Help? Info On Running Puppy Preschool

[GSD FAN]

:rolleyes: help desperately needed or a trainee vet nurse whos just been told she needs to run the puppy preschool class for the clinic. i need some advice on how to socialise and start the pups with training etc. i am okay on giving them the puppy care advice - eg feeding, vaccinations etc. im currently involved in ndtf dog training course but have only started so feel unprepared for it. i also dont want to get into bad habits with dog training. any advice would be welcomed!

[Rom]

Hi DT,

I haven't had anything to do with puppy preschool so can't be of much assistance. If you look a little further down the page in the training forum, Sammyballerina asked a similar question a few days ago. There might be something there to help you.

I guess as far as puppy preschool goes, some of the things that you might like to educate owners on are:-

Preventative training....stopping those cute puppy habits from becoming unwanted behaviours later on. So, what are the most common unwanted behaviours that people complain about in their dogs?...nuisance barking, destructive behaviours like chewing, jumping on people, leash pulling, mouthing, house training etc.

Independence training....having puppy learn that its OK, and safe to be left alone.

Making sure that there is good leadership in place so that training goes smoothly....The NILIF program could be given.

Also how about teaching the owners about the applicable legislation in your area affects their ownership and what things might affect what they can let their dog do, what are the implications of not adhereing to legislation. EG...what are the rules of offleash parks? What does the owner need to know and train their dog to be able to do in order for safest compliance?

Also a biggie in my mind is that owners need to be aware that not every other person or every other dog is going to love their dog as much as they do, and they are within their rights and in some cases protected by the law to have those rights.....so perhaps puppy preschool is a good place to start having owners realise that they can't or shouldn't just let their dog approach any other dog or person without asking first?

What are and what are not appropriate greeting behaviours between dogs....teaching something about body language and when its safe to let two dogs meet and when it isn't. But also what behaviours should not be allowed when greeting....for example, jumping on the other dog.

Probably a lot more to do with it than that....but thats a few that fly off the top of my mind anyways.

Edited September 7, 2007 by Rom

[Mushaka]

i just finished puppy preschool with Indie...i can give u a rundown of wat my course entailed if u want??

[GSD FAN]

i just finished puppy preschool with Indie...i can give u a rundown of wat my course entailed if u want??

that would be fantastic. thanks

[Mushaka]

Each week we were encouraged to pass the puppy. Wen we held someone elses dogs,we were asked to "check them" as if we were a vet. Check ears,teeth feet etc this is good for socializing and also good to get pup used to being touched by the vet.

We also had periods of free play..We had one Cav King charles the rest staffies in the class,so wen it was free play time,only one staffy was allowed with the Cav(mind u that Cav was the sweetest thing and LOVED the wrestling).

We were asked NOT to pat the dogs that jumped on us for attention.

Each week she went through toilet training,how to stop puppy biting,how to effectively control your dog. Ideas on stopping your dog from chewing on things.

Getting your puppies attention by usin "BAH" if they r doing something u dnt want them to. she gave us advise on halters,lupis,harnesses etc.

She went through what treats to use for training.What will be expected if continuing to train your dog at obedience clubs.

She gave us typed sheets on toilet training,and some basic puppy info the first week.

We learnt basic commands each week,and practised them there under her guidance.

"sit" week one

"stay" week two

"come" week three

"heel" week four

Im a lil hung over lol..too many wines with dinner,,or was it dinner with Wine?,..hmm but if i think of mre i will post it..

Hope this has helped a bit

[Staranais]

Also a biggie in my mind is that owners need to be aware that not every other person or every other dog is going to love their dog as much as they do, and they are within their rights and in some cases protected by the law to have those rights.....so perhaps puppy preschool is a good place to start having owners realise that they can't or shouldn't just let their dog approach any other dog or person without asking first?

What are and what are not appropriate greeting behaviours between dogs....teaching something about body language and when its safe to let two dogs meet and when it isn't. But also what behaviours should not be allowed when greeting....for example, jumping on the other dog.

I love absolutely all of Rom's ideas, but especially these two. Explaining that not every other dog in the world will love their puppy, and suggesting that they should ask before letting their dog randomly approach other dogs since some dogs are aggressive towards or intimidated by other dogs, would be really good information to share. Dog owners who have never owned an aggressive or shy dog often simply don't realise that not all dogs are brave and friendly. And many owners do seem to mistake their dog's rude or inappropriate greeting behaviour as "friendliness".

Something related would be explaining the new dog owners' legal and ethical obligations, e.g leash laws, scoop the poop laws, registration, legal obligation to have your dog under verbal control even when it's in an offleash area, etc.

Also pointing out the pluses and minuses of dog parks would be useful information to share. Lots of people don't realise that dogs can pick up diseases there, or get intimidated or injured. They might still choose to use the parks to exercise their dog, but I think they should have enough information to make an informed choice.

I've also heard of people attending puppy classes where it was a big "free for all", with puppies getting scared or hurt or learning to bully each other. So I'd remind your friend to keep a close eye on the puppy play too, make sure all the puppies are having a positive experience.

I wonder if she could include a brochure with the names and contact details of some really good local behaviourists, in case the clients ever have problems with their dogs later on? You could explain that these are the behaviourists with a really good reputation that are recommended by the vet clinic, which would maybe stop the clients wasting their money and time with a crappy "I've read one book now I'm a dog whisperer" behaviourist if they have a problem later on. (Do I sound bitter? Yes, I've wasted money on trainers with few skills but good advertising! I'm sure lots of people must do the same, and it's both frustrating for the owner and bad for the dog.)

Edited to add - perhaps also give them an introduction to positive-only food reward training, give them a few handouts about clicker, etc? So if they choose not to attend obedience school later on, they still have some idea how to train a dog to do basic things around the house. I've noticed that a lot of novice dog owners seem to have no idea how to even start to teach a dog anything. Giving them some info on reward based training will hopefully prevent some of them from punishing the puppy out of sheer frustration because they don't know how to teach it.

Edited September 7, 2007 by Amhailte

[Clyde]

Could you have a local experienced trainer come and help you with the first enrolled lot of puppies and see it through 'til they graduate? No offence, but I think it's pretty important for a PPS instructor to really know their stuff. You are the first port of call to a lot of first time dog owners who will take your word and guidance as gospel. You need to be confident in what you are doing so that confidence is passed on to the owners.

Good luck with it all, PPS is a lot of fun to teach!

[GSD FAN]

Could you have a local experienced trainer come and help you with the first enrolled lot of puppies and see it through 'til they graduate? No offence, but I think it's pretty important for a PPS instructor to really know their stuff. You are the first port of call to a lot of first time dog owners who will take your word and guidance as gospel. You need to be confident in what you are doing so that confidence is passed on to the owners.

Good luck with it all, PPS is a lot of fun to teach!

yeh thats a great idea. actually i have contacted a few dog trainers via email asking if anyonewas interested in instructing the classes. a couple have replied saying they would discuss it with their delta instructors if anyone would be interested in doing it. hopefully i can convince the head nurse that it's a good idea.

[Miss Monster]

We are in week 2 of our class -

Week 1 - she let them free play, 3 pups at a time in a pen, pass the puppy (as described above), obedience - sit, come, stand, look (focus on owner), stopping biting & chewing hints

Week 2 - testing of obedience trained last week, free play - let 3 pups off leash for them to go play with whoever if any pup still on lead got scared up onto owners lap, obedience - heel, drop, stay, toilet training hints & collar/harness discussions

Next week I think is testing of the previous weeks obedience stuff and First aid - ticks, checking pulses, what's normal what's not etc

Week 4 will be graduation and a bit of agility play

They've given out handouts that I could fax to you if you want them or if you want to know how she taught any of the obedience stuff PM me and I'll try to describe it!

[Working_Setters]

I think it would be a good idea to gauge the experience level of the class members and ask them what they'd like to do. I like to take my pups to a puppy preschool, but as an experienced dog owner I really don’t need/want to hear about how to care for a pup/dog, nor do I particularly want any training advice. What I do want is socialisation for the pup, socialisation with other pups, with other people, and with new surroundings that are relatively safe for a young pup (not yet fully vaccinated) that's why I go to puppy preschools. I've got a new pup coming in a couple of weeks, my first since shifting to Albury, and I'm currently shopping around for a puppy preschool. So far they seem quite pricey, $80-$90 for 4-6 classes, and all seem to emphasise training rather than socialising the pups.

[Rom]

What a great thread.

I just had another thought after reading the general forum....What about a topic on dogs and kids. Since it seems that kids are statistically more likely to be bitten then perhaps talking about the kinds of kid behaviours are appropriate to allow around your dog and what dog behaviours are appropriate around your kids?

[Guest Dianne]

Could you have a local experienced trainer come and help you with the first enrolled lot of puppies and see it through 'til they graduate? No offence, but I think it's pretty important for a PPS instructor to really know their stuff. You are the first port of call to a lot of first time dog owners who will take your word and guidance as gospel. You need to be confident in what you are doing so that confidence is passed on to the owners.

Good luck with it all, PPS is a lot of fun to teach!

yeh thats a great idea. actually i have contacted a few dog trainers via email asking if anyonewas interested in instructing the classes. a couple have replied saying they would discuss it with their delta instructors if anyone would be interested in doing it. hopefully i can convince the head nurse that it's a good idea.

If I read correctly, you are saying hopefully you can convince the head nurse - is she the one who has directed you to run the classes? Sorry I got a bit lost whether it IS YOU or a colleague who has been asked to do this training.

I would be firstly explaining to whoever owns the practise that as you are not yet qualified [and I would presume, not yet covered by any Liability Insurance], that this is not a satisfactory arrangement. Is the practise owner willing to cover you for any misadventure that may take place, or any problem that may arise after the classes are finished and the new owners go home and follow your instructions.

Sad but true, that this is a service offered by the practise and as such should be carefully handled. While I appreciate you are "in training" are you covered by any Insurance - I believe the Delta Instructors are.

I hope I haven't offended you, but I would be very careful taking on this undertaking - I understand you are perhaps between a rock and a hard place, with your duties within the clinic, but remember you are undertaking a duty of care.

Good luck,

Dianne

[GSD FAN]

yes it is the head nurse who has said that i must do the pps classes. ive been working as a trainee nurse for a year and previously a groomer, im now undertaking the cert 3 in dog training and behaviour with ndtf but have only just started and not confident in giving advice. she cant seem to understand it. the nurse who previously did the classes is a trainee nurse too with even less formal training than me and all she did was read from the notes and do the basic dog training eg sit etc. she had no clue what she was doing and sometimes i think she may have even made stuff up. i dont want to be responsible for setting pups up for life when i have no clue what im doing!! im trying to be responsible but when you are threatened with losing your job if you dont go through with it what are you meant to do???

[BaaabyFlynn]

If I was putting a course together - say 6 weeks - once a week - i would do a "unit plan"

I want to help people achiever these things - 1,2,3,4

and this is how I want to help them

So for instance

your goals might be to teach people

1. basics of responsible dog ownership

2. recall

3. sit

4. basic medical stuff owners should know (how to put on flea treatment etc - some owners have NO idea) or basic first aid

Week 1.

Introduction

Basics of their rights and responsibilities - 5 minutes - people dont want to be lectured

a list of useful contacts - emergency centres, dog parks, walkers etc - best to get one together and give them in a puppy pack

Social time - talk about revving up and calming down - and the proper way to meet and greet

talk about desexing pros and cons

Teach recall

Homework: practice recall

2.

Answer questions

Recap homework

Social time

Teach sit

Homework: Sit

3.

Answer questions

Recap homework

Practice recall

Social time

Emergency bandaging

Homework: practice bandages

etc etc etc

those may not be the things you teach but that is the method I would use

[Rom]

yes it is the head nurse who has said that i must do the pps classes. ive been working as a trainee nurse for a year and previously a groomer, im now undertaking the cert 3 in dog training and behaviour with ndtf but have only just started and not confident in giving advice. she cant seem to understand it. the nurse who previously did the classes is a trainee nurse too with even less formal training than me and all she did was read from the notes and do the basic dog training eg sit etc. she had no clue what she was doing and sometimes i think she may have even made stuff up. i dont want to be responsible for setting pups up for life when i have no clue what im doing!! im trying to be responsible but when you are threatened with losing your job if you dont go through with it what are you meant to do???

I believe that you would be covered by your employers insurance....this is a duty that they have requested that you undertake. To be sure, put your program together with a cover note stating that this is the program that you've done up at their request and get them to sign off on it.

If there is something that arises during the class that you are at all unsure of...put a stop to the activity. Nobody is going to hold it against you if you state that you are unsure and would rather protect the puppies until you can get further advice....this is the mark of a professional...don't be afraid to use it. The same goes for any questions that you are asked when you are unsure of the answer. You say that you don't want to give misinformation or make mistakes....the bottom line is that you don't have to. You don't have to be a know it all...you are free to state your level of experience to the clients and let them know up front that if there is something that you are unsure of you are going to take the time to check with somebody more experienced. Your clients will appreciate that honesty from you and they will appreciate that you care to check for the best possible out come for their puppies.

By your description, it seems that the last PPS facilitator had less experience/knowledge than you. This combined with the fact that you feel unsure tells me that you wish to do a good job. That is a good thing. If you let it, the unsureness will keep you honest and striving to do the best/right thing by both the puppies and their owners.

Finally, speak to your boss and see if you can get some contact details of some of the previous PPS clients and give them a call. Ask them what they felt of the service, and if they were doing the same thing over again what would they like to see done differently. If the clients have percieved any flaws in the performance of the previous PPS facilitator, then you'll have an idea of how to tailor the service that you are about to present.

You've been given a fantastic opportunity...don't let your fears get in the way

[Sarah L]

Rom you have given some great advice there. I also think getting a dog trainer into help with the classes is a good idea to. As long as debrathomas can get through to the head nurse (doutful by the sound of it)

debrathomas..... If the head nurse threatend you with losing your job if you did not take on the pps, have you told the head of the practise you were threatend. When I worked as an vet nurse I had some really nasty bitchy head nurses and know the tricks they get up to to make you look bad. A comment you made about the last trainee nurse doing puppy classes with no experience gave me the impression this head nurse can use this fact to get rid of you by hoping the clients will complain about the bad service. If you are doing well as a trainee nurse she may be jelous. I may be wrong and I hope I am. Anyway as I said Rom gave you some great advice and we will all help you in getting this class up and running well so the nasty one has nothing on you.

[Staranais]

Debrathomas, if you can't get another trainer in to help you out (or even if you can), have you considered asking a few other vet clinics if you can sit in on their puppy classes, just to observe and learn from them? You could learn a lot that way, and some of the clinics would probably be happy to have you come and observe their puppy classes (especially if you ask the vets that aren't in your immediate local area so they don't feel as if you're directly competing with them).

[GSD FAN]

i have had a few replies from trainers who are asking around for me with their delta instructors to see if anyones interested in teahing the class for us. fingers crossed!! we usually give goodie bags when the pups graduate but ridiculously we spend a fortune on buying things to put in them. i was thinking maybe asking comanies for samples instead. ive contacted a couple for dog shampoo but was wondering what else other clinics stuff in their goodie bags??

[Kavik]

Things you can put in puppy packs

* dog food samples (you probably get some for free from reps? Or can ask for them)

* treats (maybe liver treats?)

* certificate of completion of puppy class

* notes on the puppy class (if not given out in class) and information on where they can go for further training (clubs in the local area)

* toys

[GSD FAN]

it looks like the head nurse is gonna scratch my idea on having a trainer do the puppy preschool classes. im really not impressed with her and this is the final straw so i guess im looking for a new job!!!