in particular a class of this size will be found just right for giving demonstrations and conducting tests. It will also be found that each dog gets the correct amount of training each day, whereas in a larger class some exercise is almost certain to be neglected. If the four handlers have the good fortune to be employed by the same firm or authority, nothing could be better, since all duties can be made to fit in, including holidays and sickness, when one member’s dog can be cared for by another member.
In training, enterprise very soon become apparent, and four dogs with their handlers inevitably create this atmosphere, as well as a spirit of sportsmanship. I have noticed that the comradeship so built up during this period seems to last for many years both with the dogs and the handlers, lady handlers included.
Men trained with dogs think twice before giving up their employment, generally on account of the dog. If they do animal, in which case it will depend on whether or not the dog can be transferred to another employee.
If it does become necessary to transfer a dog to another handler because the former handler has left, the correct procedure is to have the dog retrained together with the new handler under the supervision of the trainer, as the new handler may know nothing about training.
This takes about a month, if the dog’s previous training was based on the principles laid down in this book. Even then, only about 5 o per cent of dogs will transfer in that period - and much depends on the new handler.